Bovember 7, 1955

Professor Richard Goldschmidt
Department of Zoology
University of California
Berkeley 4, California

Dear Professor Goldschmidt:

Thank you for your overly kind letter-— as my wife suggests, the shoe is
perhaps on the other foot, that the younger students have been saved from
premature seduction by the concept of the atomistic gene by your own advaneed
and strenuous scepticism, Have you noted, for example, Dr. Beadle4s adoption
of the suggestion (in the last AIBS Bull. that the genetic unit of recombi-
nation might be a single nucleotide: this might define a genetic atom, but can
hardly be a unit of function which is certainly realized at a much higher level
of complexity.

I am certaibly looking forward to reading your new book, but have not yet
had an opportunity to do ao. I only just yesterday recelved the advertising
notices of it from the California Press.

With best personal wishes,

Yours sincerely,
i af
doshua Lederberg

—_

ee