Symbolism, Setting, and Objects from The Selfish Gene

Object Descriptions

This section provides a short description of all the major objects in the book. This can be printed out as a study guide for students, used as a "key" for leading a class discussion, or you can jump to the quiz/homework section to find worksheets that incorporate these descriptions into a variety of question formats.

Objects

Allele - Sexually reproducing beings inherit a bit of DNA called a chromosome from their mother and another bit from their father for each trait that they may eventually have. So, one might get a blue eye bit from one parent and a brown eye bit from another parent. When two bits of instructions for the same trait exist, they are called alleles of one another.

In humans, there are forty-six chromosomes made up of twenty-six from one parent and twenty-six from another. The chromosomes pass on information about how...
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