Blueprint

The blueprint for our individuality lies in the 1 percent of DNA that differs between people. Our intellectual capacity our introversion or extraversion our vulnerability to mental illness even whether we are a morning person - all of these aspects of our personality are profoundly shaped by our inherited DNA differences. In blueprint Robert plomin a pioneer in the field of behavioural genetics draws on a lifetime''s worth of research to make the case that DNA is the most important factor shaping who we are. Our families schools and the environment around us are important but they are not as influential as our genes. Even the environments we choose and the signal events that impact our lives from divorce to addiction are influenced by our genetic predispositions. Now thanks to the DNA revolution it is becoming possible to predict who we will become at birth from our DNA alone.