In this Sunday’s issue of the New York Times Magazine, I have a feature about clashing visions of the genome. Is it overwhelmingly made up of “junk”–pieces of DNA that provide us with no useful function–or is it rife with functional pieces that we have yet to understand? Or is the reality of the genome a confusing mixture of the two?
To research this story, I shed some blood so that I could compare my genome to that of an onion. This print-out, annotated by T. Ryan Gregory, shows that an onion has five times more DNA in its genome than mine. I also spent time in the lab of John Rinn at Harvard, where scientists are discovering hints that our genome encodes exotic molecules that may be essential for our well-being. And I talked to a range of scientists about the challenges of understanding what any given piece of DNA is “for,” and what sort of assumptions one should bring to the challenge. Finally, I dug deep into the history of this question, which has roots reaching all the way back to Darwin. Check it out.
P.S. This is an incredibly rich topic, and I welcome readers to discuss it (especially the stuff I didn’t have room to get to in my feature) in the comment thread below. I’ll also post some interesting papers here, too.
The Genomic Challenge to Adaptationism, by Sahotra Sarkar. British Journal for the Philosophy of Science, 2014. [subscription required]
Junk or Functional DNA? Germain et al., Biology and Philosophy, 2014. pdf
An Evolutionary Classification of Genomic Function, by Dan Graur et al. Genome Biology and Evolution 2015.
Discovery and Annotation of Long Noncoding RNAs. Mattick and Rinn. Nature Structural & Molecular Biology 2015. [subscription required]
Go Further
Animals
- This ‘saber-toothed’ salmon wasn’t quite what we thoughtThis ‘saber-toothed’ salmon wasn’t quite what we thought
- Why this rhino-zebra friendship makes perfect senseWhy this rhino-zebra friendship makes perfect sense
- When did bioluminescence evolve? It’s older than we thought.When did bioluminescence evolve? It’s older than we thought.
- Soy, skim … spider. Are any of these technically milk?Soy, skim … spider. Are any of these technically milk?
- This pristine piece of the Amazon shows nature’s resilienceThis pristine piece of the Amazon shows nature’s resilience
Environment
- This pristine piece of the Amazon shows nature’s resilienceThis pristine piece of the Amazon shows nature’s resilience
- Listen to 30 years of climate change transformed into haunting musicListen to 30 years of climate change transformed into haunting music
- This ancient society tried to stop El Niño—with child sacrificeThis ancient society tried to stop El Niño—with child sacrifice
- U.S. plans to clean its drinking water. What does that mean?U.S. plans to clean its drinking water. What does that mean?
History & Culture
- Meet the original members of the tortured poets departmentMeet the original members of the tortured poets department
- Séances at the White House? Why these first ladies turned to the occultSéances at the White House? Why these first ladies turned to the occult
- Gambling is everywhere now. When is that a problem?Gambling is everywhere now. When is that a problem?
- Beauty is pain—at least it was in 17th-century SpainBeauty is pain—at least it was in 17th-century Spain
- The real spies who inspired ‘The Ministry of Ungentlemanly Warfare’The real spies who inspired ‘The Ministry of Ungentlemanly Warfare’
Science
- Here's how astronomers found one of the rarest phenomenons in spaceHere's how astronomers found one of the rarest phenomenons in space
- Not an extrovert or introvert? There’s a word for that.Not an extrovert or introvert? There’s a word for that.
- NASA has a plan to clean up space junk—but is going green enough?NASA has a plan to clean up space junk—but is going green enough?
- Soy, skim … spider. Are any of these technically milk?Soy, skim … spider. Are any of these technically milk?
- Can aspirin help protect against colorectal cancers?Can aspirin help protect against colorectal cancers?
Travel
- What it's like to hike the Camino del Mayab in MexicoWhat it's like to hike the Camino del Mayab in Mexico
- Is this small English town Yorkshire's culinary capital?Is this small English town Yorkshire's culinary capital?
- This chef is taking Indian cuisine in a bold new directionThis chef is taking Indian cuisine in a bold new direction
- Follow in the footsteps of Robin Hood in Sherwood ForestFollow in the footsteps of Robin Hood in Sherwood Forest