Keith Baverstock is a physical chemist by training whose primary career interest lies in the effects of ionizing radiation on public health and genomic instability. He’s worked in a non-research role with the World Health Organization and published several scientific articles, including Genes without Prominence: A Reappraisal of the Foundations of Biology. He joins the podcast today to discuss a variety of topics, including cellular and molecular genetics, the effects of ionizing radiation on cells, mutational damage to DNA, how phenotypic expression works and the essential role of epigenetics, in its broadest sense (i.e., not chromatin marking) on this process, what he believes to be the basis of cancer and other types of diseases, and why a shift in focus from genomics to environmental causes of disease is called for. Along the way, he shares information from past experiments that shed light on important inquiries in this field, and asks questions that encourage you to think deeply about these topics and how they influence our everyday lives. To learn more about Keith Baverstock’s theories and work, visit his website at kbaverstock.org

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