Although as part of my general plan, this book is a continua tion of my earlier monograph "Protein Biosynthesis and Problems of Ontogenesis,"* published in 1963, in all other respects it is an independent work. The earlier monograph was devoted to the analysis of many of the aspects of the problem of protein biosynthesis, and problems of inheritance and development were discussed only insofar as they are derivatives of the problems of biosynthesis. The complex act of protein biosynthesis, comprising autore production of the genetic material (DNA), formation of the templates of protein synthesis (messenger RNA), synthesis of amino acid carriers (transfer RNA), formation of ribosomes and polysomes, activation of amino acids, and so on, was examined in the previous monograph not merely from the standpoint of interaction between the components of this system, but also from that of their mani festation in actual biological systems during morphogenesis and aging of the organism. However, both morphogenesis and aging were investigated very generally, Simply as models, without any detailed analysis of their specific features and complexity. The present book is therefore a logical continuation of its prede cessor. It rests largely on a comprehensive analysis of the molecular-genetic and biochemical aspects of development and differentiation of living organisms, and questions of protein biosyn thesis are discussed briefly and generally, and only so far as is necessary for fulfillment of the primary task. * Zh. A. Medvedev. 1966. Protein Biosynthesis and Problems of Heredity. Developement.

Two prominent Soviet dissidents portray Khrushchev in power as a shrewd, complex, decisive, and impetuous innovator, impatient to remedy defects in the Soviet system but carried away by initial successes.

"A damning history of the Chernobyl affair, from its origins in the plant's primitive design and careless management to the economic and political crisis the accident precipitated." —Clenn Garelik, New York Times Book Review

On the morning of 26 april 1986, a Soviet nuclear plant at Chernobyl, near Kiev, exploded, pouring radioactivity into the environment, setting off the worst disaster in the history of nuclear energy. In the aftermath, more than 130,000 people had to be evacuated from the central contaminated zone and permanently resettled: a million live under radiological watch in high-radioactivity zones; over 600,000, including 250,000 children, are entered in a medical register—as in Hiroshima and Nagasaki—for the rest of their lives; nearly three million acres of agricultural land are lost for decades. Here now is the first comprehensive analysis of the causes and long-term global effects of the catastrophe. Informed by deep political as well as scientific knowledge, The Legacy of Chernobyl is a full and accessible account of this terrible event.

"The real causes and effects of the Chernobyl nuclear disaster, comprehensively recounted. . . . Medvedev is perhaps uniquely suited to clear up the frightening mystery that still surrounds 'the most expensive accident is human history.' . . . A sobering, important work." —Kirkus Reviews

"A major contribution to the literature. . . . Medvedev sees Chernobyl as a watershed in the use of nuclear energy and the policies that control it." —Booklist

In March 1985, without the usual long delay and speculation, Mikhail Gorbachev, at fifty-four years of age, became the youngest Soviet leader since Stalin. Gorbachev belongs to a new generation of Communist leaders, a generation that did not experience the suffering and fear that Gorbachev s predecessors did who came to power under Stalin. He is a product of the system, not one of its creators. Within a year his vigorous style had made him a well-known political figure throughout the world. In this book, Zhores A. Medvedev, author of an acclaimed biography of Yuri Andropov and many other books on Soviet history, looks at the inner workings of Soviet leadership and at Gorbachev the man and his rise to power. For the paperback edition, Mr. Medvedev has provided a new chapter on recent events, including the Chernobyl disaster: its long-range effects and what is revealed about Gorbachev s leadership and Soviet decision making.