PLANT BIOLOGY, Second Edition provides a complete introduction to the science of plants, combining the most current, real-world examples with information on plant biodiversity and ecology, including topics like biotechnology, economic botany, and plant/human interactions.
PLANT BIOLOGY begins with elements of botany that are most familiar to students: the structure, function, reproduction, physiology, and genetics of flowering plants. The evolutionary survey is then presented, with detail on the Prokaryotes, Protists, Fungi, Bryophytes, early Tracheophytes, Gymnosperms, and Angiosperms. The overall sequence of subjects builds from metabolism and plant function to reproduction, then from simpler to more advanced organisms, concluding with two ecological chapters. Each chapter has been written in a modular fashion, however, to allow them to be taught in any order.
In this new edition, the biodiversity chapters provide the best-supported, most current phylogenetic view of the organisms. Cladistics are introduced along with basic information, including gene sequences, followed by modern studies using cladistics and sequence information to identify natural plant groupings. Through this presentation, students can appreciate different types of evidence that describe the past events and directions of evolution.
Ecology is another exciting area of study for the introductory student. Can photosynthesis by plants ease problems associated with the burning of fossil fuels? Can we stem biodiversity loss through better ecosystem management? Questions like these are addressed, making the text topical, readable, and a useful guide, all the while maintaining the length and language appropriate for beginning biology students.
New to this edition
Chapters 18 through 25 have been completely revised to bring taxonomy and classification up-to-date. Cladograms are used in each chapter as a way to diagrammatically summarize phylogenetic relationships.
This edition contains more real life examples throughout as well as greatly improved pedagogy. For example, there are many new sidebars, organized into four areas: "Plants, People, and the Environment," "Economic Botany," "Biotechnology," and "In Depth" (technical points).
Chapters on plant structure have been carefully edited and new images have been added to enrich the already strong illustrations found in the first edition.
PLANT BIOLOGY’’s already highly regarded art program has been upgraded even more in this edition, through revisions of existing art pieces and the addition of numerous new pieces of art.
The chapter on background chemistry has been reorganized for clarity, and new summary tables have been added.
Information on transcription, translation, the cell cycle, and signaling has been moved to the chapter on development. The information on hormones has been rewritten to focus on various phases and process of growth and development (rather than simply on the hormones themselves).
The Biotechnology chapter has new information on PCR, genomics, and cloning; also, there are new figures showing recent applications of the technology.
Within each biodiversity chapter organisms are discussed in terms of their phylogeny, rather than in terms of their Linnaean relationships. One example of note in this section of the book is the distinction now made between the Archaea and Bacteria in the chapter on prokaryotes.
Each chapter ends with a selection of references, carefully chosen for readability, to articles that are available through InfoTrac College Edition, an online subscription reference service. More technical references can be found through the Brook/Cole