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Clone
by Gina Kolata

The birth of Dolly, the cloned sheep, was an event heard all around the world. For a while, it looked like almost every 'expert' on cloning and ethics was climbing on a soapbox to make pronouncements for and against cloning.

One of the first people to break the story was Gina Kolata, a reporter for the New York Times. In this book, subtitled "The Road to Dolly and the Path Ahead", she recounts the events in history leading up to the cloning of Dolly and what may lay ahead in the field of cloning technology.

The initial chapters of the book details her personal experiences in covering the events surrounding the birth of Dolly. These include personal interviews with the people involved in Dolly's birth as well as quotations for and against cloning by various groups.

From there, she goes on to give a historical background to science; how it moved from the field of 'natural philosophy' to the current 'tight budget and result driven' version of science that dominates much of current scientific research. She comments on how scientific education now tends to concentrate scientists in their own narrow fields without regard for the 'whole picture'.

The rise of ethics in science in the 70s are also mentioned, with regard to early attempts in cloning studies done on frogs and rats as well as in in-vitro fertilisation. Several possible cases of hoaxes or bad experimental technique as also mentioned in the book, showing how difficult it can sometimes be to get or duplicate results in cloning experiment.

As we get to the 90s, the impression from the book is that cloning has been a failure and had not lived up to its early promise. Many scientists also give up on cloning to move on to other related fields (in-vitro fertilisation). So it was a tremendous shock to the world when Dr. Wilmut and the staff at the Roslin Institute not only managed to create clones from embryo cells, but also a clone from an adult cell: Dolly.

In the final chapter, the book looks at what may be in store for us now that cloning has been shown to be possible: from growing individual organs for transplants to cloning babies for infertile couples, it is obvious the field of cloning will be a hotly debated one.

If you're looking for a book that provides a look at the entire field of cloning as well as the specific events surrounding the birth of Dolly, this is a book to read. The difficulties encountered in cloning experiments are covered in detail and you should get an appreciation not only of the science in cloning but also the ethical and personal effect cloning has on scientist and laymen alike.

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Clone by Gina Kolata

Clone
by Gina Kolata