About the author

Nicholas Wright Gillham is James B. Duke Professor of Biology Emeritus. His research interests involved the genetics and molecular biology of cellular organelles called chloroplasts and mitochondria. For more than a decade he taught a course entitled “The Social Implications of Genetics.” This course fostered his interest in eugenics, human genetics, and their history. He has authored two books on chloroplasts and mitochondria plus a biography of the Victorian scientist Francis Galton entitled, A Life of Sir Francis Galton: From African Exploration to the Birth of Eugenics (Oxford University Press, 2001).