Press Release

Press Release

Description

Cooperation requires conversation. Human beings speak to one another. Sounds, scents, and postures allow animals to make their point. While individual cells can t talk, hiss, growl, or bare their teeth, they nevertheless communicate regularly. Their language is based not on words or gestures, but on chemistry using molecules where we would use words, constructing sentences from chains of proteins. The cells that make up the bodies of muticellular organisms inform, wheedle, command, exhort, reassure, nurture, criticize, and instruct each other to direct every physiological function, report every newsworthy event, record every memory, heal every wound. And each of those chemical conversations represents an opportunity for scientists and physicians.

The molecular biologists who worked for over a decade to sequence the human genome have sometimes referred to that sequence as the book of life. To our cells, that book is no more than a dictionary only living cells can converse, forming the network that allows our 60 trillion cells to function as a single organism.

For nearly a century, researchers have been straining to hear the whispered conversations among cells, hoping to master the basics of their language. They know that if we can decipher and translate this cellular chatter, we have the potential for sending signals of our own that could repair wounds, reduce cholesterol, control insulin levels, or even block the reproduction of cancer cells. The possibilities are as endless as they are intriguing. The Language of Life is a fantastic story of discovery, blending the vision of science with the poetry of life itself.

Reviews

"[An] original and absorbing book on the language of modern biology. ...this book is an invaluable introduction to, or reminder of, biomedical science for many lab scientists, and will also be enjoyed by a general scientific audience."
-- Nature, June 30, 2005

Author Biography

Debra Niehoff, Ph.D., trained as a neurobiologist at the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine and is the author of numerous academic, educational, and general interest publications in the life sciences. Reviewers called her first book The Biology of Violence: How Understanding the Brain, Behavior, and Environment Can Break the Vicious Circle of Aggression, a fine contribution to a debate often clouded by emotion, and a reasoned and intelligently argued position on the biology of violence. She lives in Bucks County, Pennsylvania.

Authoring Organizations

• Joseph Henry Press (JHP)
• More Titles from JHP

About the PDF: What am I Buying?

About Our PDFs

This book can be purchased as a computer file. The format of the file is called a "PDF". To open, view and print the file, you must have third party software (e.g. Adobe Reader or XPDF) installed on your computer.

Benefits of Buying a PDF

• Instant. Buy it, download it immediately, and start reading.
• Convenient. Download it to your laptop and read it whenever, wherever.
• Searchable. Search for any word or phrase.

What are my options?

Will my PDF be emailed to me?

No. After buying the PDF, we will email you instructions on how to download the file from our Web site. The PDF file will not be emailed to you.

See our Frequently Asked Questions for more information including:

• How long will it take to download a PDF file?
• What if there's a communication hiccup when I'm downloading a large file?
• Can I order a PDF over the phone or with a purchase order?

SIGN UP FOR...

New Title Emails
Read about the newest releases and receive special offers.