How to Win the Nobel Prize: An Unexpected Life in Science

By J. Michael Bishop

Book Overview

In 1989 Michael Bishop and Harold Varmus were awarded the Nobel Prize for their discovery that normal genes under certain conditions can cause cancer. In this book, Bishop tells us how he and Varmus made their momentous discovery. More than a lively account of the making of a brilliant scientist, How to Win the Nobel Prize is also a broader narrative combining two major and intertwined strands of medical history: the long and ongoing struggles to control infectious diseases and to find and attack the causes of cancer. Alongside his own story, that of a youthful humanist evolving into an ambivalent medical student, an accidental microbiologist, and finally a world-class researcher, Bishop gives us a fast-paced and engrossing tale of the microbe hunters. It is a narrative enlivened by vivid anecdotes about our deadliest microbial enemies--the Black Death, cholera, syphilis, tuberculosis, malaria, smallpox, HIV--and by biographical sketches of the scientists who led the fight against these scourges. Bishop then provides an introduction for nonscientists to the molecular underpinnings of cancer and concludes with an analysis of many of today''s most important science-related controversies--ranging from stem cell research to the attack on evolution to scientific misconduct. How to Win the Nobel Prize affords us the pleasure of hearing about science from a brilliant practitioner who is a humanist at heart. Bishop''s perspective will be valued by anyone interested in biomedical research and in the past, present, and future of the battle against cancer. Table of Contents: List of Illustrations Preface 1. The Phone Call 2. Accidental Scientist 3. People and Pestilence 4. Opening the Black Box of Cancer 5. Paradoxical Strife Notes Credits Index Reviews of this book: Despite his book''s encouraging title, Bishop--who won a Nobel Prize in Physiology and Medicine in 1989--cautions that "I have not written an instruction manual for pursuit of the prize." Instead, he has written an amiable reflection on the experience of being a Nobelist, intertwined with some history and anecdotes about the award, and balanced by a wide-ranging review of his own career as an "accidental scientist"...Along the way, Bishop reflects on the history of our knowledge of microbes, cancer, the politics of funding research and present-day disenchantment with science. His main purpose in writing this book, Bishop says, is to show that "scientists are supremely human"--which he does with grace and charm. --Publishers Weekly Reviews of this book: How to Win the Nobel Prize is typical Bishop: modest, funny, insightful and offering an extremely clear and brief explanation of the basic scientific achievement that won the 1989 Nobel Prize in physiology or medicine for himself and longtime colleague, Harold Varmus, now president of the Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center. --David Perlman, San Francisco Chronicle Reviews of this book: In these pages Bishop reveals himself as a good writer blessed with enviable clarity, someone sensible and levelheaded who likes people and is enamored of his science. --John Tyler Bonner, New York Times Book Review Reviews of this book: This is a treasure...Above all, How to Win the Nobel Prize is a civilised book and a lavishly rewarding one. --Roy Herbert, New Scientist Reviews of this book: At its heart this analysis of science and the scientific world is a jewel. How to Win the Nobel Prize is an inspirational book, full of careful analysis and judgement. --John Oxford, Times Higher Education Supplement Reviews of this book: Bishop is a gifted communicator and teacher, and he sets about his task of educating scientists and the public by describing his career in science and science politics...In the end, Bishop''s book provides a road map for scientists and the public to build a robust scientific community that serves our society well. --Andreas Trumpp and Daniel Kalman, Nature Cell Biology J. Michael Bishop has written his book ''to show that scientists are supremely human.'' The book is also a lucid explanation of how science has been harnessed to fight the human afflictions of cancer and infectious disease. And the story ends with a wide-ranging overview of today''s challenges to the scientific enterprise. Overall, a must-read for all those interested in science and scientists--even those with absolutely no interest in winning a Nobel Prize! --Bruce Alberts, President, National Academy of Sciences J. Michael Bishop is that rare scientist who is widely read in literature and poetry. Most importantly, he remembers what he reads and thinks deeply about it, as well as about all else in his rich life. The Nobel Prize he won and richly deserved, his political activism, his understanding of cancer and microbiology, his devotion to the practice of science--all these provide fodder for his writerly craft. Quite a wonderful book! --David Baltimore, Nobel Laureate and President, California Institute of Technology

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0674008804
• ISBN13: 9780674008809
• Release Date: June 2003
• Publisher: Harvard University Press
• Length: 288 Pages
• Weight: 1.05 lbs.
• Dimensions: 8.8" x 1.0" x 5.5"

Customer Reviews

Noble Work

This is, of course, not a how-to on winning the Nobel Prize. Rather it is Bishop's personal account of what happened when he won the Nobel Prize in "physiology or medicine" in 1989. This is told in a rather light-hearted, self deprecating way that is at once amusing and informative--he provides plenty of background on the prize itself, as well as the logistics of the ceremony of the presentation. Actually the book is something of a grab-bag of topics. It is partly autobiographical, partly historical accounts of cancer research, and partly a commentary on the issues of the public's perception and misperceptions on science and society. And partly about the discovery that he and Harold Varmus made--the first oncogene. Although I much enjoyed the other parts, it was to learn something of the discovery itself that brought me to buy the book. And here I must say I was a little disappointed. Basically, they found that one of the four genes carried by the Rous sarcoma virus is also found in the dna of many species of animals, including man. In fact it is found in normal cells, as well as those that are cancerous, and is expressed in both. I found this all a bit confusing. Is it the over-expression of the SRC gene responsible for some cancers, or is it a damaged form of the gene that is responsible? Is it an oncogene or a proto-oncogene? What does it do? The current paradigm for cancer causation is that one of a few oncogenes and/or tumor supressor genes malfunction to give rise to cancer. I had hoped for a clearer statement of this rather dogmatic idea, and perhaps even some pros and cons for it. What makes a gene qualify for oncogene status? This is never made clear. What has become of SRC? What has been found out in the 30 years since the discovery? Has anyone ever seen a cancer in which only the supposed oncogene is different from that seen in the normal cell? I don't think so. An opposing theory to this is that the fundamental event in cancer is aneuploidy: the cancer cell contains an abnormal number of chromosomes, thereby over-expressing some thousands of genes at once. Surprisingly, Bishop does not mention this alternative at all. Maybe the oncogene hypothesis is just plain wrong after all. And Peter Duesberg's paradigm is closer to the truth. Bishop's last chapter covers some of the public controversies: stem cells and cloning, genetic testing and evolution. He gives us his two cents worth on all of them, and I can't help but think he is right on most of what he says. He's got a lot of common sense, and expresses it pretty well.