Synopses & Reviews
One of the most dramatic stories of genetic discovery since James Watson's The Double Helix, The Seven Daughters of Eve reveals the remarkable story behind a groundbreaking scientific discovery. After being summoned in 1997 to an archaeological site to examine the remains of a five-thousand-year-old man, Bryan Sykes ultimately was able to prove not only that the man was a European but also that he has living relatives in England today. In this lucid, absorbing account, Sykes reveals how the identification of a particular strand of DNA that passes unbroken through the maternal line allows scientists to trace our genetic makeup all the way back to prehistoric times, to seven primeval women, the Seven Daughters of Eve.
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"Sykes has solved some of the hottest debates about human origins." Publishers Weekly
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"Sykes recounts his tale of discovery with the drama it warrants...gripping." New York Times Book Review
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"Sykes has become a superstar in the red-hot field of genetics." Salon.com
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" " Wall Street Journal
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" " Nature
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" " Choice
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"A lovely, rollicking book, direct and clear.... [A] fascinating glimpse into anthropology in the era of the genome." Wall Street Journal
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"Scientifically accurate and understandable to the layperson.... [] will be recognized as an important work, bringing molecular anthropology to a mass audience." Nature
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"A natural storyteller, [Sykes] relates the history of developing genetics up to contemporary times as the DNA of genes is decoded.... A riveting account showing how archeological evidence and molecular biology findings complement one another in the challenge to unearth our past and our beginnings." Choice
Synopsis
The national bestseller that reveals how we are descended from seven prehistoric women.
Synopsis
The Seven Daughters of Eveis a thrilling work of science that reveals how biological research can enrich our tangled lives. It is a book that chronicles many of the most exciting developments in genetics over the past decade by a man who is not only a brilliant scientist but also a gifted and thoroughly engaging writer. It ultimately demonstrates how much more we still have to discover about the absorbing story of human evolution.
Synopsis
In 1994 Bryan Sykes was called in as an expert to examine the frozen remains of a man trapped in glacial ice in northern Italy for over 5000 years--the Ice Man. Sykes succeeded in extracting DNA from the Ice Man, but even more important, writes ?, was his "ability to directly link that DNA to Europeans living today." In this groundbreaking book, Sykes reveals how the identification of a particular strand of DNA that passes unbroken through the maternal line allows scientists to trace our genetic makeup all the way back to prehistoric times--to seven primeval women, the "seven daughters of Eve."
About the Author
Bryan Sykes is professor of genetics at the Institute of Molecular Medicine at Oxford University and was the editor of The Human Inheritance: Genes, Language, and Evolution.