The Sports Gene: Inside the Science of Extraordinary Athletic Performance Author: David Epstein | Language: English | ISBN:
1591845114 | Format: PDF
The Sports Gene: Inside the Science of Extraordinary Athletic Performance Description
Review
“If you have any interest in being at the forefront of change in the sports industry you have to read this book. The Sports Gene
goes far beyond cliche and digs into the science that every professional sports team will have to incorporate into their thinking. It is a must read.” — MARK CUBAN, owner, Dallas Mavericks; chairman, AXS TV; author of How to Win at The Sport of Business
“In The Sports Gene
David Epstein blows up the notion that 10,000 hours is all that is required for dominance in a sport and reveals the true complexity behind excellence.” —DARYL MOREY, Houston Rockets general manager; cofounder of the MIT Sloan Sports Analytics Conference
“There has been nothing like this: a strong yet accessible review of the science and genetics of sports wrapped in personal stories. It will cause readers of all stripes to question their assumptions about just what it takes to become an elite athlete.”
—STEPHEN M. ROTH, exercise physiologist and director of the Functional Genomics Lab, University of Maryland
“Truly a groundbreaking work, contemporary sports journalism at its best. After reading Epstein’s superb book—by turns a travelogue, highly readable primer on sports science, and string of who knew? anecdotes—you will never watch sports the same way again.”
—L. JON WERTHEIM, coauthor of Scorecasting
“Step by surprising step, David Epstein takes our hand, grips our mind, and leads us deeper and deeper into the fascinating jungle of sports and genetics . . . until we finally begin to see the miracle we’ve been watching in our stadiums and on our TV screens all our lives.”
—GARY SMITH, Sports Illustrated writer and four-time National Magazine Award winner
“David Epstein offers the definitive account of what does and does not make an athlete elite. By myth-busting conventional thinking and offering new insights, Epstein has created a must-read for athletes, parents, coaches, and anyone who wants to know what it takes to be great.”
—GEORGE DOHRMANN, Pulitzer Prize winner and author of Play Their Hearts Out
"Few will put down this deliciously contrarian exploration of great athletic feats."
—Kirkus (starred review)
"The Sports Gene
, written for top athletes and just plain weekend duffers (one of whom tests the bounds of all things human to try to become a pro golfer), is a story told elegantly and with David Epstein's indefatigable powers of investigation. Do elite athletes have innate gifts or can they be produced? I've always wondered--and in this groundbreaking book, I finally have the answer. Spend a few hours. You'll be educated, and you'll be fascinated."
--PETER KING, senior writer, Sports Illustrated
“It does an excellent job covering the scientific basis of athletic performance and amplifies the research with an impressive collection of narrative examples and interviews.” --MIKE JOYNER, Mayo Clinic physician-researcher and one of the world’s leading experts on human performance and exercise physiology“Some controversial topics that Epstein tackles are pachyderms other writers might tiptoe uncomfortably around. He examines the roles of race and gender in athletic performance, presenting a wealth of evidence for each theory about why some people become sports stars while others never get out of the beer leagues.”
—Science News
“The Sports Gene
is bound to put the cat among the pigeons in the blank-slate crowd who think that we can all be equal as long as we equalize environmental inputs such as practice."—Wall Street Journal ("important book")
“Epstein is well equipped to explain the complexities of the “sports gene” search. Time and time again, his deeply researched and nuanced investigations of the genetics underlying the athleticism of different races, genders and individuals reinforce a comforting, commonsense conclusion: excelling at sports isn’t just a matter of natural talent or nurtured practice—it’s both.”—Scientific American (recommended books)
“The narrative follows Mr. Epstein’s search for the roots of elite sport performance as he encounters characters and stories so engrossing that readers may not realize they’re receiving an advanced course in genetics, physiology and sports medicine.”-New York Times About the Author
David Epstein has a master’s degree in environmental science and is an award-winning senior writer for Sports Illustrated, where he covers sports science, medicine, and Olympic sports. His investigative pieces are among Sports Illustrated's most high-profile stories. An avid runner himself, he earned All-East honors on Columbia University's varsity track squad. This is his first book. He lives in Brooklyn.
For more information visit http://thesportsgene.com.
- Hardcover: 352 pages
- Publisher: Current Hardcover (August 1, 2013)
- Language: English
- ISBN-10: 1591845114
- ISBN-13: 978-1591845119
- Product Dimensions: 9.1 x 6.3 x 1.3 inches
- Shipping Weight: 1.2 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
The Sports Gene: Inside the Science of Extraordinary Athletic Performance by David Epstein
"The Sports Gene" is an enjoyable book that shares the latest of modern genetic research as it relates to elite athleticism. In the never-ending quest to settle the debate of nature versus nature, David Epstein takes the readers on a journey into sports and tries to answer how much does each contribute. This fascinating 352-page book includes the following sixteen chapters: 1. Beat by an Underhand Girl: The Gene-Free Model of Expertise, 2. A Tale of Two High Jumpers: (Or: 10,000 Hours Plus or Minus 10,000 Hours), 3. Major League Vision and the Greatest Child Athlete Sample Ever: The Hardware and Software Paradigm, 4. Why Men Have Nipples, 5. The Talent of Trainability, 6. Superbaby, Bully Whippets, and the Trainability of Muscle, 7. The Big Bang of Body Types, 8. The Vitruvian NBA Player, 9. We Are All Black (Sort Of): Race and Genetic Diversity, 10. The Warrior-Slave Theory of Jamaican Sprinting, 11. Malaria and Muscle Fibers, 12. Can Every Kalenjin Run?, 13. The World's Greatest Accidental (Altitudinous) Talent Sieve, 14. Sled Dogs, Ultrarunners, and Couch Potato Genes, 15. The Heartbreak Gene: Death, Injury, and Pain on the Field, and 16 The Gold Medal Mutation.
Positives:
1. Well-written, well-researched book. Epstein is very engaging and keeps the science at a very accessible level.
2. Fascinating topic that sports fans will enjoy. A look at elite athleticism through the eyes of science. Sports elites. I'm there!
3. Epstein does a fantastic job of skillfully handling the very sensitive topic of race and genetics. Any minor miscue and it would have derailed the book but Epstein never lets that happen and should be commended for his utmost care.
4.
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