Preface/Front Matter

Abstract

The first volume of this series, published in 1970, dealt with the lactose operon. Beckwith and Zipser, the editors of that book, began their preface as follows: “Much of the development of molecular biology has depended on the study of certain key biological systems. The lactose operon of E. coli is clearly one of these systems.” Clearly, phage λ is another.

Like that first book, this one arose out of a conference proposed by Jim Watson. The conference on λ was arranged by Dale Kaiser and Allan Campbell and was held at Cold Spring Harbor in September 1970.

Watson contributed to this book in another way. For years the rumor had gone about that “Jim Watson is thinking of writing a book about λ.” The rumor preserved the subject for the present authors.

Again like the first monograph of the series, this one consists of two parts. The first part contains fifteen chapters that were completed in the spring of 1971 and present λ biology as a whole. The second part contains thirty-seven articles describing previously unpublished work reported at the conference.

Several people, who by accident do not appear in the list of authors, contributed to the book by supplying information and criticism. Among them Ray Gesteland, Ross Inman, Gary Kayajanian, Matthew Meselson, John Parkinson, Charles Radding, and Jon Weil deserve mention.