October 2020 Bookclub Nesw

 

 

a 'pumpkin'

Dear Bookclub,

Welcoming a socially-distanced afternoon, we gathered on my back porch to discuss David Quammen's "The Tangled Tree". Val promptly declared her enchantment with Quammen's 'radical new history of life' and the scientists in our group revealed and reveled right along. With the concept of genes passing vertically across species, our minds went vertical, horizontal and around the block. Interspersing the story of advancing ideas in biology of archaea, phylogenetics and horizontal gene transfer with the stories of the biologists involved, Quammen's book held our interest. We seemed especially intrigued by Lynn Margulis ... honoring her contributions to evolutionary science and her challenges as a woman. Her declaration that she could not be a good mother and a good scientist and a good wife will long stay with me. Carl Sagan indeed!

Lynn & Carl Sagan

Lynn Margulis

 

Please read more about Margulis:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lynn_Margulis

Carl Woese holds a model of an RNA molecule at General Electric Research Lab in Schenectady, N.Y., in May 1961. Photo: ASSOCIATED PRESS

The very next day after our meeting, Val alerted us:

Crisper news
Scientists win historic Nobel chemistry prize for “genetic scissors”
Two women have shared the prize for the first time, winning for their work on genome editing.

Emmanuelle Charpentier and Jennifer Doudna

<Getty Images>

 

Read in BBC News: https://apple.news/AhV3i3KoeR5SyK9LMjH-8Zg

 and ......

a Spotify podcast with a terrific synopsis of the book

https://open.spotify.com/episode/2Lo92NRsWXmf7vTve7RaVX

Thank you Val!

 

Meanwhile, back on the porch, graced with Ginger being present, we were missing Terry, as she was coping with a precarious maternity situation. Our heavy hearts were lightened to learn of Lucy's safe arrival a few days later on Friday, October 9th.

 

Lucy Jean Filice

Ahhhhhhhh!!!!!!

Terrie's suggestions for a Christmas read:

"You Better Not Cry" Augusten Burroughs* (chosen) 

"A Redbird Christmas" Fannie Flagg

"The Paper Bag Christmas" Kevin Alan Milne

My suggestions for our March selection:

"Hamnet" Maggie O'Farrell* (chosen)

"The Divine Miss Marble" Robert Weintraub

"Why Fish Don't Exist" Lulu Miller

"Owls of the Eastern Ice" Jonathan C. Slaght

Up next:

Happy reading,

LK