''The Genetic Basis of Evolutionary Change'' is a book by Richard Lewontin about evolutionary genetics. Originally published by

Columbia University Press Columbia University Press is a university press based in New York City, and affiliated with Columbia University. It is currently directed by Jennifer Crewe (2014–present) and publishes titles in the humanities and sciences, including the fiel ...

in 1974, the book originated in a series of lectures, known as the "Jesup lectures", that Lewontin gave at

Columbia University Columbia University (also known as Columbia, and officially as Columbia University in the City of New York) is a private research university in New York City. Established in 1754 as King's College on the grounds of Trinity Church in Manhatt ...

in 1969. In a blurb promoting the book, Columbia University Press claimed that it "will surely become one of the landmarks in twentieth-century science", for which they were criticized by some of the book's reviewers.

James F. Crow James Franklin Crow (January 18, 1916 – January 4, 2012) was Professor Emeritus of Genetics at the University of Wisconsin–Madison and a prominent population geneticist whose career spanned from the modern synthesis to the genomic era. Some o ...

, for example, argued that the Columbia employees who chose to describe the book in this way "should have their wrists slapped", adding, "...this is not '' the Origin of Species''. It is just a thoughtful, readable, and very stimulating book."

Reviews

In his review of ''The Genetic Basis of Evolutionary Change'', Donald J. Nash described it as "...a fine addition to the series of volumes on

evolutionary biology Evolutionary biology is the subfield of biology that studies the evolutionary processes (natural selection, common descent, speciation) that produced the diversity of life on Earth. It is also defined as the study of the history of life fo ...

published by Columbia University Press."

Joseph Felsenstein Joseph "Joe" Felsenstein (born May 9, 1942) is a Professor Emeritus in the Departments of Genome Sciences and Biology at the University of Washington in Seattle. He is best known for his work on phylogenetic inference, and is the author of ''Inferr ...

also reviewed the book favorably, describing it as "...the book we always knew Dick Lewontin could write" and "...a brilliant comprehensive introductory review of the controversy over the evolutionary significance of

protein Proteins are large biomolecules and macromolecules that comprise one or more long chains of amino acid residues. Proteins perform a vast array of functions within organisms, including catalysing metabolic reactions, DNA replication, respo ...

polymorphism Polymorphism, polymorphic, polymorph, polymorphous, or polymorphy may refer to: Computing * Polymorphism (computer science), the ability in programming to present the same programming interface for differing underlying forms * Ad hoc polymorphis ...

s." In his review of the book, James F. Crow described it as "a fine book", praising Lewontin for his "gift for seeing problems clearly, for marshalling the relevant evidence, and for presenting all this in an interesting way." Crow concluded that " the areas in which there has been the greatest controversy, Lewontin has presented the scientific issues fairly and objectively." However, Crow also criticized Lewontin for inserting "irrelevant social and political statements" into several parts of the book. In his review of the book for ''

Science Science is a systematic endeavor that builds and organizes knowledge in the form of testable explanations and predictions about the universe. Science may be as old as the human species, and some of the earliest archeological evidence for ...

'', Bryan Clarke described it as "...a remarkable book", adding that " will, no doubt, be necessary fare for future generations of undergraduates, and it will certainly benefit their intellectual nutrition.

Influence

''The Genetic Basis of Evolutionary Change'' has been retrospectively described as a "landmark book". In 1999, philosopher

Michael Ruse Michael Ruse (born 21 June 1940) is a British-born Canadian philosopher of science who specializes in the philosophy of biology and works on the relationship between science and religion, the creation–evolution controversy, and the demarcatio ...

wrote that Lewontin, by publishing the book, had "thereby establish dhimself (if there had been hitherto doubt) as the dominant figure in the genetics of evolution".

References

Books about evolution Genetics books Columbia University Press books Books by Richard Lewontin 1974 non-fiction books {{DEFAULTSORT:Genetic Basis of Evolutionary Change