We explore the impact that Gregor Mendel and his populariser William Bateson have had on the past century of genetics, and ask whether there could have been a more Weldonian view of the world.
All in History of genetics
S6.20: That’s so extra: Exploring the weird world of extrachromosomal DNA
We explore the weird and wonderful world of extrachromosomal DNA - what it is, what it does, and why it breaks the normal rules of inheritance.
S6.18: An Evolutionary Revolutionary: Alfred Russel Wallace and the discovery of natural selection
We’re exploring the epic life of Alfred Russel Wallace; adventurer, naturalist and co-discoverer of natural selection. Biologist and author, Jim Costa, recounts the life of this often forgotten founding father of evolution.
S6.16 Double helix double crossing? What really happened between Rosalind Franklin, James Watson and Francis Crick?
Professor Matthew Cobb explains what really happened between James Watson, Francis Crick and Rosalind Franklin during the discovery of the double helix structure of DNA.
S6.15: Cordelia Langford: Making Big Science Happen
We’re going behind the scenes at the Sanger Institute with Cordelia Langford, Director of Scientific Operations, to find out what it takes to make Big Science happen, and hear the stories behind the sequencing.
S6.12: Da Vinci’s DNA: What happens when genetics meets art
We’re taking a journey into the world of art and artefacts, unearthing the genetic secrets of long-dead legends like Da Vinci, Van Gogh and Beethoven.
BONUS Re-release S3.22 - The Past, Present and Future of the Human Genome Project
To celebrate DNA Day, we are rereleasing an episode from series 3, called The Past, Present, and Future of the Human Genome Project, when Kat interviewed the director of the US National Human Genome Research Institute, Dr Eric Green about his work on the Human Genome Project from its very inception.
Living with the Eugenic Past: Michele Goodwin
This podcast is part of a miniseries of interviews with speakers from the 2022 annual conference of the Adelphi Genetics Forum - a learned society that aims to promote research and discussion concerning the scientific understanding of human heredity. Formerly known as the Galton Institute, and before that, the Eugenics Education Society, the society has changed its name to the Adelphi Genetics Forum to firmly reject and distance itself from the discredited and damaging ideas of its namesake, Francis Galton – widely viewed as the founder of eugenics.
The last lecture of the day was given by Michele Goodwin - Chancellor’s Professor of Law and Director of the Centre for Biotechnology and Global Health Policy at the University of California Irvine, and also a senior lecturer at Harvard Medical School. Her talk focused on how the long shadow of eugenics and white supremacy persists into the present day and remain embedded in contemporary political frameworks, and why this pernicious ideology is taking so long to die. So, how does she start thinking about such a complex and challenging topic?
Living with the Eugenic Past: Joe Cain
This podcast is part of a miniseries of interviews with speakers from the 2022 annual conference of the Adelphi Genetics Forum - a learned society that aims to promote research and discussion concerning the scientific understanding of human heredity. Formerly known as the Galton Institute, and before that, the Eugenics Education Society, the society has changed its name to the Adelphi Genetics Forum to firmly reject and distance itself from the discredited and damaging ideas of its namesake, Francis Galton – widely viewed as the founder of eugenics.
Much of Francis Galton’s academic life is associated with University College London, or UCL, and he bequeathed not only his archive but also an endowment for the UK’s first professorial chair in Eugenics. The University’s Galton Laboratory was finally folded into a larger department of genetics, evolution and environment in 2013, and the Galton Lecture theatre was only renamed in 2020. So why did Galton’s name persist for so long? And, looking back, why was he even supported by the University in the first place? These are exactly the kinds of questions that Joe Cain, Professor of History and Philosophy of Biology at UCL, has been trying to answer.