A novel inspired by the life of the scientist who won the Nobel Prize in 1983, follows Kate Croft who attends college in 1920 and, confused by her own sexuality, finds refuge in the rationality of biology and genetics. In 1920, having persuaded her resistant mother to send her to college, Kate Croft falls in love with science. But science turns out to be marred by human weakness. Despite her hard work and extraordinary gifts, Kate struggles, facing discrimination, competition, and scientific theft. At the same time, a love affair is threatened by Kate's obsession with figuring out the meaning of the puzzling changes she sees in her experiments.