Gene Hive

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"Gene Hive" is a science fiction short story by English author Brian Aldiss. It was first published, as "Journey to the Interior", in 1958 in Nebula Science Fiction #30 and first collected, as "Gene-Hive", in The Canopy of Time (Faber and Faber, 1959) [1]

Science fiction Genre of speculative fiction

Science fiction is a genre of speculative fiction, typically dealing with imaginative and futuristic concepts such as advanced science and technology, space exploration, time travel, and extraterrestrial life. Science fiction often explores the potential consequences of scientific and other innovations, and has been called a "literature of ideas."

Short story Brief work of literature, usually written in narrative prose

A short story is a piece of prose fiction that typically can be read in one sitting and focuses on a self-contained incident or series of linked incidents, with the intent of evoking a "single effect" or mood, however there are many exceptions to this.

Brian Aldiss British science fiction author

Brian Wilson Aldiss, OBE was an English writer and anthologies editor, best known for science fiction novels and short stories. His byline reads either Brian W. Aldiss or simply Brian Aldiss, except for occasional pseudonyms during the mid-1960s.

The story has a scientific approach to the theme of gene-shifting and genetic engineering. It anticipates the central idea of Richard Dawkins' The Selfish Gene (1976) by nearly two decades:

Gene basic physical and functional unit of heredity

In biology, a gene is a sequence of nucleotides in DNA or RNA that codes for a molecule that has a function. During gene expression, the DNA is first copied into RNA. The RNA can be directly functional or be the intermediate template for a protein that performs a function. The transmission of genes to an organism's offspring is the basis of the inheritance of phenotypic trait. These genes make up different DNA sequences called genotypes. Genotypes along with environmental and developmental factors determine what the phenotypes will be. Most biological traits are under the influence of polygenes as well as gene–environment interactions. Some genetic traits are instantly visible, such as eye color or number of limbs, and some are not, such as blood type, risk for specific diseases, or the thousands of basic biochemical processes that constitute life.

Genetic engineering Direct manipulation of an organisms genome using biotechnology

Genetic engineering, also called genetic modification or genetic manipulation, is the direct manipulation of an organism's genes using biotechnology. It is a set of technologies used to change the genetic makeup of cells, including the transfer of genes within and across species boundaries to produce improved or novel organisms. New DNA is obtained by either isolating and copying the genetic material of interest using recombinant DNA methods or by artificially synthesising the DNA. A construct is usually created and used to insert this DNA into the host organism. The first recombinant DNA molecule was made by Paul Berg in 1972 by combining DNA from the monkey virus SV40 with the lambda virus. As well as inserting genes, the process can be used to remove, or "knock out", genes. The new DNA can be inserted randomly, or targeted to a specific part of the genome.

Richard Dawkins English ethologist, evolutionary biologist and author

Clinton Richard Dawkins, is an English ethologist, evolutionary biologist, and author. He is an emeritus fellow of New College, Oxford, and was the University of Oxford's Professor for Public Understanding of Science from 1995 until 2008.

Genes build themselves into cells and cells into the gene hive called man in order to develop their potentialities, not man's. The idea of man's being able to develop was purely an anthropomorphic concept. [2]

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References

  1. Index to Science Fiction Anthologies and Collections by William G. Contento
  2. Aldiss, Brian (1958), "Gene Hive", Galaxies Like Grains of Sand, London: Panther Books (published 1980), p. 135, ISBN   0-586-04985-1

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