The Fast-Moving Field of Molecular Biology

Abstract

I must admit that among biological disciplines, molecular biology is my first love. That's why Horace Freeland Judson's The Eighth Day of Creation appealed to me so much. It is a history of molecular biology from the 1940s to the early 1970s. Though I was familiar with the results of this research, I wasn't familiar with its history-the false starts, wrong turns, and surprises of discovery. The book is divided into three sections. The first deals with DNA and the discovery of its significance and its structure. The second part describes how the three types of RNA were found. Judson also discusses how the genetic code was broken, and how Jacob and Monod worked out the operon model of gene control. Max Perutz's 30 years of work on the structure of hemoglobin is the focus of the book's final section. Molecular biology is exciting for me because it means getting down to basics, seeing how things work. The Eighth Day of Creation captures that excitement. Quoting from interviews with scientists who were immersed in this work, Judson recounts their disappointments, their wrong turns, their enthusiasms. Every science has experienced periods of great discovery when brilliant minds work feverishly to find the next clue, when the next breakthrough is in the air. During these times, researchers can feel that Maura C. Flannery is Associate Professor of Biology at St. John's University, Jamaica, NY 11439. She earned a B.S. in biology from Marymount Manhattan College and an M.S., also in biology, from Boston College. Her major interest is in communicating science to the nonscientist. She has developed a biology course for criminal justice majors as well as courses in reproductive biology and in the future impact of biological research.