Growing Apart, Genetically Speaking; Pre-Darwinian Darwinism

By EVAN R. GOLDSTEIN

On June 26, 2000, Bill Clinton convened a news conference in the East Room of the White House to mark the first complete map of the human genome. "One of the great truths to emerge from this triumphant expedition ...," Clinton stressed, "is that in genetic terms, all human beings, regardless of race, are more than 99.9 percent the same." The comment was aimed at allaying concern that the troubling truth buried in our genetic code might be that we are not, in fact, created equal. As it turns