Book Description

This issues-based, inquiry-driven biology book provides learners with the ability and desire to take an active and academic interest in the science issues they will regularly face in life. KEY TOPICS A five-part organization covers general principles in biology, genetics, evolution, human health, and humans and the environment.For an in-depth understanding of compelling contemporary topics—along with the biology that permeates these issues. ... Read more

Reviews (8)

A descent book for beginners
Before making any critics about this book I should stress upon the fact that the authors well deserve a four star rating for this most readable book, both for the writing style and for the contents. Almost everything written is clear, concise and well presented. The captions are of high quality and if you ever buy this book feel sure that you are not wasting your money! I am referring in particular to chapter 16: Genetics of Bacteria and Bacteriophages which in reality is quite tricky but here presented with simple words. You may not have to read it more than once for you will understand it right from the first lecture. For in-depth study though you might need something more advanced!
However I did not really appreciate the way the fluctuation test of S.Luria and M.Delbruk was presented nor was the following work of J.Cairns and B.Hall in chapter 14: Gene mutation, DNA repair and Transposable elements. There seems to lack the true essence of it. Furthermore the existence of mutational hotspots is limited to a subsection only of chapter 14 and a few lines on the work of S.Benzer. Even B.Lewin in Genes VII gives a better treatment of mutational hotspots. Finally I would have expected a chapter on Mutations to talk about mutator mutations as possible ways to increase or decrease the spontaneous mutation rate but no such references were made.
Despite these few things, if you love genetics or need an introductory course be sure that this book is meant for you!

I was taught by the proffesor who wrote the book
Yup, and the professor gave out many problems in addition to supplementary problems. The book was an easy read but in order to do well in this course you simply need a mind for genetics. This is probably the best book I've seen.

I am very pleased with my purchase:timely, great condition!
I recieved the book in one day and it was in great condition!

OK, but could have been better
I used this book in an intro genetics course. Now I can't say if it was the professor or the book that made me really dislike the subject, but I think that if it was a really good book I would have come out with a least a little understanding on what genetics is about; I didn't. Something was not right; genetics is supposed to be a booming field, interesting, and cutting edge in terms of research. I did not get this picture from reading this book. Now I must say that the book was easy to read in the sense that they don't try and pack too much material on one page, there are nice illustrations and color photograhs etc. The problem I had with it was that it didn't really explain how to do those complicated genetics problems, those ones where you'd have to predict the percentages of progeny that were pink, spotted, and had one ear if the parents had linked recessive genes on chromosome 17.25 (you get the gist) These were the kinds of problems that we had all year and I just never understood. The professor couldn't explain them, neither could the book, neither could my friends. All in all, genetics was a bad experience for me and this book did not make it any better. I am sure that there are many better texts out there, but I have just been so turned away from genetics that I haven't bothered to look.

I loved this book.
I used this textbook in as an undergraduate student at Trenton State College. Not only did I find the course incredibly fascinating, the text book was a great complement to the material. I found it to be readable and by no means did it resemble a research paper as one reviewer commented. On a personal note, Dr. Klug, the author of the book, was infact my professor. I imagine that this may have influenced my appreciation of the text but in any case I enjoyed the book and course immensely. Also, for the reviewer who suspected that Dr. Klug was some snobby PhD, he was one of the best professors I had during my college career! ... Read more

Amazon.com

More than 10 years in the making, David Sibley's Guide to Birds is a monumental achievement. The beautiful watercolor illustrations (6,600, covering 810 species in North America) and clear, descriptive text place Sibley and his work squarely in the tradition of John James Audubon and Roger Tory Peterson; more than a birdwatcher and evangelizer, he is one of the foremost bird painters and authorities in the U.S. Still, his field guide will no doubt spark debate. Unlike Kenn Kaufman's Focus Guide, Sibley's is unapologetically aimed at the converted. Beginning birders may want to keep a copy of Sibley at home as a reference, but the wealth of information will have the same effect on novices as trying to pick out a single sandpiper in a wheeling flock of thousands. The familiar yellow warbler, for instance, gets no less than nine individual illustrations documenting its geographic, seasonal, and sex variations--plus another eight smaller illustrations showing it in flight. Of course, more experienced birders will appreciate this sort of detail, along with Sibley's improvements on both Peterson and the National Geographic guide:

• As in Peterson, Sibley employs a pointer system for key field markings--but additional text blurbs are included alongside the illustrations to facilitate identification.
• Descriptive passages on identification are more detailed than those in most other field guides. For example, Sibley includes extensive information on the famously hard-to-distinguish hawks in the genus Accipiter (sharp-shinned, Cooper's, and northern goshawk), noting differences in leg thickness and wing beat that will be of use to more advanced birders. A section on the identification of "peeps" (small sandpipers) includes tips about seasonal molting and bill length. Confusing fall warblers, Empidonax flycatchers, and Alcids receive similar treatment.
• As previously mentioned, ample space is given to illustrations that show plumage variations by age, sex, and geography within a single species. Thus, an entire page is devoted to the red-shouldered hawk and its differing appearances in the eastern U.S., Florida, and California; similarly, gulls are distinguished by age and warblers by sex.
• Range maps are detailed and accurate, with breeding, wintering, and migration routes clearly depicted; rare but regular geographic occurrences are denoted by green dots.
• The binding and paper stock are of exceptional quality. Despite its 544 pages, a reinforced paperback cover and sewn-in binding allow the book to be spread out flat without fear of breaking the binding.

Some birders will be put off by the book's size. Slightly larger than the National Geographic guide, it's less portable than most field guides and will likely spend more time in cars and desks than on a birder's person while in the field. For some it will be a strictly stay-at-home companion guide to consult after a field trip; others may want to have it handy in a fannypack or backpack. But regardless of how it is used, Sibley's Guide to Birds is a significant addition to any birding library. "Birds are beautiful," the author writes in the preface, "their colors, shapes, actions, and sounds are among the most aesthetically pleasing in nature." Pleasing, too, is this comprehensive guide to their identification. --Langdon Cook ... Read more

Reviews (79)

Beautiful complement for my bird book library.....
I've owned the SIBLEY GUIDE TO BIRD LIFE AND BEHAVIOR for a while, and finally ordered the SIBLEY GUIDE TO BIRDS to complete the set. Both books are published by Audubon, the leading name in all things involving birds--at least that is what my 87-year old Aunt Marge says, and she's been to Audubon camp on many occasions.

The SIBLEY GUIDE TO BIRDS is too heavy to take into the field--it's really a reference book. Roger Tory Petersen's guide books are the best for field work--especially when children are involved. Sibley's guides are great reference books.

Unlike THE SMITHSONIAN HANDBOOK, Sibley's guide does not include a bird profile per page, but like the Smithsonian book and the NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC BIRDS OF NORTH AMERICA the Sibley guide covers birds in the Northern Hemisphere (U.S. Canada, and Mexico). The National Geographic field guide is lighter than the Sibley guide and thus more likely to end up in the field as the title suggests, however, it is larger and more cumbersome than the Petersen guide and will probably travel in the camper trailer or glove compartment, not in your hand or back pack.

So--use Petersen for field work, get the Smithsonian guide for extra individual detail, and buy the Sibley guide for making comparisons across species types. If you are really a bird nut, get the Sibley guide to Bird Behavior and the National Geographic bird book. The pictures in the NG book are beautiful with lots of contextual detail--i.e. the Kingfisher eating, flying etc, however, although the NG includes the range maps, it does not include the little arrows that help you identify bird idiosyncracies. The Smithsonian and Petersen guides include the arrows and maps, and the Sibley includes maps and selected arrows (not in most cases).

Every bird watcher will want this book in his or her library
From the moment I first opened David Sibley's new field guide, I was mesmerized. It offers a compact presentation on every species of bird north of the Mexican border and is undoubtedly one of the most user-friendly guides ever developed. In many ways, Sibley takes Roger Torey Peterson's method to its logical end--a guide that capsulizes all the essential information about similar species, arraying them close to each other for comparison. But unlike Peterson, Sibley presents ample information on the many plumages of individual species which are apt to confuse even some of the most experienced birders. Sibley's art work is very appealing to the eye, and his bird potraits are all very naturally posed. He also points out distinguishing field marks with text arrayed alongside his portraits, facilitating rapid identification. His approach also offers flight views together with perched views where that is helpful.

There are a few negatives--only a few. The book would be unwieldy to carry in the field. (Best to bring it along and leave it in the car, perhaps.) The range maps are for the most part too small to easily distinguish, especially where birds appear in only limited areas. And the description of songs and calls strike me as inferior to Peterson's, from which I've learned most of the songs and calls I know over the past 40 years.

In comparison to the other new bird guide just published, Kenn Kaufman's "Focus Guide," I much prefer David Sibley's. While Kaufman has crammed an incredible amount of information into a small, very quickly accessible volume, Sibley's is far more useful in distinguishing between species. Kaufman's is far handier to carry along in the field, but it offers far less data on individual species than Sibley. (Although I cannot feature using this information, Sibley even gives the average weight of each species--a fascinating bit of information not readily available in most other guides.)

In any event, if you are a person interested in birds at any level of expertise, you are bound to enjoy David Sibley's excellent new guide. Buy a copy as soon as you can!

A terrific identification guide!
I've been a birder for many years and began a life list around five years ago. I own many of the standard field guides. Only recently did I obtain the Sibley Guide, but it's become my favorite. I generally use Sibley and Stokes in tandem.

Advantages:
1. Logical layout
2. "Species accounts" pages offer an excellent comparative view within the group, as well as a good all-up overview of the families/genus/species, and general behavior.
3. Individual species pages show comprehensive plumage reference art; more detailed than any I've seen. For this feature alone, the guide is worthwhile!
4. Species pages show variants (e.g., Great Blue/Great White Heron), fledgling and/or juvenile patterns. In some cases art of eclipse plumage is a very nice bonus.
5. Flight/wing patterns where relevant
6. Comparison of hummingbird mating display paths
7. Diurnal raptors section shows perched vs. in-flight underside plumage for each species. It also offers silhouette guides to help teach wing shape if plumage is light-obscured.
8. Good geographical reference map (though smaller than ideal*)
9. Good vocal descriptions
10. Nice (what they refer to as) "bird topography" section
11. Where applicable, good information on regional variations and species clines.

Disadvantages:
1. This is not a pocket guide; it's cumbersome. I use Stokes in the field, and use Sibley at home for reference afterward.
2. The binding on my copy isn't sturdy, particularly for something that's supposedly a field guide. I feel like I must treat the glue binding gingerly or the pages might start to fall out.
3. Not enough text re: birding ethics & conservation (but that might just be my inner tree-hugger appearing) :)
4. *Geographical range map is small. I imagine it'd be difficult for some people to see clearly.
5. Migratory geographical information only covers North America. I'd like reference for migratory species (even just within text) of migration route start/finish and total annual distance. (Aside: the artic tern has the longest distance migration [Arctic to Antarctic] and can cover 22k - 30k mpy.)

Overall, this a great reference, and I recommend it highly.

However, to Knopf publishers/Chanticleer Press: Please ask Dai Nippon Printing Co to use better binding glue in the next edition!

A Sibley classic
A truly magnificent book, which, coupled with its companion volume, the Sibley Guide to Bird Life and Behavior, provides the definitive text on American birdlife.

Simply the Best of the Best!
Mr. Sibley has created a bird guide for the 21st century. Practical, logical and incredibly informative, The Sibley Guide to Birds is the bird watchers bible. I have used this guide everyday since I purchased it and the incredible paintings make indentifying birds a joy. Concise and informative, this is the definitive guide for my favorite hobby!! I highly recommend this guide to both novice and expert alike. ... Read more

Book Description

A beautiful and surprising exploration of a phenomenon that's at once familiar and baffling: the mystery of why birds sing

The astonishing variety and richness of bird song is both an aesthetic and a scientific mystery. Biologists have never been able to understand why bird song displays are often so inventive and why so many species devote so many hours to singing. The standard explanations, which generally have to do with territoriality and sexual display, don't begin to account for the astonishing variety and energy that the commonest birds exhibit. Is it possible that birds sing because they like to? This seemingly na•ve explanation is starting to look more and more like the truth.

In the tradition of classic works by Bernd Heinrich, Edward Abbey, and Terry Tempest Williams, Why Birds Sing is a lyric exploration of bird song that blends the latest scientific research with a deep understanding of musical beauty and form. Based on conversations with neuroscientists, ecologists, and composers, it is the first book to investigate why birds sing and how, and what effect their music has on other animals-particularly humans. Whether playing the clarinet with the white-crested laughing thrush in Pittsburgh, or jamming in the Australian winter breeding grounds of the Albert's lyrebird, Rothenberg journeys to the heart and soul of bird song. Why Birds Sing offers an intimate look at the most lovely of natural phenomena-with surprising insights about the origin of music. ... Read more

Reviews (2)

Duetting with the Birds
Rothenberg writes with an easy intimacy, but if one takes him at his word, the intimacy that means most to him comes not by means of words but of music, and less by means of music as such than by an improvisatory exchange between, usually, himself on his clarinet, and someone else on whatever instrument the other person is using.

Given this driving urge, it seems inevitable that Rothenberg should want to cross the barrier between those most musical of creatures, the birds, and those with the most productive curiosity, the humans. His own curiosity leads him first to the birds and then to the human experts in birdsong. He gives vivid descriptions of these researchers' extraordinary devotion to their work. I especially enjoyed his description of the ability of the composer Olivier Messiaen to hear, transcribe, and whistle the complex songs of a bird he had never heard before.

Although, like a few of the researchers - Donald Kroodsma, for example - Rothenberg believes in the innate pleasure birds take in their song, he checks his intuitive sense of their muisicality by carefully summarizing what is scientifically known about their abilities and ways of life. Yet even though he takes to heart the criticism that the romantics "listened to birds and heard only themselves," he recalls that science, too, is fallible, and he plays on the ornithologists' conclusion that not only is each species of birds unique, but so is every individual bird.

"Why Birds Sing" ends in the climactic scene in which Rothenberg and a friend go to Australia to hear, see the dance of, and try to enter into a musical dialogue with the lyrebird named George, the only member, he says, of his elusive, musically gifted species who can stomach the sight and sound of human beings. The bird lights to sing just a few meters from Rothenberg's tape recorder. He hears that the lyrebird's song is composed but alien, in a human sens crazy, music. After he hears a full cycle of the lyrebird's music, he joins in, dancing, not to copy the bird's song, but to play music, in and around the song, that is worthy of the bird's acceptance. The bird seems to respond to the clarinet, dances, and disappears. Rothenberg develops this last, climactic chapter, which he calls "Becoming a Bird," with thoughtful eloquence. He feels he has given his gift and made his human offering to an animal of another singing species. But his gift is also to all of us who read him.

A Must-Have Bird Book
This book is a hoot, a tweet, and a cheerup!

David Rothenberg has interwoven a personl journey of playing music with birds with a comprehensive history of bird song studies - from their poetic beginnings to their present scientific analysis.Because of his diverse talents, he is the perfect guide through these intellectual and musical forays.

Why do birds sing?There are many answers, but none are as satisfying as the relentless questioning in this book.I enjoyed it immensely and found it impossible to put down.I am sure you will enjoy it too. ... Read more

Book Description

Convey learning through independent discovery with the investigative experiments in this unique lab manual. Written in a fresh, engaging style, Life Laboratory Manual asks students to actively participate in setting up and preparing experiments rather than just using conventional, commercially available materials. ... Read more

Reviews (2)

Does not explain concepts well
I used this book for 2 semesters of introductory biology in college. After the first month, I became frustrated with the poor explanations. I asked a few friends and they recommended Biology by Campbell. What a lifesaver!

I also continued to used this book and also found a number of errors in the pictures. This cost me a few points on tests and quizzes, so this added to my low opinion of this book. I also became hesitant to trust what it was telling me, particularly when there were differences between Campbell and this book.

It has a nice layout, and it breaks topics into meaningful chunks; the explanations were okay most times and simply inadequate too frequently for me. On a scale of 1 to 10, this book is about a 3 or 4 and Campbell is a 9. But reading Campbell also takes more time and effort.

i havn,t read it yet
after i review i'll do tha ... Read more

Book Description

Reviews (3)

Good story, perhaps, but author is not the best narrator
I suspect that reading this book would be better than the audio version.The author reads her own work and, while I have certainly heard worse narrators, I have also heard much better.The author uses some inflection but her voice is general dull and heavy.Still, for listeners with an interest in sharks, it may be worth the time, even though nothing really spectacular happens nor does the author give a lot of details about the sharks.It is mainly about what happens to her when she visits shark researchers on a remote island.A much better book about sharks and the sea would be Peter Benchley's "Shark Trouble".

A Fascinating Book About A Fascinating Subject
I read an excerpt from this book in SPORTS ILLUSTRATED, and knew I'd have to read the entire thing. Ms. Casey writes beautifully, and has you hooked (no pun intended) from page one! You feel a little sorry for the seals who end up as entrees for the sharks who inhabit the Farallon Islands a few months a year, but that's nature. The strong survive and this is a book about the ultimate survivors and their peculiar pilgrimage to this unusual playground.

An incredibly absorbing read !
Have just finished reading an advance reader's copy of Susan Casey's "The Devil's Teeth".I can tell you with much assuredness, you're in for a treat if firsthand accounts of nature in it's rawest form touches you as it does me.

Having lived in the hills of Marin in the shadow of Mt. Tamalpais above Bolinas for the last 25 years, I've been aware of the research done by Peter and Scot on great whites but never had such an in depth look into their activites as that which Ms. Casey puts to words so well. A true spellbinding page turner !!

"In all things of nature there is something of the marvelous."
-Aristotle

... Read more

Reviews (30)

CONCISE; YET, WELL-DETAILED
Compiled by an experienced mind, this "Biochemistry" by Lubert Stryer may seem a little pricey, but it is worth investing on. Its everyday language is comprehensive, generously illustrated, and presents details using a concise format. The book was designed for intermediate learners; although that its aura appeals to both beginners and advanced students. The sequential organisation of each section makes self-teaching an easy task. There are also revised chapters with overviews of Developmental Physiology and Genetics. It is a very fine text.

Easy to read, but not so good to study from
This book is considered a classic in its field, and, indeed, had few serious competitors up until about eight years ago. But, with new undergraduate texts that appeared since then, the weaknesses of Stryer's text became more apparent.

1. The text is not structured well enough: its 37 chapters are divided into a number of titled topics, but it is apparent that students would find it easier to manage if each chapter were divided into 4-8 major topics,just the way it has been done in 'Student companion for Stryer's Biochemistry' by Gumport et al.

2. It seems that the book owes part of its popularity to the fact that the most difficult topics have either been left out or are covered very briefly and with serious lack of rigor. The most notorious example is incredibly poor coverage of biochemical energetics. Since most readers are life science majors or medical students with little background in thermodynamics and electrochemistry, this ought be treated in a more detailed and more serious manner. Many students find the treatment of energetic aspects of oxidative phosphorylation and photosynthesis so unclear tham majority of them find it necessargy to consult some other text to figure things out. The same goes for enzyme kinetics - it is just inexcusable for a text of this size to completely ignore discussion of bisubstrate kinetics and other common complex kinetic systems.

As a conclusion, Stryer's Biochemistry 4th ed. is still readable and up-to date text. However, nowadays there are several other texts of about the same size and aiming at the same audience, but with much less things to complain about. As a TA in an undergraduate biochemistry course, I found texts by Mathews and van Holde (1996), Garrett and Grisham (1995) and Lehninger, Nelson and Cox (1993) to be more adequate for the needs of most students. My students especially praise Matthews and van Holde as a book which enables them to easily grasp even the most difficult concepts.

Learn elsewhere
A disorganized muddle of clinical correlations, chemical mechanisms, and pathways, the text attempts to destroy an otherwise beautiful topic. It is difficult to extract the main pts and organize the information into a coherent fashion. But fortunately there are other texts, and a map showing how all the pathways converge and a table w/enzymes organized by mechanism w/cofactor, rxn info will be golden. With books like Lippincott's Reviews and Voet&Voet, youll be biochemistry's biggest fan in no time.

Jack of a few trades, master of none
As with any intro text, this book tries to reach the largest audience possible. The problem is that it has deficiencies in many areas. The initial sections on DNA are short, completely avoiding any detailed mechanisms about DNA replication or transcription, putting those with a background that is stronger in chemistry at a disadvantage. When it comes to proteins, the book seems to have no trouble giving detailed mechanisms but the mechanisms are often obscure and poorly labeled (notably in serine proteases and metal-ion catalysis) making the information more difficult for those stronger in regular biology. Perhaps the worst part is that this book, which was chosen for my professor based on its integrated web courseware, has a website that is often unresponsive and seems to only work on old versions of Netscape. Nonetheless, I still keep a copy on my bookshelf for reference since the sections on proteins (notwithstanding the diagrams) are actually pretty good. All in all, an okay text and decent reference but certainly not for someone looking to pursue a career in biochemistry, molecular biology, or medicine. If you have a choice, the new Lehninger 4th edition is way better.

One step forward, one step back from previous edition
OK, it seems that the new authors of the 5th edition actually took to heart soem of the amazon.com critiques of the 4th edition. The chapters are more structured, and the worst chapters of the previous editions have been completely overhauled. There is a modest increase in the amount of quantitative materrial, although its quality still cannot rival some other biochem textbooks targeting the same audience (e.g. the wonderful Mathews, van Holde and Ahern text).

The 5th edition also succumbed to a malaise common to most textbooks when they are taken over by a different set of authors: an absolute overkill of "new pedagogical features". Icons, boxes, keywords, conceptual insights, structural insights etc. belong well to a study guide, but here they just interrupt the flow of the exposition unnecesarily. The simplicity of layout and the illustrations was one of the strengths of previous editions, and it seems to be lost here.

Also, without questioning the importance of the structural data that accumulated over the past decade, I am very doubtfull of the pedagogical value of their extensive use to explain basic biochemical concepts: way too often they just add additional complexity that moots the point the authors are trying to convey. Just look at the figure 10.21 - without the accompanying animation, it is about the poorest (least illustrative) depiction of the T to R transition in hemoglobin I have ever seen.

Overall, it is an updated text that will please Stryer fans. Those using other textbooks (Mathews, Lehninger) will have no reason whatsoever to switch to this one. ... Read more

Book Description

The Sixth Edition offers enhanced coverage of such topics as diet planning, the energy nutrients, vitamins and minerals, digestion and metabolism, weight management, life cycle nutrition, assessment and the nutrition care process, medical nutrition therapy, and complementary therapy.Whitney, Cataldo, and Rolfes incorporate the latest research in genetics, phytochemicals, antioxidants, and the Dietary Reference Intakes and Dietary Guidelines. New "Healthy People 2010" material (integrated throughout) reflects the latest health goals for the next decade. Also included are current recommendations from the American Heart Association for the prevention of Coronary Heart Disease (CHD). Every chapter in this accessible, visually exciting book is designed to inform your students and involve them in nutrition.Students will find many features, activities, and unique Web resources to help them apply chapter concepts. For example, a new "Think Nutrition" feature reminds students to consider nutrition issues when encountering clients with varied clinical diagnoses . . . while case studies, clinical application exercises, and other features teach students how to apply their knowledge in the field. ... Read more

Reviews (2)

A student's opinion
This textbook is actually one that is recommended for the Nutrition course at my university. I found it very useful and informative for all aspects of the course. Information was displayed in a clear and colourful manner, which made taking it all a lot easier. The study questions at the end of each section came in very handy when revising for exams. In addition the lists of resources relating to each topic were helpful, enabling you to look at other sources for further reading. I found the 'highlights' in particular useful as they covered particular points (such as eating disorders or osteoporosis) in depth and related it to the different aspects of nutrition.
Overall, I would recommend this book to anyone with a more than cursory interest in nutritional science as it provides a great of information on the subject.

Normal and Clinical Nutrition
I found this Nutrition book to very helpful. It is very informative and easy to understand. I enjoyed this book and will most likely keep it because it can be very helpful in the future. It contains information that is very helpful ... Read more

Book Description

The classic resource for undergraduate microbiology laboratory courses just keeps getting better. The self-contained, clearly illustrated exercises and four-color format make Microbiological Applications: A Laboratory Manual in General Microbiology the ideal lab manual. Appropriate for either a majors or non-majors lab course, Benson assumes no prior organic chemistry course has been taken. ... Read more

Reviews (2)

IT COVERED BOTH TECHNIQUES AND PRECAUTIONS
Apart from hinting that this book is more expensive than I had expected, there is no negative comment I have for it.
It is a well-defined lab manual, which will be useful for both students and investigative scientists. The book covered all aspect of microbiology: including related parasitology topics.
It explained various methods used in the identification and classification of all types of microorganisms. High-level undergraduates should appreciate the directives it gave concerning culture-media preparation, as well as sequential isolation of bacteria, fungi, viruses, protozoa, and microscopic algae. The same applies to its handling of general microscopy: including the advantages and disadvantages of each type of microscope. This is a very fine companion, which discussed every technique and precaution used in contemporary microbiology lab.

La microbiologia
La microbiología es la rama de la biología más interesante, conocer el metabolismo y forma de vida de las bacterias va más halla de lo que uno puede imaginar, cada una tiene su propio nombre y caracteristicas que las distinguen unas de otras. A mi parecer las enterobacterias es lo más emocionante que puede existir en esta área, su identificación es una tarea entretenida y muy emocionante. La microbiología es lo máximo. ... Read more

Book Description

This best-selling text is designed to help students understand biology by engaging them in learning in every way possible. The book's extensive array of multimedia resources enriches the book's hallmark features: unique visuals on every page, applications in every chapter that show how biology is inextricably linked to everyday life, and activities and resources throughout the book that encourage critical thinking and spark curiosity in biological investigation. CD-ROM and segments on the FREE accompanying interactive CD-ROM, as well as CNN Today Videos, Web links, and reading from the InfoTrac College Edition library are all integrated with the text to support, illuminate, and reinforce the text.Cecie Starr's visuals work hand in hand with her clear writing. Each basic concept appears as a one- or two-page concept spread. This format helps student focus on information in manageable easy-to-understand segments. Main points are laid out clearly, summarized, and reinforced by visuals. The carefully written transitions between Concept Spreads help students grasp how each concept fits into the whole story. In the process, students develop an understanding of biology's amazing diversity and underlying unity. ... Read more

Book Description

Award-winning author Elaine N. Marieb brings her unique understanding of readers' specific needs to this popular book. Marieb's clear and friendly writing style emphasizes the relevance of anatomy and physiology to readers' lives and careers. It clarifies concepts, defines key terms, and offers just the right balance of anatomy, physiology, and clinical coverage to make the content complete without being overly detailed.For instructors and students, or anyone interested in anatomy and physiology. ... Read more

Reviews (5)

Tolerable
This book has some useful diagrams and illustrations. It's easy to read, but seems a bit too simplified at times. Also, I think the editors were a bit lax on the writing, personally. The CD quizes are helpful for review.

Informative and highly understandable textbook
This book filled with great informative pictures and information that makes any college A and P student's life a lot easier. I used this book for anatomy and physiology class I and II. The book is easy to read and it is a powersource of knowledge. The book is not tedious nor boring to read. In fact, it is quite interesting and was a pleasure studying from. If you want to know the type of questions asked on college anatomy and physiology exams, get the following which is also on amazon:

Anatomy and Physiology Study Guide: Key Review Questions and Answers with Explanations
Volume 1 (ISBN: 0971999619)
Volume 2 (ISBN: 0971999627)
I used these three books and got an A-.

Just completed an A&P class using this book as the text...
...and I've got to say, this book is heavy going.

It was certainly my perception -- and seemed to be consensus among many of the students -- that this textbook is mediocre. Several of us in the class were also taking medical terminology in another class; about midway through the class we discovered that each of us had separately taken to using our medical terminology text ("Language of Medicine," Chabner) as our primary text for the A&P class also, because we all found it much more user-friendly and felt we were absorbing a lot more information than we were with this book. (And this subset of the class appeared to be doing considerably better on exams than the rest of the class as a whole.)

If this is the designated text for a class you're taking, you don't have a whole lot of choice (but you might consider buying the Chabner book too, to lower your stress level!); but if you DO have a choice, I wouldn't recommend this book.

AARON, JANE E. THE LITTLE, BROWN COMPACT HANDBOOK 3D ED,NY:
LAB MANUEL: HUMAN ANATONY AND PHYSIOLOGY LABORATORY MANUEL, 6TH EDITION, BY ELAINE MARIEB

TEXTBOOKS: AARON, JANE E. THE LITTLE, BROWN COMPACT HANDBOOK(3D EDITION.)NY: LONGMAN, 1998BLOOM, LYN Z. THE ESSAY CONNECTION(6TH ED.) BOSTON: HOUGHLIN MIFFLIN, 2001.

A superior survey text of human anatomy and physiology.
Marieb's latest edition provides the beginning anatomy student with a readable and informative text. The reading level is best suited to undergraduate students, and the photographs and diagrams stimulate student interest and understanding. Especially useful are the sections on "Developmental Aspects" of anatomy, which includes morphological and physiological changes from embryonic to geriatric stages. While this edition includes updated information since the 1997 edition, some professors and students may prefer the 5th edition (1997) because it is in hardback; the 6th edition is available only in paperback as of this review. Either edition is superior to other texts aimed at similar audiences on the basis of its clarity, readability, and organization. ... Read more

Book Description

Designed to help readers learn how to think like evolutionary biologists, this 4-color book approaches evolutionary biology as a dynamic field of inquiry and as a process. Using a theme-based approach, it illustrates the interplay between theory, observation, testing and interpretation. It offers commentary on strengths and weaknesses of data sets, gives detailed examples rather than a broad synoptic approach, includes many data graphics and boxes regarding both sides of controversies.Introduces each major organizing theme in evolution through a question--e.g., How has HIV become drug resistant? Why did the dinosaurs, after dominating the land vertebrates for 150 million years, suddenly go extinct? Are humans more closely related to gorillas or to chimpanzees? Focuses on many applied, reader-relevant topics--e.g., evolution and human health, the evolution of senescence, sexual selection, social behavior, eugenics, and biodiversity and conservation. Then develops the strategies that evolutionary biologists use for finding an answers to such questions. Then considers the observations and experiments that test the predictions made by competing hypotheses, and discusses how the data are interpreted.For anyone interested in human evolution, including those working in human and animal health care, environmental management and conservation, primary and secondary education, science journalism, and biological and medical research. ... Read more

Reviews (12)

Insightful biology textbook
I bought this book because I am taking a biology class at the University I attend currently. This book is our textbook.

The first two chapters are about Darwinism and Evolution. I also read the Beak of the Finch by Jonathan Weiner who is the winner of the Pulitzer Prize. His points about Darwinism and Evolution are all in this textbook with many of graphs and pictures. Although it is a textbook, it's easy to comprehend even if you are not a pre-med student. Topics such as natural selection, microevolution, and irony and controversy of the validity of evolution by natural selection are covered.

Part II of the book is about Mutation and Mendelian Genetics. The author covers gene duplication and Yule's Numerical examples, analyzing the point of the natural selection being a potent force of evolution. And sexual selection and adaptations are other important topics that are discussed in the part II.

Part III of the book is about current research (1998). Various theories in relationships among humans and the extant apes, and sexual selection are covered in great depth. Again, it all comes down to microevolution and macroevolution and their patterns after examing adaptive radiations, punctuated equilibrium, and fossiles.

Lastly, the author talks about social behavior of various species. The author concludes that when individuals interact, four outcomes are possible with respect to fitness: cooperation, altruism, selfishness, and spite. Robert Trivers' theory of altrusim is tested and other "outcomes" about animal behavior are studied. From these studies, the author concludes that genetic variance exists for behavioral traits. "Thh field of behavior genetics is devoted to exploring the extent and nature of this variation. Behavioral geneticists use selection and heritability studies to identify traits with significant genetic variance... and can uncover the specific function of loci influencing social behavior."

I think this book covers many important topics and is easily comprehensible even for non-biology majors.

Makes evolutionary biology interesting
Evolutionary biology can be extremely tedious for undergraduate students if one insists on teaching the more arcane debates as Fisher versus Shifting Balance. That might be good for a second course for future professionals, but if one starts with such stuff, students will lose all the interest in evolution they came with.
Evolutionary Analysis is interesting, wel-informed and up to date, and is meant for general biologists. It cannot be used as a reference book for neo-darwinian debates, so the better.

horrible
Bought this one for Evolution class. It is a horrible excuse for a textbook. Do not buy this book unless it is for a middle school student. If the authors think this book has been written for an advanced audience, then I would suggest that anyone interested in learning evolution not attend University of Washington.

Captives of the paradigm
Although not a student in a course, I found perusing this (upgraded, new edition)text to be interesting and intriguing, despite being a severe Darwin critic. Well illustrated with clear expositions of technical pop gen. However, if Little Red Riding Hood were an Amazon reviewer the text would read, 'What nice teeth you have...". Sociobiological thinkings is now being mainstreamed.
One of the puzzles of modern culture is the obtuseness of the technical elite, especially Darwinists. From whence did they get their rigid mentality, and total inability to think critically on evolution? It's no mystery if you look at the textbooks used to train these elites, as here. These are the doctors, biologists and others who, for the trouble of taking a close look at evolutionary theory, will end with the false assumptions of the Synthesis engraved on their eductional memory modules.
The issue can be insidious with the study of population genetics, nicely done here in its own way. But it is a subject where technical math deludes people into thinking it constitutes a theory of evolution. The sad thing is that physicists who must think critically about physics remain silent about these models, none of which are properly verified in the complex cases of advanced evolution. It reminds one of economics courses where the curious illusions of theory remain educationally entrenched despite the critics. At least it is generally known what the limitations are. But in evolution these underpowered population models are extrapolated to become a new form of metaphysics and there is no review of the propaganda possible, it seems.
So that's the reason the techical elites are 'disinformation grouwnups'. It is a situation worthy of Foucault.

Please use a better text, if you are an instructor
So there is a new evolution instructor at our school and he is using this text and lecturing out of it directly - ie no supplementation with other material. Very bad combination, boring simple lectures on what is actually a complex interesting topic. It would be different if the text was comprehensive and challenging but it is not.

Positives of the text:
Easy to ready
Entertaining examples

Negatives of the text:
1.Very, very frustratingly simplistic
2.Overlooks controversial topics or only presents one side of an issue. Example, no coverage of Wright's shifting balanced theory as opposing Fisher's mass selection theory. Doesn't even indicate there IS another theory out there.
3.Simplifies primary literature. Does not detail assumptions or boundaries of experiments.
4.Inadequate index and glossary (for example, epistatis, is in neither)

The entire book reminds me of justso stories my mama read to me as a wee pup, not a scientific examination of evolution.

The authors say this is book is at undergraduate level. But given the lack of complexity and depth, I'd say it is more suited for say an 5-6th grade class level. ... Read more

Book Description

Often imitated, never duplicated.

• New! Lay-flat binding makes coloring easier.
• New! 8 plates have been added: Accessory Structures of the Skin, Temporomandibular Joint, Upper Limb: Shoulder (Glenohumeral) Joint, Upper Limb: Elbow Joints, Lower Limb: Male and female Pelves, Lower Limb: Sacroiliac and Hip Joints, Lower Limb: Knee Joints, Somatic Visceral Receptors.
• New! 7 additional sections: Skeletal and Articular Systems, Skeletal Muscular System, Central Nervous System, Central Nervous System: Cavities and Coverings, Peripheral Nervous System, Autonomic Nervous System, Human Development.

For over 23 years, The Anatomy Coloring Book has been the leading human anatomy coloring book, offering concisely written text and precise, extraordinary hand-drawn figures. Organized according to body systems, each of the 170 plates featured in this book includes an ingenious color-key system anatomical terminology is linked to detail illustration of the structures of the body.

Wynn Kapit graduated in 1955 from the University of Miami, Florida with honors in Business Administration and Law. He then attended Art Center School in Los Angeles and worked in New York as a graphic designer and advertising art director from 1960-66. He moved to California to pursue a painting career and was given a one-man show at the Legion of Honor in San Francisco in 1968. He then attended the University of California at Berkeley and received a Masters in Painting and worked as a portraitist and teacher of figure drawing.

While taking a class in human anatomy at San Francisco City College, he discovered a way to effectively learn the subject by coloring in drawings, diagrams and names. The teacher of the course, Lawrence Elson, Ph.D. agreed to help him produce a coloring book. Elson wrote and Kapit designed and illustrated The Anatomy Coloring Book, which was published in 1977 and has been a widely-translated bestseller ever since. The Physiology Coloring Book was published in 1987, with the assistance of two professors from Berkeley: Robert Macey and Esmail Meisami. The Geography Coloring Book was published in 1991; Kapit drew the maps and wrote the text. The Anatomy Coloring Book was published in a second edition in 1993, and second editions of Geography and Physiology Coloring Books will be published in 1997.

Lawrence M. Elson received his undergraduate degree from the University of California, Berkeley in Zoology (Pre-Med), and completed his graduate and Ph.D. work in Human Anatomy also at the University of California, Berkeley. Elson has served as an instructor in human anatomy at the City College of San Francisco, an assistant professor of anatomy at Baylor College of Medicine, and as a lecturer at numerous additional universities and professional organizations.

Elson is the founder and president of Coloring Concepts, Inc. (CCI), producer and packager of college level, educational, scientific directed-coloring texts. He is the author/co-author of the Anatomy Coloring Book, Human Brain Coloring Book, Zoology Coloring Book, and Microbiology Coloring Book.

Presently, he is principally functioning as a clinical and forensic anatomist retained as a consultant to governments, provinces, insurance and other corporations, and law firms on causation of injury issues in cases in or anticipated to be involved in litigation.

Future plans include expanding CCI by developing new titles in the physical sciences and other education-related disciplines.

Reviews (36)

A Must Have for Students of Anatomy, Massage, etc.
Just when you thought they couldn't improve on the original, they keep making it better. The third edition contains all the strengths of the first two editions with dynamite new additions that will help all students of anatomy. Go down to your local hobby shop and buy the biggest set of felt tip pens you can find. After the book is colored, it should be kept as a quick reference book. You color the labels to match the illustrations, so it's easy to look back and spot the name of the muscle, bone, organ, etc. Make sure to read the section on HOW TO USE THIS BOOK before you begin coloring.

As the owner of a massage therapy school, we use this book and Salvo's Massage Therapy: Principles and Practice as our two main texts. It is incredible for those who are visual learners. We highly recommend it.

A Great Anatomy Aid -- A must for med students
This book is the best reference on the human body I've found! It focuses individually on each system, with large ready-to-color pages. This book list all bones and muscles in the human body (in the drawings, too) and reveals their locations. It goes into extreme detail about everything, and shows a fetal circulation diagram, which I have had trouble finding in other books. This book lists the view names (anterior, posterior, superior, ventral, etc.) and gives a diagram. It even spends some time talking about cells and tissues, with a colorable diagram of a cell. This book is a MUST for med students, and would make a great reference book for physicians. I highly recommend this book to anyone interested in human anatomy, for I sure am enjoying it. Also check out "The Physiology Coloring Book, 2nd Edition". Note:For this book you should have a good supply of quality colored pencils, probably about 30, including gray and black.

think this is a kid's book? think again
I am in college-level beginning anatomy and the instructor was quizzing the class on terminology. He gave the definition or pointed to a body part and we had to shout out the answer. I knew all of the terms while my classmates struggled.

During break, my classmates asked how I knew/remembered this stuff. My answer? "The Anatomy Coloring Book." They blithely dismissed it as kid's stuff, a _coloring_ book. Well, that may be...but *I* know the material.

Great Study Aide!
This book was a life saver when I had to take anatomy! It soo saved me! I was better able to study for tests and I actually learned different sections of things such as the brain and cardiovascular system. If you are taking anatomy, I highly recommend this! It will help tremendously!

Great Addition to Any Anatomy Text
I purchased this while taking a course in Anatomy, and did much better in the class. What would take the text a chapter to explain, this book explained in a few pages - sometimes in a few paragraphs. It was much easier to understand the organ systems when you could actually see how things worked. The coloring aspect to me at first, seemed rather silly, but it was so much fun that I quickly got past that! I would definately recommend this book to anyone taking anatomy - purchase it with your other texts if you can (I waited till mid semester to buy mine), and start off using it as a study guide - it will definately help. They make many other of these types of books also, so if you are studying biology, microbiology, physiology, and so on, it might also help to get these. ... Read more

Reviews (29)

Moore's Anatomy text is a standard; rightfully so
I am a medical student at Texas A&M USHSC COM. Moore's is an excellent text for basic anatomy. They have included excellent drawings and the content is complete. Added bonuses to the text include insightful clinical correlation and appropriate embryological try-ins. The text appears wordy and most medical students will try to use a review book in its stead. This would be a mistake. Students who read Moore will retain more anatomy all the way into clinicals and will be ahead of their peers who did not. Overall this is a very fine text: best used in conjunction with Netter's Atlas of Human Anatomy and Langman's Medical Embryology. *I will mention here, in fact, that the embryo text by Moore (The Developing Human: Clinically Oriented Embryology) does not meet the same high standard and is wrought with errors.

Rave review for Moore anatomy book
I thoroughly enjoyed studying anatomy with the Moore's book. The illustrations are great--I especially found the individual drawings of the leg and arm muscles helpful, and the 3-D drawings of the pelvic region helped me to better visualize this complex area. I was able to study most of the time from Moore and only had to use the Color Atlas of Anatomy as a reference.

The text was clearly written and very detailed. At times, it was more detailed than my first year anatomy class, but I was able to skip or skim these sections. I don't think I ever found Moore to be lacking in information.

I found the boxes highlighting attachments, function, or distribution for nerves, vessels, and muscles to be very helpful. They proved to be a quick reference.

Finally, the blue boxes with clinical information made anatomy so much more interesting. I learned many relevant facts and applied, clinical anatomy.

just too clincal
In fact it's usefull, mainly for a clinical aproach of anatomy, based on surface anatomy and changes in structure originated by injuries. however when performing dissection, that just does not help, the descriptive anatomy, is just to slim, and does not really contributes to understand the three dimensional structure of the human body. However for a quick reference could be an option. Personally prefer the testut-jacob topographic anatomy

Great Pre-medical Buy!!!
I thought this book was amazing!! It was my first medical school textbook. I flipped through the pages, glassy-eyed, realizing that this was what I had been working for!

Unfortunately, 2 years later, I ahve still not had the time to do more than use it as a reference book! I am hoping to read the entire thing sometime before retirement! Don't get me wrong, it is a great book, and I highly recommend it for medical students. However, looking back, I wish I had bought it BEFORE I came to medical school. Having the time to read the entire book, and learn the material would have been an incredible asset! Premedical students often wonder what they could be doing to prepare themselves for medical school. Buying this book and reading it would be high on my recommendation list!!!

Great book, excellent reference
This book is quite thorough for anatomy and although very wordy, I think it covers a lot of anatomical information that every med student should know. I used this book as a reference for learning the facts in my anatomy classes. I also found the following to be an excellent source:
Spinal Anatomy Study Guide: Key Review Questions and Answers
ISBN: 0971999600
The second book had similar type questions to my anatomy exams in med school. My advice is to get both books. ... Read more

Book Description

Book Description

Gives students the most thorough understanding of cell and tissue biology, structure, and function is now revised and updated in a FULL-COLOR Tenth Edition!

Reflecting the latest research in the field, the tenth edition provides students with a solid knowledge of how cell and tissue structures are linked with their functions. This book examines the structure and function of cells, the four basic body tissues, and each organ and organ system of the human body. Throughout, cell biology is emphasized as the most fundamental approach to understanding structure and function.

Features a full-color design, 300 full-color photomicrographs highlighting important structural details of cells and tissues, a companion CD-ROM Atlas with all 600 photos and illustrations in the book. ... Read more

Reviews (12)

Basic & excellent histology - reviewed by Marcelo Antunes
This book presents all basic tissues followed by descriptions of all human body systems. Microscopic anatomy and physiology are well balanced throughtout the textbook.The brazilian authors, Junqueira & Carneiro, used a simple, readable language along with very good illustrations and photos (including a colored atlas) to produce this book: the result is a text in which the student will find not only precise informations but a textbook of Histology simple enough to read, to study, to learn, and to review. Perhaps, more clinical comments and/or Pathology relating topics should be included in the next edition.

The Cd-Room is great but...
The CD- room is user friendly and thats good when you have to study a lot and need something easy .. But The figures in the book never had the zoom or the Microscopy resolution with every slide in the book. And well Is important to know that kid of information specialy if you are interested in microscopy

Just Great
This book is one of the best books i've ever read in basic histology. it's really good for medical students, Simple and straight to the point.
Every histologic feature had it's clinical correlation which is so helpful for students throughout their Predoc studies.

GREAT
it's the best basic histology book i've read ..... it's excellant for Predoc students

I am from Brazil and that¿s the book that we used at our sch
I am from Brazil and that's the book that we used at our school for histology.
We kind of liked it a lot since it was very easy to read and straightforward with its explanations so you would understand it easily, plus it covered everything that you needed to know for a histology class, for 1st year medical students.
Yours truly,
Thereza M.P.S.Melo. ... Read more

Reviews (10)

A great map to follow through the body.
I have had this book for many years now. It is a great tool for massage therapists to have when you need help on finding the origins of a problem area of your client's. It can also be helpful to use when you are studying kinesiology and anatomy. The book was published right after I gratduated and I can't tell you how I wish it was around before this. I did have the honor of having Andrew Biel as my instructor for many of my classes. For him to be able to convert his knowledge into such a great book was a great accomplishment. Five Stars!!

Where was this book when I was in massage school??
Finally someone has bridged the gap between dry anatomy textbooks and hands-on bodywork. "Trail Guide" is the next best thing to being able to see through the skin! Clear directions and illustrations enable bodyworkers to identify and locate both bony landmarks and muscles with precision. A must-have office reference for everyone who works with muscles.

Awesome book
Trail Guide to the Body is an invaluable resource for any massage therapist or body-worker wanting to know the intricacies of the body, and the correlation of the muscles and bones. The illustrations are incredible, showing wonderful detail. Written information is concise, informative, and thoroughly presented. Muscles include such information as: the action, insertion, origin, and nerves. Palpation is also shown along with instructions on "how-to".

The authors have also recently released flash cards for the muscles and another set for the bones. I absolutely loved them and carried them around with to study.

Awesome book! Great reference and one book that I refer to time and time again!

Excellent reference
I am a massage therapist and found this book very useful as a study aid for the national certification test for massage and bodywork. This book makes locating anatomical landmarks much easier. I also used the following which is on amazon:
The Ultimate Study Guide for the National Certification Examination for Therapeutic Massage and Bodywork: Key Review Questions and Answers
Vol 1 (ISBN: 0971999643), Vol 2 (ISBN: 0971999651), Vol 3 (ISBN: 097199966X)
These four books helped me pass the National Certification Test. The last three book were so on target with the type of questions asked on test.

Trail Guide to the Body - A practitioners manual.
...This is one of the best books on Anatomy that I have ever seen, from a massage therapy perspective, definately a keeper!... ... Read more