Gregor Johann Mendel continues to fascinate the general public as well as scholars, the former for his life and the latter for his achievements. Solitude of a Humble Genius is a two-volume biography presenting Mendel in the context of the history of biology and philosophy, and in the context of the setting in which he lived and worked. In this first volume the authors set the stage for a new interpretation of Mendel's achievements and personality. The period of Mendel's life covered by this volume is critical to understanding why he saw what other biologists, including Charles Darwin, for example, didn't. In searching for clues to Mendel's thinking, the authors discuss at length the origin of his genes; the history of the region of his birth; they also spend a day and then the four seasons of the year with his family; and finally they examine the schooling he received, as well as the cultural and political influences he was exposed to. An indispensible part of the work is Norman Klein's artwork. In this first volume alone, it comprises nearly 80 original drawings and includes cartoons that enliven the narration, scenes from Mendel's life, portraits, and plans and drawings of the cities and buildings in which he lived, studied, and worked.

Gregor Johann Mendel continues to fascinate the general public as well as scholars, the former for his life and the latter for his achievements. "Solitude of a Humble Genius" is a two-volume biography presenting Mendel in the context of the history of biology and philosophy, and in the context of the setting in which he lived and worked. In this first volume the authors set the stage for a new interpretation of Mendel s achievements and personality. The period of Mendel s life covered by this volume is critical to understanding why he saw what other biologists, including Charles Darwin, for example, didn t. In searching for clues to Mendel s thinking, the authors discuss at length the origin of his genes; the history of the region of his birth; they also spend a day and then the four seasons of the year with his family; and finally they examine the schooling he received, as well as the cultural and political influences he was exposed to.

An indispensible part of the work is Norman Klein s artwork. In this first volume alone, it comprises nearly 80 original drawings and includes cartoons that enliven the narration, scenes from Mendel s life, portraits, and plans and drawings of the cities and buildings in which he lived, studied, and worked."

Zoologists have categorized primates into a single order, and no one doubts today that they share a common ancestry. Humans and Old and New World non human primate species, from the lemurs of Madagascar to the African anthro poid apes, represent diverging branches of an evolutionary common trunk. Along with species-specific characters, all primates have retained a number of ancestral traits, relics of their common origin. The comparative study of these species-specific and ancestral traits makes it possible to reconstruct the evolu tionary pathways of humans and nonhuman primates. The discovery of the human blood groups and, later, of the Major Histocom patibility Complex (MHC) had a seminal effect on the field of human genetics, providing the first sound examples of mendel ian polymorphisms. The use of blood group and MHC alleles as genetic markers in biological anthropology gen erated a conceptual revolution and persuaded researchers to begin to think in terms of populations and not only intems of typology. The counterparts of these human red and white cell antigens were found and studied in nunhuman primates, and progress in this field is summarized in this book.

From molecules to populations and back In biology, the most vigorous organisms often ensue from a union of two disparate, pure lines. In science, too, laws of hybrid vigor seem to operate at the interface between two disciplines, an interface that often proves to be fertile ground for germinating concepts and new outlooks. The fringes of research into the major histocompatibility complex (Mhc) have provided such an interface several times in the past and the encounters have invigorated fields such as transplantation biology, cellular immunology, and immunogenetics. In the last few years, a new interface has been emerging between Mhc and evolutionary genetics, and particularly the branch of evolutionary genetics dealing with molecular evolution. Mhc research relies upon molecular evolutionary genetics, with its grand superstructure of mathematical formulations, to come to grips with the events leading to and maintaining the Mhc polymorphism. Without the armament of rigorous statistical procedures developed by evolutionary geneticists, the intricate relationships among Mhc genes cannot be resolved. It will undoubtedly be a molecular geneticist who is the final arbiter in the dispute concerning the nature of the selection pressure molding the Mhc genes. And it is doubtful whether the true function of Mhc can ever be comprehended without the vantage point afforded by the elucidation of its evolutionary history.

From the moment it first began to contemplate the world, three questions have occupied the human mind: Where do we come from? What are we? Where are we going? Artists (notably Paul Gauguin), religious thinkers, philosophers, and most recently scientists have all searched for answers. Here, the authors describe how scientists decipher human origin from the record encrypted in the DNA and protein molecules. After explaining the nature of descent and the methods available for studying genealogical relationships, they summarize the information revealed by the molecular archives about the Tree of Life and our location on one of its branches. The knowledge thus gleaned allows them to draw conclusions about our identity, our place in the living world, our future, and the ethical implications of the changed perspective.

The book provides up-to-date summaries on the main systems of blood group antigens and MHC molecules. The human systems are used to explain the necessary background knowledge and the systems in nonhuman primates are then described and compared. The emphasis is on the molecular nature of the gene products, the evolutionary relationships among the various systems, and the presumed mechanims by which the systems have evolved. All articles are written in such a way that they can serve as an introduction to the field for nonexperts and at the same time as a handbook for experts. Numerous tables, diagrams, and figures provide overviews of structure, distribution in different species, lists of known forms, and evolutionary relationships. Extensive reference lists guide the reader through the literature on each topic.