tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5841910768079015534.post8859194791053223703..comments2024-03-29T08:40:11.883+00:00Comments on BishopBlog: Genes for optimism, dyslexia and obesity and other mythical beastsdeevybeehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15118040887173718391noreply@blogger.comBlogger8125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5841910768079015534.post-29867396688823016972010-12-14T16:49:23.060+00:002010-12-14T16:49:23.060+00:00This is an interesting piece. I plan on sharing it...This is an interesting piece. I plan on sharing it with a colleague of mine. Good topic of discussion.Kildonanhttp://www.kildonan.org/noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5841910768079015534.post-87979010687971034322010-09-16T11:08:39.206+01:002010-09-16T11:08:39.206+01:00Re: The "rare genes of large effect" ide...Re: The "rare genes of large effect" idea there was <a href="http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/20346443" rel="nofollow">interesting paper in Biological Psychiatry</a>recently about a woman with a rare variant for dyslexia who married a guy with a rare variant for autistic traits - it "added up" to autism in the kids who inherited both...maybe. The problem with these rare variant studies is that, by their nature, they are tiny.Neuroskeptichttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06647064768789308157noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5841910768079015534.post-67719044405871965372010-09-13T10:55:06.962+01:002010-09-13T10:55:06.962+01:00Nice article, and illustrative of the difficulty i...Nice article, and illustrative of the difficulty in explaining something (genetics) by way of a straightforward example (Mendel's peas) such that it doesn't come back and bite you later (e.g. myths of "a gene for X").<br /><br />From limited personal experience, I find that the problem stems from drawing an analogy between genes and some sort of blueprint. Since genes contain (almost) all of the information needed to build an organism, this is a natural parallel to draw, and one that is commonly (if lazily) employed across our culture (media, advertising, even teaching). To be fair, the discrete traits of Mendel's canonical peas are rather low-hanging fruit on this point.<br /><br />However, there are better analogies, for instance between genetics and a cooking recipe for a cake. Like genetics, a recipe contains precise information that, when carefully followed, results in the "construction" of a cake. Like genetics, it is possible that a single instruction in a recipe (e.g. add raisins) can result in a single feature of the cake (i.e. it has raisins in it). But like genetics, most individual words or instructions in a recipe (cf. genes) do not directly relate to narrow or specific features in the resulting cake.<br /><br />I think that I first came across this analogy a long time ago in one of Richard Dawkins' early books, but it's stuck with me and still seems a good way of explaining the relationship between genes and organisms that underlines why there is (usually) no simple mapping between genes and their finished product. Using it, rather than a blueprint analogy (or some variant thereof), may help keep genetics comprehensible to non-biologists while dispelling the "gene-for-X" myth.Plumbagohttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04517664753686599228noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5841910768079015534.post-75954191952054809452010-09-13T01:13:13.995+01:002010-09-13T01:13:13.995+01:00As is so often the case, this is a wonderfullly co...As is so often the case, this is a wonderfullly comprehensible and insightful explication of a difficult concept. Thank you again, Dorothy!Rhea Paulnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5841910768079015534.post-16076822665453818602010-09-12T11:31:17.429+01:002010-09-12T11:31:17.429+01:00Thanks this is a really great blog and I think peo...Thanks this is a really great blog and I think people that are interested in dyslexia will find interesting in a research published by MIT http://mitpress.mit.edu/books/chapters/0262140993chap1.pdf I have found this research will searching for information for Ghotit.com blog named Does High Education Pay Off for People with Dyslexia? At http://dyslexia-blog.ghotit.com/2010/09/08/dyslexia-high-education/Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5841910768079015534.post-45506983137215900872010-09-10T15:24:52.649+01:002010-09-10T15:24:52.649+01:00whoops realised I hadn't finished a sentence i...whoops realised I hadn't finished a sentence in that. <br /><br />Told I was dyslexic :)<br /><br />Should be "I wanted to add that as a dyslexic I really enjoyed reading it and the longer version here"Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5841910768079015534.post-1769017400080524062010-09-10T15:23:39.057+01:002010-09-10T15:23:39.057+01:00Thanks for posting the larger version.
I wanted ...Thanks for posting the larger version. <br /><br />I wanted to add that as a dyslexic (which is also why I'd agree that reporting on genetics of such topics is so important to get right). <br /><br />ps. don't bother reading the things I mentioned on the Guardian comment! They are more for context than recommended reading. The Condit's an interesting case study in sci in the media, and Nelkin is a fun (albeit very nature v nurture) rant but there are way more interesting things to read in the world.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5841910768079015534.post-9758823864818582672010-09-10T15:21:58.387+01:002010-09-10T15:21:58.387+01:00Adore the comic!Adore the comic!Usethebrains Godgiveyouhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05026223483117357541noreply@blogger.com