''Time, Love, Memory: A Great Biologist and His Quest for the Origins of Behavior'' is a book by American non-fiction writer
Jonathan Weiner
Jonathan Weiner (born November 26, 1953) is an American writer of non-fiction books based on his biological observations, focusing particularly on evolution in the Galápagos Islands, genetics, and the environment.
His latest book is ''Long for ...
, published in 1999. The book is a biography of
California Institute of Technology
The California Institute of Technology (branded as Caltech or CIT)The university itself only spells its short form as "Caltech"; the institution considers other spellings such a"Cal Tech" and "CalTech" incorrect. The institute is also occasional ...
biologist
Seymour Benzer
Seymour Benzer (October 15, 1921 – November 30, 2007) was an American physicist, molecular biologist and behavioral geneticist. His career began during the molecular biology revolution of the 1950s, and he eventually rose to prominence in the ...
, who is recognized as one of the pioneers of
genetics
Genetics is the study of genes, genetic variation, and heredity in organisms.Hartl D, Jones E (2005) It is an important branch in biology because heredity is vital to organisms' evolution. Gregor Mendel, a Moravian Augustinian friar worki ...
and
molecular biology
Molecular biology is the branch of biology that seeks to understand the molecular basis of biological activity in and between cells, including biomolecular synthesis, modification, mechanisms, and interactions. The study of chemical and phys ...
.
The book received mostly positive reviews, with critics noting its scientific accuracy and that it is about a "fascinating history". Reviews by the biologists, noted that Weiner "never really attempts a critical evaluation of what fruitflies have contributed to our understanding of behavior", and criticized the portrayal of Max Delbrück in the book; however, all the critics were very positive in their reviews.
Synopsis
Benzer started his career at
Purdue University
Purdue University is a public land-grant research university in West Lafayette, Indiana, and the flagship campus of the Purdue University system. The university was founded in 1869 after Lafayette businessman John Purdue donated land and ...
as a graduate student in
solid state physics
Solid-state physics is the study of rigid matter, or solids, through methods such as quantum mechanics, crystallography, electromagnetism, and metallurgy. It is the largest branch of condensed matter physics. Solid-state physics studies how the l ...
, studying semiconductors. His work in the early 1940s contributed to the subsequent development of the transistor. In 1946, he read
Erwin Schrodinger's highly influential book ''
What Is Life?'', which described the nature of genes as known in the 1940s as "the great unsolved mystery of biology". Inspired by the book, Benzer enrolled in the summer course organized by
Max Delbrück
Max Ludwig Henning Delbrück (; September 4, 1906 – March 9, 1981) was a German–American biophysicist who participated in launching the molecular biology research program in the late 1930s. He stimulated physical scientists' interest into ...
at
Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory
Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory (CSHL) is a private, non-profit institution with research programs focusing on cancer, neuroscience, plant biology, genomics, and quantitative biology.
It is one of 68 institutions supported by the Cancer Centers ...
. After the course Benzer decided to change his career and became a biologist. For the next several years he worked with Delbrück and his
phage group, and
Andre Lwoff,
Francois Jacob, and
Jacques Monod
Jacques Lucien Monod (February 9, 1910 – May 31, 1976) was a French biochemist who won the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine in 1965, sharing it with François Jacob and André Lwoff "for their discoveries concerning genetic control of ...
at the
Pasteur Institute
The Pasteur Institute (french: Institut Pasteur) is a French non-profit private foundation dedicated to the study of biology, micro-organisms, diseases, and vaccines. It is named after Louis Pasteur, who invented pasteurization and vaccines f ...
. Later Benzer returned to Purdue.
In classical genetics the
gene
In biology, the word gene (from , ; "... Wilhelm Johannsen coined the word gene to describe the Mendelian units of heredity..." meaning ''generation'' or ''birth'' or ''gender'') can have several different meanings. The Mendelian gene is a b ...
was thought to be an indivisible entity; Benzer realized that if
Watson and Crick's
DNA model was correct, "then each gene is not a mathematical point but a linear segment, and that crossing-over should be able to occur within a gene." Benzer spent the next 10 years studying the
rII region of phage mutants, as it was found to be very suitable and "an extraordinarily sensitive and simple assay" for detection of rare
crossing-over events in a gene. When this field of study became more popular, Benzer abandoned it and started to work on a completely new area; that was very characteristic of Benzer throughout his career.

Benzer was interested by how different the personalities of his two daughters were. As the environment was the same, he reasoned that the cause should be in the genes. He chose ''
Drosophila
''Drosophila'' () is a genus of flies, belonging to the family Drosophilidae, whose members are often called "small fruit flies" or (less frequently) pomace flies, vinegar flies, or wine flies, a reference to the characteristic of many s ...
'' as his
model organism. In his 1967 paper in ''Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA'', "Behavioral mutant of ''Drosophila'' isolated by countercurrent distribution", he showed "that one can treat a fly as an 'atom of behavior' and profoundly change its behavior by introducing single-gene mutations". Benzer worked with flies from 1967 to 1980.
The book is focused on three of the most specific types of mutants found during this period: "'Time' mutants that have an altered circadian clock, 'Love' mutants that are unable to perform the fly's intricate courtship behavior properly, and 'Memory' mutants that are unable to learn or remember."
As summarized in ''
The New York Times
''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...
'' review:
Reception
''Time, Love, Memory'' received several reviews in peer-reviewed journals. Charles Jennings in his 1999 review for ''
Nature Neuroscience
''Nature Neuroscience'' is a monthly scientific journal published by Nature Publishing Group. Its focus is original research papers relating specifically to neuroscience and was established in May 1998. The chief editor is Shari Wiseman. According ...
'' wrote that the science in the book is "for the most part, accurate and clearly explained" and noted that "it is remarkable how much intellectual history has been spanned in Benzer's career". But, in his opinion "it never really attempts a critical evaluation of what fruitflies have contributed to our understanding of behavior. Have ''Drosophila'' geneticists succeeded in isolating 'atoms of behavior', as Benzer once hoped? For Weiner's three core examples—time, love and memory—I would answer no, not yet, and a tentative yes." Historian of biology
Jane Maienschein in the review for the ''
Journal of the History of Biology
The ''Journal of the History of Biology'' is a quarterly peer-reviewed academic journal covering the history of biology as well as philosophical and social issues confronting biology. It is published by Springer Science+Business Media and the edito ...
'' noted Weiner's "keen sense of history: of traditions, connectedness, and chains of influence" that resulted in a "beautifully crafted study". She observed "the scientist's empathy for the 'timeless', 'fruitless', and 'dunce' mutants that are deficient in time, love, and memory. We discover that fruit flies can learn, and we see scientists grappling with the questions of what free will might mean – and whether it matters." Additionally, she remarked on "the allusions to philosophy, literature, and popular culture" that "are much richer than in most history of science writing".
Biologist
Yuh-Nung Jan wrote in a review for ''
Cell'' mostly positively, but criticized the portrayal of Max Delbrück in the book; "I don’t think Weiner quite captured the essence of Delbrück; his immense intellect, his unique personality, his moral integrity, and his almost magical influence on people who came into contact with him." One more flaw highlighted in the review is Weiner's treatment of the three titular mutations as "parallel and equal stories"; in Jan's view the work on ''Drosophila'' "points the way and provides the conceptual framework for the study of clocks in other organisms", but, in comparison, it contributed less into fields of learning and memory. Despite these points, Jan called ''Time, Love, and Memory'' "a terrific book that will appeal to a wide range of readers."
A review by ''The New York Times'' noted that the book is about a "fascinating history", but stated that "in the second half of the book we almost lose sight of Benzer
..and we sometimes lose Weiner's narrative thread as well".
''
Kirkus Reviews'' wrote that Weiner is good in "explaining the science with you-are-there descriptions of lab life and personalities" and "telling anecdotes that reveal the humor, quirks, frustration, anger, and rewards of being a scientist".
The ''Journal of Young Investigators'' noted that while Benzer's work is highly influential in genetics "Benzer is little more than a footnote in most textbooks. Due to the highly private life he led, his unusual dusk to dawn working hours, and his tendency to keep to the fringes of scientific research, Benzer's story has long gone unheralded." The review praised the book for unfolding the story of Benzer's life and work.
The book won the American
National Book Critics Circle Award
The National Book Critics Circle Awards are a set of annual American literary awards by the National Book Critics Circle (NBCC) to promote "the finest books and reviews published in English".[Brain Prize
The Brain Prize, formerly known as The Grete Lundbeck European Brain Research Prize, is an international scientific award honouring "one or more scientists who have distinguished themselves by an outstanding contribution to neuroscience and who are ...]
winner
Ed Boyden said in several interviews that the book is one of his favourites and influenced him a lot; "I love it because it shows science in action ― not like a textbook
..― it shows people struggling with ambiguity and wrestling with all sorts of difficulty, and it’s very entertaining. For a while I would read that every year, once a year."
See also
*
''Drosophila'' circadian rhythm — a daily 24-hour cycle of rest and activity in the fruit flies.
Notes
References
{{reflist
1999 non-fiction books
1999 in biology
Books about scientists