The God Gene:How Faith Is Hardwired Into Our Genes

Description

The overwhelming majority of Americans believe in God; this conviction has existed since the beginning of recorded time and is shared by billions around the world. In The God Gene, Dr. Dean Hamer reveals that this inclination towards religious faith is in good measure due to our genes and may even offer an evolutionary advantage by helping us get through difficulties, reducing stress, preventing disease, and extending life. Popular science at its best, The God Gene is an in-depth, fully accessible inquiry into cutting-edge research that can change the way we see ourselves and the world around us. Written with balance, integrity, and admirable scientific objectivity, this is a book for readers of science and religion alike.

About the Author

DR. DEAN HAMER is a preeminent geneticist and author of The Science of Desire, a New York Times Notable Book of the Year, and Living with Our Genes. Together with his scientific collaborators at the National Cancer Institute at the National Institutes of Health, he has authored more than one hundred articles for popular and academic science journals. His television appearances include Good Morning America, Dateline, Oprah, the national news shows, and documentaries for HBO, PBS, and the Discovery Channel. Dr. Hamer received his Ph.D. from Harvard University and is the recipient of numerous awards, including the Ariens Kappers Award for Neurobiology.

Peter Copeland, a journalist based in Washington, DC, has published four books. His first book, She Went to War, was written with Rhonda Cornum, a U.S. Army doctor who was a POW in Iraq. He wrote My Soul Purpose with Heidi von Beltz. Copeland and Dean Hamer colaborated on The Science of Desire and Living With Our Genes.

Peter Copeland was the editor and general manager of Scripps Howard News Service. He started his journalism career at the City News Bureau of Chicago, covered the U.S.-Mexico border for the El Paso Herald-Post, and spent five years covering Latin America based in Mexico City. He covered the Pentagon for five years, including the U.S. invasion of Panama, the Gulf War and the invasion of Somalia. Currently he is a writer and media consultant.