Coils, Mortal and Otherwise

The title of chapter three alludes to a line in Shakespeare’s Hamlet, which refers to the physical as “this mortal coil” which is left behind when we die. It is part of the famous “To be or not to be” speech. This whole chapter delves into DNA, which explains the second meaning of the title, which is a reference to the double helix, which is also called the immortal coil.

One of the main points this chapter makes is that DNA simple acts to survive, and nothing more. All the adaptations are again not due to conscious choice, but natural selection that allows better surviving genes to continue to exist, while wiping out inefficient forms, again without active consciousness. The chapter also stresses that we are all made up of similar genes that adapted us to further their survival. Genes are so concerned with the creation of embryos because these further their survival. One very interesting thing about this chapter is that it explains that genes last much longer than we believe them to be, and little associations of them last for several generations in humans, because they have evolved to be smaller and are not as susceptible to be broke up by crossing over. Meanwhile, other forms like chromosomes only last a single generation.