Blueprint
- Author Robert Plomin
- Narrator Robert Plomin
- Publisher Penguin Books Ltd
- Run Time 8 hours and 23 minutes
- Format Audio
- Genre Child, developmental and lifespan psychology, Evolution, Genetics (non-medical), Human biology, Human reproduction, growth and development, Popular science.
Titles Purchased
- 1-5
- 6-10
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- Over 20
Price p/Title
- $15.99
- $14.99
- $13.99
- $12.99
- $11.99
Listen to a sample
What to expect
Penguin presents the audiobook edition of Blueprint written and read by Robert Plomin.
The blueprint for our individuality lies in the 1% of DNA that differs between people. Our intellectual capacity, our introversion or extraversion, our vulnerability to mental illness, even whether we are a morning person - all of these aspects of our personality are profoundly shaped by our inherited DNA differences.
In Blueprint, Robert Plomin, a pioneer in the field of behavioural genetics, draws on a lifetime's worth of research to make the case that DNA is the most important factor shaping who we are. Our families, schools and the environment around us are important, but they are not as influential as our genes. This is why, he argues, teachers and parents should accept children for who they are, rather than trying to mould them in certain directions. Even the environments we choose and the signal events that impact our lives, from divorce to addiction, are influenced by our genetic predispositions. Now, thanks to the DNA revolution, it is becoming possible to predict who we will become, at birth, from our DNA alone. As Plomin shows us, these developments have sweeping implications for how we think about parenting, education, and social mobility.
A game-changing book by a leader in the field, Blueprint shows how the DNA present in the single cell with which we all begin our lives can impact our behaviour as adults.
'A clear and engaging explanation of one of the hottest fields in science' Steven Pinker
Critics Review
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It is a hugely important book – and the story is very well told. Plomin’s writing combines passion with reason (and passion for reason) so fluently that it is hard to believe this is his first book for popular consumption, after more than 800 scientific publications. His story is crucial.
The Times -
An important book, a must-read guide to one enormous aspect of the human future
Sunday Times -
I cannot tell you how well thumbed this book is . . . every single person listening to me qualifies to read this book because it’s about human beings . . . this is our story
BBC Radio London -
A challenging and thought-provoking new book.
Daily Mail -
Important new evidence in a never-ending argument
The Evening Standard -
You can’t read the book without seeing the world afresh.
Observer (Books of the Year)
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