Jacob's Legacy
A Genetic View of Jewish History
Goldstein, David B.
Hardcover
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BOOK SYNOPSIS
Who are the Jews? Where did they come from? What is the connection between an ancient Jewish priest in Jerusalem and todays Israeli sunbather on the beaches of Tel Aviv? These questions stand at the heart of this engaging book. Geneticist David Goldstein analyzes modern DNA studies of Jewish populations and examines the intersections of these scientific findings with the history (both biblical and modern) and oral tradition of the Jews. With a special gift for translating complex scientific concepts into language understandable to all, Goldstein delivers an accessible, personal, and fascinating bookthe first to tell the history of a group of people through the lens of genetics.
In a series of detective-style stories, Goldstein explores the priestly lineage of Jewish males as manifested by Y chromosomes, the Jewish lineage claims of an obscure black South African tribe, the differences in maternal and paternal genetic heritage among Jewish populations, and much more. The author also grapples with the medical and ethical implications of our rapidly growing command of the human genomic landscape. The study of genetics has not only changed the study of Jewish history, Goldstein shows, it has altered notions of Jewish identity and even our understanding of what makes a people a people.
BOOK REVIEWS
"Goldstein is one of a handful of people qualified to write a book such as this, and he succeeds very well in providing accounts both of scientific studies and of Jewish historical background."—Stephen Schaffner, Program in Medical and Population Genetics, The Broad Institute
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MORE BOOK INFO
ISBN: 0300125836
ISBN(13-digit): 9780300125832
Dewey Decimal: 909/.04924
Library of Congress: 2007043583
Book Publisher: Yale Univ Pr
Language: ENG
No. of Pages: 148
Paper Weight (lb): 0.70 lb
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