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William Collins
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This eBook first published in Great Britain by William Collins in 2019
Copyright © Philip Ball 2018
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Philip Ball asserts the moral right to be identified as the author of this work.
A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library.
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Source ISBN: 9780008331771
Ebook Edition © May 2019 ISBN: 9780008331795
Version: 2019-05-27
CONTENTS
INTRODUCTION My Brain in a Dish
CHAPTER 1 Pieces of Life Cells past and present
CHAPTER 2 Body Building Growing humans the old-fashioned way
FIRST INTERLUDE The Human Superorganism How cells became communities
CHAPTER 3 Immortal Flesh How tissues were grown outside the body
SECOND INTERLUDE Heroes and Villains Cancer, immunity and our cellular ecosystem
CHAPTER 4 Twists of Fate How to reprogramme a cell
CHAPTER 5 The Spare Parts Factory Making tissues and organs from reprogrammed cells
CHAPTER 6 Flesh of My Flesh Questioning the future of sex and reproduction
CHAPTER 7 Hideous Progeny? The futures of growing humans
THIRD INTERLUDE Philosophy of the Lonely Mind Can a brain exist in a dish?
CHAPTER 8 Return of the Meatware Coming to terms with our fleshy selves
This book arose from an astonishing experiment in which I was invited to take part, and which involved the transformation of a piece of me.
In the course of writing it, as I spoke to scientists about cell biology and fertility, embryology and medicine, philosophy and ethics, it dawned on me just how much science, in these fields especially, is driven by stories.