The X in Sex

How the X Chromosome Controls Our Lives

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by David Bainbridge

Harvard University Press

Due/Published September 2004, 224 pages, paper

ISBN 0674016211

New in paper (F04)

 A tiny scrap of genetic information determines our sex; it also consigns many of us to a life of disease, directs or disrupts the everyday working of our bodies, and forces women to live as genetic chimeras. The culprit--so necessary and yet the source of such upheaval--is the X chromosome, and this is its story. A tour of the cultural and natural history of this intriguing member of the genome, The X in Sex traces the journey toward our current understanding of the nature of X. From its chance discovery in the nineteenth century to the promise and implications of ongoing research, Bainbridge shows how the X evolved and where it and its counterpart Y are going, how it helps assign developing human babies their sex--and maybe even their sexuality--and how it affects our lives in infinitely complex and subtle ways. X offers cures for disease, challenges our cultural, ethical, and scientific assumptions about maleness and femaleness, and has even reshaped our views of human evolution and human nature.

"David Bainbridge takes us on a fascinating tour of X chromosomes and explains what the possession of these intricately folded, infinitessimally narrow, two-inch long strings of genetic codes weighing almost nothing, means for their bearers -- that is for each one of us, male and female. History and personal anecdotes are woven together with up-to-date summaries of the science, punctuated with Bainbridge's zany -- and very British -- humor, so that this information-packed book is pure pleasure to read." -- Sarah Blaffer Hrdy