PREFACE 



I 



NTEREST in the study of genes has 

 increased greatly in the past few 

 decades and grows at an ever- 

 increasing pace. This is due both to the rapid 

 advances in our understanding of the gene 

 and to the important applications made of 

 this knowledge. Even more significant has 

 been the recognition of the fundamental im- 

 portance of genetic knowledge for the future 

 advancement of numerous other areas of 

 scientific investigation and for the preserva- 

 tion and improvement of the well-being of 

 mankind in general. 



The amount of instruction in genetics given 

 in junior and senior high school classes of 

 biology and general science is increasing, and 

 many of the institutes sponsored by the 

 U.S. National Science Foundation for high 

 school teachers of biology give concentrated 

 instruction in genetics. There is also an 

 increasing amount of genetics taught in intro- 

 ductory courses of biology, botany, and 

 zoology at the college level and a separate 

 course in genetics has become a requirement 

 in many colleges for students majoring in 

 biology or agriculture. It is now generally 

 recognized that genetics has become a core 

 discipline, knowledge of which is essential for 

 an understanding of modern and future 

 biology. 



The impact of the gene is being felt, more- 

 over, not only by the professional teacher 

 and research worker in biology, but also by 

 students of a number of other related, and 

 seemingly unrelated, disciplines. Medical 

 and dental schools are increasingly interested 



in the genetic training of their students both 

 before and after they start their professional 

 preparation. More and more students whose 

 major interest is in biochemistry, chemistry, 

 psychology, biophysics, physics, statistics, or 

 mathematics find that the study of genes 

 offers new and challenging opportunities in 

 these various fields. Finally, the impor- 

 tance of genetics for life in our atomic and 

 interplanetary age has been recognized by 

 scholars in the humanities and arts as well as 

 by the informed general public. 



This mounting interest in the gene has led 

 or will doubtless soon lead to considerable 

 modification in the teaching of genetics at 

 the college level. Because the fund of knowl- 

 edge regarding the nature and consequences 

 of genes is growing so rapidly, usually more 

 than one single semester course is required 

 to cover the material that is considered 

 essential knowledge for the professional bi- 

 ologist. One solution has been to have two 

 courses in genetics, of which one is general 

 and the other advanced. Many smaller col- 

 leges are now initiating a course in general 

 genetics for the first time. Because of the 

 interest of the nonprofessional biologist, the 

 general genetics course already given is being 

 modified in numerous colleges so that it can 

 be taken in the earlier rather than the later 

 years of college study. 



The question is, what should be the content 

 and aim of an introductory course in genetics? 

 There is general agreement on one score, 

 namely, that a first course should provide 

 an understanding of the nature of the gene, 

 for this knowledge is prerequisite for its 

 fruitful application to the solution of prob- 

 lems in biology and all the other fields 

 mentioned. There are a number of textbooks 

 on genetics which help satisfy this require- 

 ment. However, it is my personal convic- 

 tion that there are several other desiderata 

 for such a course, toward whose realization 

 an appropriate textbook can make significant 

 contributions. I shall take this opportunity 



