The Third Miracle

The Human Genome Project transformed modern biomedical science. It reshaped how we think about disease, accelerated the rise of genomic medicine, and helped launch a revolution whose effects continue to influence the lives of millions of people. But it very nearly did not happen.

The Mysterious Commonplace is the inside story of how an audacious and controversial idea survived skepticism, institutional resistance, and bureaucratic inertia to become one of the most ambitious scientific enterprises in history. As Director of Health and Environmental Research at the U.S. Department of Energy, Charles DeLisi proposed and championed the initiative that would become the Human Genome Project, navigating political maneuvering, budget battles, scientific opposition, and the challenge of moving large institutions toward a future many could not yet see.

But the Human Genome Project is only one part of a larger story. DeLisi traces the arc of a scientific life shaped by curiosity, persistence, and a willingness to follow ideas wherever they lead—from his early years in New York City through City College, NYU, Yale, Los Alamos, the National Institutes of Health, and Boston University. Along the way he reflects on the mentors whose generosity changed his life, the colleagues whose brilliance was humbling, and the students whose growth became a source of lasting fulfillment.

This is also a candid account of failure, personal loss, and the realities of science as it is actually lived. In later years, DeLisi turned toward broader questions: the ethics of biotechnology, the crisis in science education, and the challenge of climate change, where he saw genomics and biological science as underused tools for understanding and action.

Threaded throughout is a deeper meditation on what science really is: not merely a collection of discoveries, but a way of living—demanding, collaborative, uncertain, and, at its best, profoundly human.