Genetics and Eugenics

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In this fourth edition of his standard work on Genetics, William Castle has given a more extended account of human heredity, of which our knowledge has considerably increased in recent years. The chapter on the unit-characters of rodents has been completely rewritten, as what we know of heredity in mammals depends very largely on this group. Polyploidy, parthenogenesis, and the artificial production of mutations are also topics requiring new discussion. The views of biologists have reached substantial unity on the formerly controversial subject of selection, so that the treatment of this topic has been simplified.