Science as autobiography : the troubled life of Niels Jerne / Thomas Soderqvist ; translated by David Mel Paul.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Söderqvist, Thomas.

Contributor:

Jerne, Niels Kaj.

Standardized Title:

Vilken kamp för att undslippa. English

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Jerne, Niels Kaj.

Immunologists--Denmark--Biography.

Immunologists.

Physical Description:

1 online resource (388 p.)

Edition:

1st ed.

Place of Publication:

New Haven : Yale University Press, c2003.

Language Note:

English

Summary:

This biography probes the unusual mind, the dramatic life, and the outstanding scientific work of Danish-born immunologist Niels Jerne (1911-1994). Jerne's Nobel Prize-winning achievements in the field of immunology place him in the pantheon of great twentieth-century biomedical theorists, yet his life is perhaps even more interesting than his science. Science as Autobiography tells Jerne's story, weaving together a narrative of his life experiences, emotional life, and extraordinarily creative scientific work.A legendary figure who preferred an afternoon of conversation in a Paris wine bar to work in the laboratory, Jerne was renowned for his unparalleled powers of concentration and analytical keenness as well as his dissonant personal life. The book explores Jerne the man and scientist, making the fascinating argument that his life experience and view of himself became a metaphorical resource for the construction of his theories. The book also probes the moral issues that surrounded Jerne's choice to sacrifice his family in favor of scientific goals and the pursuit of excellence.

Contents:

Machine generated contents note: Acknowledgments ix

A Note on the Translation xiii

Introduction: A Scientist in His Life's Project xv

PART I: The Making of a Romantic Character (1911-1947) 1

1. "I Have Never in My Life Felt I Belonged in the Place Where I Lived" 3

2. "Stylistically, I'm Best at Irony" 16

3. "I Wanted to Study Something That Couldn't Be Used" 29

4. "I Have the Feeling That Everything Around Me Is Enveloped in a Mist" 39

5. "When I Look at Other Scientists None of Them Have Wasted as Many Years as I Have" 52

6. "Now I Think Nobody Can Keep Me from Becoming a Doctor" 63

7. "To Be Able to Let Nature Reflect in the Depths of My Own Soul" 75

8. "I Am Branded with Infidelity, and See That Open-Eyed" 88 9. "Letters Are a Spiritual Spiderweb in Which You Snare the Dreaming Soul of Woman" 96

Part II: The Making of the Selection Theory (1947-1954) 109

10. "The Happiness of Feeling Superior to a Lot of People" 111

11. "I Think the Work Has Principal Application to Immunology" 124

12. "Antibody This, Antibody That, They Weren't Really Much Interested" 133

13. "These People Don't Know What They're Doing" 144

14. "I Suppose I Should Do Something, Maybe an Experiment or Something" 156

Parabasis: The Selection Theory as a Personal Confession 173

Part III: A Man, His Theory, and His Network (1954-1994) 191

15. "My Hopes and Failures Are Within Myself" 193

16. "This Theory Hadn't Made Much of a Stir, So Now, What Was I to Do?" 209

17. "I'd Better Make Sure I Learn a Little about Immunology" 217

18. "Finally, My Precious, I Have to Be Brilliant and Make Antibodies" 233

19. "Like a Log Coming Slowly to the Surface of a Lake" 249

20. "I Still Think That My Original Natural Selection Theory Was Better" 267

21. "Immunology Is for Me Becoming a Mostly Philosophical Subject" 278

Epilogue: "What Struggle to Escape" 292

Abbreviations Used in Notes 297

Notes 299

Unpublished Sources 329

Bibliography 331

Index 351.

Notes:

Translation of: Vilken kamp for att undslippa.

Includes bibliographical references (p. [331]-350) and index.

ISBN:

9786611721992

9781281721990

1281721999

9780300128710

0300128711

OCLC:

1024032778