Table of Contents
Prologue xi
At the Harbour xi
At the Market xiii
The Mystery (and Sperm) of Life's Origins 3
Deus ex Machina 3
The World Egg 7
Spontaneous Generation and Meat Broth 14
Preformation or Epigenesis? 22
Types and Rhythms of Embryos 37
Cell from a Cell 44
The Feats of the Sea Urchin 51
Chromosomes, Mendelian Factors and Evolution 63
Roasted Capon 63
The Immortal Germplasm 65
Reduction Division 78
A London Pigeon Sale 88
The Orchard of Evolution 102
Peas and Minotaur 108
Galton and Mendel 120
Two Sperm, One Ovum 132
The Triumph of Genes 149
Trickster Mendelians 149
Sex Chromosomes 156
The Telltale White Eye 166
Genetic Mapping 174
Forces and Reactions 191
The Mathematics of Life 191
The Two-Headed Newt 201
Zeus's Beard 210
Evolutionary Synthesis 211
The Casting Moulds of Genes 219
Fronts on the Wings of a Moth 228
The Birth of Patterns 239
The Atoms of Life 249
Hormones in Larva Blood 249
One Gene, One Enzyme 261
The Protein-Genes 271
The Principle of Transformation 281
The Triple Helix 291
DNA with Ambrosia 303
Codes and Links 317
The Central Dogma 317
The Diamond Code of Proteins 327
The Genetic Code 339
A Molecular Lung 352
Sugar-Consuming Bacteria 364
Genes in the Mortar 379
Epigenesis and Genetics 379
A Recipe for Making Mice 389
The Wiring of a Worm's Brain 396
Recombinant DNA 404
Striped Embryos 414
Our Worm Ancestors 427
The Age of Genomics 441
Beyond Genes 453
Postcard to Thrace 453
The Cedar Forest of Abdera 454
The Philosophy of Biology 457
The Genetics of the Biosphere 465
Biscuits Baked in Ash 474
On the Island of Bensalem 475
Epilogue 483
On Mount Olympus 483
The Bay of Abdera 486
Appendix 491
A Chronology of Events Discussed in the Book 491
Further Reading 499
List of Figures 505
Index 515
