The Art of Genes: How Organisms Make Themselves
Oxford University Press, 1999 £20, | ISBN: 0-19-850343-1
At first sight, The Art of Genes resembles a molecular version of Arthur Koestler's The Act of Creation, as both books aim to understand human creativity. In Koestler's own words, "Certain basic principles operate throughout the whole organic hierarchy—from fertilized egg to the fertile brain of the creative individual." This point is reminiscent of the comparison of the human brain to a plant that Coen masterfully proposes to provoke the usual anthropocentric reaction. Coen, a plant biologist, uses many clever (and even astonishing) examples, mostly of plant and insect development, to elaborate the main thesis—that development is not fabrication, being instead a creative interpretation of the past. In this sense, Coen slowly threads the paths of art and science to bring them together in the essence of creativity. Again, following Koestler's words: "The fluidity of the boundaries between Science and Art is evident, whether we consider Architecture, Cooking, Psychotherapy, or the writing of History." Molecular embryology may well be included in this list, and it is now Coen's turn to incorporate this branch of knowledge. Exploring the fluid boundaries of art and science beyond accepted landmarks, Coen exposes his main hypothesis—that one can understand much about human creativity from the study of embryonic development.
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