Book Description

You probably know that heart disease is the leading cause of death in America, and that a heart attack is the most common form of heart disease. But did you know that a significant risk factor for a heart attack is high cholesterol? Controlling cholesterol levels is a vital part of healthy living—and it’s easier than you might think to keep your cholesterol within safe boundaries, reduce your risk of heart attack, and improve your odds for a long, healthy life.

If your doctor has told you that you need to get your cholesterol in check, if you are concerned about all the fuss surrounding high cholesterol, or if you’re simply a health-conscious individual, Controlling Cholesterol For Dummies is the book of choice for you. Filled with effective solutions for managing cholesterol levels, from following a low-fat diet to choosing an exercise regimen, this friendly guide is a must-have for:

• Achieving and maintaining healthy cholesterol levels
• Rating your risk of heart disease
• Leading a cholesterol-lowering lifestyle
• Determining how low you should go
• Improving your overall health

You’ll discover how to build a cholesterol-lowering diet, shed pounds the healthy way, make your weight-loss menus marvelous, and keep track of calories without confusion. Controlling Cholesterol For Dummies also reveals:

• The difference between “good” and “bad” cholesterol
• The lowdown on brand-name diets
• How to cut cholesterol through prescription medications, vitamins, and supplements
• The added dangers of smoking and the benefits of alcohol (in moderation, of course!)
• How to find an exercise program you like—and stick to it
• Ways to cut back on saturated fats
• The top foods for lowering cholesterol—and the foods you must avoid

Featuring ten important cholesterol Web sites, ten nutrition Web sites, the truth behind common cholesterol myths, and a handy nutrition chart for several hundred everyday foods, Controlling Cholesterol For Dummies offers reasonable, moderate strategies to help you reach your goal. You won’t turn into an anti-cholesterol fanatic—you’ll simply gain the knowledge you need to lower your cholesterol levels and keep them that way! ... Read more

Reviews (9)

Excellent Book to start Biochemistry!
Mathew's Biochemistry is an excellent book to start this difficult subject! The easy diagrams and interesting notes just keeps you wanting to learn more...Read, read and read. If only it could have a more clinical focus it would be 100% perfect. Combine it with "Harper's Biochemistry" and you will soon run A+ on scores! To die for!

A really excellent Biochem book.
There are so many books out there that is really tough to choose one. This is certainly one of the best available. It combines up to date data (3rd edition - 2000) with great easy to understand writing. It may not be the best books available... but it certainly is one of the best.

great book!
I am a biochemistry major at the university of the philippines. i have several biochem books on my shelf and i just recently purchased a copy of the 2000 edition (i also have the 2nd ed). the book just keeps getting better. the book really helps a lot especially when the class lecture corresponds with how the book presents the subject matter. as a biochem major, i'd say this is a pretty good way to present biochem. it makes it seem easy and fun to read. you look at the pictures and read the caption and you learn the idea in a flash.

One of the best biochemistry book
I have not seen the 2000 edition yet, but the previous edition is very elegantly written. Compare with some other biochemistry text, this book provides another view into biochemistry. Almost (if not all) all the chapters have a special topic after the chapter text, showing you how we can turn the dry text into useful experimental tools for solving life's problem, scientifically. These special topics also give us a view into the physical chemistry world, which has become more and more important at the time.

Illustrative
It's difficult to review a book on a subject as biochemistry, when you're a student, and this is the only book I've read on the subject. This book is used by medical students at the Universty of Bergen, Norway, and as a student I find it very easy to read (if you have mind that biochemistry is not an easy subject). The illustrations and figures in the book are helpful, and often, you can get the essential in the text by only looking at the figures. ... Read more

Book Description

PRINCIPLES OF BIOCHEMISTRY WITH A HUMAN FOCUS provides pre-med, junior, and senior science majors the most up-to-date coverage of biochemistry and a distinct focus on the topics most relevant to human health and medicine. Written by a chemist (Grisham) and a biologist (Garrett), the book presents biochemistry from a balanced perspective. PRINCIPLES OF BIOCHEMISTRY stresses the principles governing structure, function, and interactions of biological molecules. ... Read more

Reviews (8)

Frightful!
I struggled through my first two semesters of biochemistry with this book.It is absolutely terrible.The language is contorted and overly confusing.Relatively unimportant concepts are explained in excruciating detail while important things (like the PDH compex) are given short shrift.

Fortunately I discovered Lehninger before the end of my second semester, and after reading it everything became much more clear.My advice if this book is required for your course:buy Lehninger and photocopy the G&G problem sets from a friend if you have to. It is a superior text and it's cheaper.

Obnoxious Clown Man writes book!
This man likes to laugh at his own jokes!Do you want to be TAUGHT by a BOOK by a man that laughs at his own JOKES!He plays the banjo!There was a picture of him playing banjo, which happened to be the most interesting thing in the book, but he removed it, so be sure to get an old version.

Outstanding professor
I took the Comparative Biochemistry at UVa taught by Prof. Garrett and it was the best class I took at UVa.He had an amazing way of organizing lectures so that I kept wanting to learn more and more as the hour went by.I didn't even have to take a lot of notes, because he made things clear and it all sunk in.I was really inspired to do a good job on our research papers and really learned alot because of the types of things he taught us to think about.I was a terrible student, had awful grades especially in chemistry and biology but this class really stuck out.Oh, and I got an A too.Unlike alot of professors, he didn't have a loud or condescending tone.While I didn't pursue biochemistry any further, I sometimes wonder what would have happened if I had because he was such a great professor and I enjoyed his class so much.

All in all, most suitable for a general audience
Undergraduate biochem at my school is taught by the biochem department (not surprising).However, as a result, we have all sorts of people taking the course from prospective chemists (me) to premeds and general bio sci majors.So the dept. uses this book and it's probably the best compromise out there.Voet and Voet would be perfect if the course was taught exclusively for chemists, Stryer if the course was loaded up with premeds (horrifying thought, I know :) )But Garrett and Grisham have managed to write a rather well balanced text (one is in UVA's bio dept., the other UVA's chem dept) with plenty of both chemical insight and medical relevance.Based on (I'm sure) similar experiences they've had teaching biochem to a mixed audience, and knowing that most undergrad biochem courses tend to be taught to similar groups of students nationwide, this is the best book for a case like that.(However, I'm getting Voet and Voet as a reference for me personally one of these days.)

A Well Written Reference
This book provided invaluable reference information to me for a one year course in biochemistry. It was designed in a manner so that the class or student can learn topics in depth or get a broad overview of the subject.It also has lots of interesting historical perspectives and usefulgraphics. I am definately keeping this book for a reference as I continuemy studies. ... Read more

Book Description

Reviews of the Second Edition

"In this book, Andy Baxevanis and Francis Ouellette . . . have undertaken the difficult task of organizing the knowledge in this field in a logical progression and presenting it in a digestible form. And they have done an excellent job. This fine text will make a major impact on biological research and, in turn, on progress in biomedicine. We are all in their debt."
--Eric Lander, from the Foreword to the Second Edition

"The editors and the chapter authors of this book are to be applauded for providing biologists with lucid and comprehensive descriptions of essential topics in bioinformatics. This book is easy to read, highly informative, and certainly timely. It is most highly recommended for students and for established investigators alike, for anyone who needs to know how to access and use the information derived in and from genomic sequencing projects."
--Trends in Genetics

"It is an excellent general bioinformatics text and reference, perhaps even the best currently available . . . Congratulations to the authors, editors, and publisher for producing a weighty, authoritative, readable, and attractive book."
--Briefings in Bioinformatics

"This book, written by the top scientists in the field of bioinformatics, is the perfect choice for every molecular biology laboratory."
--The Quarterly Review of Biology

This fully revised version of a world-renowned bestseller provides readers with a practical guide covering the full scope of key concepts in bioinformatics, from databases to predictive and comparative algorithms. Using relevant biological examples, the book provides background on and strategies for using many of the most powerful and commonly used computational approaches for biological discovery. This Third Edition reinforces key concepts that have stood the test of time while making the reader aware of new and important developments in this fast-moving field. With a new full-color and enlarged page design, Bioinformatics, Third Edition offers the most readable, up-to-date, and thorough introduction to the field for biologists.

This new edition features:

• New chapters on genomic databases, predictive methods using RNA sequences, sequence polymorphisms, protein structure prediction, intermolecular interactions, and proteomic approaches for protein identification
• Detailed worked examples illustrating the strategic use of the concepts presented in each chapter, along with a collection of expanded,more rigorous problem sets suitable for classroom use
• Special topic boxes and appendices highlighting experimental strategies and advanced concepts
• Annotated reference lists, comprehensive lists of relevant Web resources, and an extensive glossary of commonly used terms in bioinformatics, genomics, and proteomics

Reviews (13)

Great book, easy to follow, expert authors
Five stars, a great place for people like me (trained as a biochemist) to start in a field that I know is going to be more and more important as to how I do my work in the future. I've been able to use basic things like BLAST more effectively, and finally understand that there are other ways to look at sequence besides BLAST and how to apply those tools to my own sequences. I really like the Entrez chapter, since Entrez does so much more than I ever realized it could do! I haven't ventured into the advanced territory yet (like microarrays), but at least I understand what I'm hearing in seminars now and what all those red and green spots actually represent.

I read the review by "a reader in Cambridge, MA", and don't understand what their beef is with this title. The authors have tried (and have succeeded) in pointing the readers to the best PUBLIC DOMAIN software out there, augmenting documentation that's generally lacking. Have you ever tried finding good docs on the NCBI Web site? Well, these two editors got them for you. UNIX-centric? I can't speak for the first edition, but check out the second edition and see that there's tons of Netscape screen dumps demonstrating the tools and making things as easy as possible for the reader. I originally bought this because of the reviews published in Science and Cell and a slew of other journals, all favorable, so the "reader in Cambridge" seems out of step with all of the published journal reviews of the book. Everyone's entitled to their opinion, but I just wanted to point this out for a sense of balance here, especially since my own experience was so different.

Somewhat more than an out-of-date catalog of tools
The book is a collection of chapters by different authors addressing software tools for various problems: database search, multiple sequence alignment, gene prediction, protein structure prediction, etc. A big flaw is that all of the authors assume a different level of prior background and have rather different emphases.

I'd have to agree with the other reviewer that Chapters 1 & 17, which constitute 10% of the book, are wasted paper. No one in 2001 (when the book was published), let alone 2004, needs Chapter 1's lengthy explanation of what e-mail and web browsers are. And the perl program at the anticlimax of Chapter 17 was ... anticlimactic.

The book is to a great extent a catalog of available software tools. With the exception of the chapters on multiple alignment and phylogeny, the emphasis is on not on how the tools work but how to operate them -- to the of saying "at this URL there is a web page where you can either paste in your sequence or upload a file". The idea of invoking a program through a Unix command line is more than once presented as a truly daunting prospect. The authors generally do a good job of emphasizing that the programs are the beginning of analysis and not the end; the results must always be viewed somewhat skeptically with an expert eye.

If you're coming at the book as a biologist, you will probably find it to be a useful catalog of software, though undoubtedly dated by now. If you're coming at it from the informatics side, you're going to need some background... a book like Dwyer's, Setubal and Meidanis's, or Mount's will get you up to speed on the algorithm aspects of the field with simplified versions of many of the big problems. Then you can look at this book to find good pointers to the ways the real-world versions have been addressed.

The book was published three years ago and, being to a large extent an index of the work of others, is necessarily no longer up to date in a fast-moving field. It needs a revision and, in the meantime, it would make more sense to snag a used copy than to pay full price for a new book.

A survey tor tool users
Like any survey, it seems to touch the major features only. And, as others have pointed out, the tools change but the book doesn't.

I think this is a good, brief introduction to the wide variety of bioinformatic tools and databases on the internet. It describes the major features of each, and the kinds of results that each tool is good for. After that, the serious user will go to the sources of each tool or database, to learn more about the specifics as of the moment. No book can hope to keep up with the weekly enhancements at the major repositories.

I emphasize that this is for tools users, not tool makers. It addresses the working scientists who already know their subjects and their needs. This skips over the algorithms in favor of higher level descriptions, and skips over many of the biological reasons for the tools described. Better-informed tool users get better answers from the tools, true. At some point, though, the biologists want to skip the theory, skip the introduction to subjects in which they're experts, and get on with their science. I don't think this book was ever meant for people - and I'm one - who want full details of the algorithms.

I agree, the book treats its many subjects in a shallow way. I think that is by intent, since the book's real goal is breadth and its target is a reader who knows the basic science. It's a bit off the center of my interests, but I've found it helpful.

Bioinformatic for the beginner...
I guess that everybody interrested by this kind of book knows already a little about bioinformatic and wants to improve his bioinformatician skill. So forget about this book:
This is really a well-documented introduction to all the methods currently used by every biologist or biology student, such as Blast, Clustal, multiple alignement or use of web-interface for submiting sequence.
So get it if you need a clear introduction to the field, but if you already know a little bit about bioinfo, immediately choose a more detailed book.

Poorly organized overpriced book
Although the book is presented as an introduction to the topic, its organization assumes that the reader has already been working in the area. Two of the chapters (1 and 17) are a waste of space. The first chapter presents a (useless) introduction to internet, while chapter 17 attempts (and fails to do so) to explain Perl in the context of bioinformatics. For the same money you can find far better books in the market. The good thing is that I only borrowed the book :) ... Read more

Book Description

The Phylogenetic Handbook is a broad introduction to the theory and practice of nucleotide and amino acid phylogenetic analysis. As an unique feature of this book, each chapter contains an extensive practical section, in which step-by-step exercises on real data sets introduce the most widely used phylogeny software including CLUSTAL, PHYLIP, PAUP*, DAMBE, TREE-PUZZLE, TREECON, SplitsTree, TreeView, SimPlot, MEGA2, PAML and BOOTSCANNING. The book provides a strong background in basic topics: the use of sequence databases, alignment algorithms, tree-building methods, estimation of genetic distances, and testing models of evolution. ... Read more

Book Description

Virtually all serious scientists accept the truth of Darwin's theory of evolution. While the fight for its acceptance has been a long and difficult one, after a century of struggle among the cognoscenti the battle is over. Biologists are now confident that their remaining questions, such as how life on Earth began, or how the Cambrian explosion could have produced so many new species in such a short time, will be found to have Darwinian answers. They, like most of the rest of us, accept Darwin's theory to be true.

But should we? What would happen if we found something that radically challenged the now-accepted wisdom? In Darwin's Black Box, Michael Behe argues that evidence of evolution's limits has been right under our noses -- but it is so small that we have only recently been able to see it. The field of biochemistry, begun when Watson and Crick discovered the double-helical shape of DNA, has unlocked the secrets of the cell. There, biochemists have unexpectedly discovered a world of Lilliputian complexity. As Belie engagingly demonstrates, using the examples of vision, bloodclotting, cellular transport, and more, the biochemical world comprises an arsenal of chemical machines, made up of finely calibrated, interdependent parts. For Darwinian evolution to be true, there must have been a series of mutations, each of which produced its own working machine, that led to the complexity we can now see. The more complex and interdependent each machine's parts are shown to be, the harder it is to envision Darwin's gradualistic paths, Behe surveys the professional science literature and shows that it is completely silent on the subject, stymied by the elegance of the foundation of life. Could it be that there is some greater force at work?

Michael Behe is not a creationist. He believes in the scientific method, and he does not look to religious dogma for answers to these questions. But he argues persuasively that biochemical machines must have been designed -- either by God, or by some other higher intelligence. For decades science has been frustrated, trying to reconcile the astonishing discoveries of modern biochemistry to a nineteenth-century theory that cannot accommodate them. With the publication of Darwin's Black Box, it is time for scientists to allow themselves to consider exciting new possibilities, and for the rest of us to watch closely. ... Read more

Reviews (425)

The Deathknell of Evolution as We Know It
Michael Behe's revelation of the profound flaw inherent in modern day evolutionary theory is nothing short of genius. He clearly illustrates his point in a manner so simple (as you can see by some of these reviews) he has left even the coolest evolutionary theorists babbling. This book has gained much attention and it is no wonder! With crippling reasoning, Behe exposes an area completely unknown to Darwin at the time he formed his theories - the microbiological level of life (Darwin used magnifying glasses!). Using examples of highly complex systems existing on this level, Behe clearly shows that such systems could not have developed in accordance with the theory of modern evolution - by gradual change over time. Evolutionary theory is based upon the principle of progressive change to form a more complex organism. Behe takes this principle to task by illustrating systems existing on the microbiological level (sometimes no bigger than a conglomeration of several cells) composed of multiple parts and functioning in highly specified ways. There is no possible way for such systems to have evolved, one, two, three, or even ten parts at a time, because without all elements functioning together, they are completely useless, or worse yet, harmful! Evolutionists cannot explain how such highly complex systems could have evolved. Such intricate and complex systems would have had to appear all at once in time. This is nothing short of a miracle - which diehard evolutionists, sadly, cannot accept. The logic in Behe's reasoning is airtight. To understand the beginning of the end of modern day evolutionary theory -- this book is a must read.

Darwinian Evolution is a Theory
As a molecular biochemist, physician and christian I found Dr. Behe's book accurate, well-written and fair. He neither preaches to those who are unbelievers, nor forces a concept of God onto the reader. Instead, he attempts to explain where and why Darwinian Evolution fails. I've gradually come to this same conclusion prior to reading his book. (As for the issue of the number of proteins in flagella, as discussed in one review, if you were to calculate even 20 proteins mutating simultaneously, using only a very short protein chain--as the likelihood is a function of protein chain length, the probability would be well over 10^50 power, in other words: impossible. I'd refer you to various Chuck Missler audio tapes for more details.)

A couple of areas where Dr. Behe did not elaborate, and perhaps would have calmed some irrate reviewers of this and his other book if he had, is the topic of micro-evolution. A perfect example of this phenomena is antibiotic resistance in bacteria. Creationism is not incompatible with this concept (and BTW, as one reviewer incorrectly stated, Scripture does not say the world is flat, nor to drink poison; a more careful reading would be in order).

Similarly, Dr. Behe did not discuss another concept of molecular evolution that also supports intelligent design: amino acid conservation. That is, the small differences between animal species with respect to amino acid substitution in hemoglobin is not necessarily an argument for microevolution, but an argument for a designer. A designer will tend to re-use parts rather than create whole new systems (eg, modular programming).

Aside from these minor topics that would further strengthen his book, Dr. Behe offers the lay reader an excellent discussion of why intelligent design is a compelling topic and needs to be placed along side of Darwinian evolution in the classroom. His discussion is definitely not a re-hash of the arguments put forth in the Scopes Monkey Trial (as in the movie "Inherit the Wind"). His logic is not poor, as one review suggested, and Dr. Behe encourages the reader to look for topics in other books. The problem is not that these books cannot be found, again as one reviewer suggested, but that the level of discussion is those books is meager at best and usually does not fully address the stated topic. In any event, you should read his book and decide for yourself.

Scientific Knowledge Shouldn't Be Decided By Popular Vote
I can appreciate that Michael Behe's supporters might fail to grasp the effectiveness of some of the more technical refutations of this book that have been presented. But I'd expect others - like those of cell biologist Kenneth R. Miller, for instance - to be readily understandable by anyone capable of following Behe's own rather difficult arguments.

Miller has won several awards for outstanding teaching, and is co-author of well-received high school and college textbooks. He can communicate. He's also a conscientious Roman Catholic, acutely aware of the conflicts that can arise when sincere religious convictions confront the sometimes disturbing and often counter-intuitive findings of modern science.

A little sampler from Miller's writings may hopefully stir the more conscientious among Behe's sympathizers to look into what Miller and other interested scientists have to say about the book and about the intelligent design argument in general.

In March 2002, Miller and physicist Lawrence Krauss took part in a debate before the Ohio Board of Education. Their opponents were Stephen Meyer and Jonathan Wells, senior fellows (as is Behe) at the Discovery Institute. The Institute, ID's home base, is a 'think tank' advocating what it calls "the renewal of science and culture". Its primary funding comes from wealthy conservative Christians, notably Christian Reconstructionists Roberta and Howard Ahmanson.

Miller wrote a blow-by-blow account after the debate (the full text is on his website), in which he recalls Krauss' insight that "the two-on-two format of this presentation wouldn't render a fair picture of the sentiment in the scientific community. A more reasonable arrangement .. would have one member of the Discovery Institute on one side, and ten thousand scientists on the other .. two of the Discovery Institute's nine senior fellows were the ID speakers who were there; if they had not been there, the only place to find more advocates for ID would be back at the Discovery Institute. If Krauss or I had not been there, however, we could have been replaced by scores of scientists from just about any college or university anywhere in the state of Ohio."

In another article, "Answering the Biochemical Argument From Design" (also on his website), Miller gives Behe credit for recognizing that "the mere existence of structures and pathways that have not yet been given step-by-step Darwinian explanation does not make much of a case against evolution. Critics of evolution have laid down such challenges before, only to see them backfire when new scientific work provided exactly the evidence they had demanded. Behe himself once made a similar claim when he challenged evolutionists to produce transitional fossils linking the first fossil whales with their supposed land-based ancestors. Ironically, not one, not two, but three transitional species between whales and land-dwelling Eocene mammals had been discovered by the end of 1994 when his challenge was published."

Darwin's theory states that "evolution produces complex organs though a series of fully-functional intermediate stages. If each of the intermediate stages can be favored by natural selection, then so can the whole pathway." Behe argues that due to the "irreducible complexity" of biochemical systems like those described in his book, there can be no fully-functional intermediate stages; all parts must be present for any function at all. Miller asks, "Is there something different about biochemistry, a reason why Darwin's answer would not apply to the molecular systems that Behe cites?

"In a word, no.

"In 1998, Siegfried Musser and Sunney Chan described the evolutionary development of the cytochrome c oxidase protein pump, a complex, multipart molecular machine that plays a key role in energy transformation by the cell. In human cells, the pump consists of six proteins, each of which is necessary for the pump to function properly. It would seem to be a perfect example of irreducible complexity. Take one part away from the pump, and it no longer works. And yet, these authors were able to produce, in impressive detail, "an evolutionary tree constructed using the notion that respiratory complexity and efficiency progressively increased throughout the evolutionary process".

"In 1996, Enrique Meléndez-Hevia and his colleagues published, in the Journal of Molecular Evolution, a paper entitled "The puzzle of the Krebs citric acid cycle: Assembling the pieces of chemically feasible reactions, and opportunism in the design of metabolic pathways during evolution" .. this paper does exactly what Behe says cannot be done, even in principle - it presents a feasible proposal for its evolution from simpler biochemical systems .. what all of this means, of course, is that two principal claims of the intelligent design movement are disproved, namely that it is impossible to present a Darwinian explanation for the evolution of a complex biochemical system, and that no such papers appear in the scientific literature. It is possible, and such papers do exist."

Miller shows in detail that even systems Behe proposes as "irreducibly complex" are not so. "Nature presents many examples of fully-functional cilia that are missing key parts .. this leaves us with two points to consider: First, a wide variety of motile systems exist that are missing parts of this supposedly irreducibly complex structure; and second, biologists have known for years that each of the major components of the cilium, including proteins tubulin, dynein, and actin have distinct functions elsewhere in the cell that are unrelated to ciliary motion .. what this means, of course, is that a selectable function exists for each of the major parts of the cilium, and therefore that the argument [for irreducible complexity] is wrong."

Miller demonstrates similar difficulties with Behe's claim regarding the bacterial flagellum. He concludes, "At least four key elements of the eubacterial flagellum have other selectable functions in the cell that are unrelated to motility .. by demonstrating the existence of such functions, even in just a handful of components, we have invalidated the argument".

Miller's verdict: "Prof. Behe argues that anti-religious bias is the reason the scientific community resists the explanation of design for his observations:
I would suggest that the actual reason is much simpler. The scientific community has not embraced the explanation of design because it is quite clear, on the basis of the evidence, that it is wrong."

Excellent Resource
The book that basically started it all, where whispers in the scientific community against neo-Darwinism became public discourse. Whether you're an IDist or a Darwinist, this is a good book to have on the shelf just as a reference point.

A lot of people on both sides just talk pass each other, and project their image of the "other" side the way they wish to see it. When Darwinists think of Intelligent Design, they think of 7-Day Creationists who want to burn scientists at the stake. When 7-Day Creationists think of evolution, they think of that athiest Joseph Stalin shoving Christians into Gulags (and Daniel Dennet apparently thinks religious people should be in cages, so maybe that assumption isn't very far off).

Behe's book is not about the Bible, or Christianity, or Creationism, or even anti-evolution. It is anti-aimless natural selection. Behe sets up many examples w/in biology and biochemistry that show how the human cell and its processes are dependent on complex plans that could not have developed gradually. Blood coagulation requires "knowledge" of the end result in order for the process to begin. The immune system requires separate parts to evolve at the same time to meet a common goal w/in the system. There are "blueprints" w/in life that mutation and natural selection cannot explain, especially w/in the timeframe of earth's development. Does this disprove evolution? No. Does it prove the existence of God? No, not necessarily, although you'd have to provide a funky explanation involving (gasp! oh no!) metaphysics. The Power of "Life" as the Grand Unified Theory of Physics, or something. So this book does prove the need for a new explanation that is going to have to account for the borderline miraculous development of life, since life is so "irreducibly complex". Francis Crick, probably seeing the writing on the wall because of his analysis of DNA, jumped on the panspermia bandwagon early on. I always wondered why he did so, because in High School and College I was never told of the weaknesses w/in Darwinism, and here comes Crick w/ this funky idea of panspermia. Why, I thought? Crick's obviously a genius, wasn't he aware that natural selection is flawless and infallible? Now I know why. Of course, panspermia has its own problems, as it just pushes the problems of chaotic life ex nihilo back a couple of galaxies and epochs.

Behe also shows how many of the arguments against Intelligent Design are Strawmen fallacies, such as "Well, God wouldn't have done it that way!" Well, why not? That's not an observation of nature, but a metaphysical argument, and one that comes from Sartrian "bad faith". Behe takes from the bottom up, and shows how the observation of cells and cellular mechanisms leads to planning and design. The identity and characteristics of the Designer--is he perfectly Good or does he have a mean side, is he Deistic or Theistic, would he make the universe perfect from a human perspective or would he make the universe glaring w/ imperfections--is for another book and another time. Like a good Belisarius (the Byzantine commmander who ushered in the strategy of defensive warfare), Behe merely stakes out a sound corner w/in science that orthodox scientific opinion cannot explain (irreducible complexity), and he sits there, secure.

Good Argument, So-So Writing
Behe presents a solid challenge to a Darwinian view of how life started on Earth (though he leaves the question of how it could begin elsewhere unchallenged). Unfortunately to do this, he relies on several esoteric biochemical processes (though i think that is the only sort of biochemical processes available to a neophyte like myself). The first half of the book reads as several iterations of the same argument, though delivered with increasing amounts of sarcasm. The second half of the book, in which he delivers his answer to the questions raised earlier, seems rushed. So if you tire of the seemingly endless stream of enzymes and proteins, skip to the second part -- it's much easier reading for the layperson.

Though to say that this book disproves or even dismisses evolution and natural selection as viable scientific theories is disingenuous at best, and dishonest at worst. Behe even says that beyond a limited set of structures that appear to be evidence of intelligent design, there are many structures that are not clearly designed (and most likely aren't, he admits). To explain these structures and organisms, he gives a variety of options, ending with what is clearly natural selection, though he declines to name it as such. Finally, while criticising evolutionary proponents for attacking a straw man (the watchmaker for darwinists, Richard Dawkins for intelligent design-ists), this is exactly what he does -- since Darwin's followers haven't demonstrated a valid argument/scenario for the basic structures of the cell, then entire theory is invalid (including portions that have been experimentally shown true on an organism level).

Finally, Behe doesn't give any sort of explanation or theory for how some basic structures of the cell are evidence of design, but others are not. He implies that those not showing evidence of design could have evolved, but does not explain why some more complicated structures could be designed before other more basic structures evolved.

Enjoy this book and the questions it opens, but it is far from the final word on the origins and progression of life on Earth (just as Dawkins' books aren't, either). ... Read more

Book Description

Biochemistry: The Chemical Reactions of Living Cells is a well-integrated, up-to-date reference for basic biochemistry, associated chemistry, and underlying biological phenomena. Biochemistry is a comprehensive account of the chemical basis of life, describing the amazingly complex structures of the compounds that make up cells, the forces that hold them together, and the chemical reactions that allow for recognition, signaling, and movement. This book contains information on the human body, its genome, and the action of muscles, eyes, and the brain.

*Thousands of literature references provide introduction to current research as well as historical background
*Contains twice the number of chapters of the first edition
*Each chapter contains boxes of information on topics of general interest ... Read more

Book Description

From its first-published account in 1985, the polymerase chain reaction has become a standard research tool in a wide range of laboratories. Its impact has been felt in basic molecular biological research, clinical research, forensics, evolutionary studies, and the Human Genome Project. The PCR technique originally conceived by Nobel laureate Kary Mullis has proven to be exceptionally adaptable and has been transformed into a myriad array of methods, each with different applications.

PCR Primer: A Laboratory Manual introduces the complex world of PCR by beginning at an accessible level and then moving to more advanced levels of application. First, the practical requirements for performing PCR and other amplification techniques in the lab are introduced and then the basic aspects of the technique are explained by exploring important issues such as sample preparation, primer design, efficiency, detection of products, and quantitation. Protocols for a wide range of PCR and amplification techniques—each written by an expert investigator—are presented for cloning, sequencing, mutagenesis, footprinting, library construction and screening, exon trapping, differential display, and expression, and these include RT-PCR, RNA PCR, LCR, multiplex PCR, panhandle PCR, capture PCR, expression PCR, 3' and 5' RACE, immune PCR, in situ PCR, and ligation-mediated PCR. Each protocol is augmented by analysis and troubleshooting sections and complete references. ... Read more

Reviews (1)

Best PCR manual there is!
I have used two different protocols from this book, 1, RACE-PCR and 2, mutagenesis.These two methods were described very well, both theoretically and practically. The protocols were described in detail, were easy to follow, and they work! I'm sure that the other protocols in this book also work equally well. If you do PCR, you need this book! ... Read more

Book Description

Technology today allows the collection of biological information at an unprecedented level of detail and in increasingly vast quantities. To reap real knowledge from the mountains of data produced, however, requires interdisciplinary skills-a background not only in biology but also in computer science and the tools and techniques of data analysis.To help meet the challenges of DNA research, Data Analysis Tools for DNA Microarrays builds the foundation in the statistics and data analysis tools needed by biologists and provides the overview of microarrays needed by computer scientists. It first presents the basics of microarray technology and more importantly, the specific problems the technology poses from the data analysis perspective. It then introduces the fundamentals of statistics and the details of the techniques most commonly used to analyze microarray data. The final chapter focuses on commercial applications with sections exploring various software packages from BioDiscovery, Insightful, SAS, and Spotfire. The book is richly illustrated with more than 230 figures in full color and comes with a CD-ROM containingfull-feature trial versions of software for image analysis (ImaGene, BioDiscovery Inc.) and data analysis (GeneSight, BioDiscovery Inc. and S-Plus Array Analyzer, Insightful Inc.).Written in simple language and illustrated in full color, Data Analysis Tools for DNA Microarrays lowers the communication barrier between life scientists and analytical scientists. It prepares those charged with analyzing microarray data to make informed choices about the techniques to use in a given situation and contribute to further advances in the field. ... Read more

Reviews (4)

Far from superficial...
When entering the minefields of microarray data analysis, one has to understand and keep up with state-of-the-art technologies and interdisciplinary literatures. A background in molecular biology is clearly not enough to evaluate the pro and cons of the various statistical methods for selecting truly modulated candidate genes in a given experimental biological system. Choosing between the available analysis software's is not an easy task either. Draghici presents a complete visit of the microarray underworld by initiating the reader to all the facettes of this domain. From the fundamentals of slide production and target hybridization to image processing, statistical analysis, experimental design, data management and biological interpretation, all aspects treated herein are described with pertinent details. Draghici slowly, but successfully, tames the reticent molecular biologist to the arid world of statistics and even entertains the reader with anecdotes and humoristic citations.
Clearly written, with appropriate mathematical examples for each topic, this book even includes exercises at the end of some chapters, for the zealous student sleeping in all of us. It constitutes a very good didactic tool and the included CD's allow a good peek in some of the available image/data analysis software's on the market.
As a core facility manager and eternal student, I strongly recommend Draghici's book to life scientists and students who are struggling with statistical analysis and data mining techniques.

Brigitte Malette, Ph. D.
Project Leader, Microarray Platform
Centre for Structural and Functional Genomics
Concordia University
Montreal

Detailed and understandable
Draghici managed to write a manual on applying microarray (data) with a great feeling for explanation of hard issues. The book is relatively easy to read, very complete and covers most, if not all, analysis techniques that are currently around for microarrays.

Highly recommendable!

Good Overview of Microarray Technology
I have had the book for about a month now and I consult it quite frequently. Great coverage of Microarray Data Anlysis. It manages to be thourough without being dry or using excessive jargon. It's very readable and useful for both novices and experienced readers.

It's main strength lies in the use of excellent examples that show the main pitfalls encountered in analyzing microarray data. It has great coverage of statistics and their potential misuse and misunderstanding when they are applied to gene expression data sets. The experimental design section is especially helpful for researchers that are designing a project.

The graphics are excellent and the book is printed on good quality paper.

The book includes two CD's with demo versions of several commercial software packages.

Overall a great buy.

Data Analysis Tools for DNA Microarrays
A much needed book for the biologist interested in using DNA/protein microarrays. Examples are specific for microarrays. The material starts from ground zero and begins
with image analysis. All major methods for analysis are discussed.
Well worth the cost, quality graphics, includes software (have not used as yet).
A must read before discussing experimetnal design with your stats person. ... Read more

Reviews (6)

Not worth the time
This book was not helpful to me studying for Step 1. It contains too much unnecessary detail while it lacks clinically relevant information. 1st aid was sufficient + Lippincott for its nice charts.

An Excellent Source for Step 1
When I was preparing for step 1, I bought this book as an alternative to "Lippincott's Illustrated Biochemistry". I did not have enough time for that book and other books were too short. At first I was skeptical, but when I started reading the book, everything changed. I studied it in 5 days and I could not believe how well prepared I was. I had no problem during the test. This book gives you a very good understanding of biochemistry as a whole picture. It has some unnecessary chemistry details that you can skip. Also questions are not clinically oriented, so try to use another test book. The author of the book has done a terrific job in summarizing and choosing subjects that are important for test. It has good illustrations that help you visually remember material.

BRS Biochemistry
Dr. Marks' biochemistry board review series is quite informative. It gives a good foundation for those who have never had a biochemistry class and provides great review for those who have. It is a great supplemental text that helps to clarify and test the student's knowledge of the information. The book often helped to provide a guideline by which studying could be approached for the course. However, students should understand that the book is not meant to substitute their syllabi or their texts.

great review
This is a concise review of biochem for the boards. Dr. Marks explains things and is able to put them in an outline form so you are not reading endless text. The questions at the end of each section are really helpful.

Some words about Dawn Marks
I just want to say that I knew Dawn Marks. I was part of the last class she taught at Temple University School of Medicine. She died on Spet 6, 2000. She was one of the best teachers I've ever had. She worked tirelessly for her students... Giving organized review sessions, impromptu reviews for any student with a biochemistry problem, and overall a way of making us understand. This is echoed by Temple's performance each year on the USMLE in biochem. She will be missed by not only her family, friends, and students, but by medical students across the country. ... Read more

Book Description

Proteins of Iron Metabolism presents a clear picture of the structure and function of the main proteins involved in iron metabolism. The book gives you a detailed description of the structure and function of each protein, and discusses the structure and regulation of the corresponding genes in parallel. It supplies an analysis of the differential expression and regulation of these proteins.Numerous figures offer an integrated view of iron metabolism at the level of various tissues. The book delineates the mechanisms controlling cellular iron metabolism and shows how these mechanisms adapt to the differential and peculiar iron need of different cell types. Each chapter contains extensive bibliographical information providing a wide reference to the literature. The comprehensive coverage of the advances in understanding the mechanisms controlling cellular iron metabolism, especially at the molecular level, found in this book will give you insight into the regulation of iron metabolism. Proteins of Iron Metabolism fills the need for a clearly written, comprehensive review of the latest research, putting every thing you need in one easy-to-use resource. ... Read more

Book Description

Daniel C. Liebler masterfully introduces the science of proteomics by spelling out the basics of how one analyzes proteins and proteomes, and just how these approaches are then employed to investigate their roles in living systems. He explains the key concepts of proteomics, how the analytical instrumentation works, what data mining and other software tools do, and how these tools can be integrated to study proteomes. Also discussed are how protein and peptide separation techniques are applied in proteomics, how mass spectrometry is used to identify proteins, and how data analysis software enables protein identification and the mapping of modifications. In addition, there are proteomic approaches for analyzing differential protein expression, characterizing proteomic diversity, and dissecting protein–protein interactions and networks. ... Read more

Reviews (2)

Very readable introduction to Proteomics
This very readable book provides an excellent overview of proteomics. It gives a survey of techniques, comparing them and explaining why and when they are used. This is not the place to learn any method in detail. But it is the only book I have seen that you can read cover to cover in a few days and get the big picture of the field. Some caveats: each chapter has only 3 or 4 references, and the book focuses on methods connected to mass spectrometry. But if you want a quick and pleasant introduction to methods for purifying and identifying proteins, including discussions of ICAT, protein complexes and post-translation modifications, I highly recommend this book.

Good information, poor organization
There really are lots of good facts in this book. Somehow, though, they never come together to form a coherent whole.

Most chapters read like essays, meant to stand on their own. That means that many chapters repeat introductory material already covered, and remake points already made. Yes, I appreciate that silver staining does not properly represent the whole range of protein expression levels. I do not appreciate the need to stat that three or four times.

Despite its "Introduction" title, the author seems to forget what a novice will need to learn. For example, there's a discussion of isoelectric focussing for protein separation. That includes mention of the technique's history, and why it used to have reproducibility problems. I never did see an exact description of what the techique actually is or how it works, though. Likewise, the author describes a number of important software packages used in proteomics. There are no screen shots, though, comparisons of capabilities, details of usage, or even references for letting me find out more on my own.

When I got to the the end of this book, I wanted to go back and review a few points. Because of the generally poor organization, it was always a struggle to figure out just which discussion covered the topics I wanted.

Other books cover almost all of this title's content, and do so more clearly. I suggest that the interested reader keep on looking. ... Read more

Book Description

Designed to supplement and complement any standard biochemistry text or lecture notes, this book helps provide a balanced picture of modern biochemistry by use of elementary mathematics in understanding properties and behavior of biological molecules. It provides a balanced picture of modern biochemistry by using elementary mathematics to explore the properties and behavior of biological molecules. The text discusses such topics as:

Book Description

This textbook is intended for a diverse audience that ranges from chemistry majors to students in any of the life sciences.The logical organization (discussion of molecular structure immediately followed by the role it plays in metabolism) leads students through the complex world of biochemistry while an impressive art program helps to guide them through up-to-date concepts.Of special interest are the new Biochemical Methods boxes in the text, PowerPoint slides for instructors, and animated and annotated Chime structures of biomolecules in the OLC. ... Read more

Reviews (1)

A very thorough intro to biochemistry for any grad student
From the point of view of biology and chemistry, this book outlines the fundamental points that are needed to understand the different processes of all cells, with a special emphasis on diseases. It has at the beginning of each chapter a short presentation of the problem to be discussed. It has an excellent set of questions at the end of each chapter. The index is very thorough and helpful and the references relate to CURRENT useful sources. ... Read more

Book Description

Comprehensive, up-to-date coverage of a revolutionary technique Electrospray ionization mass spectrometry (ESI-MS) has completely changed the way physicists, chemists, and biologists view the study of large molecules. The technique derives detailed information about molecular weights and structures from extremely small sample quantities. ESI-MS can create highly charged forms of very high molecular weight compounds, it is naturally compatible with many types of separation techniques, and it allows noncovalent interactions between molecules in solution to be preserved in the gas phase. But many researchers may not use the technique to its full potential because they are unfamiliar with the different perspectives of its underlying processes, the varied approaches to implementation, and the wide-ranging utility of the technique.

In this book, Richard B. Cole and an assemblage of leading researchers present a single-volume compilation of different approaches to the understanding and exploitation of ESI-MS. This comprehensive guide:
* Examines the physical and chemical aspects of the electrospray process and describes the events involved in ion formation as well as the electro-chemical phenomena that are central to charged droplet formation during the process
* Explores the coupling of electrospray ionization to various mass spectrometers, including quadrupole, magnetic, time-of-flight, quadrupole ion trap, and Fourier transform ion cyclotron resonance instruments
* Describes recent progress in interfacing ESI with solution-based separation techniques, including liquid chromatography and capillary electrophoresis
* Charts the rapid development of ESI applications and categorizes them by compound type: peptides and proteins, nucleic acids and their constituents, carbohydrates and lipids, small molecules related to pharmacology and drug metabolism, and organometallics and inorganic compounds

Electrospray Ionization Mass Spectrometry is the indispensable handbook and reference for anyone who wishes to understand, implement, or apply this technique, including researchers in chemistry, metallochemistry, biochemistry, biology, pharmacology, and physics. ... Read more

Reviews (2)

Great book for beginners and experiences users
This book gives an excellent overview over different aspects of ESI-MS and can be recommended both for the beginner, who wants to gain first insight into this technique, as well as for the experienced mass spectrometrist.

A very good book, I highly recommend it.
Richard Cole has put together a very good overview on electrospray ionization. The book is a nice compilation of information concerning different aspects of electrospray ionization mass spectrometry. ... Read more

Book Description

This alternate edition is a paperback book designed for professors who want to cover organic and biochemistry, or only the last 15 chapters of the main text, CHEMISTRY FOR TODAY: GENERAL, ORGANIC, AND BIOCHEMISTRY, Fourth Edition. The ancillaries and web site that accompany the main text are also available for this briefer edition. ... Read more

Book Description

If you’ve been diagnosed with polycystic ovarian syndrome (PCOS) or suspect you have it, and you’re looking for a way to manage your condition, you’ve come to the right place. In The New Glucose Revolution Guide to Living Well with PCOS, Dr. Jennie Brand-Miller--author of the New York Times bestseller The New Glucose Revolution, the authoritative guide to the glycemic index--along with Dr. Nadir Farid and Kate Marsh, address the root cause of PCOS--insulin resistance--and show you how eating a low-GI diet can help alleviate even your most troublesome symptoms, including:

Weight gain
Unsightly hair growth
Irregular cycles
Fatigue
Infertility
Hypoglycemia
Acne
Mood swings

Filled with indispensable advice on switching to the low-GI diet, incorporating exercise into your lifestyle, and preserving your overall health and well-being, as well as thirty delicious recipes, The New Glucose Revolution Guide to Living Well with PCOS will help you beat your PCOS symptoms and take back control over your life. ... Read more

Book Description

The second edition includes: 16 additional name reactions; the references are updated and expanded; a better index; short descriptions for most of the name reactions are added; typographical and structural errors are corrected.

Different from other books on name reactions in organic chemistry, Name Reactions, A Collection of Detailed Reaction Mechanisms focuses on their mechanisms. It covers over 300 classical as well as contemporary name reactions. Each reaction is delineated by its detailed step-by-step, electron-pushing mechanism, supplemented with the original and the latest references, especially review articles. Thus, it is not only an indispensable resource for senior undergraduate and graduate students for their learning and exams, but also a good reference book for all chemists interested in name reactions.

SOME PRAISE FOR THE PREVIOUS EDITION:

JOURNAL OF CHEMICAL EDUCATION "This is an excellent book for arrow pushing and learning organic name reactions as encountered in graduate school . . . Li's book contains reactions of all mechanistic classes . . . The book is nicely balanced, containing modern-day reactions for assembly of stereocomplex molecules. Reactions such as the Corey-Bakshi-Shibata reduction are analyzed. This book is a good reference text that fills a void that has existed for some time. It is both an excellent tool for learning and a good reference source." ... Read more

Reviews (1)

A excellent collection of important Name Reactions
This book is a must for any undergrad, graduate student or for that matter, CHEMIST, at any level who is interested in Name Reactions. It contains 331 name reactions that range from classic organic chemistry to modern day organic chemistry. An excellent collection of important name reactions that is in an easy to read format. Each reaction contains a brief summary, a general reaction scheme and a detailed arrow pushing mechanism.

I really like this book because of its contents and simplicity. Its very easy to find the reaction you are looking for and the information is complete. It would be very helpful in studying for advance organic chemistry exams or as a quick reference when you do not know a particular named reaction. The index is about average for this type of book; however, this book is based on the fact that you are looking up named reactions and not using it as a functional group conversion reference.

After all is said and done, I can truly say that I am glad I purchased this book. It is a complete summary of named reactions and I look forward to using it in the years to come.

Thanks ... Read more