From time-to-time I love to give book reviews of books that I think the readers of The IN SEASON Lifestyle blog would be interested in reading.
This book definitely fits the bill; which may be surprising to many. The blogging community that I write for has a Christian world-view with a Hebraic slant. We love and focus on the things that we believe to be absolutely true; especially from a Christian perspective.
This extremely well-written book (Walter Isaacson is an amazing author) gives us the life story of a Nobel Prize winning scientist named Jennifer Doudna. The story is told so beautifully that I paid not one bit of attention to the usually intimidating 536 pages that make up the novel. If you pick it up to read, just realize right away that many of those pages are references; and you will want to read all of them.
You can’t help but love Jennifer Doudna. She was interested in science practically from the beginning of her life and was heavily influenced by a book given to her from her father when she was only a child in the sixth grade. The book was The Double Helix by James Watson, and it’s ghostly reappearance in her life from time to time in unexpected ways will always be a part of her story. It is fascinating for the reader to find Jennifer and James Watson having conversations much later in history. That part of the story goes full-circle in a delightful way.
We encounter even more delightful sharing with stories of Jennifer’s family life, her early years and her love life are sprinkled into the story here and there; but the reader is always pulled back to her career and her dedication to all things that make life; life. She wondered about so many things and she was diligent to study and research until she discovered the things that she wondered about.
Jennifer Doudna’s career story is totally amazing. In the reading you meet and greet famous and outstanding chemist and bioscience researchers. Their characters and personalities all come alive under Walter Isaac’s careful attention to detail. You feel like you are sitting in the research lab right beside Jennifer in all of her scientific discoveries. Like looking into a looking glass; you somehow seem to know how her friendships are going and who she trusts and who she depends on the most. Another tribute to Walter Isaac’s writing skills. He shows us how Jennifer’s husband and son are always encouraging and dedicated to her dedication.
Then comes the big eye-popping moment when Jennifer and her fellow friend/chemist Emmanuelle Charpentier discover CRISPR, an easy to use tool that can edit DNA. At that moment, a brave new world of medical miracles and moral questions open their doors and become a part of Jennifer Doudna’a life.
Jennifer must be given credit for standing up and speaking out about the dangers as well as the miracles that CRISPR brings forth. We read of some horrible nightmares she suffered some nights where she saw visions of all of the good science she had discovered gone wrong.
As time went forward; Jennifer even held a conference with a moratorium to discuss the science of CRISPR and how its use should be granted.
So much good could come of such a discovery; but not if it fell to the wrong hands under the wrong circumstances for the wrong motives.
The reader was continually caught up in Jennifer’s wave of indecision on whether or not she should even continue. Then someone asked her the question in another way. Would it be ethical NOT to continue. I suppose she still struggles with this question daily.
Since winning the Nobel Prize (along with Charpentier) Jennifer has been pulled into the on-going race to create a vaccine for COVID. When I look at some of the people who fund this research; my heart stops beating for awhile and I wonder how she could have ever been caught up with a few of the people that she must associate with day-in and out in order to continue her work. I suspect there are days when she feels terrorized by important decisions and whether or not to speak up on this or that. The book doesn’t make those discussions.
Over all (dispite my personal opinions of some of her backers) I feel Jennifer Doudna is sincerely dedicated to discovering all of the good of this technology and carefully carrying it to all of the right places. Time will tell whether or not she wins this huge battle. She has no control of others; only her own decisions; but people everywhere are watching her to see what she thinks and what she will decide next.
It sounds strange to even say this out loud or to put into black and white print; but possibly the fate of mankind could unfold based on Jennifer Doudna and her colleague’s decisions and discoveries from this point forward. I would not want to carry that heavy weight on my shoulders.
It is my prayer that she and all working with her will continue to speak out honestly and truthfully about all that is transpiring; and that she not get caught up in the nightmare of fame and materialism that often goes along with such pursuits.
Jennifer Doudna has proven that women make excellent scientists. I’m betting on the fact that the built-in DNA of a woman’s nurturing and protective personality will allow her to carry science further into all of the right places for all of the right reasons.
I also hope no one ever decides to edit out that particular gene in women!
If you are a Christian and are concerned about the ethics of gene editing; here is a good link to began to explore the truth and how you should respond to it. https://www.thegospelcoalition.org/article/the-faqs-what-christians-should-know-about-crispr-genetic-scissors/. Sooner or later (I expect sooner) you will be required to make any amount of such decisions concerning your own life; so I encourage you to pray and do your homework first.
This book is very helpful in explaining what is happening with certain elements of science being used in our medical fields today. You can’t make good decisions based on poor logic and reading this book will help those who do not think with a scientific mind to decide the correct path they should be supporting.
I’m not a scientist; so all I can offer here is an opinion (and there are a million of those available besides mine.) I just know that it never hurts to be diligent in these types of life changing decisions. Be aware that they are often life-altering decisions and not just another part of your ordinary day.
In all of the pages of this book, I never heard Jennifer talk about the ethics of abortion, using aborted stem cells, or the religious aspects of whether or not science is trying to play God with our DNA right now. Perhaps these things were edited out; or perhaps they do not exist. I am not certain; but from the pages of this novel, Jennifer just seems to be a very smart, yet concerned chemist who sincerely wishes for science to take the next right paths; the ones that will truly give us a better world. The book doesn’t speak about her faith in God, or even if she is a believer; it simply states that she is consciously concerned about where her discoveries will take us next.
This is a great read and I highly recommend it.
I feel like I’ve sat in on a few more college courses now; and my eyes are opened up to see places I’ve never noticed; or known about before them.
I’ll admit this reading did nothing for the fear factor that I’m always trying to walk away from in this ever-evolving; changing secular world with which we must live; but at least it helped me to know there are SOME people out there that care and are concerned enough to try to help steer the boat in the right direction; the one that will benefit everyone and not just the pockets of Big Pharma and Big Brother.
I will now be paying more attention to the scientist that are out there trying to make new breakthroughs; especially if they happen to be named Jennifer Doudna.