Book Summary:
Scientists are now exploring the inner, cellular universe of human life in ways that will forever change our relationship to our bodies. This era of biomedical breakthroughs has been expedited by extraordinary imaging techniques that allow biomedical scientists to actually see not just our cells at work but also our genetic and neural networks. The image of the inner self is no longer a biological illustration, an X-ray, or a diagram; it is a photographic image. Your Future Self is the first book for nonscientists to use these often strikingly beautiful images to illuminate our journey to the new era of molecular medicine. It takes the reader to laboratories whose research offers new hope for responding to the symptoms of disease with earlier treatment and for attacking the causes of illness with new cures and methods of prevention. For the first time, we can see the effect of therapies upon cancerous cells; we can see the effect of stimuli on the brain; we can see an HIV virus invade a cell. We have arrived at an evolutionary turning point from chance to choice, from blindly accepting the dictates of nature to being able to direct our nurture. Just as the development of large telescopes at the turn of the century transformed our sense of ourselves in the universe, so too our ability to see ourselves at the molecular level is transforming our physical, emotional, and cultural sense of self. Your Future Self also includes a number of scientifically inspired works by artists whose images extend and deepen the unfolding revelation of our inner universe. |