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Introducing Graphic Guides

Introducing Genetics: A Graphic Guide

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"Introducing Genetics" takes readers on a journey through this new science to the discovery of DNA and the heart of the human gene map. In everyday life, many of us increasingly have to make moral decisions where genetics plays a part. This book gives us the information to do so.

344 pages, Kindle Edition

First published January 1, 1993

About the author

Steve Jones

269 books122 followers
Librarian’s note: There is more than one author in the Goodreads database with this name.

John Stephen Jones is a Welsh geneticist and from 1995 to 1999 and 2008 to June 2010 was Head of the Department of Genetics, Evolution and Environment at University College London. His studies are conducted in the Galton Laboratory. He is also a television presenter and a prize-winning author on the subject of biology, especially evolution. He is one of the contemporary popular writers on evolution. In 1996 his writing won him the Royal Society Michael Faraday Prize "for his numerous, wide ranging contributions to the public understanding of science in areas such as human evolution and variation, race, sex, inherited disease and genetic manipulation through his many broadcasts on radio and television, his lectures, popular science books, and his regular science column in The Daily Telegraph and contributions to other newspaper media".

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5 stars
60 (15%)
4 stars
139 (35%)
3 stars
137 (35%)
2 stars
42 (10%)
1 star
11 (2%)
Displaying 1 - 30 of 44 reviews
Profile Image for Isaac.
108 reviews54 followers
June 6, 2008
This is a good introduction to the subject, and takes care to highlight dangerous ideological distortions of the past like racism and eugenics. To be sure, this is the most political field of scientific inquiry. Besides nephology, of course.
Profile Image for Li .
78 reviews
August 4, 2024
Good analogies for complex topics! It is old (2000s) so many has changed but i love the recap!!
Profile Image for H. Givens.
1,840 reviews34 followers
July 29, 2015
Sort of like a streamlined textbook, with lots of comical illustrations and a basic text. I was expecting the graphics to be more related to the material, and instead they're mostly just illustrations (pictures of the scientists involved, people making puns based on the content, etc.). Still, it's a good intro or review.
25 reviews
November 5, 2023
I expected this to be more about information rather than the history, this gives insight to the characters behind the science of genetics. The images don't often have a clear correlation to the text itself, but it does tell it one way or another. This is one of the few books that I've rated under 4 stars because it seems as if it's spewing information in random clutters without dividing them into chapters. I understand that this is a guide but having some organization would be a good idea to not rub all the information in the readers' faces.
Profile Image for Gulo.
123 reviews5 followers
September 4, 2019
Great intro/refresher. Passed on to middle school aged neighbor after reading.

My one takeaway quote:

"Genetics turned out to be much more complicated than seemed reasonable to imagine. Biology is not like physics. The more we know, the less it seems there is one final explanation waiting to be discovered."
- S. Jones and B. Von Loon
Profile Image for Dani.
250 reviews2 followers
January 5, 2020
I love the graphic guides and was quite excited to find this one in a bookshop. This one could really do with updating though. It’s fine for the historical background but doesn’t seem to have been updated for about 20 years - which for this subject is a very long time!

It did help my basic understanding though, which was kind of the point.
12 reviews1 follower
June 15, 2023
This was great a introduction for someone not familiar with the field, a bit stereotypical and racist in a few pages, certain cultures and program from authors country would be a historic event while other countries and cultures would be just painted with a broad stroke which isn't new but otherwise a good read.
Profile Image for Stephen Huntley.
161 reviews5 followers
July 26, 2017
These graphic guides are awful; dreadful explanations and poorly illustrated with dire attempts at humour that irritate rather than illuminate. In trying to be cool they are instead threadbare, disjointed, messy and come across as cheap and thrown together. Don't waste your time.
Profile Image for Adriane.
422 reviews15 followers
November 11, 2018
Cute idea

The author did a basic overview of genetics and used public domain antique graphics to add a bit of punch. It's a really good idea even tho I sometimes found myself quite distracted by the graphics
4 reviews
May 14, 2020
Enjoyable

It is a good book with lots of pictures and humour. The book could be updated but gives you a very good understanding of genetics but doesn't give the whole pictures on how genes work ect...
Profile Image for Frank.
17 reviews1 follower
November 26, 2020
Great read

Despite belonging to science stream i had my fair share problems in understanding of chromosome. This book gave a concise and thorough explanation about all the chromosome related topics.
Profile Image for Michael Bee.
58 reviews10 followers
April 20, 2021
Mrna transcription retrovirus

Mr na DNA messenger transcription this was a helpful text to understand some of these mysterious terms. Good overview. Illustrations great aid to emphasis underscore different points
Profile Image for Ahmed Farahat.
Author 13 books92 followers
January 20, 2022
دليل مبسط لأساسيات علم الوراثة، وتتبع تاريخه منذ البداية وحتى البدء في مشروح الخريطة الجينية..
يعيب الكتاب أن فهمه يحتاج لمن له معرفة سابقة بعلم ا��وراثة، وليس دليل لمن يريد أن يعرف الأساسيات، على عكس ما يبدو على الكتاب نفسه، ولكنه في النهاية كتاب متوسط مفيد لشريحة كبيرة من القراء.
Profile Image for Rakesh.
72 reviews8 followers
June 30, 2019
Brief introductory book that covers a large canvass of the background and concept. I like the illustrations which though sometimes irrelevant to topic they makes it interesting and light.
Profile Image for Kim Sasso.
369 reviews36 followers
November 29, 2020
It will probably take a third reading but I am determined to understand this stuff! Where are my ASC science major friends when I need them?
Profile Image for Gladys Lopez.
197 reviews1 follower
July 20, 2021
Great book to remember what I learned at school. Also great sarcasm and cartoons which makes the book easy and fun to read.
1 review
October 1, 2021
Quite racist, sexist and altogether just childish. It does display the information in an easy to digest form, but also has a lot of unnecessary comments and outdated opinions, would not reccomend.
Profile Image for Anna.
7 reviews1 follower
November 8, 2021
very detailed and slightly unsettling explanation of eugenics but not too bad for a street find
Profile Image for Andrew.
129 reviews
January 15, 2022
The policy and ethical considerations of genetic research were considered and explained well, but the science was a dense and whirlwhind that was hard for a non-science person to understand.
Profile Image for Brian.
Author 3 books34 followers
February 15, 2022
It isn’t a bad primer, but it’s already a few decades behind, and some of the more sensitive elements could be dealt with a bit better. It’s the first one of these that I’ve felt might be outdated.
Profile Image for Justīne.
9 reviews1 follower
March 27, 2020
Almost like watching doodle video with a lengthy introduction to history.
Only the last third of the book was what I was looking for - genetics introduced and explained entertainingly.
Profile Image for Shokoofeh.
21 reviews1 follower
February 8, 2024
Interesting, innovative and really funny!
What i wish my science classes were like.
Im not sure someone with zero background in biology would follow along but for me it was such a nice recap!
Profile Image for Marjolein.
203 reviews3 followers
March 4, 2017
Cool book! Very informative, sometimes a bit complicated even it being graphic. Still I really liked reading it!
Displaying 1 - 30 of 44 reviews

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