At the Max Planck Institute for Psycholinguistics in Nijmegen Clyde Franks does impressive studies about the yet almost unknown molecular basis of asymmetrical brain development. If genes contributing to variability in language-related measures can be identified, then powerful new insights will be gained into the molecular and neurobiological bases of human language abilities, and related disorders. Genetic effects on brain function take myriad forms, including common DNA variations with very subtle effects on developmental outcomes, rare mutations with large, almost deterministic effects on development, and epigenetic effects, for which development is affected by chemical modifications and molecular interactions of DNA within cells and tissues. Clyde Francks graduated in zoology from the University of Oxford in 1996, moved to the laboratory of Anthony Monaco at the Wellcome Trust Centre for Human Genetics in Oxford, was manager in the pharmaceuticals industry, and in 2010 started as Senior Investigator at the new Language & Genetics Department of the MPI Psycholinguistics.