Cover: Biology Is Technology: The Promise, Peril, and New Business of Engineering Life, from Harvard University Press Cover: Biology Is Technology in PAPERBACK

Biology Is Technology

The Promise, Peril, and New Business of Engineering Life

Add to Cart

Book Details

PAPERBACK

$21.95 • £16.95 • €19.80

ISBN 9780674060159

Publication: April 2011

Academic Trade

288 pages

6-1/8 x 9-1/4 inches

19 line illustrations, 7 tables

World

Biology Is Technology is essential reading for anyone who wishes to understand the current state of biotechnology and the opportunities and dangers it may create.—Alex Soojung-Kim Pang, American Scientist

A thoughtful attempt to put what we think we know about biotechnology into a larger context, by a physicist-turned-bioentrepreneur.The Economist

[Carlson] presents an informative view of the future prospects for biotechnology and its regulation.—Michael A. Goldman, Nature

In this new book, bioengineer Robert H. Carlson forecasts the rise of the cell and the subsequent emergence of biological techniques for making fuels, synthetic DNA that builds new organisms, and reverse-engineered viruses for making vaccines. Biologists, Carlson says, are the new engineers, and the future is in remodeling life as we know it.Wired

Since Rob Carlson is THE authoritative tracker of progress in biotech, this book is the most complete—and exciting—chronicle of the technological revolution that promises to dominate this century.—Stewart Brand, author of Whole Earth Discipline: An Ecopragmatist Manifesto

Carlson clearly frames a fresh future for biotechnology. Each chapter, from technology trends to property rights and biosecurity conundrums, invites close reading and vibrant discussion.—Drew Endy, Stanford Bioengineering & The BioBricks Foundation

Biology is Technology makes a tremendous contribution to public analysis of a very important emerging field. Although various commentators have discussed particular aspects of synthetic biology (e.g. risk regulation, intellectual property considerations), I am not aware of a book that encapsulates all of the varying strands of the debate. In addition, the book takes a set of provocative and interesting stances on the subjects that it addresses. It is obviously written by someone who has been a longstanding participant in, and commentator on, the field. Although I do not necessarily agree with all of the positions taken by the book, they are well-defended and thought through.—Arti K. Rai, Duke Law School

Awards

  • 2010 Association of American Publishers PROSE Award for Excellence, Engineering and Technology Category
  • An Economist Book of the Year, 2010
Celebrating 100 Years of Excellence in Publishing: Harvard University Press Centennial, 1913-2013 [Picture of birthday cake]