Hacking Darwin Book Summary - Hacking Darwin Book explained in key points
Listen to the Intro
00:00

Hacking Darwin summary

Jamie Metzl

Genetic Engineering and the Future of Humanity

4.4 (94 ratings)
28 mins
Table of Contents

    Hacking Darwin
    summarized in 9 key ideas

    Audio & text in the Blinkist app
    Key idea 1 of 9

    Until now, humanity has evolved through the natural selection of heritable traits.

    When combating fruit flies in your kitchen, it may seem hard to believe that these annoying little creatures are related to you. But, in fact, 700 million years ago, a mutual ancestor of humans and fruit flies roamed the planet.

    Had you told someone this two hundred years ago, you would have been called a heretic. At that time, most people believed that humans were magically put on Earth by God along with all other creatures and that they had always been the same. This assumption was challenged when Charles Darwin published his classic On the Origin of Species by Means of Natural Selection in 1859.

    Based on years of meticulous research from his voyage around the world, Darwin posited that all life on Earth is related. Small, inherited variations in traits enabled populations to compete to survive and reproduce in a process which he called natural selection. In other words, populations evolved since species with more advantageous traits survived and reproduced more than those with less advantageous traits.

    Today, most scientists agree that the first single-cell organisms emerged 3.8 billion years ago. Around 540 million years ago, mutations among organisms skyrocketed, exploding into diverse ecosystems of plants and animals. Our species, Homo Sapiens, emerged around 300 thousand years ago. Human traits have been so advantageous that we have survived and multiplied across the planet. In the process, we have outcompeted other species, such as our Neanderthal cousins, to extinction.

    Darwin understood the big picture of evolution. But it was one of his contemporaries who took the first steps in understanding how our biological heritage actually works.

    By studying the traits passed down to the offspring of over ten thousand pea plants, the Augustinian friar Gregor Mendel found that a plant’s traits are formed by pairs of genes inherited from each parent plant. Mendel posited that individual traits are passed on independently of other traits. In cases where the two genes in a pair are different, one gene will always be dominant. That meant that an offspring’s genes are inherited as distinct units rather than being a perfect blend of its parents’ genetic makeup.

    Together, Darwinian evolutionary theory and Mendelian genetics turned the tide in biology. In the next blink, we’ll take a look at how we are entering a new era beyond natural selection.

    Want to see all full key ideas from Hacking Darwin?

    Key ideas in Hacking Darwin

    More knowledge in less time
    Read or listen
    Read or listen
    Get the key ideas from nonfiction bestsellers in minutes, not hours.
    Find your next read
    Find your next read
    Get book lists curated by experts and personalized recommendations.
    Shortcasts
    Shortcasts New
    We’ve teamed up with podcast creators to bring you key insights from podcasts.

    What is Hacking Darwin about?

    Hacking Darwin (2019) argues that humanity is on the cusp of a future beyond natural selection with the help of assisted reproductive technologies that will enable us to hack our genetic makeup. By mapping the history of genetics, technology and the implications of genetic engineering, it advocates for an informed adoption of the genetic revolution and suggests how to approach its political and ethical challenges.

    Best quote from Hacking Darwin

    We are, in other words, beginning a process of hacking Darwin.

    —Jamie Metzl
    example alt text

    Who should read Hacking Darwin?

    • Prospective parents interested in advanced reproductive technologies
    • Futurists, technocrats and sci-fi enthusiasts
    • Students of ethics and biology

    About the Author

    Jamie Metzl is a leading futurist, geopolitics expert, sci-fi novelist, entrepreneur and senior fellow at the Atlantic Council. Appointed to the World Health Organization expert advisory committee in 2019, he develops global standards for the governance and oversight of human genome editing. Metzl has also served in the U.S. National Security Council, State Department and Senate Foreign Relations Committee. He is also the author of the genetics sci-fi thrillers Genesis Code and Eternal Sonata.

    Categories with Hacking Darwin

    Books like Hacking Darwin

    People ❤️ Blinkist
    Sven O.

    It's highly addictive to get core insights on personally relevant topics without repetition or triviality. Added to that the apps ability to suggest kindred interests opens up a foundation of knowledge.

    Thi Viet Quynh N.

    Great app. Good selection of book summaries you can read or listen to while commuting. Instead of scrolling through your social media news feed, this is a much better way to spend your spare time in my opinion.

    Jonathan A.

    Life changing. The concept of being able to grasp a book's main point in such a short time truly opens multiple opportunities to grow every area of your life at a faster rate.

    Renee D.

    Great app. Addicting. Perfect for wait times, morning coffee, evening before bed. Extremely well written, thorough, easy to use.

    People also liked

    Start growing with Blinkist now
    26 Million
    Downloads on all platforms
    4.7 Stars
    Average ratings on iOS and Google Play
    91%
    Of Blinkist members create a better reading habit*
    *Based on survey data from Blinkist customers
    Powerful ideas from top nonfiction

    Try Blinkist to get the key ideas from 5,500+ bestselling nonfiction titles and podcasts. Listen or read in just 15 minutes.

    Start your free trial