I've just finished reading The Genomics Age: How DNA Technology is Transforming the Way We Live and Who We Are by Gina Smith.#

It is a plain language discussion and explanation of the research around genetic technology. I definitely feel like I've learned a lot and that my expectations were not inline with that of leading researchers, but that this was often a good thing because they are more optimistic.#

It is actually a bit depressing reading about such important research. It makes my futile tasks and goals seem particularly worthless. Oh well though.#

A review by Cecil Johnson and Gina's announcement.#

Gina Smith had her life changed by Ayn Rand.#

I was a garden variety sorority girl (and English major) in undergraduate school when I was introduced to the novels and political philosophies of Ayn Rand. Whoa.

Within a month, I quit the sorority in the middle of the night to move in with my boyfriend. And I changed my major to chemistry and started preparing for medical school. (Which I later dropped out of, which is yet another story for yet another entry.)

Either way, my point is that Ayn's writing can do that to you -- especially if you're intellectually impressionable. As I was.

I like it a lot when an author makes me think about exactly what I believe in or feel about something. Often times it seems that you get into a slump of always reading the same types of books and need to mix it up a little. You don't want to get completely sucked into an echo chamber.

The nice thing about blogs is that there are all these other people writing about what they think and you can keep your ear to the sky a bit easier.