Almost Chimpanzee Redrawing the Lines That Separate Us from Them [Paperback]

In the fall of 2005, a band of researchers cracked the code of the chimpanzee genome and provided a startling new window into the differences between humans and our closest primate cousins. For the past several years, acclaimedSciencereporter Jon Cohen has been following the DNA hunt, as well as eye-opening new studies in ape communication, human evolution, disease, diet, and more.

InAlmost Chimpanzee, Cohen invites us on a captivating scientific journey, taking us behind the scenes in cutting-edge genetics labs, rain forests in Uganda, sanctuaries in Iowa, experimental enclaves in Japan, even the Detroit Zoo. Along the way, he ferries fresh chimp sperm for a time-sensitive analysis, gets greeted by pant-hoots and chimp feces, and investigates an audacious attempt to breed a humanzee. Cohen offers a fresh and often frankly humorous insider's tour of the latest research, which promises to lead to everything from insights about the unique ways our bodies work to shedding light on stubborn human-only problems, ranging from infertility and asthma to speech disorders.

And in the end, Cohen explains why it's time to move on from Jane Goodall's plea that we focus on how the two species are alike and turns to examining why our differences matter in vital waysfor understanding humans and for increasing the chances to save the endangered chimpanzee.

Jon Cohenis the author ofShots in the DarkandComing to Term. He is a correspondent at the internationally renownedSciencemagazine and has also written forThe Atlantic,The New Yorker,The New York Times Magazine,The Washington Post,Discover,Smithsonian, andSlate. He lives in Cardiff-by-the-Sea, California.

[An] engrossing new book . . . like something out of Beckett, or maybe the Marx Brothers . . . deeply skeptical. Jennifer Schuessler,The New York Times

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