Legal Arena Research Articles

Global Awakening in Genetic Counseling

AbstractThe article by Ricki Lewis, Nature, Volume 449,October 18, 2007, correctly points out that the genetic counseling profession is on the "verge of being discovered by the rest of the world". The rapid recognition of genes associated with single-gene disorders and complex conditions has deepened our understanding of the role of genetics in health and illness. The impact of genetic conditions on individuals and families, particularly in ethical, legal and psychosocial arenas, requires specially trained professionals to work in this unique and growing dimension of healthcare. The Transnational Alliance for Genetic Counseling (TAGC) represents fifteen countries currently providing genetic counselor education across five continents.

Handbook of Forensic Mental Health With Victims and Offenders: Assessment, Treatment, and Research

Back to table of contents Previous article Next article Book ReviewFull AccessHandbook of Forensic Mental Health With Victims and Offenders: Assessment, Treatment, and ResearchAimee Kaempf M.D.Debra A. Pinals M.D.Aimee Kaempf M.D.Search for more papers by this authorDebra A. Pinals M.D.Search for more papers by this authorPublished Online:1 Feb 2008https://doi.org/10.1176/ps.2008.59.2.213aAboutSectionsPDF/EPUB ToolsAdd to favoritesDownload CitationsTrack Citations ShareShare onFacebookTwitterLinked InEmail Forensic social work is a relatively new construct, though the presence of social workers in courtroom settings, defense- and prosecution-based attorney practices, and forensic mental health settings has become increasingly common over the past decade. Putting a treatise together that reflects the wide-ranging involvement of social workers in the field presents some challenges. Handbook of Forensic Mental Health With Victims and Offenders is a recent addition to the Springer Series on Social Work that attempts to cover the necessary groundwork. By collecting 25 thoughtful chapters, the editors strive to provide social workers with a comprehensive, research-based guide to delivering mental health services within the context of the legal system. In the first chapter, the editors introduce the reader to some of the challenges, controversies, and emerging trends in present-day forensic social work. They highlight the fact that most academic curricula do not offer forensic-specific social work training, despite social work's growing relevance within the justice system. The editors set out to narrow this discrepancy between formal education and real-world practice.The ensuing four chapters deal with risk assessment, expert testimony, mitigation, and the treatment of batterers. Although several of these chapters focus specifically on child welfare and domestic violence cases, the data provided can be applied to an array of forensic practices. For example, in chapter 4, "Forensic Social Work and Expert Witness Testimony in Child Welfare," the author reviews differences between expert and fact witnesses, qualifications required to be admitted as an expert, report writing techniques, guidelines for what to expect in the courtroom, and all information integral to effective testimony, regardless of the nature of the case. Because of its general utility and practical guidance, this chapter is one of the strengths of the book.The next nine chapters center around juvenile justice and include in-depth discussions of treatment of youths with dual diagnoses, juvenile psychopathy, racial disparities in the juvenile justice system, and substance abuse treatment. The subsequent five chapters bring attention to forensic programs for adult offenders and offer well-thought-out discourses on drug courts, mental health services in jails, treatment of HIV-infected incarcerated women, trauma and posttraumatic stress disorder among inmates, and recidivism prevention. The final four chapters provide stimulating dialogues on restorative justice and victim-offender mediation.Though the chapters are sometimes uneven in their coverage of particular topics, several elements of the book stand out as strong points. First, the text contains excellent, up-to-date, thorough literature reviews and is well referenced. Next, many of the chapters are followed by lists of relevant resources for practitioners that include useful Web sites and telephone numbers. Third, a number of the chapters thoughtfully consider cultural and gender issues as they pertain to forensic social work. Last, and perhaps most noteworthy, evidence-based practice is stressed throughout the text, encouraging the reader to seek out and evaluate empirical data and apply it to his or her own professional work.The use of the word "handbook" in the title is misleading. This is not a quick, "how-to" introductory reference manual for basic forensic mental health or forensic social work practice. Rather, this is an advanced, comprehensive, and analytical compilation designed to provide social workers with a body of knowledge for evidence-based, culturally competent, multidisciplinary practice in real-world settings.The editors note in the introduction that surprisingly few accredited social work programs offer specialized forensic education. This lack of formal training is bewildering given the current frequency in which social workers play vital and well-suited roles in delivering forensic mental health services. Thus far, few books have set out to tackle practical and ethical nuances for social workers who provide health and human services in the legal arena. One might initially hesitate at the cost of this book. However, Handbook of Forensic Mental Health With Victims and Offenders is a worthwhile investment. It serves as an essential, timely resource for trainees and seasoned professionals practicing in the rapidly developing field of forensic social work. Dr. Kaempf is a forensic psychiatry fellow and Dr. Pinals is the codirector of the Law and Psychiatry Program at the Department of Psychiatry, University of Massachusetts Medical School, Worcester. FiguresReferencesCited byDetailsCited byNone Volume 59Issue 2 February, 2008Pages 213-214PSYCHIATRIC SERVICES February 2008 Volume 59 Number 2 Metrics PDF download History Published online 1 February 2008 Published in print 1 February 2008

Sulh and the 18th Century Ottoman Courts of Üsküdar and Adana

AbstractThis article explores and compares cases of sulh (amicable agreement) that are documented in the records of two Ottoman courts—one in Üsküdar, the other in Adana—in the second half of the 18th century. As a dispute resolution practice, sulh draws on three normative systems: shari'a, kanun and 'örf. An abundance of references to sulh agreements in court records testifies not only to the importance of this social practice, but also to complex interrelations between the three normative systems. Sulh documents provide evidence of the interrelation between the shari'a court and other legal arenas. The judges in both Üsküdar and Adana viewed sulh agreements—even those concluded privately and outside of court—as valid and binding. There were, however, significant differences between the two courts regarding the sulh cases; these differences highlight the connection between the location of the court and its specific legal culture.

Limitations on Religion in a Liberal Democratic Public Order: Christianity, Islam, and the Partial Secularity of the European Union

European integration arose partly out of horror at the consequences of fascism and fear of its totalitarian counterpart, Soviet Communism. It is therefore unsurprising that the European Union (EU) has been committed, to an increasingly explicit degree, to the liberal democratic system of government throughout its history. ( e EU recognizes religion’s potentially totalitarian aspects and therefore requires certain limits on religious infl uence over the law and politics as part of its commitment to the principles of liberal democracy. ( is paper shows how the Union has seen excessive religious infl uence in the legal and political arenas as a threat to the autonomy of the public sphere, to individual autonomy in the private sphere as well as to important values such as gender equality. It demonstrates how EU law and policies in relation to the enlargement of the Union and the integration of migrants have required applicant States and individual migrants respectively to indicate acceptance of limitations religious infl uence over law and society as a condition of membership of, or residence in, the European Union. ( us, States have been required to maintain the autonomy of the public sphere from religious infl uence and to refrain from enacting legislation which enforces compliance with religious morality at the expense of individual autonomy. Similarly, migrants have been required to indicate their commitment to liberal principles such as gender equality and individual self-determination in matters of sexuality, even when such principles contradict their religious beliefs. EU law has therefore, sanctioned far reaching State interference in the private sphere of beliefs and opinions in the order to protect the general principle of the autonomy of the individual in the private sphere. Furthermore, the Union’s attempts to impose

Proving and Disproving Psychiatric Injury

If a claimant who has been exposed to trauma describes psychiatric symptoms to a psychiatrist accepted by the court as an expert, who then reports that the claimant has, say, post-traumatic stress disorder caused by the litigated event, has the claimant proved the medical aspect of his case? Not necessarily. In this article, I will attempt to set out some of the hidden medical assumptions upon which such psychiatric reports are commonly based. This may offer some hints to lawyers about potential weak spots in psychiatric reports, and how to attack or resist attack upon them. Personal injury and employment tribunal cases are the main legal arenas in which psychiatric injury is important. Personal injury, for example from work or traffic accidents, is associated with more dramatic conditions, such as post traumatic stress disorder. On the other hand, employment cases tend to involve claims of long-term adverse treatment rather than sudden individual events, and so tend to be associated with claims for depression and anxiety. However, both types of case need an expert report from a psychiatrist, or psychologist. I have three main points.

Space Weaponization and the United Nations Charter Regime on Force: A Thick Legal Fog or a Receding Mist?

As space technology develops into more sophisticated areas such as space planes and a variety of space-based platforms with the potential capability to carry weapon systems, the issue of space as a theatre of war is a now a pressing issue that needs to be addressed. Underpinning this Article is a discussion of the militarization and weaponization of outer space and its intersection with the international regime on the use of force. It juxtaposes technological advances in the military utility of space and the tenets of the UN Charter against the landscape of the peaceful purposes mantra that underpins the Space Law regime. The Article highlights the fact that the international legal arena now has a new game in the making for which it is in many ways ill equipped to handle as the ambitious military programs of extant space powers seek to utilize the full spectrum of space technology for both defensive and offensive purposes. At the heart of the Article is the argument that there is a need to analyze extant principles on the use of force in order to address the lacunae in the current regime on the use of force as a means to enhance its utility.

Preface: Science for Regulation and Litigation

Scientific evidence plays a crucial role in regulation and law, particularly in the area of environmental health. In the courtroom, science helps judges and juries evaluate the disputed facts, whereas in the regulatory arena, science is a vital foundation for effective government decision making. Scientific research is increasingly conducted by parties who desire to influence litigation or regulatory action, and advocates draw readily on litigation or regulation-generated science when it supports their position. Scholars from in the fields of science, law, ethics, and public health met in March 2006 for a conference sponsored by the Project on Scientific Knowledge and Public Policy at The George Washington University School of Public Health to explore the nature of scientific knowledge generated for use in adversarial or advocacy contexts. Participants at the conference “Truth and Advocacy: The Quality and Nature of Litigation and Regulatory Science” presented papers on whether litigation and regulation-generated studies should be judged by the same standards as those conducted outside of the legal and regulatory arenas, how the incentives and intentions that operate in the courtroom and regulatory arenas shape scientific inquiry, and what this implies about the “truth value” of the scientific work. Funding for the project on Scientific Knowledge and Public Policy (SKAPP) is provided by the Common Benefit Trust, a fund established pursuant to a court order in the Silicone Gel Breast Implant Products Liability litigation. SKAPP staff or planning committee do not provide the funders with advance notice or the opportunity to review or approve any documents or materials produced by the project.

How and Why to Support Common Schooling and Educational Choice at the Same Time

The common school ideal is the source of one of the oldest educational debates in liberal democratic societies. The movement in favour of greater educational choice is the source of one of the most recent. Each has been the cause of major and enduring controversy, not only within philosophical thought but also within political, legal and social arenas. Echoing conclusions reached by Terry McLaughlin, but taking the historical and legal context of the United States as my backdrop, I argue that the ideal of common schooling and the existence of separate schools, which is to say, the existence of educational choice, are not merely compatible but necessarily co-exist in a liberal democratic society. In other words, we need both common schooling and educational choice. The essay proceeds in four parts. First, I explain why we need to understand something about pluralism in order to understand common schooling and school choice. In the second and third parts, I explore the normative significance of pluralism for common schooling and educational choice, respectively. In the fourth part, I show how the two can be reconciled, given a certain understanding of what pluralism demands.

Evolving Relationship between Law, Offshoring of Professional Services, Intellectual Property, and International Organizations

This article covers four issues. First, it examines evolving international conventions to determine whether countries, especially developed countries, can take any steps to inhibit offshoring with the objective of protecting jobs in their respective countries. Second, it looks at statistics from independent sources to see if outsourcing exceeds insourcing, or vice versa, in the case of the U.S. Third, it looks at trends in outsourcing in the legal arena. Fourth, it looks at the intellectual property aspects of outsourcing and presents a long-term vision on how this ticklish issue is likely to be addressed in the long-term.

Evolving Relationship between Law, Offshoring of Professional Services, Intellectual Property, and International Organizations

This paper covers four issues. First, it examines evolving international conventions to determine whether countries, especially developed countries, can take any steps to inhibit offshoring with the objective of protecting jobs in their respective countries. Second, it looks at statistics from independent sources to see if outsourcing exceeds insourcing, or vice versa, in the case of the US. Third, it looks at trends in outsourcing in the legal arena. Fourth, it looks at the intellectual property aspects of outsourcing and presents a long-term vision on how this ticklish issue is likely to be addressed in the long-term.

Climate Change: Legal Developments on Many Fronts

A dynamic set of diplomatic, political, and cultural forces is driving action on global climate change in many legal arenas. These include novel multi-state compacts to regulate certain emissions of greenhouse gases (GHGs), vigorous legislative initiatives by the new Congressional leadership, judicial actions seeking damages and injunctive relief, and private sector responses to the potential new liabilities and obligations associated with climate change. In this environment, pressure is mounting on the federal government to abandon its policy of encouraging voluntary reductions in greenhouse gas emissions and to adopt programs that will impose mandatory and uniform national emission requirements.

The Importance of Disclaimers: Distinction Between Optimal Care and Standard of Care: In Reply

We appreciate the kind words from Slosberg and Smith regarding the disclaimer language that is appended to the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) evidence-based clinical practice guideline on bronchiolitis.1 It is important to note that the AAP's evidence-based practice guidelines are intended to improve the effectiveness of clinical care that is delivered to children by diminishing inappropriate practice variation.We recognize that pediatricians practice in a litigious climate. Guideline authors are extremely careful in their wording of recommendations regarding clinical care, recognizing limitations in the scientific evidence and the potential for disagreements regarding interpretation and applicability of the evidence. Nonetheless, patients who seek our care often differ from those who are enrolled in clinical trials, and there may be legitimate reasons to deviate from published recommendations. The AAP has approached this problem by defining a taxonomy of strength of recommendations (including strong recommendations, recommendations, and options) and by classifying statements on the basis of quality of evidence and weighing anticipated benefits against risks, harms, and costs when recommendations are followed.2Guidelines are used both as a “shield” for defendants and as a “sword” by plaintiffs. They have not been “treated as dispositive, but are considered as one piece of evidence among others that bear on liability determination.”3 Rosoff4 noted that clinical practice guidelines are used not only in malpractice claims but also for coverage decisions made by health plans. They are presented as guidance for clinicians and are not intended to be benchmarks in the legal or reimbursement arena.

IMPACT CONSIDERATIONS OF TECHNOLOGICAL AND POLICY DEVELOPMENTS ON THE CONSERVATION AND USE OF (ORNAMENTAL) GENETIC RESOURCES

ISHS XXVII International Horticultural Congress - IHC2006: II International Symposium on Plant Genetic Resources of Horticultural Crops IMPACT CONSIDERATIONS OF TECHNOLOGICAL AND POLICY DEVELOPMENTS ON THE CONSERVATION AND USE OF (ORNAMENTAL) GENETIC RESOURCES

Hate Crime as a Moral Category: Lessons From the Snowtown Case

Hate crime is more than a legal category. It is also a moral category that promotes tolerance and respect over prejudice. In so doing, the concept of hate crime makes a claim for social justice on behalf of those groups disadvantaged by racism, homophobia, anti-Semitism and so on. This article argues that one of the means via which the concept of hate crime does this is to generate certain forms of ‘emotional thinking’ among the general public, such as compassion for victims and contempt or disgust for perpetrators. The question of whether a given criminal event will be labelled and constructed as a hate crime is thus not simply a matter of whether it meets the minimal definitional requirements. It is also dependent upon the capacity of those who claim victim status to engender forms of emotional thinking that encourage others to see them as the undeserving victims of prejudice, that is, as ‘ideal’ victims. This argument is grounded in a recent empirical study of the Snowtown murders in South Australia. Despite the emergence of a strong ‘hatred as motive’ theme in the legal arena, the murders have never been publicly labelled as hate crime. The article argues that images of deep moral failure on the part of the victims (not just the perpetrators) precluded them from engendering forms of emotional thinking that are essential if the concept of hate crime is to function as a moral category.

Is a Picture Worth a Thousand Words? Neuroimaging in the Courtroom

Neuroimaging has advanced our understanding of how the living brain operates, providing structural and functional images of both healthy and diseased brains. This technology pervades today's society, particularly affecting the legal arena. Some judges argue that scientific evidence, which offers insight into the offender's mental state, is crucial because it is the only means of determining whether an offender's punishment is proportional to his crime. Other judges argue that “objective” evidence does not “wholly determine the controversy,” and focus instead on their duty as gatekeepers to independently evaluate scientific evidence. If courts use brain images to make their culpability determinations more objective and sound, these images must meet pertinent legal standards and shed light on medical conditions. For neuroimaging to meet these legal and medical standards with scientific integrity, scientists must convincingly correlate the dynamic images in a person's brain with the way the person is thinking or acting at that moment.

Uneasy detente: strengthening the market's adaptation of the GNU General Public License in common law jurisdictions

Legal context. The phenomenon of open source software, and especially the exponential growth of its most successful project, Linux, has spawned one of the most hotly debated topics in technical and legal communities. The communities attempt the balance the limitation of software licenses in contract and copyright law with the goals of open source software.Key points. This article evaluates common law approaches to software licenses, and examines the applicability of international sales of goods treaties. The American adaptation of copyright law to computer software provides a foundation for analysing decisions in Navitaire v easyJet Airline and Ibcos Computers v Barclays Mercantile Highland Finance. It describes the Linux community's adaptation of open source development models to accommodate the realities of copyright law while encouraging participation from commercial vendors and their considerable resources.Practical significance. Courts and market inertia will force both the open source and closed source models to coexist. Legal practitioners worldwide have the opportunity to help the software community embrace both open source and closed source developers by explaining the utility of this adaptation in both legal and technical arenas.

Homicide: A Psychiatric Perspective. Second Edition

stress disorder in juveniles, or Bhot topics[ like school shootings are also lacking. Although the basic requirements of a child custody evaluation are provided, evaluators who need to understand some of the more complex issues such as parental alienation and move-away cases should be directed to other resources. So what sets the third edition of Psychological Evaluations for the Courts apart? First and foremost, it is a Bhow to[ for working with the courts, laden with legal scholarship. Dr. Melton has significant background in child-related issues. He was the former president of Child Watch and a past President of the American Psychological Association’s Child and Family Services Section. The other authors are pioneering legal scholars and forensic psychologists, who have made important contributions to the field of forensic psychology. Given this expertise, the authors cover areas that are fundamental to understanding and applying psychiatric knowledge to the legal arena extremely well. Failure to appreciate the core principles of the science of forensic psychiatry often undermines the efficacy of the opinions of well-meaning but untrained clinicians. The distinctions between clinical and forensic assessments are certainly identified and stated, as are ethical concerns and double agency. There is also a section dedicated to criminal processes as they relate to special populations such as mentally retarded and juvenile defendants. Finally, the authors offer detailed guidelines on how to systematically collect the diverse data streams that are necessary to render an informed opinion and include helpful templates. The sample reports are diverse and succinct and highlight the key elements that the courts require from practitioners. There is a relatively small section in this book that is dedicated toward juveniles and covers four separate topics: juvenile delinquency, child abuse and neglect, child custody and divorce, and education and habilitation. However, there are many other parts of the book relevant to child and adolescent psychiatrists who interface with the courts. These include discussions of Miranda warnings, malingering, juvenile defendants within the adult criminal court, and issues of insanity evaluations. Moreover, 175 pages of endnotes provide a wealth of legal and scientific references. These endnotes are a useful addition to the book’s chapters, with examples and brief discussions that help anchor the didactic material and provide an avenue for those who are interested to do more research in these areas. There is also a short but helpful glossary that both mental health professionals and officers of the court will find helpful. In conclusion, the strength of this book lies in the fact that it is written predominantly from a legal perspective and therefore offers mental health professionals insight into that different realm. Psychological Evaluations for the Courts is an invaluable resource for child and adolescent psychiatrists

Ergonomics and regulatory politics: The Washington State case

Every year in the State of Washington more than 50,000 workers experience a work related musculoskeletal disorder (WMSD), making up more than 30% of all worker compensation cases. In 2000, the Washington State Department of Labor and Industries (L&I) adopted a workplace ergonomics rule requiring employers to reduce worker exposure to hazards that cause or contribute to WMSDs. In 2003, the ergonomics rule was repealed by a margin of 53.5-46.5 in a statewide voter initiative. The official rulemaking record of approximately 100,000 pages, along with supplementary published and unpublished material, was reviewed. The relationship between scientific deliberation and the public policy process in adopting and repealing the ergonomics rule was assessed and described. The deliberative features of the regulatory, judicial, legislative, and ballot processes were compared. The ergonomics rule was successful in the regulatory and legal arenas where the process was most transparent and open to public involvement, differing views could be presented fully, and decision makers were expected to explain their decisions in light of the record. The rule fared most poorly in the legislature and at the ballot box when these features were lost and where considered deliberation was replaced by unconstrained political conflict. Additional checks and balances are needed.

Men and Women: Gender, Judaism and Democracy (review)

Reviewed by: Men and Women: Gender, Judaism and Democracy Marla Brettschneider Men and Women: Gender, Judaism and Democracy, edited by Rachel Elior. Jerusalem and New York: Urim Publications, Lambda Publishers, Inc. and the Van Leer Jerusalem Institute, 2004. 214 pp. $22.00. Elior's most recent edited publication, Men and Women: Gender, Judaism and Democracy, is a collection of essays originating from papers prepared for a 1998 conference held in Jerusalem. The conference, of the same name, was organized to explore "the changing meanings of gender reality within Israeli culture" (p. 11), and was sponsored by the Van Leer Jerusalem Institute. The contributors to the book, and former participants in the conference, are engaged in an "ongoing dialogue between tradition and progress and between Judaism and democracy" (p. 14). The Framework for Contemporary Jewish Thought and Identity at Van Leer conducts the ongoing dialogue. As a (U.S.) political philosopher whose training is in democratic theory and whose work crosses critical theory and Jewish political theory, I am one feminist theorist who would love to participate in such a dialogue. Given the range of fields of specializations covered in the collection, I am sure many U.S. scholars would [End Page 156] appreciate such an opportunity to meet over time for concerted discussion under similar auspices. With this slim volume, some of the fruits of what I can only assume is a lively and challenging exchange are now available to those beyond the circle meeting through Jerusalem's Van Leer. As is often the case in volumes produced from conference papers, the articles are uneven: in length, in method, analytic frame, etc. Also, the use of gender as a somewhat "unifying" lens does not necessarily mean that each piece offers a "feminist" analysis, that the writers all understand themselves as feminists, or that there is a single feminist approach among the feminists. This, however, does not mean that there aren't many significant contributions made in the collection, and much material that could be very useful for additional feminist work. The volume is organized into four conceptual sections: pieces addressing questions of law, history, socio-religious encounters in the past, and the educational process. Many use what the editor and authors term "a gender perspective." Clarification of what that means, and its relation to various forms of feminist scholarship and debate in the academy and society, would have been helpful. The volume offers interesting pieces on such wide-ranging subjects as suffrage, divorce law, a religious minyan, the Haskalah, and monogamy from a variety of gender-based perspectives. Orit Kamir presents a constructive argument for using the notion of "human dignity" in legal arenas in the Israeli context where appeals to gender equality have little efficacy, such as in religious courts. Many pieces in the volume attempt to make sense of a divide perceived between secular democratic arenas and what are called religious or traditional oppressive arenas in Israel. In a poignant example, in forming a minyan on a kibbutz, Chana Safrai asks why Israeli men may make inegalitarian presumptions regarding representation even within highly egalitarian contexts. Although not every piece addresses operative challenges to gender equality in Israel, it is interesting to note the tone and nature of the explorations coming from scholars for whom political analyses occur within the context of a Jewish state. Worthy of analysis itself is the comparative need for and nature of gender-based political philosophy where Judaism, as in the title of the text, is inherently central (though certainly in different ways) to authoritative structures and in diaspora contexts where what is called Jewish may or may not be religious and must make a claim as authoritative. Living outside of Israel I find this potential comparison a fascinating, probably unintended, sub-text of the volume. I also find the intensity of the need for democracy as a strategy for gender justice palpable in the essays in a way that I would venture would be less so in Jewish feminist collections outside Israel. [End Page 157] Elior and some of the contributors are clear that "democracy" is not static and that there may be differences between democratic ideals and democracies in practice. The tradition...

From Genes to Embryo and Beyond

The study of embryology goes back to the nineteenth century when Karl Ernst von Baer recognized that there are similarities between embryos of different species and that those similarities disappear as the embryos mature into adults. This notion was later observed and studied by Charles Darwin, who established the idea of a common ancestor to explain embryological similarities. Developmental biology has been growing exponentially as a field since the 1970s when biochemical techniques and later on molecular techniques allowed most of the studies that have defined the field to its current status. Nobel Laureate Christiane Nusslein-Volhard, who pioneered along with Eric Wieschaus the discovery of genes that guide development in the fruit fly Drosophila, has taken on the gigantic task of writing a historical and sociopolitical account of developmental biology primarily for a lay audience. No one is more qualified than Nusslein-Volhard because she has carried out pioneering developmental genetics work in invertebrates and more recently in the vertebrate zebrafish (Danio rerio) and currently directs the Max Planck Institute for Developmental Biology in Tubingen, Germany. Coming to Life, with a main text of 145 pages, addresses in 10 chapters major highlights that have shaped the field of developmental biology and how current scientific and social issues can be understood and perhaps adequately addressed in light of a more accurate understanding of embryonic development. The first nine chapters take the reader to various milestones in genetics, development, and biology in general. Each one of these nine chapters includes hand-drawn figures, which give a personal touch to the narrative and perhaps makes the content less intimidating to the layperson. The last chapter, “Current Topics,” is the author's personal manifesto of how to use understanding of development to be well-educated consumers of science and some of the issues that emerge from misuses and misunderstandings of scientific information.