Molecular Biology of the Cell
by Bruce Alberts, Alexander Johnson, Julian Lewis, David O Morgan, Martin Raff, Keith Roberts, Peter Walter, Alexander D. Johnson · first published 1983
64% recommend36% neutral
Why HN recommends it
Thorough, readable cell biology textbook that builds a foundation from DNA to RNA to protein; it suits self-learners and people coming from physics or CS, and it is candid about what remains uncertain.
Summarised by Claude from recommending comments
"As the amount of information in biology expands dramatically, it becomes increasingly important for textbooks to distill the vast amount of scientific knowledge into concise principles and enduring concepts. As with previous editions, Molecular Biology of the Cell, Sixth Edition accomplishes this goal with clear writing and beautiful illustrations. The Sixth Edition has been extensively revised and updated with the latest research in the field of cell biology, and it provides an exceptional framework for teaching and learning. The entire illustration program has been greatly enhanced. Protein
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…Philosophy" - http://www.amazon.com/Principia-Mathematical-Principles-Natu... (classic, feel free to grab a PDF) "Thinking, Fast and Slow" - http://www.amazon.com/Thinking-Fast-Slow-Daniel-Kahneman/dp/... "Molecular Biology of the Cell" - http://www.amazon.com/Molecular-Biology-Cell-Bruce-Alberts/d... (different edition, forgive me; free through NCBI, thanks jkimmel!) "Dealers of Lightning: Xerox PARC and the Dawn of the Computer Age"…
on “Sam Altman's Twitter AMA” ↗Principles of Neural Science by Kandel et al Molecular Biology of The Cell by Alberts et al Janeway’s Immunobiology Robbin’s Pathologic Basis of Disease All of these books are extraordinary in their sheer ability to organize thousands of small details into thematic narratives…
on “Ask HN: Which books do you consider real gems in your field of work/study?” ↗When I started out in a systems biology lab with a physics and CS background but no biology, they gave me this book: Molecular Biology of the Cell http://www.amazon.com/Molecular-Biology-Cell-Alberts-Al/dp/0... The description of the DNA --> RNA --> protein pipeline was really satisfying to someone with my background, full of codes, error-correction…
on “Ask HN: Is there a SICP of biology?” ↗Molecular Biology of the Cell (Alberts) is free through NCBI! Many investigators jokingly refer to it as 'the bible'. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK21054/
on “Sam Altman's Twitter AMA” ↗I can definitely recommend "Molecular Biology of the Cell", which is a undergrad-level textbook about cells. The latest edition is always very expensive, but you can get older versions cheaply. Link: https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/0815341067
on “A Eukaryote Without a Mitochondrial Organelle” ↗I recommend these biology books: Molecular Cell Biology - Lodish http://www.amazon.com/Molecular-Cell-Biology-Harvey-Lodish/d... Molecular Biology of the Cell - Alberts http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0815344325/
on “This Biology Book Blew Me Away” ↗One of the guys at SplatSpace[1] who is something of an expert on genetics / biology / biohacking stuff is always recommending people read this book: Molecular Biology of the Cell http://www.amazon.com/dp/0815341059/?tag=hyprod-20&hvadi... It's not on synthetic biology, mind you, but presumably some understanding of the natural biology is a prerequisite to doing the synthetic…
on “Synthetic biology is heading for the cloud” ↗I can also recommend an undergrad text book called "The Molecular Biology of the Cell". New editions are expensive, but second hand or older editions can be had relatively cheaply. https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/0815341067
on “Close-Up View of DNA Replication” ↗If you are curious about these things, do yourself a favor and dive into Alberts et al. Molecular Biology of the Cell. I can't recommend it enough.
on “Mitochondria and the origin of eukaryotes” ↗…-- this is a tome, but it's a great introductory reference to the field. (A lot of first-year grad students read this book when coming to molecular genetics from engineering and CS, incidentally.) * Molecular Biology of the Cell, by Alberts et al. -- an even bigger tome, but one you'll find on every researcher's bookshelf. * Genes NN by Lewin (where NN is an ever-increasing roman numeral; you can estimate the amount of time…
on “So you created a living organism engineered to produce a specific molecule for an intended use?” ↗if I want to convince somebody of something scientific, I point them at a textbook written by an authority (say, Bruce Alberts, who wrote Molecular Biology of the Cell). For each fact in the book, it contains citations to the original scientific publications (most of whom were written by authorities, but some simply by experts). Probabilistically, it seems like authorities…
on “A Harvard Astronomer on the Interstellar Object ‘Oumuamua” ↗…not physics (this does not mean I regret my choice though, I do not), or at least take a few biology courses. Unfortunately I cannot recommend many books. The only decent biology book I have is "The Molecular Biology of the Cell" by Alberts et al. It is really good. I have the feeling others here can make better/more recommendations if you ask. This is not necessarily an engaging book. Good luck!
on “Ask HN: Advice for a young, self-taught programmer” ↗> His biology stuff, for instance, is decidedly worse than the mathematics. I dunno. I've been studying cell biology on my spare time. I've been using The Molecular Biology of the Cell (http://www.amazon.com/Molecular-Biology-Cell-Bruce-Alberts/d...) that in my opinion is a great book, and as far as I know, is well-respected in general. Still, watching Sal's biology videos has been…
on “Craig Silverstein, Google Employee #1, Leaving for Khan Academy” ↗The best textbooks for this (this is something of a consensus in the field also) are Molecular Biology of the Cell by Alberts et al. and Lehninger Principles of Biochemistry by Nelson and Cox.
on “Synthetic biology is heading for the cloud” ↗Specific books: * The Cell: A Molecular Approach, Cooper * Molecular Biology of The Cell, Alberts Theses are the main two books in the field of molecular biology. If you want to go more specific, let me know.
on “List of Computer Science Courses” ↗