Drawing links between genetic and cultural development, Cavalli-Sforza has made discoveries in the evolution of Homo sapiens, prehistoric migration, and origins of human differentiation. This biography offers a portrait of Cavalli-Sforza's life and ideas.

Drawing links between genetic and cultural development, Cavalli-Sforza developed groundbreaking techniques to trace the evolution of Homo sapiens and the origins of human differentiation, in addition to his earlier work in bacterial genetics. He is also the founder of the Human Genome Diversity Project and continues to work as the principal investigator at Stanford University's Human Population Genetics Laboratory. Based on extensive research and interviews with Cavalli-Sforza and his colleagues, this biography examines the scientist's life and his immense and occasionally controversial contributions to genetics, anthropology, and linguistics.