Biology, life sciences Books

Book SynopsisExamines the selectivity of feeding from various viewpoints - the behavioural ecologist examines decision rules, the dietitian looks at nutritional problems, the community ecologist sees feeding as influencing species diversity - to produce a coherent view of how organisms choose their diet.Table of ContentsIntroduction. The Importance Of State. Digestive Constraints On Diet Choice. The Psychology Of Diet Selection. Foraging As A Self-Organizational Learning Process: Accepting Adaptability At The Expense Of Predictability. Hunger-Dependent Food Selection In Suspension-Feeding Zooplankton. Gourmands Of Mud: Diet Selection In Marine Deposit Feeders. Diet Selection In Mammalian Herbivores: Constraints And Tactics. Effects Of Ecological Interactions On Forager Diets: Competition, Predation Risk, Parasitism And Prey Behaviour

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Book SynopsisAt present, most books on ecological modelling rely on very complex mathematics, resulting in students and researchers shying away from investigating the potential uses of ecological models and their methods of construction. This new book aims to open up this exciting area to a much wider audience.Trade Review"Teachers of courses on ecological modelling will find [this book] a useful source-book at a competitive price."Table of ContentsIntroduction: Themes Of Ecological Modelling. Probability Of Population Extinction. Looking For Cycles: The Dynamics Of Predators And Their Prey. Population Dynamics Of Species With Complex Life-Histories. Dynamics Of Ecological Communities. Spatial Models And Thresholds. Disease And Biological Control. Answers To Questions. Glossary Of Symbols And Terms. References. Index

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Book SynopsisTrace gases are those that are present in the atmosphere at relatively low concentrations. Small changes in their concentrations can have profound implications for major atmospheric fluxes, and thereore, can be used as indicators in studies of global change, global biogeochemical cycling and global warming. This new how-to guide will detail the concepts and techniques involved in the detection and measurement of trace gases, and the impact they have on ecological studies. Introductory chapters look at the role of trace gases in global cycles, while later chapters go on to consider techniques for the measurement of gases in various environments and at a range of scales. A how-to guide for measuring atmospheric trace gases. Techniques described are of value in addressing current concerns over global climate change. Trade Review"The present volume of [this book] will serve as an important tool box for researchers and graduate students in this discipline, and will provide both a range of techniques for field measurements and a conceptual framework for extrapolation strategies."Table of ContentsList of Contributors. The Methods in Ecology Series. Preface. Trace Gas Exchange In An Ecosystem Context: Multiple Approaches For Measurement And Analysis. Enclosure-Based Measurement Of Trace Gas Exchange: Applications And Sources Of Error. Trace Gas Exchange Across The Air-Water Interface In Freshwater And Coastal Marine Environments. Trace Gas Exchange In Freshwater And Coastal Marine Environments: Ebullition And Transpost By Plants. Micrometeorological Techniques For Measuring Biosphere-Atmosphere Trace Gas Exchange. Standard Analytical Methods For Measuring Trace Gases In The Environment. Measurements Of Chemically Reactive Trace Gases At Ambient Concentrations. Recent Advances In Spectroscopic Instrumentation For Measuring Stable Gases In The Natural Environment. Use Of Isotopes And Tracers In The Study Of Emissions And Consumption Of Trace Gases In Terrestrial Environments. Microbial Processes Of Production And Consumption Of Nitric Oxide, Nitrous Oxide And Methane. Process Modelling And Spatial Extrapolation. Index.

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Book SynopsisThe worlda s ecosystems are increasingly threatened by human development. Ecological impact assessment (EcIA) is used to predict and evaluate the impacts of development on ecosystems and their components,thereby providing the information needed to ensure that ecological issues are given full and proper consideration in development planning.Table of ContentsPreface. Acknowledgements. Introduction. Legislative Contexts for Ecological Impact Assessment. Scoping. Focusing Procedures. Identifying and Predicting Impacts. Evaluation. Ecological Mitigation. Monitoring. Geographic Information Systems for Ecological Impact Assessment. Ecological Impact Assessment Design and Analysis. Glossary. References. Index.

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Book SynopsisGene-based techniques have revolutionized our understanding of biology and had a direct impact on many aspects of our lives, from clinical medicine to agriculture. This book allows the reader to choose from pathways in discovering the concepts of molecular biology, the principles of a recombinant DNA technology and its key methods.Table of ContentsPreface. About the Route Maps format. The Concept Of Genes Is Developed. Genes Are Located To Chromosomes. Genes Are Composed Of DNA. The Chemical Building Blocks Of Nucelic Acids. Formation Of The DNA Double Helix. Packaging Of DNA Within Cells. Chromatin Structure And The Functional Activity Of Genes. Types And Functions Of DNA-Protein Interactions. Organization Of Genomes Into Multiple Chromosomes. Distribution Of Nucleic Acids Within Eukaryotic Cells. Types Of RNA Molecules. The Anatomy Of Eukaryotic Chromosomes. The Organisation Of Genes Within Chromosomes. The Molecular Anatomy Of Eukaryotic Genes. Chromosome Aberrations And Human Disease. Types Of Mutations And Their Effects. Forms Of Chemically Altered DNA; DNA Repair Mechanisms. Linkage Analysis. Pedigree Analysis And Modes Of Inheritance. Genes Dictate The Nature Of Proteins. The Nature Of The Genetic Code. Transcription: Forming Genetic Messages. Post-Transcriptional Processing Of Messenger RNA. Transfer And Ribosomal RNA Processing/Modification. Mechanisms Regulating Gene Expression. Transcriptional Regulatory Sequences. Operons And Prokaryotic Control Of Gene Expression. Transcription Factors And Gene Expression. In Vivo Translation: Decoding Genetic Messages. Sequences Involved In Cellular Protein Targeting. Eukaryotic Cell Division: Mitosis And Meiosis. Molecular Mechanisms Of Cell Cycle Control. Genetic Recombination Mechanisms. Gene Transfer During Bacterial Reproduction. Transposable Genetic Elements: Transposons. In Vivo DNA Replication. Genetic Control Of Development. The Natural Biology Of Bacteriophages. Bacteriophage Genetics. Recombinant DNA Technology. Enzymes Commonly Used In Molecular Biology Methods. Restriction Endonucleases. Restriction Fragment Length Polymorphisms. Isolation Of Nucleic Acids From Cells And Tissues. Visualising Mucleic Acids. Electrophoresis Of Nucleic Acids. In Vitro Hybridisation. Types Of Hybridisation Assay Formats. Southern Blotting; In Situ Hybridisation. Measuring Transcriptional Activity Via Messenger RNA. Converting Messenger RNA Into Complementary DNA (Cdna). Methods For Determining DNA Nucleotide Sequences. The Polymerase Chain Reaction. Alternatives To PCR-Based In Vitro DNA/RNA Amplification. In Vitro Translation Methods. Types And Methods Of Gene Probe Generation. Chemical Synthesis Of Oligonucleotides. Types And Applications Of Nucleotide Analogues. Methods For Labelling Gene Probes. Fundamental Principles Of Cloning. The Nature Of Cloning Vectors. Inserting Foreign DNA Into Vectors. The Development Of Bacteriophage Vectors. Plasmids: Development As Clonign Vectors. Yeast-Derived Plasmid Vectors. Phagemids: Hybrid Phage And Plasmid Vectors. Vectors For Use In Plant And Animal Cells. Delivering DNA Into Cells; Principal Genomic And Cdna Cloning Strategies. Strategies For Identifying Desirable Recombinant Clones. Gene Mapping Techniques. Detecting DNA-Protein Interaction Sites. Detecting Promoter And Enhancer Sequences. Methods For Identifying Protein Encoding Sequences. Genetic Fingerprinting. Analysing Ancient Dnas. In Vitro Mutagenesis Methods. Genetically Modified Micro-Organisms. Genetically Engineered Plants. Genetically Engineered Animals. Molecular Techniques In Prenatal Diagnosis. The Genetics Of Cystic Fibrosis. The Dystrophin Gene And Muscular Dystrophies. Identifying The Gene For Huntingdon's Disease. Lipoprotein Genes And Heart Disease. The Detection Of Microbial Infections. Molecular Biology Of Human Immunodeficiency Virus And AIDS. Engineering Microbial Bioluminescence. Recombinant DNA Techniques In Vaccine Development. Receptors And Cellular Signalling Mechanisms. Oncogenes And The Molecular Basis Of Cancer. Molecular Diagnosis And Therapy Of Cancers. Drug Development Using Recombinant DNA Approaches. Protein Engineering. Immunoglobulin Genetics. Genetic Engineering Of Recombinant Antibodies. Current Approaches To Gene Therapy. The Human Genome Mapping Project. Bibliography. Index.

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Book SynopsisEnvironmental pollution is one of the most serious threats to the future health of our planet. This book takes a broad view of ecotoxicology starting with the nature, properties and behavior of environmental toxicants, and extends to dose/response relationships and effects on organisms, populations, communities and ecosystems.Table of ContentsPreface. 1 The Ecotoxicology Concept: Introduction. 2 Sources, Types and Properties of Ecotoxicants. 3 Distribution and Transformation of Chemicals in the Environment. 4 Molecular, Biochemical, Physiological and Behavioural Responses.of Organisms. 5 Effects on Population, Community and Ecosystem. 6 Dose and Concentration: Response Relationships. 7 Biomarkers and Biomonitoring of Hazards in the Environment. 8 Ecological Risk Assessment. 9 Ecotoxicology and Management of Chemicals. Index.

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Book Synopsis* Draws together major topics in environmental and resource management, usually dispersed over many separate books. * Questions, summaries and clearly structured chapters enhance usability. * Emphasis on clarity and accessibility. * Based on a proven and successful course. .Table of ContentsPreface. Acknowledgements. 1. Introduction. 2. Energy, Carbon Balance and Global Climate Change. 3. Water. 4. Soil. 5. Fish from the Sea. 6. Management of Grazing Lands. 7. Management of forests. 8. Pest Control. 9. Pollution. 10. Conservation and Management of Wild Species. 11. Restoration of Communities. Glossary. References. Subject Index. Species Index

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Book SynopsisIn this volume marine experts from countries of East Africa and southern Asia describe the conditions of marine resources of the large marine ecosystems of the Indian Ocean. Countries of the region represent over a quarter of the world''s population, most of whom are existing at or below the poverty level. The potentials for economic growth through the development of coastal tourism, mariculture, fisheries, mineral extraction, and oil and gas production are examined by the authors in relation to the need for ensuring the long-term sustainability of marine resources. Case studies of resource assessments presented by several authors illustrate the magnitude of risk from continuing degradation of resources under the prevailing unmanaged conditions extending over much of coastal areas of East Africa and southern Asia. The authors explore the application of multidisciplinary ecosystem-based assessment and management strategies to the future economic development of the large marine ecosystemTable of ContentsAcknowledgments. Preface. Background And Focus. Contributors. Editor's Note. Part I: Assessment And Sustainability Of Large Marine Ecosystems. 1. Assessment, Sustainability, And Monitoring Of Coastal Ecosystems: An Ecological Perspective. 2. Trawl Survey Strategies And Applications For Assessing The Changing State Of Fish Communities In Large Marine Ecosystems. 3. Ecosystems With The Continuous Plankton Recorder (CPR) And Undulating Oceanographic Recorder (UOR)/Aquashuttle. 4. An Overview Of The Status Of Marine Pollution In The East African Region. 5. Application Of The Large Marine Ecosystem Concept To The Somali Current. Part II: Pelagic Ecosystems. 6. Coastal Upwelling And Other Processes Regulating Ecosystem Productivity And Fish Production In The Western Indian Ocean. 7. Seasonal Fluctuations In Plankton Biomass And Productivity In The Ecosystems Of The Somali Current, Gulf Of Aden, And Southern Red Sea. 8. Role Of Oceanic Fronts In Promoting Productivity In The Southern Indian Ocean. 9. Mean Monthly Sea-Level Variation And Its Relation To Large-Scale Ocean Circulation In The Southwest Indian Ocean. 10. Spiny Lobsters In The Indian Ocean: Speciation In Relation To Oceanographic Ecosystems. 11. Spatial-Temporal Structure Of Indian Ocean Ecosystems: A Large Scale Approach. Part III: Case Studies. 12. The Role Of Estuaries In Large Marine Ecosystems: Examples From The Natal Coast, South Africa. 13. Fisheries Resources Of Zanzibar: Problems And Recommendations. 14. The Agulhas Current Ecosystem With Particular Reference To Dispersal Of Fish Larvae. 15. The Red Sea As An "Extension" Of The Indian Ocean. 16.The Status And Future Of The St Lucia Lake System: A Large Estuary Of The Southwestern Indian Ocean. 17. Biological Production And Fishery Potential Of The Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) Of India. Part IV: Management and Governance. 18. Implications Of Agenda 21 Of UNCED On Marine Resources In East Africa With Particular Reference To Kenya And Tanzania. 19. Somalia Current Large Marine Ecosystem And Related Issues. 20. Legal Constraints And Options For Total Ecosystem Management Of Large Marine Ecosystems. 21. Application Of Integrated Environmental Management Toward Solving The Problems Affecting The Tana River Delta And Its Linkage With The Somali Current Ecosystem. 22. Marine Conservation Areas In Kenya. 23. Indian Ocean Large Marine Ecosystems: Need For National And Regional Framework For Conservation And Sustainable Development. 24. Regional Stewardship For Sustainable Marine Resources Management In The Bay Of Bengal. 25. Summary And Recommendations. Index.

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Book SynopsisOffers an approach to the world of environmental planning. This book introduces both the method and the tools necessary to environmental planning. It integrates the planning technologies and methodologies, such as GIS and computer modelling, to offer the information for students and environmental professionals.Table of ContentsPreface. 1. The Nature of Planning. 2. Defining the Environmental Approach. 3. Making Plans. 4. Natural Factors in Environmental Planning. 5. Landscape Inventory and Analysis. 6. Natural Hazard Assessment. 7. Environmental Modelling and Simulation. 8. The Decision Support Perspective. 9. Ethics, Conflict and Environmental Planning. 10. The Impact of Change. References. Index.

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Book SynopsisPresents information to help environmental scientists further understand the relationships between ecosystem health and human health by exploring preventative, diagnostic and prognostic aspects of ecosystem management. The book uses case study examples to explain both theory and practiceTable of ContentsNeed For A New Paradigm. Pressures On The Environment. Ecosystem Pathology. Shortcomings Of Present Approaches To Environmental Management. Limitations Of Economic Approaches. Limitations Of The Ecological Approaches. Limitations Of The Engineering Model. The Need For Integrative Knowledge. Defining Ecosystem Health. Ecosystem Health As A Metaphor. What Is Implied By The Health Metaphor At The Ecosystem Level. What Is Not Implied By The Health Metaphor At The Ecosystem Level. Ecosystem Health As A Societal Goal. Ecosystem Health As A Transdisciplinary Science. Criteria For Ecosystem Health. Vigor. Resilience. Organization. Maintenance Of Ecological Services. Management Options. Reduced Subsidy. Damage To Neighbouring Systems. Human Health Effects. Dimensions Of Ecosystem Health. Introduction. Biophysical Dimension. Socioeconomic Dimension. Human Health Dimension. Spatial/Temporal Dimension. Stress And Response. Single Stressors. Multiple Stressors. Answering The Critics. Interfacing Societal Values And Science. Distinguishing Between Health, Integrity And Sustainable Development. Ecosystem Health The Last Frontier Of Medicine. References. Part II: Approaches To Assessing The Health Of Ecosystems; Assessment By Whom, For Who, To What Ends?; The Ecosocial Dynamics Of Rural Systems:. Introduction. Pre-Modern Social Systems. The Emergence Of A Crisis Of Rural Life. The Dynamics Of Rural Poverty. The Dual Economy: A Modern Alternative For Sustainable Development. Assessing Ecosystem Health Across Spatial Scales. Introduction. Defining The Context: Ecosystem Health And Ecosocial Scale. Spatial Scalilng Of Ecosocial Complexes. The Range Of Scales: The Taiga As An Example. Criteria Of Ecosystem Health. Concluding Remarks: An Emphatic "No!" To Shallow Anthropocentrism. The Efforts Of Community Volunteers In Assessing Watershed Ecosystem Health. Introduction. Empowering Community Groups. River Watch Network; Watershed Ecosystem Health. Indicators Of Watershed Ecosystem Health. Physical Indicators. Chemical Indicators. Biological Indicators. Human Health Indicators. Human Use And Perception Indicators. Selecting Indicators. Volunteer Water Monitoring. Case Studies. Southwest: Isleta Pueblow And The Rio Grande. The US Mexico Border: The Rio Bravo River Watchers. New England: The Connecticut River Watch Program. New England: The Mystic River Watch. The Merrimack River Voluneer Environmental Monitoring Network. Case Conclusions. Conclusions. References. Assessing Cumulative Health Effects In Ecosystems. Cumulative Effects: Background And Definition. Understanding Casualty And Feedback In Assessing Cumulative Effects. Diagnostic Approaches; Loop Analysis Methodology. Core Loop Models From Data Sets. Core Models Of Marine Communities. Cumulative Effects Assessment For The Northumberland Strait. Fish Landings. Loop Analysis Models Of Key Relationships. Combined Fisheries Foodwebs Illustrating Benthic-Pelagic Coupling. Summary Of Results. Integrating Health Surveillance And Environmental Monitoring. Emerging Infectious Disease And Global Change. Introduction. Climate Change And Disease. Montane Regions. Marine Ecosystems. Global Change, Biodiversity And Marine-Related Disease. Climate Variability And Epidemics. Minimum Temperatures. Biodiversity And Emerging Infectious Diseases. Evolutionary Biology: The Environment And Disease Emergence; Ecology, Pests And Terrestrial Ecosystems. R-Selected And K-Selected Species. Cumulative Ecological Impacts Of Global Change. Synergies And Pests. Ocean Warming. Decadal Variability. Discontinuities. Costs Of Epidemics. Integrated Assessment And Monitoring. Integrated Ecological Risk Assessment. Biological Indicators For Integrated Monitoring. New Methodologies For Surveillance And Integrated Monitoring. An Historical Note On Infectious Disease Pandemics. Conclusions. Qualitative Mathematics For Understanding, Prediction And Intervention In Complex Systems. Some Methods Of Qualitative Analysis. The Indicators Of Qualitative Dynamics. Local Stability. Signed Digraphs. Resistance. Osillations. Correlation Patterns. Time Averaging. Validation Of Indicators. Inroduction. Benchmark Sites. Field Measurements. Computing Indicator Metrics. Paleoecology: A Diagnostic Approach To Assessing Ecosysem Health. Introduction. Paleolimnology. Paleolimnological Approach. Interpreting Information In Sediment Cores. Quantitative Inference. References. Ecological Risk Assessment, A Predictive Approach To Assessing Ecosystem Health. Introduction. Stages In Ecological Risk Assessment. Uncertainty In Risk Assessments. Uncertainty And Scale. Ecosystem Health And Self-Interest. Conclusions. References. Part III: Ecosystem Health And Sustainability; What Is Sustainability?. Introduction. Defining And Predicting Sustainability. When?. What System?. How Long?. Conclusions. Predictors Of Ecosystem Health. Measuring Vigor. Measuring Organization. Measuring Resilience. Social Decision Making. Using Models To Build Consensus. A Three-Step Modeling Process. Scoping And Consensus-Building Models. Research Models. Management Models. Toward Global Ecosystem Health And Sustainability: The Importance Of Envisioning. Part IV: Case Studies; The Chesapeake Bay And Its Watershed: A Model For Sustainable Ecosystem Management?. Introduction. A Summary Of The Problem. The Chesapeake Bay And Its Watershed. History Of The Bay And Its Watershed; Principal Uses And Problems Of The Chesapeake Bay. The Bay And Its Watershed As A System. Summary. Evolution Of Chesapeake Bay Management. Barriers And Bridges To Improved Management. Social Traps. Building Bridges With Incentives. Summary And Synthesis. References. Paleolimnological Assessments Of Ecosystem Health: Lake Acidification In Adirondack Park Introduction. The Acidification Of Deep Lake Regional Changes In Lake Acidification. Regional Changes In Lake Acidification. References. The Desert Grasslands. Characteristics Of The Ecosystem. History Of Degradation. Rangeland Rehavilitation. References. Health Of Some Cuban Forest Ecosystems. Introduction. Current Condition And Pressures On Cuban Ecosystems. Socio-Historical Stresses. Natural And Anthropogenic Perturbations Affecting Existing Cumban Ecosystems. Meteorological Perturbations. Ecosystem Research And Monitoring. The Sierra Del Rosario Biosphere Reserve. Methodology. Results. Conclusions. The Island Group Sabana-Camaguey Mangroves. Description And Observations. Conclusions. Summary. Critical Regions, A Profile Of The Honduras. Introduction. Deforestation And Natural Disasters. Increases In Infectious Disease. Water-Borne Infections. Vector-Borne Disease. Leishmaniasis. La Mosca Blanca. Clinical Impacts. Conclusions. Who Framed The Kyronjoki?. The Facts. The Suspects. The Options. The Decision Problems. The Future. References

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Book SynopsisThe 11th Hour Series is designed to be used when a textbook doesn''t make sense, when the course content is tough, or when you just want a better grade in the course. The authors cut through the fluff, get to what you need to know, and then help you understand it. Clinical correlations or everyday applications include examples from the real world to help students understand key concepts more readily. Dedicated web page, there 24 hours a day, will give extra help, tips, warnings of trouble spots, extra visuals and more. A quick check on what background students will need to apply helps equip them to conquer a topic. The most important information is highlighted and explained, showing the big picture and eliminating the guesswork. After every topic and every chapter, lots of opportunity for drill is provided in every format, multiple choice, true/false, short answer, essay. An easy trouble spot identifier dTable of Contents11th Hour Guide to Success. Preface. DNA: The Genetic Material. From DNA to RNA: The Process of Transcription. From Messenger RNA to Protein: The Process of Translation. Mutations.. MIDTERM EXAM. Regulation of Gene Expression in Bacteria. Regulation of Gene Expression in Eukaryotes. Recombinant DNA.. FINAL EXAM. Index.

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Book SynopsisThe 11th Hour Series of revision guides are designed for quick reference. The organization of these books actively involves studetns in the learning process and reinforces concepts. At the end of each chapter there is a test including multiple choice questions, true/false questions and short answer questions, and every answer involves an explanation. Each book contains icons in the text indicating additional support on a dedicated web page. Students having difficulties with their courses will find this an excellent way to raise their grades. Clinical correlations or everyday applications include examples from the real world to help students understand key concepts more readily. Dedicated web page, there 24 hours a day, will give extra help, tips, warnings of trouble spots, extra visuals and more. A quick check on what background students will need to apply helps equip them to conquer a topic. The most important infoTable of ContentsPreface. Unit I: Basic Concepts. 1 Properties of Immunity. 2 Inducing, Detecting, and Investigating Immunity. Unit II: Antigen Recognition. 3 Antibody Structure and Function. 4 Antibody Gene Organisation and Expression. 5 Major Histocompatibility Complex. 6 T-Cell Antigen Recognition. Midterm Exam. Unit III: Immune Effector Mechanisms. 7 Cytokines. 8 Complement. 9 Innate Immunity and Inflammation. 10 Adaptive Immunity. Unit IV: Clinical Immunology. 11 Hypersensitivity and Allergies. 12 Autoimmunity and Immune Deficiencies. 13 Manipulating the Immune System. Final Exam. Index

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Book SynopsisVisit www.blackwellpublishing.com/11thhour for additional information. This book reviews the more challenging material in a college-level, introductory course in biology. It is intended to supplement standard textbooks in biology, or for students who wish to review such material. 11th Hour: Introduction to Biology is of particular use to students enrolled in a majors or non-majors introductory biology course, or students taking AP biology. It concentrates on those topics that usually give students the most difficulty, and problems/questions are rated throughout in terms of their level of difficulty. Concentrates on those concepts that usually give students the most difficulty. Provides ample opportunity to test the mastery of this material. Rates questions/problems according to their level of difficulty. Additional information provided on the internet site related to this topic - www.blackwellpublishing.com/11thhourTable of ContentsUnit I: From Atoms to Living Cells. 1 Introduction to Biology. 2 Atoms, Bonds, Water, and Carbon. 3 Molecules and Macromolecules of Life. 4 Membrane Structure and Function. 5 Cellular Organization. 6 Energy and Enzymes. 7 Energy Metabolism and Cell Respiration. 8 Photosynthesis. Exam. Unit II: Genes, Information, and Heredity. 9 DNA: Structure, Function, and Replication. 10 RNA and Protein: Transcription, Translation, and the Genetic Code. 11 Cell Cycle, Mitosis, Meiosis. 12 Mendelian Genetics. 13 Recombination, Linkage and Mapping. 14 Genetics of Bacteria and Viruses. 15 Gene Expression, Gene Technology, and Human Genetics; Exam II. Unit III: Evolution. 16 Evolution and Natural Selection. 17 Microevolution and Population Genetics. Unit IV: Animal Physiology. 18 General Principles of Physiology. 19 Cardiovascular System. 20 Endocrine System and Hormones. 21 Neurons: Electrical and Synaptic Events. 22 Immune System and Body Defenses. Exam III and IV. Unit V: Ecology. 23 Ecology. Final Exam. Index

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Book SynopsisInvolves students in the learning process and reinforcement of concepts. This title includes multiple choice questions, true/false questions and short answer questions. It covers clinical correlations or everyday applications that include examples from the real world to help students understand key concepts.Trade Review"I view this as a 'Cliff's Notes' for a beginning microbiology course. I found that the most important information is placed on the inside of the cover (Tips for Success, of which Tips for Studying is the most beneficial for the student). The questions and answers reinforce the most important material a student taking a beginning course should know and the authors explain the material in a manner that even a nonscience major could understand. I would hope that future editions contain more about specific bacteria." (Doody's Review Service)—George P Wawrzyniak, MBA, MT(ASCP), University of Wisconsin-MilwaukeeTable of ContentsPreface. Unit I: Structure, Physiology, and Control of Microorganisms. 1. Introduction to Microbiology. 2. Chemistry Background for Microbiology. 3. Microbial Structure. 4. Microbial Growth. 5. Energy Metabolism: Respiration, Fermentation, and Photosynthesis. 6. Catabolic and Anabolic Pathways of Microorganisms. 7. Microbial Taxonomy. 8. Control of Microorganisms. 9. Viruses. Unit II: Microbial Genetics. 10. Microbial Genetics: Reproduction and Metabolic Regulation. 11. Microbial Genetics: Transfer of Genetic Information Among Bacteria. MidTerm Exam. Unit III: Medical Microbiology, Immunology, Environmental and Applied Microbiology. 12. Symbiotic Associations, Microbial Pathogenicity, and Epidemiology. 13. Host Defense Mechanisms - Nonspecific. 14. Host Defense: Immunology - Characterization of Antigens and Antibodies. 15. Antigen-Antibody Reactions in Host Defense and in Serology. 16. Infectious Diseases Caused by Bacteria. 17. Infectious Diseases Caused by Viruses. 18. Diseases Caused by Protozoa, Fungi, and Algae. 19. Environmental Microbiology. 20. Biotechnology and Applied Microbiology. Final Exam. Index

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Book SynopsisA hands-on introduction to modern molecular biology techniques as applied to human genome analysis. In eight unique experiments, simple step-by-step instructions guide students through the basic principles of molecular biology and the latest laboratory techniques.Table of ContentsIntroduction. 1. Preparation of Human Genomic DNA. 2. DNA Fingerprinting - Multi-Locus Analysis. 3. DNA Fingerprinting - Single Locus Analysis. 4. Out of Africa - Origin of Modern Humans. 5. DNA Sequencing. 6. Computer Analysis of Sequencing Data. 7. Determination of Human Telomere Length. 8. RT-PCR of Human Gene

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Book SynopsisThis text describes fisheries exploitation, biology, conservation and management, and reflects many recent and important changes in fisheries science, including growing concerns about the environmental impact of fisheries.Trade Review"The book is indeed a boon to both the student and teaching communities." Pashudhan "...this book, better than any other single volume I know at present, covers topics that will be important in future ecosystem-based management of fisheries." Fish and Fisheries "Well-written and thoughtfully put together" Professor Terry Quinn (Alaska, Fairbanks) "This book will be widely read and cited" Professor Jeremy Collie (Rhode Island) "Marine Fisheries Ecology is a work of art that provides a broad, ecosystem-level understanding of the biological, economic, and social factors affecting and motivating diverse fisheries at global scales. This "must-read" is an extremely well-written and expertly organized treatise. It will have significant appeal for the established fisheries professional and the student and lecturer alike, including informed members of the public interested in marine ecology and production processes, patterns of fisheries exploitation, socioeconomics, and the complexities of aquatic resource politics and decisionmaking..." Carl V. Burger Past President, American Fisheries Society -and- Chair of the Executive Committee, 4th World Fisheries Congress, Vancouver, B.C. CanadaTable of ContentsPreface ix Acknowledgements xii 1 Marine fisheries ecology: an introduction 1 1.1 Introduction 1 1.2 Fisheries of the world 1 1.2.1 History of fisheries 1 1.2.2 Fishery science 6 1.2.3 Diversity of fisheries 7 1.3 Patterns of exploitation 9 1.3.1 Boom and bust 9 1.3.2 Conservation and ecosystem concerns 14 1.4 Why manage fisheries? 14 1.5 Objectives of management 15 1.5.1 Range of objectives 15 1.5.2 Balancing objectives 16 1.5.3 From objective to action 17 1.6 Meeting management objectives 17 1.7 Structure of this book 18 Summary 20 2 Marine ecology and production processes 21 2.1 Introduction 21 2.2 Primary production: sources and magnitude 21 2.3 Phytoplanktonic production 22 2.3.1 Links between production and physical processes 22 2.3.2 Upwellings and fronts 24 2.3.3 Rates of phytoplanktonic production 25 2.4 Non-phytoplanktonic production 28 2.4.1 Macroalgae 28 2.4.2 Mangroves 29 2.4.3 Coral reef algae 29 2.4.4 Seagrasses and marsh plants 30 2.4.5 Microphytobenthos 31 2.5 Heterotrophic production 31 2.5.1 The fate of primary production 31 2.5.2 Transfer along the food chain 32 2.5.3 Production of fished species 34 2.5.4 Linking primary production and landings 37 Summary 38 3 Fished species life histories and distribution 39 3.1 Introduction 39 3.2 Fishes 39 3.3 Invertebrates 41 3.4 Life histories 55 3.4.1 Sex sex reversal and sex ratios 55 3.4.2 Growth maturity and longevity 56 3.4.3 Egg size fecundity and reproduction 59 3.5 Distribution in space and time 62 3.5.1 Geographical ranges and stock structures 62 3.5.2 Migration 62 3.5.3 Larval transport retention and dispersal 65 3.5.4 Metapopulations 68 Summary 69 4 Population structure in space and time 70 4.1 Introduction 70 4.2 Recruitment 70 4.2.1 Spawner and recruit relationships 71 4.2.2 Mortality during the early life history 78 4.2.3 Depensation 83 4.2.4 Regulation in fish populations 85 4.3 Density-dependent habitat use 86 Summary 88 5 Fishing gears and techniques 90 5.1 Introduction 90 5.2 From shoreline gathering to satellites 90 5.3 Modern commercial fishing gears 94 5.3.1 Towed fishing gear 95 5.3.2 Static fishing gear 103 5.4 Other fishing techniques 106 5.5 Conservation methods 108 Summary 111 6 Fishers: socioeconomics and human ecology 112 6.1 Introduction 112 6.2 Motivations for fishing 112 6.2.1 Food 112 6.2.2 Income 113 6.3 Modifications to fishing behaviour 115 6.3.1 Social 115 6.3.2 Religion 117 6.4 Conflicts and conflict resolution 118 6.4.1 Competing for fish 118 6.4.2 Fish wars 121 6.4.3 Fishers in the political process 122 6.4.4 Traditional management systems 123 6.4.5 Customary marine tenure 124 6.4.6 Co-management 125 Summary 126 7 Single-species stock assessment 127 7.1 Introduction 127 7.2 Balancing birth and death 127 7.3 Surplus production models 128 7.3.1 Stability 128 7.3.2 Models of population growth 130 7.3.3 Fitting models to data 130 7.3.4 Surplus production models in action 132 7.4 Delay–difference models 135 7.4.1 Delay–difference models in action 137 7.5 Virtual population analysis 138 7.5.1 Age-based cohort analysis 140 7.5.2 Length-based cohort analysis 143 7.6 Statistical catch-at-age methods 144 7.7 Yield-per-recruit models 145 7.7.1 Yield-per-recruit models in action 146 7.8 Incorporating recruitment 149 7.8.1 Replacement lines 149 7.8.2 Replacement lines in action 150 7.9 Confronting risk and uncertainty 152 7.9.1 Bayesian analysis 153 7.9.2 Resampling methods 154 7.10 Biological reference points 155 Summary 157 8 Multispecies assessment and ecosystem modelling 159 8.1 Introduction 159 8.2 Multispecies surplus production 159 8.2.1 Multispecies surplus production in action 160 8.3 Multispecies yield per recruit 162 8.3.1 Multispecies yield per recruit in action 162 8.4 Multispecies virtual population analysis 162 8.4.1 Multispecies VPA in action 164 8.4.2 Applying MSVPA data to single-species model 169 8.5 Predators prey and competitors 169 8.5.1 Predator–prey dynamics 169 8.5.2 Competition an unexpected result 170 8.5.3 Management implications 171 8.6 Size spectra 171 8.7 Ecosystem models 173 8.7.1 Ecosystem models in action 174 Summary 177 9 Getting the data: stock identity and dynamics 178 9.1 Introduction 178 9.2 Stock identification 178 9.2.1 The stock concept 178 9.2.2 Methods of stock identification 178 9.3 Stock dynamics 184 9.3.1 Sampling 184 9.3.2 Length weight and age 189 9.3.3 Growth 195 9.3.4 Maturity 199 9.3.5 Fecundity 199 9.3.6 Mortality 201 9.4 The impact of errors 203 Summary 204 10 Getting the data: abundance catch and effort 205 10.1 Introduction 205 10.2 Abundance 205 10.2.1 Survey design 205 10.2.2 Visual census methods 206 10.2.3 Acoustic methods 209 10.2.4 Trawl surveys 210 10.2.5 Depletion methods 213 10.2.6 Mark–recapture methods 214 10.2.7 Egg production methods 214 10.3 The fishery 219 Summary 221 11 Bioeconomics 223 11.1 Introduction 223 11.2 The value of fisheries 223 11.2.1 Trade in fished species 223 11.2.2 Catch values and employment 224 11.3 Bioeconomic models 225 11.3.1 Descriptive bioeconomics 226 11.3.2 Optimal fishing strategies 230 11.3.3 Bayesian methods 235 11.4 Economic vs. social management objectives 237 11.4.1 Subsidies 237 11.4.2 The case for economic efficiency 237 Summary 238 12 Fishing effects on populations and communities 239 12.1 Introduction 239 12.2 Vulnerability to fishing 239 12.2.1 Behaviour 239 12.2.2 Life histories 241 12.3 Intraspecific effects 242 12.3.1 Age and size structure 242 12.3.2 Reproduction 243 12.3.3 Genetic structure 244 12.4 Community effects 245 12.4.1 Diversity 245 12.4.2 Community structure 250 12.4.3 Size structure 251 12.4.4 Competition and trophic interactions 252 Summary 256 13 Bycatches and discards 258 13.1 Introduction 258 13.2 Catches discards and bycatches 258 13.2.1 Definitions 258 13.2.2 Reasons for discarding 258 13.3 Alternatives to discarding 260 13.4 Fisheries and bycatches 260 13.5 Incidental captures 262 13.5.1 Seabirds 262 13.5.2 Sea turtles 264 13.5.3 Sea snakes 265 13.5.4 Marine mammals 265 13.6 Methods to reduce bycatches 267 13.7 Ghost fishing 267 13.8 Sociocultural differences 270 Summary 271 14 Impacts on benthic communities habitats and coral reefs 272 14.1 Introduction 272 14.2 Fishing disturbance 272 14.2.1 Fishing vs. natural disturbance 272 14.2.2 Distribution of fishing disturbance 273 14.3 Direct effects of fishing gear on the seabed 276 14.3.1 Towed fishing gear 276 14.3.2 Direct effects on the substratum 277 14.3.3 Effects on infauna 277 14.3.4 Effects on epifauna 281 14.3.5 Meta-analysis 284 14.4 Effects of static fishing gears 284 14.5 Long-term effects 285 14.6 Fishing as a source of energy subsidies 288 14.6.1 Have population changes occurred? 290 14.7 Indirect effects on habitats 290 14.7.1 Loose seabeds 290 14.7.2 Coral reefs 291 Summary 293 15 Fishery interactions with birds and mammals 294 15.1 Introduction 294 15.2 Birds 294 15.2.1 Competition between birds and fisheries 296 15.2.2 Benefits of discarding 300 15.2.3 Waders and shellfish 301 15.3 Mammals 303 15.3.1 Competition between mammals and fisheries 304 15.3.2 Prey release 307 Summary 309 16 A role for aquaculture? 310 16.1 Introduction 310 16.2 Aquaculture past and present 310 16.3 What is cultivated? 312 16.4 Production systems 313 16.5 Feeding constraints 314 16.6 Prospects for expansion 314 16.6.1 Cage cultivation 316 16.6.2 Stock enhancement and ranching 318 16.7 Case studies 319 16.7.1 Shrimp farming 319 16.7.2 Bivalve mariculture 322 Summary 326 17 Management and conservation options 327 17.1 Introduction 327 17.2 Management objectives strategies and actions 327 17.2.1 From objective to action 327 17.2.2 Catch control 328 17.2.3 Effort control 331 17.2.4 Technical measures 331 17.2.5 Management in action 332 17.3 Improving management 335 17.3.1 Enforcement and compliance 335 17.3.2 Co-management 337 17.3.3 Ownership of resources and harvesting rights 338 17.3.4 Uncertainty and the precautionary approach 338 17.3.5 Role of science 339 17.4 Multispecies and ecosystem-based management 341 17.4.1 What are the objectives? 341 17.4.2 What can be achieved? 341 17.5 Managing fisheries for conservation 342 17.5.1 Endangered species 342 17.5.2 Habitats 343 17.5.3 Protected areas and no-take zones 344 17.6 Future trends 346 17.6.1 Fisheries science 346 17.6.2 Fisheries management 346 Summary 347 References 348 Appendices 1 List of symbols 380 2 Fisheries websites 385 3 Geographic index 389 Index 393

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Book SynopsisBased on research by leading scientists, this work offers an accessible account of fishing activities and their impacts on marine habitats, biodiversity and species of conservation concern. It covers fishing methods that range from trawling in the Antarctic to fishing with dynamite in the tropics.Trade Review"This book provides an excellent introduction to some of the crucial issues in regard to the impact of commercial fishing on the marine environment." Sali Jayne Bache, Marine Turtle Newsletter, 2002 'A remarkably reasonable and constructive book.' Ausmarine Magazine, October 2007Table of ContentsKey Points. 1. Introduction. 2. Fishing Gears And Their Operation; Gear Selectivity; Pelagic Drifting Gears; Bottom Set Gears; Pelagic Mobile Gears; Bottom Mobile Gears; SCUBA Diving, Explosives, Poisons. 3. Effects Of Litter From Fishing Gear Ghost Fishing; Ingestion Of Fragments By Marine Mammals,Turtles And Seabirds. 4. Vulnerability Of Different Marine Habitats; Mud; Sand; Gravel And Mixed Grounds; Maerl; Coral, Coralligene And Rocky Reef Habitats; Seagrass Meadows; Kelp Forests; Sea Mounts; Relative Vunerability. 5. Effects On Non-Target Organisms; Sea Birds; Sea Mammals; Sea Turtles; Sea Snakes; Benthic Scavengers. 6. Community And Ecosystem Responses; Community Diversity; Habitat Structure; Benthopelagic Coupling; Species Interactions; Assessing Fisheries Effects. 7. Conservation Aspects And The Way Forward; Marine Reserves; Practical Conservation Measures. 8. Further Reading. 9. Glossary. 10. Acronyms. 11. Addresses Of Contributors

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Book SynopsisHelps the reader quantify and interpret patterns of ecological diversity, focusing on the measurement and estimation of species richness and abundance. This book explores the concept of ecological diversity, bringing fresh perspectives to a field beset by contradictory views and advice.Trade Review"It is a blessing that the book has been rewritten, as it saves us from scouring second-hand bookshops; it was a text that was borrowed from libraries and disappeared...Anne Magurran, while providing an invaluable practical handbook, also explains difficulties in a very readable style...But this book is not just recommended to working ecologists - it is essential." Tony Andrew, University of Ulster, Times Higher Education Supplement, March 2004 "To ecologists and conservation biologists who work with biodiversity, for more than a decade the name 'Magurran' has meant an essential little book on measuring biodiversity Ecological Diversity and Its Measurement, 1988. Now Anne Magurran has written a thorough update Measuring Biological Diversity, considerably expanded to cover important new developments in the field, including richness estimation, new relative abundance models, and new ways to compare assemblage composition. Throughout, examples from the primary literature are used to illustrate concepts and methods and key methods are presented as worked examples in an appendix. And as before, the new book shines with a blessedly welcome readability, excellent scholarship and plain good sense. Magurran does not shrink from making tough judgments and recommendations that go against 'tradition' in this field. I expect the 'new Magurran' to become an essential reference on researchers' bookshelves and required reading for advanced students in biodiversity studies. " Professor Robert Colwell, University of Connecticut. "The book provides a useful and in-depth review of statistical and measurement issues related to biological diversity...It will be a useful reference book and educational tool for years to come for those interested in the measurement of biological diversity." Ecology, December 2004 "This is obviously a finely-crafted book...It will be an indispensable guide for any researcher engaged in measuring species diversity or in comparing the richness of different species assemblages. It is, above all, a practical book, clearly laid out, with concise descriptions and worked examples." African Journal of Aquatic Science, June 2005Table of ContentsPreface vii Chapter 1. Introduction: measurement of (biological) diversity 1 Chapter 2. The commonness, and rarity, of species 18 Chapter 3. How many species? 72 Chapter 4. An index of diversity 100 Chapter 5. Comparative studies of diversity 131 Chapter 6. Diversity in space (and time) 162 Chapter 7. No prospect of an end 185 References 194 Worked Examples 216 Index 248

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Book SynopsisMature ecological criticism of agricultural policies is not easy: targets agreed in Biodiversity Action Plans must be achieved within a framework of agricultural and economic policies. Developing a balanced solution is the essence of sustainability. Until recently the hidden costs of high-production systems on biodiversity has been ignored. This booklet identifies some of the hidden costs of unsustainable production, and also considers examples where conservation management has failed. The authors argue that sustainable land management is possible, and that conservation and production interests can be satisfied. They go on to show how a sustainable approach can be applied throughout Europe. The approach adopted is the one that has underpinned the development of the European Union Biodiversity strategy and is becoming a compelling force for change in Europe''s decision-making processes. Land managers and planners, ecologists and agriculturalists willTrade Review"This is a complex issue but the authors provide us with a very clear way through. Arguments are well laid out, diagrams are clear and the brief nature of the text encourages students to dip in and read!" TEG News, Dec 2001 "The whole product has been put together excellently. A must-buy for the library."Table of Contents1. Introduction. 2. Land-Use Intensification: The Cost To The Environment:. The Drive For Productivity. Habitats And Wildlife. Overuse And Neglect. Pollution. Soil Erosion. The Loss Of Farm Biodiversity. Impact Of Land-Use Intensification On Forest Biodiversity. Landscape Effects Of Intensive Forestry And Farming. Cultural Effects. Concluding Thoughts. 3. Biological Conservation : Gaps, Overlaps And Contradictions:. Complexity And Simplicity In Ecological Interactions. Attempts To Deal With The Ecological Effects Of Land-Use Intensification. 4. Traditional Land Use Systems; Sustainability, Efficiency And Biodiversity:. Sustainable Land-Uses. The Character Of Extensive Land-Uses. Farming Efficiency And Ecological Complexity. Habitat Scale Effects Of Optimising Production Within Extensive Systems. The Marsh Fritillary Butterfly. The Red-Billed Chough (Pyrrhocorax Pyrrhocorax). Landscape Scale Effects Of Optimising Production With Extensive Systems. Concluding Thoughts. 5. Land-Use Reform: A New Harmony Between Human Activity, Economic Forces And The Land:. Agricultural Support Mechanisms. Attempts To Control The Adverse Environmental Effects Of Subsidies. The Need For An Integrated Approach To Conservation And Land Management. Reduction Of Support For Intensive Production. Environmentally Neutral Support For Agriculture. 6. Abbreviations

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Book SynopsisMacroecology is the study of large-scale community structure and the influence this has on small-scale process. The book is suitable for graduate and professional ecologists.Trade Review"...Gaston and Blackburn's book is an important step along this path - an authoritative characterization of the status of this research programme in ecology, a thorough pattern-by-pattern analysis and a provocative statement on what macroecology is and what we should expect from it." NatureTable of ContentsThe Macroecological Perspective. Species Richness. Range Size. Abundance. Body Size. Synthesis. References. Appendices. Index

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Book Synopsisaeo A full understanding of early life history of fishes is vital to the study of the areas of fish biology, fisheries & aquaculture aeo Brimming with information from recent research aeo User--friendly, highly illustrated and well--written aeo The editors and authors offer the reader a vast wealth of knowledge on this important subject.Trade Review"This textbook is interesting and informative, and provides an excellent body of material that could be used to supplement other resources. In addition Fishery Science is invaluable as the only existing text on the early life-stages od development." Fish Biology and Fisheries, 2003. "Overall this book is a valuable contribution. It provides a basis for individual university courses and a reference and background for postgraduate studies as well as for active fisheries scientists." Steve Coombs, Journal of Fish Biology, 2003. "the book will be a most useful sourcebook for students of fishery science, and also for teachers wishing to include more information about the early life stages in their fish biology courses." Malcolm Jobling, Aquaculture International, 2003. "Most comprehensive texts on fishery science will say something about the egg and larval states, but leave out a lot of the scientific and methodological detail. This book fills the gaps and will allow students to obtain a deeper grasp, both of egg and larval biology and of fishery science...Teachers of fishery science will find this book a very useful supplement to their course literature." Paul J. B. Hart, Fish and Fisheries, 2003.Table of ContentsContributors. Preface. 1 Special Considerations of Fish Eggs and Larvae. 2 Age and Growth. 3 Mortality. 4 Recruitment. 5 Population Analysis. 6 Cohort Identification. 7 Habitat Requirements. 8 Assemblages, Communities, and Species Interactions. 9 Fishery Management. 10 Human Impacts. 11 Case Studies: Resurgence and Decline of the Japanese Sardine Population. Cascading Effects of Human Impacts on Fish Populations in the Laurentian Great Lakes. Understanding Conservation Issues of the Danube River. 12 Methodological Resources. Appendix. Literature Cited. Subject Index. Taxonomic Index

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Book SynopsisInspired by the pace of change in the taxonomy of the aerobic endospore-forming bacteria, the Bacillus 2000 symposium on which this book is based was held in Bruges, Belgium, in August 2000, and was supported by the Federation of European Microbiological Societies, the Belgian Society for Microbiology, and several commercial sponsors. Bringing taxonomists interested in Bacillus and its relatives together with people who work with these organisms in medicine, agriculture, and industry, allowed those attending to appreciate the overlaps and interactions of their areas of expertise, in the absence of any comprehensive treatment of the current systematics of the group. The meeting was a great success, and has resulted in the production of these proceedings, Applications and Systematics of Bacillus and Relatives, providing an up-to-date and comprehensive treatise on the classification, identification and applications of the aerobic endospore-forming bacteria; it is an essential refTrade Review"Rarely does a book of 19 chapters by 31 authors attain such high quality, wide interest and immediate relevance." Quarterly Review of Biology, June 2003 "Applications and Systematics of Bacillus and Relatives is indeed a source of current and compiled information on systematics and applications ... This will be a highly useful resource for academic, special, and public libraries." Mohan Ramaswamy, Kansas State University Library, E-Streams, April 2003Table of ContentsList of Contributors. Foreword. 1. Whither Bacillus? (Berkeley). 2. From Phylogeny To Systematics: Dissection Of The Genus Bacillus (Stackebrandt & Swiderski). 3. Longstanding Taxonomic Enigmas Within The 'Bacillus Cereus Group' Are On The Verge Of Being Resolved By Far-Reaching Molecular Developments: Forecasts On The Possible Outcome By An Ad Hoc Team. (Turnbull, Jackson, Hill, Keim, Kolsto & Beecher). 4. Bacillus Cereus And Food Poisoning (Granum). 5. Thermophilic Bacillus Isolates From Antarctic Environments (Nicolaus, Lama & Gambacorta). 6. Bacilli Associated With Spoilage In Dairy Products And Other Foods (Heyndrickx & Scheldeman). 7. Moderately Halophilic And Halotolerant Species Of Bacillus And Related Genera (Arahal & Ventosa). 8. Bacillus Identification - Traditional Approaches (Fritze). 9. Modern Methods For Identification (Logan). 10. Nucleic Acid Analysis And SDS-PAGE Of Whole-Cell Proteins In Bacillus Taxonomy (De Vos). 11. Bacillus Thuringiensis Insecticides (Bishop). 12. Bt Crops: A Novel Insect Control Tool (Van Rie). 13. Bacillus Sphaericus And Its Insecticidal Toxins (Priest). 14. The Importance Of Bacillus Species In The Production Of Industrial Enzymes (Outtrop & Jorgensen). 15. Plant Growth Promotion By Bacillus And Relatives (Chanway). 16. Insertion Sequence Elements And Transposons In Bacillus (Mahillon). 17. Fingerprint Spectrometry Methods In Bacillus Systematics (Magee & Goodacre). 18. Whole-Cell Fatty Acid Analysis In The Systematics Of Bacillus And Related Genera (Kampfer). 19. Some Concluding Observations (Norris). Index

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Book SynopsisPaleoBase represents a unique combination of up-to-date systematic information on an extensive collection of fossil genera, state-of-the-art color digital photographs of representative specimens from The Natural History Museum s unrivalled paleontological collections, and modern relational database technology.Trade ReviewThis software is an excellent instructional resource for teaching in both small and large palaeontology classes Bruce Lieberman in Palaios Vol 17 An invaluable tool for any university that teaches undergraduate level palaeontology .....students will love it Rod Taylor in Geol Mag 138 Is this the future of paleontological publishing? We can only hope. Fossil News march 2001Table of ContentsPreface to the Second Edition; Preface to the First Edition; Sources and Acknowledgements; Acronyms; The Great Globalization Debate: An Introduction David Held and Anthony McGrew; Part I Understanding Globalization; Introduction; Chapter 1: Globalization, George Modelski, Professor of Political Science at the University of Washington; Chapter 2: The Globalizing of Modernity, Anthony Giddens, Director of the London School of Economics and Political Science. He was formerly Professor of Sociology at the University of Cambridge and Fellow of King s College, Cambridge; Chapter 3: Rethinking Globalization, David Held, Graham Wallas Professor of Political Science at the London School of Economics and Political Science and Anthony McGrew, Professor of International Relations at Southampton University; Chapter 4: Globalization: What s New? What s Not? (And So What?), Robert O. Keohane, James B. Duke Professor of Political Science at Duke University and Joseph Nye, Dean of the John F. Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University; Chapter 5: What is Global about Globalization? Jan Aarte Scholte, Reader in International Studies at the University of Warwick; Chapter 6: The Problem of Globalization Theory, Justin Rosenberg; Chapter 7: Globalization A Necessary Myth, Paul Hirst, Professor of Social Theory at Birkbeck College, University of London and Grahame Thompsor, Professor of Political Economy at the Open University; Chapter 8: Clash of Globalizations, Stanley Hoffman, Battenwieser University Professor at Harvard University; Chapter 9: Globalization and American Power, Joseph S. Nye, Dean of the John F. Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University; Chapter 10 Globalization as Empire, Michael Hardt, Associate Professor of Literature and Romance Studies at Duke University and Antonio Negri, author of "Empire" with Michael Hardt; Part II Political Power and Civil Society: A Reconfiguration? Introduction; Chapter 11: The Declining Authority of States, Susan Strange, formerly a Visiting Professor at the University of Warwick. Chapter 12: Has Globalization Ended the Rise and Rise of the Nation-State? Michael Mann, Professor of Sociology at UCLA; Chapter 13: Sovereignty in International Society, Robert Keohane, James B. Duke Professor of Political Science at Duke University; Chapter 14: Compromising Westphalia, Stephen D. Krasner, Professor of Political Science at Stanford University; Chapter 15: The Changing Structure of International Law: Sovereignty Transformed? David Held, Graham Wallas Professor of Political Science at the London School of Economics and Political Science; Chapter 16: The Security State, Ian Clark, Professor of International Politics at the University of Wales; Chapter 17: Governing the Global Economy Through Government Networks, Anne-Marie Slaughter dean of the Woodrow Wilson School of Public and International Affairs at Princeton University; Chapter 18: Power Shift, Jessica T. Matthews, Senior Fellow at the Council on Foreign Relations; Chapter 19: Globalization and Modes of Regionalist Governance, Anthony Payne, Professor of Politics at the University of Sheffield; Chapter 20: Governance in a New Global Order, James N. Rosenau, University Professor of International Affairs at the George Washington University; Part III The Fate of National Culture in an Age of Global Communication; Introduction; Chapter 21: Encountering Globalization, Kevin Robins, Professor of Communications at Goldsmiths College; Chapter 22: The Globalization of Communication, John B. Thompson Professor of Sociology at the University of Cambridge; Chapter 23: The New Global Media, Robert McChesney, Professor at the Institute of Communications Research, University of Illinois; Chapter 24: Globalization and Cultural Identity, John Tomlinson, Director of the Centre for Research in International Communication and Culture, Nottingham Trent University; Chapter 25: Towards a Global Culture? Anthony D. Smith, Professor of Ethnicity and Nationalism at the European Institute, London School of Economics and Political Science; Chapter 26: Global Governance and Cosmopolitan Citizens, Pippa Norris, Professor at the J. F. Kennedy School of Government, Harvard University; Part IV A Global Economy? Introduction; Chapter 27: A New Geo-economy, Peter Dicken, Professor of Geography at the University of Manchester; Chapter 28: Global Informational Capitalism, Manuel Castells, Professor of Sociology and Urban Planning at the University of California at Berkeley; Chapter 29: The Limits to Economic Globalization, Paul Hirst, Professor of Social Theory at Birkbeck College, University of London and Grahame Thompsor, Professor of Political Economy at the Open University; Chapter 30: The Nation-State in the Global Economy, Robert Gilpin, Professor of Politics and International Affairs at Princeton University; Chapter 31: Global Market versus the New Regionalism, Bjorn Hettne, Professor at the Department of Peace and Development Research, Goteborg University; Chapter 32: Globalization and the Political Economy of Capitalist Democracies, Fritz Scharpf Professor at the Max Planck Institute, University of Koin; Chapter 33: Has Globalization Gone Too Far? Dani Rodrik, Rafiq Hariri Professor of International Political Economy at Harvard University; Chapter 34: Global Markets and National Politics, Geoffrey Garrett, Professor of Political Science at Yale University; Chapter 35: The Effect of Globalization on Taxation, Institutions and Control of the Macroeconomy, Duane Swank, Associate Professor of Political Science at Marquette University; Part V Divided World, Divided Nations; Introduction; Chapter 36: Patterns of Global Inequality, United Nations Development Programme; Chapter 37: The Rise of the Fourth World, Manuel Castells, Professor of Sociology and Urban Planning at the University of California at Berkeley; Chapter 38: Are Global Poverty and Inequality Getting Worse? Robert Wade, Professor of Political Economy at the London School of Economics and Political Science and Martin Wolf, chief economics commentator of the Financial Times; Chapter 39: Spreading the Wealth, David Dollar and Aart Kraay, economists at the World Banks Development Research Group; Chapter 40: Globalization and Gendered Inequality, Jill Steans, Lecturer in International Relations Theory at the University of Birmingham; Chapter 41: Order, Globalization and Inequality in World Politics, Ngaire Woods, Fellow in Politics and International Relations at University College, Oxford; Chapter 42: The Promise of Global Institutions, Joseph Stiglitz, Professor of Economics and Finance at the University of Columbia; Part VI World Orders, Normative Choices; Introduction; Chapter 43: Global Governance: Prospects and Problems, Fred Halliday, Professor of International Relations at the London School of Economics and Political Science; Chapter 44: Models of Transnational Democracy, Anthony McGrew, Professor of International Relations at Southampton University; Chapter 45: Cosmopolitanism: Taming Globalization, David Held, Graham Wallas Professor of Political Science at the London School of Economics and Political Science; Chapter 46: Can International Organizations be Democractic? A Sceptics View, Robert Dahl, Sterling Professor Emeritus of Political Science at Yale University; Chapter 47: The Postnational Constellation, Jurgen Habermas, Professor of Philosophy Emeritus at the University of Frankfurt; Chapter 48: Priorities of Global Justice, Thomas W. Pogge, Associate Professor in the Department of Philosophy at Columbia University; Chapter 49: Global Civil Society, Mary Kaldor, Director of the Global Civil Society Programme at the London School of Economics and Political Science; Chapter 50: A World Gone Wrong? Chris Brown, Professor of International Relations at the London School of Economics and Political Science; Chapter 51 Beyond the States System? Hedley Bull, formerly Montague Burton Professor of International Relations, University of Oxford

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Book SynopsisA veteran entomologist and accomplished birdwatcher presents this introduction to the intricate interplay of insects and birds, with a beguiling blend of anecdote, ornithology, and entomology. Profusely illustrated with drawings and color photographs, this book offers a cornucopia of facts about the life history and behavior of insects and birds.Trade ReviewTwo of the basic tenets of modern evolutionary biology are that, within an ecosystem, each species fulfills a critical role and that when a species is perturbed or an addition is made to an ecosystem, the ecological ramifications will often be noticed rippling throughout the entire community...Exploring and expanding on these nested relationships are two of the things that Gilbert Waldbauer does so well in his engaging natural history...Waldbauer takes some of the least appreciated species in most ecosystems--insects--and eloquently discusses many of the roles they play...His book is accessible to anyone interested in natural history...What Waldbauer does best is transmit his respect and admiration--perhaps awe is not too strong a word--for the insects he has spent his life studying. -- Michael Zimmerman * Philadelphia Inquirer *Some insects mimic bird droppings to protect themselves from attack. Certain songbirds rub acid-filled ants over their feathers to deter external parasites. Such examples of the bird/bug relationship sprinkle Waldbauer's text as he describes the ways that each group adjusts and evolves through mutual exploitation. The final third of the book addresses the bugs that eat the birders and how humans combat such assaults. * Science News *The Birder's Bug Book provides a lot of information about bugs and about birds...The book has a small section of high-quality color plates, a good bibliography, and many fine black-and-white illustrations...[Waldbauer] presents a lot of information organized in a successful format that should appeal to birders of many persuasions. -- David Benson * Wisconsin Bluebird *This book is an interesting introduction to the many fascinating relationships between birds and insects. As past eons have come and gone, birds and insects have become increasingly enmeshed in a complex web of interrelationships: birds eating insects, bloodsucking insects feeding on birds, parasitic insects infesting birds, ad birds struggling to rid themselves of the parasites. In this book, the author describes these and many other interactions between birds an insects. * Entomological News *[The Birder's Bug Book] aims to establish that birds are best understood in the light of their ecological contact and consequent association with plants, insects and other organisms...The whole book is well written and a fascinating read with charming illustrations. The last chapter especially could well be recommended as compulsory reading in all educational establishments. -- K. G. V. Smith * Entomologist's Monthly *This unique title focuses on the relationships and impact among birds, 'bugs,' and people. Drawing on a rich array of scientific resources, including his own career, and on anecdotes, Waldbauer gives an entertaining summary of these complex interactions, which dynamically affect human and ecological health...Some chapters portray 'Bugs That Birds Eat,' 'Bugs That Eat Birds,' 'Bugs That Eat People,' etc.; others offer lively essays on flying insects, a brief guide to insects, and an excellent discourse, 'Disappearing Diversity' which should be required reading for anyone interested in extinction, rain forests, or biodiversity. Highly recommended. -- Henry T. Arminstead * Library Journal *[Waldbauer] introduces readers to the complex interplay of birds and insects, striving to be scientifically accurate yet using a variety of delightful anecdotes to make his points...The book is a must-read for anyone interested in natural history. -- George Cohen * Booklist *Waldbauer gives a lucid, engaging account of mutual exploitation in a complex ecosystem while evincing a sneaking admiration for bugs. He describes birds whose 'profession' is to eat insects; 'choosy' blood-sucking insects that feed on only certain birds; parasites living on birds; and the birds' efforts to get rid of them. Also detailed are species of ants and spiders that eat nestlings. Birds attack parasitic insects by anting (rubbing ants over their bodies), dust-bathing and preening; some species even bring aromatic leaves to their nest. Others enlist the support of bees and wasps by building their nests near those insects' habitats for protection against predators...This informative work is not just for birders; any student of natural history will find it illuminating. * Publishers Weekly *Birds and insects are involved in a complex web of relationships, and here veteran entomologist Waldbauer describes these relationships and interactions, blending ornithology, entomology and folktales in a lively style which will appeal to scientist and general readers alike. Any interested in natural history will find it appealing and involving. * Bookwatch *One of our 'favorite book-writing naturalists.' * Discover *Anyone interested in insects and birds will enjoy this book and learn a great deal from it. * Bird Watcher's Digest *Highly readable. Waldbauer is the ideal author for this sort of book: An accomplished entomologist, a fine writer, and a fanatical birder. -- Scott K. Robinson * Illinois Natural History Survey *In this well-written book, Waldbauer...melds his vocational interest in insects with his avocational interest in birds...Besides the highly readable prose, there are dozens of detailed three-toned drawings and 16 pages of color plates...This book can be enjoyed by high school students and adult laypersons, as well as professional and amateur naturalists. -- H. N. Cunningham * Choice *It would never have occurred to me to look at a book about bugs, whether they are associated with birds or not, but I've got to tell you, this book is fascinating. -- Pete Dunne, New Jersey Audubon SocietyThis fascinating account of the long interrelationship between insects and birds and the short destructive intervention of man makes compelling reading. * Entomologist's Monthly Magazine *The Birder’s Bug Book is an unusual yet highly engaging thinkpiece devoted to selected topics in natural history… Few readers are likely to come away from [Waldbauer’s] book without acquiring significant new facts and perspectives. Natural history books designed for non-professionals often repeat a familiar nucleus of established lore, while many scientific books are so narrowly focused as to be inaccessible to non-expert readers. The Birder’s Bug Book demonstrates that there is still much to be learned from the traditional naturalist’s approach and that there is still a place for wide-ranging, articulately written, and thoughtful nature writing. -- Rich Cech * Birding *

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Book SynopsisPart autobiography, part history of the extraordinary transformation of biology in his time, Bonner's book is truly a life in science, the story of what it is to be a biologist observing the unfolding of the intricacies of life itself.Trade ReviewHere is a man of prodigious scientific talent, who emerges in Lives of a Biologist as the best kind of scientist—a man fascinated by the things he is investigating, and finding great joy in them… This is a life well and fulfillingly lived, told with warmth and humor. -- John R. G. Turner * New York Times Book Review *John Tyler Bonner had the luck to be born into a family that lived a charmed life, the fortune to find a lifelong passion and the timing to live at the heyday of his favorite subject. In his autobiography, Lives of a Biologist: Adventures in a Century of Extraordinary Science, Bonner…smoothly integrates advances in biology during the 20th century with tales from a life that now stretches into its ninth decade. In simple but elegant prose, he revisits some of the most important biological advances, from embryology to molecular genetics. -- Sally Squires * Washington Post *This memoir by the great celebrant of slime moulds offers a fascinating overview of a century of biology. Bonner tells of changes in biological thinking, and his own pervasive influence in the study of life cycles and morphogenesis. * New Scientist *Bonner has devoted much of his imaginative and creative biological research of the intervening years to cellular slime molds, which lead fascinating and, before Bonner’s work, previously largely unexplained lives. His accounts of his and his graduate students’ thinking and experiments convey much of the scientific approach to problems lucidly, and those of his travels, his vacations in Nova Scotia over the course of 40 years, and the many amusing and illuminating incidents in his life reflect a refreshing open-mindedness. This is one scientist’s autobiography that manages to be simultaneously delightful and strikingly informative. -- William Beatty * Booklist *[A] gracefully written memoir… Bonner, who began his career as an embryologist, provides many insights regarding the changing fashions he and others have observed in the field of developmental biology. -- K. B. Sterling * Choice *A charming memoir combining autobiography and a 20th-century history of biology. ‘A gentleman and a scholar’ aptly describes Bonner… Bonner’s own lifecycle makes for pleasant reading and inspires a new respect for slime molds. * Kirkus Reviews *This charming and unduly modest book is part memoir, part distillation of 20th-century biology, as told by an eminent researcher, writer and teacher who witnessed much of it firsthand. Bonner…invokes life cycles and development, his specialties, to talk about the last century’s gigantic steps forward in biology. He covers advances in biochemistry, population genetics and embryology; the discovery of DNA structure; and the human genome project. Against this parade of discoveries, Bonner considers his own career, which included everything from animal social behavior to evolution. * Publishers Weekly *A charming, personal account of the ascendance of the life sciences to their current dominance by someone who has been there. Few biologists grasp their discipline at as many levels as John Tyler Bonner does, and even fewer can claim as many firsthand encounters with the greats of the past century. The result is an autobiography that is both delightful and informative. -- Frans de Waal, Living Links Center at Emory UniversityA gracious and immensely enjoyable memoir from an era in which scientists could still be gentlemen. Bonner’s generosity of spirit shines through on almost every page. -- Evelyn Fox Keller, Massachusetts Institute of TechnologySurely there can be few scientists with the breadth of knowledge, the puckish wit, and the all-round modest good humor that John Bonner displays in this splendid memoir. Long may he write! -- Anne Firor Scott, W. K. Boyd Professor of History Emerita, Duke UniversityThis is a delightful memoir by one of the most charming and well-spoken biologists on the planet. John Tyler Bonner’s career now spans half a dozen scientific generations, from each of which he has gathered friends and wisdom. In looking back, he illuminates both the story of his life and the story of life. -- Jonathan Weiner, author of The Beak of the Finch and Time, Love, and MemoryImagine a wonderful writer who just keeps writing book after book and just keeps getting more and more readable with each one. That’s John Bonner. Now he’s done a memoir full of magic names from the past, where his kind humor softens a keen eye for human antics including his own. If you like biology, biography, and history of science and don’t mind having fun reading it, then this book is for you. I would get two, one to keep and one to loan. -- Mary Jane West-Eberhard, Smithsonian Tropical Research InstituteTable of ContentsPreface 1. The World of My Elders: 1900-1920 2. Becoming a Biologist: 1920-1940 3. Everything Peaks: 1940-1960 4. Revolution and Progress: 1960-1980 5. Coming Together: 1980-2000 Index

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Book SynopsisIn a book that promises to change the way we think and talk about genes and genetic determinism, Evelyn Fox Keller, one of our most gifted historians and philosophers of science, provides a powerful, profound analysis of the achievements of genetics and molecular biology in the twentieth century, the century of the gene.Trade ReviewSometimes, with great luck, you happen on a book that is wondrous in its ability to take a topic apart and explain it lucidly. Sometimes, the joy is to be found in the way an author is able to put those pieces back together. And sometimes, it is the elegance both of analysis and synthesis that makes a book truly great. The Century of the Gene, by Evelyn Fox Keller, reaches that level and then vaults past it into the category of rare volumes that are unforgettable. This is the sort of book that, once found, can never be relinquished. The breadth of intellect is so strong, the importance of the subject so acute, the language so beautifully wrought, that you find yourself drawn to read it again and again, only to find a new dimension each time… In fact—and this is one of the most intense pleasures of the book—Fox Keller’s explanation of how the thinking about the gene has evolved over the past century is both as simple and as complex as the gene itself. Her topic is also her metaphor. -- Alanna Mitchell * Globe and Mail *[Keller] is at the same time enthusiastic about the light that has been shed on the nature of life and critical of the oversimplifications that she feels have been made… She is well qualified to draw [her conclusions]. She has an admirable grasp of recent research in molecular genetics…and has read widely in the history of genetics… She has also thought hard about both the history and the current state of the subject… We need Keller’s voice. -- John Maynard Smith * New York Review of Books *[Keller writes] with a peculiar, elegant blend of linguistic skill, historical reflection, conceptual analysis and synthetic outlook, and with the generously encompassing gesture of someone who participated in and followed the developments of molecular biology and genetics over several decades… Keller sees her book as a plea for scientific and political realism. Indeed it is. But it is more than just that. It engages historians, philosophers, scientists and the educated lay public alike in a discussion that self-consciously resists the temptation of polemics…about the conceptual and experimental developments in life sciences during the course of the twentieth century. -- Hans-Jorg Rheinberger * American Scientist *[In] a lucid analysis of the mind-boggling advances in genetics and molecular biology in the twentieth century, Keller says it’s time to change the way we think about the gene. * Atlanta Journal-Constitution *The Century of the Gene is unusual among popular histories of science in that it largely avoids both technical minutiae and sociological or historical background. Rather, it is almost exclusively a history of ideas, even a history of just one idea—the concept of the gene. Keller’s aim, one that she achieves admirably, is to give readers just enough information about discoveries in molecular biology so that they can appreciate the consequence of those discoveries for our understanding of what genes are. -- Austin L. Hughes * Commonweal *The very word ‘gene’ symbolizes our self-obsessed culture. All we do, know, learn, and sacrifice is somehow explained away by appealing to this tiny and elusive biological structure. Yet according to at least one scientist, it’s time for us to shift our focus and branch out to other possible, and perhaps more suitable, interpretations of our natures. In The Century of the Gene, Evelyn Fox Keller urges the genomic society to break free of the linguistic (and therefore conceptual) restraints and the historical baggage inherent in the use of the term ‘gene’—a break she sees as imperative and, ultimately, inevitable. * Rain Taxi *The Century of the Gene, by Evelyn Fox Keller, not only provides an insightful overview of the role of a gene in the creation of an organism but also traces the history of our perception of the gene’s role in that creation… Keller provides several concise figures that allow a person with minimal knowledge of molecular biology to understand the basics of what a gene is and how it functions within the body. This book also captures past and present thought from critical scientists and philosophers who have contributed to our current understanding of molecular biology… [The] overall outlook provides a new understanding of the dynamics of gene regulation and predicts that a new era in which we can understand how to control our own evolution is approaching. From a research perspective, we hope to be able to use this knowledge to help correct medical disorders. However, from a moral and religious perspective, many new boundaries are being crossed. Read this book. You will challenge yourself in trying to figure out what the future will be. -- Dr. John J. Nemunaitis * Baylor University Medical Center Proceedings *Evelyn Fox Keller’s The Century of the Gene is a clear, concise and challenging contribution to our understanding of the history of genetics and of modern biology more generally. There can be no doubt that Keller’s analysis of ‘gene talk,’ that is, her analysis of the variety of contexts and ways in which biologists have deployed the word ‘gene’, is more than timely. -- Paolo Palladino * British Journal for the History of Science *The notes…are detailed and useful… Her book is a thought-provoking review of the history and philosophy of genetics and genomics. -- Victor A. McKusick * Bulletin of the History of Medicine *Among the many books on cloning and genetic therapy, The Century of the Gene, an overview of current research and thought by philosopher of science Evelyn Fox Keller, seems especially promising. -- Martin Levin * Globe and Mail *Although brief, this book is packed with good things. The historical analysis is unfailingly interesting, the scientific reportage lucid. Best of all, perhaps, is the sheer excitement the book communicates about the state of genetics and the need to get that state into proper focus, using all the intellectual resources going… I am impressed by the diversity of gene concepts within what Keller sees…as a single concept… Her own contribution to the case for conceptual unity is an important one. -- Gregory Radick * Heredity *[This] book opens up exciting possibilities of new ways of thinking about biological organization, which are not overshadowed by traditional language or by ‘historical baggage’… Evelyn Fox Keller has put down a marker in this important book. The time has come for us to take on a richer understanding of genetics and with it some new language and concepts. -- Sue Weldon * New Genetics and Society *Once again, with the prescience her readers have come to expect from her, Evelyn Fox Keller is ahead of the curve in identifying and illuminating new questions for our attention… [Keller] addresses myths and misunderstandings that surround the concept of a gene… [Her] informed and entertaining volume takes the reader on a quick historical tour through the gestation and birth of molecular genetics and then, with a few helpful illustrations, into current perceptions of gene structure and function in sufficient detail to explain her critical arguments… Her fascinating tale should raise your interest in the biological mysteries that remain. -- Cecily Cannan Selby * Radcliffe Quarterly *For anyone fascinated by biology, the technology used to explore it, and the medical promises implicit in the information contained within our genetic material, Keller’s overview makes for clear, engaging, and exciting reading. -- Tom Bowden * Tech Directions *Keller traces the evolution of genetic science over the course of the twentieth century, during which Gregor Mendel’s theories of inheritance were rediscovered, the structure of DNA revealed, and the human genome mapped—world-changing achievements that have taken our understanding of genetics far beyond the level at which the now too-simple word gene was coined. -- Donna Seaman * Booklist *Top-drawer science reading. -- Ray Olson * Booklist *In this tight, clearly written survey, Keller does a wonderful job of explaining and demonstrating how our knowledge of genetics has accumulated… In her articulate and insightful…history of genetics and molecular biology, she suggests that most of our common assumptions about genes are either too simplistic or simply incorrect. * Publishers Weekly *In The Century of the Gene, Evelyn Keller gathers together her considerable skills as a mathematician, physicist, historian and philosopher and applies them to the central problem of the last 100 years of biology, namely the relation of the genes to the building of an organism. The scholarship is masterly, not only because of her wide reading of the literature, but her deep, penetrating understanding of what she reads. To cap it all she writes clearly and elegantly so that the book is a pleasure to read. This is a conspicuously intelligent book. -- John Bonner, Princeton UniversityEvelyn Keller has the disturbing ability to make you think again from scratch about things you thought you had already understood. It is a long time since I have thought so hard about fundamental problems in genetics as I did when reading The Century of the Gene. -- Richard Lewontin, Harvard UniversityGenes have captured the scientific and popular imagination. But in The Century of the Gene, Evelyn Fox Keller provides us with a powerful analysis of the limits of the gene as an explanatory concept. Indeed, the success of molecular biology and greater understanding of biological development have exposed the wide gap between genetic information and biological meaning, undermining the very concept of the gene. Yet gene talk with all its historical baggage persists in shaping both science and popular perceptions. Keller argues convincingly for a new language, for new concepts that will enable us to deal with the real complexity of biological organization. This is a critically important book to be very widely read. -- Dorothy Nelkin, New York UniversityIn this elegantly written book, Evelyn Fox Keller tells the fascinating story of how the heuristic power of genetic experimentation interacts with the narrative power of the word ‘gene.’ Both are built on and reinforce each other. I never saw an equally convincing and well informed narrative on how language mediates the interaction between experimental research and its social context. -- Günter P. Wagner, Yale UniversityTable of Contents* Introduction: The Life of a Powerful Word *1. Motors of Stasis and Change: The Regulation of Genetic Stability *2. The Meaning of Gene Function: What Does a Gene Do? *3. The Concept of a Genetic Program: How to Make an Organism *4. Limits of Genetic Analysis: What Keeps Development on Track? * Conclusion: What Are Genes For? * Notes * References * Acknowledgments * Index

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Book SynopsisNine of the world's top primate experts compose the most extensive picture to date of what the behavior of monkeys and apes can tell us about our own evolution as a species.Trade ReviewHuman behavior today is so unfathomable and complex that it's hard to relate it to influences from the remote past. But if you want a source that cogently discusses human intelligence in the context of the behavior of other primates, Tree of Origin is the place to turn. -- Ian Tattersall, Curator, American Museum of Natural History and author of Becoming HumanThe last few decades have seen enormous progress in the study of primate behavior. Nine of the world's leading experts team up to tell us what it all means, throwing new light on human evolution. -- Jane GoodallIn Tree of Origin, primatologists speak out about the evolution of human behavior. After decades of hard work - all those hours in the sun, all those days of stomping though forests, all those years of watching monkeys and apes - they have come to provocative conclusions about how the behavior of our closest relatives informs our own lives. This book is the bridge between our past and our present. -- Meredith Small, author of Kids: How Biology and Culture Shape the Way We Raise Our ChildrenAre we so separate from our nearest relatives that studying apes' behavior has nothing to teach us about ourselves? Or does watching how apes interact socially give us clues about our own evolution? The authors come down solidly on the side of the applicability of primate studies to the study of humans. Growing from a 1997 conference on human evolution, this selection of nine essays by working primatologists include speculations about the origins of human social evolution from the perspective of their studies on other primates...All of the essays are accessible to the general reader. * Booklist *[An] enlightening discussion of how scientists' ideas about human forebears have been shaped--and perhaps led astray--by extrapolations from intensive study of a few primates. Whether you are interested in human origins or in how other animals live their lives, [this book] is a superb synthesis of current thinking and research about our closest nonhuman relatives. -- Susan Okie * Washington Post Book World *A fascinating bunch of essays...They re-examine human social evolution from the perspective of naturalistic observations of non-human primates, and then extrapolate to humans. -- Laura Spinney * New Scientist *De Waal's is just one of a fascinating bunch of essays by primatologists in Tree of Origin. They re-examine human social evolution from the perspective of naturalistic observations of non-human primates, and then extrapolate to humans. -- Laura Spinney * New Scientist *Table of ContentsFrans B. M. de Waal Introduction 1. Anne E. Pusey Of Genes and Apes: Chimpanzee Social Organization and Reproduction 2. Frans B. M. de Waal Apes from Venus: Bonobos and Human Social Evolution 3. Karen B. Strier Beyond the Apes: Reasons to Consider the Entire Primate Order 4. Craig S. Stanford The Ape's Gift: Meat-eating, Meat-sharing, and Human Evolution 5. Richard W. Wrangham Out of the Pan, Into the Fire: How Our Ancestors' Evolution Depended on What They Ate 6 Richard W. Byrne Social and Technical Forms of Primate Intelligence 7. Robin I. M. Dunbar Brains on Two Legs: Group Size and the Evolution of Intelligence 8. Charles T. Snowdon From Primate Communication to Human Language 9. William C. McGrew The Nature of Culture: Prospects and Pitfalls of Cultural Primatology Notes

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Book SynopsisThis cultural and natural history of an intriguing member of the genome traces the journey toward our current understanding of the nature of X. From its chance discovery in the 19th century to the promise and implications of ongoing research, Bainbridge shows how the X evolved and where it and its counterpart Y are going.Trade ReviewDavid Bainbridge takes us on a fascinating tour of X chromosomes and explains what the possession of these intricately folded, infinitessimally narrow, two-inch long strings of genetic codes weighing almost nothing, means for their bearers--that is for each one of us, male and female. History and personal anecdotes are woven together with up-to-date summaries of the science, punctuated with Bainbridge's zany--and very British--humor, so that this information-packed book is pure pleasure to read. -- Sarah Blaffer Hrdy author of Mother Nature: A History of Mothers, Infants, and Natural SelectionThe X in Sex is absolutely fascinating, so intriguing, in fact, that I found myself unwilling to put it down. David Bainbridge surveys an astonishing amount of new information from recent genomic studies of the X chromosome, clearly explaining the findings in a way the average person can easily follow. The science is presented via amusing and highly appropriate metaphors and clever turns of phrase, all of which serve to brighten the prose and present the reader with catchy ways to think about complex ideas. This is an informative, authoritative, and thoroughly enjoyable read: one of the best books I have read in recent years. -- Jane Lancaster, University of New MexicoThis is wonderful stuff--beautifully written, clear, jargon-free, with anecdotes sure to hold the attention. -- Tim Birkhead, author of Promiscuity: An Evolutionary History of Sperm CompetitionThe author of Making Babies takes a lively, witty tour of the X chromosome, creator of "a delicious symmetry between men and women"...Entertaining and informative...A fine demonstration of science made accessible. * Kirkus Reviews *A well-written, well-researched, easy-to-read study that explains what has been learned about the X and Y chromosomes using DNA sequencing and other molecular biology techniques. British biologist Bainbridge...has pulled together historical and current scientific research about how the X and Y chromosomes affect us and what the genes on these chromosomes actually do, like causing sex-linked diseases and color blindness...An excellent example of good science writing...Recommended. -- Margaret Henderson * Library Journal *Bainbridge is an essentialist, interested in understanding what aspects of gender are biologically driven, and why...He has a central question he wants to answer. The question is not so much why men and women are different (a worn topic that's the subject of too many Mars-and-Venus bestsellers) but, far more specific and far more interesting: Why are men and women more different than they need to be? -- Liza Mundy * Washington Post *Bainbridge summarizes our knowledge of the genetic information that determines one's sex by recounting the ancients' speculations about the genesis of gender, following with modern biologists' discovery of the X and Y chromosomes about a century ago, and of the sex-determining gene Sry in the 1990s. In a discussion rich with history, evolution, and philosophy, Bainbridge points out the dramatic effect that gender selection has on people's lives...A fascinating, often humorous analysis of the science of sexuality. -- Gilbert Taylor * Booklist *In The X in Sex, David Bainbridge explains the far-reaching effects of X. Bainbridge...moves with ease between straightforward accounts of biology and historical stories about its effect, like the chapter describing the progression of hemophilia through the royal houses of Europe. Bainbridge discusses cultural history as well as natural history, and his wit enlivens every page. -- Christine Kenneally * New York Times Book Review *There are many literary stars (such as Stephen Jay Gould, Richard Dawkins and Matt Ridley) in the firmament of writers on evolution, and to a man they write with dash and persuasive logic. David Bainbridge is one such and in his latest book he takes the reader through the glories of the X chromosome at a cracking pace. -- Miriam Stoppard * Times Higher Education Supplement (UK) *The truth is that the behaviours of [chromosomes] X and Y are inextricably linked. Bainbridge explores this link in a compelling tale that takes in how the sex chromosomes became sex chromosomes, and the very different consequences of this for women and men. Along the way we encounter the Duke of Kent's testicles, calico cats and non-identical identical twin girls. His story weaves science, history and the history of science (with a little religion for good measure) in a straightforward, anecdotal fashion that will appeal to scientists and non-scientists alike. -- Mark T. Ross * New Scientist (UK) *In his structure/function analysis of the X chromosome, Bainbridge provides a tongue-in-cheek, yet informative, description of one of the two human sex chromosomes. -- R. Adler * Choice *If you have ever been intrigued by some of the puzzles of genetics--why boys tend to get haemophilia or colour blindness while girls are more likely to have an identical twin or to develop rheumatoid arthritis later in life--then The X in Sex is for you. -- Chris Tyler-Smith * Times Literary Supplement *This highly readable book tells the story of the X chromosome from Aristotle's musings on gender differences right through to a modern understanding of the genetics of the X chromosome. The author's engaging style makes modern genetics accessible both of the complete layperson and to those of us for whom preclinical genetics are a hazy memory…In a chapter entitled "The Duke of Kent's Testicles", Bainbridge describes the unfortunate spread of haemophilia (sic) through19th century European Royal families to illustrate the inheritance of sex-linked disorders. From a disastrous random mutation in a sperm in one of the Duke's testicles to the Russian Revolution, the history is irreverent but the genetic implications are well illustrated…This slim book is a good read, amusing yet informative and authoritative. -- Alex Connan * Journal of Family Planning and Reproductive Heath Care *David Bainbridge's The X in Sex prove[s] that popular books on human genetics--indeed on human sex chromosomes--need not trade in sociobiological excess...He spends much of his time on 'sex-linked' conditions that affect men more than women; these range from annoyances like baldness to devastating diseases like muscular dystrophy. Bainbridge also devotes many fascinating pages to complex ailments like autoimmune disease that, for reasons which remain unclear, disproportionately afflict women...But Bainbridge's chief concern is with the biology of human sex determination and with the many ways in which it can, and does, go wrong. In the end, his message is that while human beings obviously come in two predominant sexes, both cultural and biological forces give rise to a surprisingly 'continuous spectrum of gender.' -- H. Allen Orr * New York Review of Books *Table of ContentsPrologue 1. Making a Difference Interlude: What Is It, Exactly? 2. The Duke of Kent's Testicles Interlude: How Sexy Is X? 3. The Double Life of Women Epilogue: The Chosen One Further Reading Glossary Index

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Book SynopsisThis book, the first to catalogue ecologically important insects by their roles, gives us an enlightening look at how insects work in ecosystemswhat they do, how they live, and how they make life as we know it possible. Waldbauer combines anecdotes from entomological history with insights into the intimate workings of the natural world.Trade ReviewPersuasive, rollicking, and informative...He may not get you to hug your termites, but you will see them in a whole new light. Bugs are truly awesome in numbers and variety...On the surface, bugs seem so alien to us. But in anecdote after anecdote, Waldbauer gives us plenty with which we can identify...Waldbauer celebrates not only the good things bugs do but also the bizarre...What Waldbauer shows us is that bugs are vitally important to our planet. They help plant life grow. They are great cleanup crews, removing waste material...They till and aerate soil. They provide food for all kinds of animals, including fish and birds and some mammals...Clearly, bugs are good. -- Vicki Croke * Boston Globe *This book will open the eyes of readers who, like the great majority of mankind, regard insects with contempt or disgust. It will make them look on our six-legged fellow creatures with more interest and sympathy, and will thus add a new dimension to their own lives. -- Anthony Daniels * Sunday Telegraph (UK) *Written in a gentle style that is easy to read yet still authoritative, the breadth of insect ecology is paraded before us. -- Richard Jones * BBC Wildlife *Waldbauer is an entomologist with an unwavering verve for his pursuits. Here he catalogs ecologically important insects by their 'occupations' within an ecosystem, explaining how they live and how they make possible life in general. Among insects' occupations are their roles in regulating plant and animal populations and tilling the soil. In some cases, their capabilities and behaviors are nothing short of mind-boggling. Waldbauer reports that one species of Great Plains ants has brought to the surface about 1.7 tons of subsoil per acre. An average colony of honeybees harvests 44 pounds of pollen and 265 pounds of nectar a year. Such anecdotes combine with the author's keen insight into the mechanics of ecosystems to make a strong case on behalf of the lowly insect. * Science News *Waldbauer gives us a bugs-eye view of the world in this well-written and entertaining book that will change the way you think about insects. -- B.F. * Southeastern Naturalist *Table of ContentsMacrocosm Helping Plants 1. Pollinating 2. Dispersing Seeds 3. Supplying Food 4. Providing Defense Helping Animals 5. Giving Sustenance 6. Giving Protection Limiting Population Growth 7. Controlling Plant Populations 8. Controlling Insect Populations 9. Controlling Vertebrate Populations Cleaning Up 10. Recycling Dead Animals 11. Recycling Dung 12. Recycling Dead Plants Microcosm Selected Readings Acknowledgments Index

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Book SynopsisHow birds produce the brilliant and striking coloration of their feathers and other body parts is the focus of this volume. Hill and McGraw have assembled the world's leading experts in perception, measurement, and control of bird coloration to contribute to this book, which synthesizes more than 1,500 technical papers in this field.Trade ReviewThe aim of Bird Coloration is to provide a flavour of the extent to which birds have exploited the sun’s rays… These two volumes also delve deeper into the disparate ways in which bird colours are produced, what purpose they perform, their effect on communities in general, and finally, how they got here in the first place—their evolution… The reference lists alone are priceless… Bird Coloration will appeal to students of, and researchers in, evolution in general, because the devices that cause colour are often considered as phenotypes. Those interested in ecology, animal behaviour and vision studies will benefit, too… And if further incentive is needed to buy these books, just flick through the colour sections. -- Andrew R. Parker * Times Literary Supplement *The two volumes of Bird Coloration provide an excellent up-to-date overview of the topic… Bird coloration is a huge topic and anyone organizing an overview should be heartily congratulated. -- Andrew T. D. Bennett * Nature *This anthology of scientific writing in two volumes explains much of what is known about bird coloration and highlights that which we do not know. Subjects like whether the bright coloration of a male Northern Cardinal increases or decreases its chances of being captured by a visual predator like the Cooper’s Hawk are debated… Many of the contributions to this text are scientifically detailed, however, the fascinating subject of bird coloration is presented at a level that the average reader would learn much about this fascinating subject. -- Robert Hoopes * Wildlife Activist *Together, these two volumes present an outstanding collection of contributions, written by leaders in the field and offering a modern, state-of-the-art review of our understanding of bird coloration—including the mechanisms, function, and evolution underlying the variation we see today. -- Michael S. Webster, Washington State UniversityTable of ContentsPreface I. Perception and Measurements 1. Color Perception Innes C. Cuthill 2. Quantification of Coloration Staffan Andersson and Maria Prager 3. Analyzing Colors Robert Montgomerie 4. Effects of Light Environment on Color Communication Marc Thery II. Mechanisms of Production 5. Mechanics of Carotenoid-based Coloration Kevin J. McGraw 6. Mechanics of Melanin-based Coloration Kevin J. McGraw 7. Anatomy, Physics, and Evolution of Structural Colors Richard O. Prum 8. The Mechanics of Uncommon Colors: Pterins, Porphyrins, and Psittacofulvins Kevin J. McGraw 9. Cosmetic and Adventitious Colors Robert Montgomerie III. Controls and Regulation of Expression 10. Hormonal Control of Coloration Rebecca T. Kimball 11. The Genetic Basis of Color Variation Nicholas I. Mundy 12. Environmental Regulation of Ornamental Coloration Geoffrey E. Hill Acknowledgments Contributors Index

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Book SynopsisIn this sumptuously illustrated companion volume to Bird Coloration, Volume 1: Mechanisms and Measurements, the authors explain the function of the colorful displays of birds and examine the factors that shape the evolution of color signals.Trade ReviewThe aim of Bird Coloration is to provide a flavour of the extent to which birds have exploited the sun’s rays… These two volumes also delve deeper into the disparate ways in which bird colours are produced, what purpose they perform, their effect on communities in general, and finally, how they got here in the first place—their evolution… The reference lists alone are priceless… Bird Coloration will appeal to students of, and researchers in, evolution in general, because the devices that cause colour are often considered as phenotypes. Those interested in ecology, animal behaviour and vision studies will benefit, too… And if further incentive is needed to buy these books, just flick through the colour sections. -- Andrew R. Parker * Times Literary Supplement *“The two volumes of Bird Coloration provide an excellent up-to-date overview of the topic… Bird coloration is a huge topic and anyone organizing an overview should be heartily congratulated. -- Andrew T. D. Bennett * Nature *This anthology of scientific writing in two volumes explains much of what is known about bird coloration and highlights that which we do not know. Subjects like whether the bright coloration of a male Northern Cardinal increases or decreases its chances of being captured by a visual predator like the Cooper’s Hawk are debated… Many of the contributions to this text are scientifically detailed, however, the fascinating subject of bird coloration is presented at a level that the average reader would learn much about this fascinating subject. -- Robert Hoopes * Wildlife Activist *Together, these two volumes present an outstanding collection of contributions, written by leaders in the field and offering a modern, state-of-the-art review of our understanding of bird coloration—including the mechanisms, function, and evolution underlying the variation we see today. -- Michael S. Webster, Washington State UniversityTable of ContentsPreface I. Function 1. Natural selection and avian coloration: protection, concealment, advertisement, or deception? Gary R. Bortolotti 2. Intraspecific variation in bird colors James Dale 3. Bird colors as intrasexual signals of aggression and dominance Juan Carlos Senar 4. Female mate choice for ornamental coloration in birds Geoffrey E. Hill 5. The function and evolution of color in young birds Rebecca M. Kilner 6. Benefits to female birds of assessing color displays Simon C. Griffith and Sarah R. Pryke 7. Female coloration in birds: a review of functional and non-functional hypotheses Trond Amundsen and Henrik Paern II. Evolution 8. Colorful phenotypes of colorless genotypes: Towards a new evolutionary synthesis of bird color displays Alexander V. Badyaev 9. Ecological explanations for interspecific variability in avian coloration Ian P. F. Owens 10. Adding color to the past: Ancestral-state reconstruction of bird coloration Kevin E. Omland and Christopher M. Hofmann Acknowledgments Contributors Index

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Book SynopsisIn Gene Sharing and Evolution Piatigorsky explores the generality and implications of gene sharing throughout evolution and argues that most if not all proteins perform a variety of functions in the same and in different species, and that this is a fundamental necessity for evolution.Trade ReviewEvery textbook of molecular evolution has a section on gene sharing but this is the first book entirely devoted to the topic. Piatigorsky considers almost all aspects of gene sharing, provides numerous examples, and discusses the importance and contribution of gene sharing to evolution. He argues forcefully that gene sharing is widespread in many genomes. His arguments will likely alter the prevailing view of gene sharing as a unique phenomenon to crystallins. -- Jianzhi George Zhang, Associate Professor of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology at the University of MichiganThis book introduces, explains and elaborates on the very interesting fact that some genes produce proteins that serve different (and important) functions in the same organism. This is a remarkable story well told and interesting from both evolutionary and functional perspectives. -- Russell D. Fernald, Benjamin Scott Crocker Professor of Biological Sciences at Stanford UniversityIt has been a dogma of evolutionary biology that gene duplication precedes the evolution of new gene and protein function. Joram Piatigorsky stands this scenario on its head by showing that, in the case of lens crystallins and probably other protein families, functional diversity can precede gene duplication. His revolutionary perspective provides unexpected insight into how biological systems evolve. -- Austin Hughes, Professor of Biological Sciences, University of South CarolinaI have not encountered such an interesting, intellectually stimulating and exciting biological monograph in many years. Piatigorsky discusses the phenomenon of gene sharing on all levels, the molecular and cellular, as well as in the context of ìsystem biologyî and finally its ramifications on our views on evolution. He manages to concentrate a tremendous amount of information in this book and whatever he says has experimental backing. His precise and detailed technical descriptions are presented in a very readable style that also projects a sense of wonder and surprise. This is an extraordinary book that I hope will have an important impact on future biological thinking. -- Dr. Alex Keynan, Professor at Hebrew University and Special Adviser to the President of the Israeli National Academy of Sciences[Gene Sharing and Evolution] provides great motivation for evolutionists to continue investigating the origins of new protein function, a topic central to evo-devo biology. The book is a parade of interesting molecular biology with abundant and clear color illustrations. The work is copiously referenced. With over 1100 references in the bibliography, most anyone is certain to find new and interesting literature. As such, I recommend Gene Sharing and Evolution for a graduate seminar, as a reference book on gene multi-functionality with many detailed examples, and for anyone pondering the evolutionary origins of novelty at the molecular level. -- Todd H. Oakley * Evolution & Development *A masterpiece for a broad medical and scientific readership. The text provides a powerful reminder that genes and proteins do not function as isolated entities but are components of a dynamic and elaborate temporal network. With the recent advent of the -omics disciplines, we are witnessing fundamental changes that propel biomedical sciences toward a new level, in which the global perspectives become the fundamental priority. -- Richard A. Stein * Journal of the American Medical Association *Table of ContentsList of Illustrations Preface 1. What Is "Gene Sharing"? New Functions for Old Proteins and the Question of Gene Duplication Origin of the Term "Gene Sharing" Gene Sharing: General Definition and Implications Protein Location and Gene Regulation Why the Term "Gene Sharing"? Mechanisms for Diversifying Gene Functions Posttranslational Modifications Conditions for Initiating Gene Sharing Contrasting Phenotype with Protein Function Take-Home Message 2. Multifunctions and Functional Shifts: Echos from the Past Preadaptation, Prospective Adaptation, and Hopeful Monsters Quirky Functional Shifts and Exaptation Spandrels and Gene Sharing Gene Regulation and Tinkering Take-Home Message 3. The Elusive Concept of a "Gene" The Classical Gene Concept The Mendel-Morgan Chromosomal Theory of the Gene Later Developments: One Gene/One Enzyme/One Polypeptide The Molecular Era of the Gene: So Much Data, So Many Possibilities Quantifying Genes before the Molecular Era Quantifying Genes in the Molecular Era: Fewer than Expected Noncoding Regulatory Genes Protein Diversity The Ambiguous Gene The "Molecular Gene" Concept The "Molecular Process Gene" Concept The "Evolutionary Gene" Concept Two Concepts for One Gene: Gene-P/Gene-D Gene Sharing: A Concept Incorporating an "Open Gene" Take-Home Message 4. Eyes and Lenses: Gene Sharing by Crystallins Eye Diversity: Many Forms to Perform a Function The Lens Crystallins and the Optical Properties of the Lens Diversity and Taxon-Specificity of Lens Crystallins Crystallins Are Borrowed Proteins The bg-Crystallins: A Superfamily with Distant Stress Connections The Enzyme-Crystallins of Vertebrates Crystallins of Invertebrates Crystallin Gene Regulation in Vertebrates: A Similar Cast of Transcription Factors Convergent Evolution of Crystallin Gene Expression Evolutionary Dynamism of shsp/aB-Crystallin Gene Expression Convergent Evolution of Invertebrate and Vertebrate Crystallin Promoters Potential for Lens-Specific Promoter Activity Convergent Evolution and Relaxed Stringency for Crystallins Take-Home Message 5. The Enigmatic "Corneal Crystallins": Putative Cases of Gene Sharing The Cornea Aldehyde Dehydrogenase: A Candidate Corneal Crystallin Other Candidate Corneal Crystallins: Transketolase, Isocitrate Dehydrogenase, and Cyclophilin Adseverin: A Corneal Crystallin in Zebrafish A Signaling Role for Adseverin Corneal Gene Expression The Refracton Hypothesis: Implications for Gene Sharing Take-Home Message 6. Gene Sharing As a Common Event: Many Multifunctional Proteins Glycolytic Enzymes and the Versatile Hexokinases Citrate Synthase: An Enzyme and a Cytoskeletal Structure Lactate Dehydrogenase: An Enzyme for All Seasons Regulation of mRNA Translation by Enzyme Binding Glyceraldehye-3-phosphate Dehydrogenase: Constant Surprises Enolase: Another Versatile Protein Bacterial Surface Enzymes Xanthine Oxidoreductase: Enzyme and Envelope The Thioredoxin/Ribonucleotide Reductase System and Thioredoxin Family Members: From Redox to Morphogenesis Serum Albumin: Transport Protein, Enzymatic Vasodilator and Detoxifier Gelsolin: Roles in Cytoskeletal Structure, Gene Expression, Cell Death, and Signal Transduction Cytochrome c: Roles in Electron Transport, Cell Death, and Light Filtration Take-Home Message 7. Gene Sharing during Gene Expression Complexity of Transcription Nuclear Receptors Metabolic Enzymes and Gene Expression Y-Box Proteins Transcription Factors as Translational Regulators: Bicoid Translation Factors for RNA Export: eIF4 Homeoproteins, Chromosomal Proteins and Actin The Dynamic Flux of Nuclear Proteins Take-Home Message 8. Gene Sharing As a Dynamic Evolutionary Process: Antifreeze Proteins and Hemoglobins Antifreeze Proteins Hemoglobins Take-Home Message 9. Gene Duplication and the Evolution of New Functions Gene Duplication and Retention of Redundant Genes Birth and Death of Duplicated Genes Adaptive Evolution by Positive Selection: New Functions after Gene Duplication Subfunctionalization and Gene Sharing Rapid Subfunctionalization with Slow Neofunctionalization Gene Sharing Is Independent of Gene Duplication Lens Crystallins: Gene Sharing at Different Stages of Duplication Take-Home Message 10. Gene Sharing and Systems Biology: Implications and Speculations Networks Evolvability Selective Pressure Affecting Gene Regulation Functional Switching and the Notion of Functional "Trespassing" Functional Noise Genetic Differences in Levels of Gene Expression The Molecular Clock Gene Knockout Experiments Gene Deletion of b-Catenin Horizontal Gene Transfer Take-Home Message 11. Recapitulations: Ambiguities and Possibilities Ambiguity of Cause and Effect Natural Selection Versus Random Drift Gene Sharing and Robustness: When Is a Mutation Neutral? Inconsistency with Design Naming Is Not Knowing The Question of Tissue Homology Phylogenetic Trees: The Complication of Function Defining and Counting Genes Definition of Polypeptide Function: The Ambiguity of Molecular Mechanism Between Genotype and Phenotype Gene Sharing and the Importance of Research on Diverse Species Medical Implications Glossary References Index

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Book SynopsisThis is the first comprehensive treatment of a major order of arachnids featuring more than 6,000 species worldwide, familiar in North America as daddy-longlegs but known scientifically as the Opiliones, or harvestmen. The 25 authors provide a broad taxonomic and ecological background for understanding this major arachnid group.Trade ReviewHarvestmen covers virtually every aspect of harvestman biology… Inevitably, the longest chapter is on taxonomy, dealing with the disturbing features of the families and subfamilies in the four major Opiliones suborders. This is the first major revision of the order in over fifty years, and it is a tour de force… This is a book that will be prized by many naturalists, both amateur and professional. For anyone with even a passing interest in harvestmen, it will be required reading for decades to come. -- Matthew Cobb * Times Literary Supplement *A summary volume exceeding those of other arachnid orders in breadth and completeness… The landmark chapter on taxonomy will be particularly welcome to workers considering studying these animals. For the first time, the family level diversity of this group is very clearly summarized, with keys, diagnostic characters, etymology, phylogenetic relationships, and plentiful scanning electron micrographs and illustrations, on a worldwide basis… The text presents enough unanswered questions to provide an army of graduate students with research topics. By illuminating what makes Opiliones a distinctive taxon, the book sheds much light on the evolution and biology of arachnids as a whole, and anyone with an interest in Arachnida should acquire this work. -- Michael L. Draney * Quarterly Review of Biology *This will be a mandatory classic for arachnologists, zoologists, and general biologists. -- Jonathan A. Coddington, Smithsonian InstitutionConsidering that…no single volume addressing [Opilione] biology has ever been written, this book is long overdue and will fill a notorious gap in the arachnological literature. There is no question that it will become a landmark reference, much like Weygoldt on pseudoscorpions, Polis on scorpions, and Punzo on solifuges, ultimately stimulating a resurgence in research on this diverse group of organisms. -- Lorenzo Prendini, Assistant Curator: Arachnids and Myriapods, American Museum of Natural HistoryTable of ContentsContributors Preface 1. What are harvestmen? 2. Morphology and functional anatomy 3. Phylogeny and biogeography 4. Taxonomy 5. Paleontology 6. Cytogenetics 7. Ecology 8. Foraging and food habits 9. Natural enemies 10. Defense mechanisms 11. Social behavior 12. Reproduction 13. Development 14. Eco-physiology 15. Field and laboratory methods References Taxonomic Index Subject Index

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Book SynopsisPart handbook, part field guide, part photo album, Secret Weapons, the follow-up to the award-winning For Love of Insects, chronicles the diverse and often astonishing defensive strategies that have allowed insects, spiders, scorpions, and other many-legged creatures not just to survive, but to thrive.Trade ReviewSecret Weapons will fascinate and occupy students and scientists indefinitely! Indeed anyone interested in how nature functions -- the many special interactions that make ecosystems work -- will thoroughly enjoy this fine volume. -- Peter Raven, Missouri Botanical GardenThis is by far the most beautiful and instructive book on behavioral chemical ecology I have seen. It is a book to give to your students, to your fellow scientists, and to your non-scientist friends who want to know why you study insects and other arthropods. -- Bert Holldobler, Arizona State UniversitySecret Weapons is another triumph from the fabled Eisner laboratory -- a report on wonderful science backed up with spectacular pictures. It will introduce you to a fascinating world that few people know but everyone should know. -- Paul R. Ehrlich, Stanford UniversitySecret Weapons is a field guide like no other. Well-written and splendidly illustrated, it is required reading for anyone interested in how insects avoid becoming someone's lunch. -- Ian Baldwin, Max Planck Institute for Chemical Ecology, GermanyA glorious collection! The fruit of a lifetime's delectable curiosity, Secret Weapons brings the fascinating ways of insects into focus with a unique, sparkling vision. By turns smart, funny, and insightful, this book is the perfect guide to a magical, if little-known, realm. -- Diane AckermanA stunning example of the interdisciplinary nature of modern science. Secret Weapons weaves together natural history, organic chemistry, chemical ecology, and behavior to sketch out an important field as enticing to the genomicist as to the naturalist. -- Fotis C. Kafatos, Imperial College, LondonThe arthropods--those multilegged, lowly denizens of the planet that most of us would probably like to forget--are masters at the art of defense. Outnumbering all of the other animals put together, the arthropods have survived through their mastery of a multitude of chemical weapons. In their fascinating new book, the authors, all of whom study the defensive strategies of arthropods (insects, scorpions, centipedes, etc.), provide an overview of their different methods of chemical defense...This unique guide to froth, venom, sprays, sticky coatings, and so forth will satisfy both the casual reader and the serious student and is a very worthy addition to any natural history collection. -- Nancy Bent * Booklist *The present volume is a beautifully illustrated guide to the defense systems of mainly North American arthropods, especially insects... The first of its kind, this primer will prove indispensable to a broad audience, from lay naturalists to students, teachers, specialists--even medical doctors. -- Annette Aiello * Library Journal *The text is technically precise but...the prose is bright and engaging...Eisner and his colleagues have skillfully captured the staggering diversity of exudates and delivery systems that arthropods possess--sights that have simply not been readily available even to the scientists who avidly peruse the chemical ecology literature. The book offers an invaluable source of illustrations for all audiences. -- May Berenbaum * Science *Secret Weapons is festooned with surprising information about the chemical ecology and defense mechanisms of a variety of terrestrial arthropods...Mythology may be replete with imaginative ideas but, as Thomas Eisner and his colleagues have shown in this rewarding book, truth is often much stranger than fiction. -- J. L. Cloudsley-Thompson * Times Literary Supplement *Secret Weapons is a delight. Although one could consult this book piecemeal, as a reference, I read it cover-to-cover simply because each successive chapter presented a new story that simultaneously enchanted and piqued my curiosity. The result was that I continued to read on to the next chapter in anticipation of yet another surprise and more marvelous pictures. I was never disappointed. With its instantly accessible and often humorous prose, the volume's target audience could well include naturalists, high school and college teachers, graduate and undergraduate students, and, as the authors suggest, "all those to whom nature never ceased to be a source of wonder." -- Fredric V. Venci * Quarterly Review of Biology *Arranged as a series of case studies of arthropods, together with a few noninsectans, this extraordinary book lays bare the almost incredible array of chemical stratagems these otherwise vulnerable creatures have adapted for their survival. If the case studies are astonishing, the numerous color photographs are even more so...It's impossible to read this beautifully written and gorgeously illustrated book without feeling a heightened sense of wonder. -- Eric Ormsby * New York Sun *The world of arthropod defenses is delightfully introduced in this new book coauthored by one of the experts in the field, Tom Eisner, and two colleagues, his wife, Maria Eisner, and Melody Siegler. This volume is a series of fascinating vignettes (69 in all) about the multitudinous defenses used by arthropods, ranging from a variety of defensive sprays and secretions, to barbed hairs, to stings and venoms, to cryptic coloration. While the concentration is certainly on chemical defenses, there are others included as well, such as the "spittle" of spittle bugs, the trash heaps that lacewing larvae pile on their backs, and the click of the click beetle. The authors write in an engaging and very readable style, making the sometimes complex anatomy and chemistry accessible to all those interested in behavior, ecology, chemistry, and evolution, whether from a professional or a personal perspective. The fascinating biology and chemistry of these animals provide examples that can be used to excite students about science at many levels...In sum, this was a thoroughly delightful introduction into the fascinating world of arthropod defenses...Secret Weapons brings together the fields of natural history, chemistry, behavior, ecology, and evolution and has appeal for professional scientists, students, and anyone fascinated with the natural world. This volume will be a wonderful resource for many years to come. -- M. Deane Bowers * Ecology *The secret weapons of a collection of 69 insects and their kin are revealed in this fascinating collection of essays. Each essay focuses on a single species and is beautifully illustrated with clear and revealing photographs of the creature's defenses. * Northeastern Naturalist *The book is a collection of fascinating stories, a useful field guide, a rich textbook and will be appreciated by scientists as well as naturalists. It provides an insight into a small pan of the hidden and fascinating world of small creatures that few people know, but which is worthy of study. -- O. Nedved * European Journal of Entomology *This book is eloquent. It concludes with a short section on "How to study insects and their kin" and a useful index. Throughout, it is eminently readable, and replete with ideas for future work. It is also very well produced, and should be of wide interest to entomologists and more general readers alike. -- T. R. New * Journal of Insect Conservation *Table of ContentsPrologue CLASS ARACHNIDA Order uropygi Family Theliphonidae 1. Mastigoproctus giganteus (the vinegaroon) Order opiliones Family Cosmetidae 2. Vonones sayi (a harvestman) Family Sclerosomatidae 3. Leiobunum nigripalpi (a daddylonglegs) Order scorpiones Family Vejovidae 4. Vejovis spinigerus (the striped tail scorpion) Order araneida Family Oxyopidae 5. Peucetia viridans (the green lynx spider) CLASS CHILOPODA Order scolopendrida Family Scolopendridae 6. Scolopendra heros (the giant Sonoran centipede) Order geophilida Family Oryidae 7. Orphnaeus brasilianus (a geophilid centipede) CLASS DIPLOPODA Order spirobolida Family Floridobolidae 8. Floridobolus penneri (the Florida scrub millipede) Order polydesmida Family Polydesmidae 9. Apheloria kleinpeteri (a polydesmid millipede) Order polyzoniida Family Polyzoniidae 10. Polyzonium rosalbum (a polyzoniid millipede) Order glomerida Family Glomeridae 11. Glomeris marginata (a pill millipede) Order polyxenida Family Polyxenidae 12. Polyxenus fasciculatus (a bristle millipede) CLASS INSECTA Order dyctioptera Family Blattidae 13. Eurycotis floridana (the Florida woods cockroach) 14. Periplaneta australasiae (the Australian cockroach) 15. Deropeltis wahlbergi (a blattid cockroach) Family Blaberidae 16. Diploptera punctata (the Pacific beetle cockroach) Order dermaptera Family Forficulidae 17. Doru taeniatum (an earwig) Order isoptera Family Termitidae 18. Nasutitermes exitiosus (a termite) Order phasmatodea Family Diapheromeridae 19. Oreophoetes peruana (a walkingstick) Family Pseudophasmatidae 20. Anisomorpha buprestoides (the two-striped walkingstick) Order orthoptera Family Romaleidae 21. Romalea guttata (the eastern lubber grasshopper) Order hemiptera Family Coreidae 22. Chelinidea vittiger (a leaf-footed bug) Family Reduviidae 23. Apiomerus flaviventris (a reduviid bug) Family Belostomatidae 24. Abedus herberti (a giant water bug) Family Aphididae 25. Aphis nerii (the oleander aphid) 26. Prociphilus tessellatus (the woolly alder aphid) Family Flatidae 27. Ormenaria rufifascia (a flatid planthopper) Family Cercopidae 28. Prosapia bicincta (the two-lined spittlebug) Family Dactylopiidae 29. Dactylopius confusus (a cochineal bug) Family Aleyrodidae 30. Metaleurodicus griseus (a whitefly) Order neuroptera Family Chrysopidae 31. Ceraeochrysa cubana (a green lacewing) 32. Ceraeochrysa smithi (a green lacewing) 33. Chrysopa slossonae (a green lacewing) Order coleoptera Family Carabidae 34. Galerita lecontei (a ground beetle) 35. Brachinus (many species) (bombardier beetles) Family Gyrinidae 36. Dineutus hornii (a whirligig beetle) Family Dytiscidae 37. Thermonectus marmoratus (a predaceous diving beetle) Family Silphidae 38. Necrodes surinamensis (the red-lined carrion beetle) Family Staphylinidae 39. Creophilus maxillosus (the hairy rove beetle) Family Cantharidae 40. Chauliognathus lecontei (a soldier beetle) Family Lampyridae 41. Photinus ignitus and Photuris versicolor (fireflies) Family Lycidae 42. Calopteron reticulatum (the banded net-winged beetle) Family Elateridae 43. Alaus myops (the eyed elater) Family Buprestidae 44. Acmaeodera pulchella (the flat-headed baldcypress sapwood borer) Family Coccinellidae 45. Cycloneda sanguinea (a ladybird beetle) 46. Epilachna varivestis (the Mexican bean beetle) Family Meloidae 47. Epicauta (an unidentified species) (a blister beetle) Family Pyrochroidae 48. Neopyrochroa flabellata (a fire-colored beetle) Family Tenebrionidae 49. Adelium percatum (a darkling beetle) 50. Bolitotherus cornutus (the forked fungus beetle) 51. Eleodes longicollis (a darkling beetle) Family Scarabaeidae 52. Trichiotinus rufobrunneus (a scarab beetle) Family Chrysomelidae 53. Hemisphaerota cyanea (a tortoise beetle) 54. Gratiana pallidula (a tortoise beetle) 55. Plagiodera versicolora (the imported willow leaf beetle) Order lepidoptera Family Dalceridae 56. Dalcerides ingenita (a dalcerid moth) Family Noctuidae 57. Litoprosopus futilis (the palmetto borer moth) Family Notodontidae 58. Schizura unicornis (the unicorn caterpillar moth) Family Thyrididae 59. Calindoea trifascialis (a thyridid moth) Family Yponomeutidae 60. Ypsolopha dentella (the European honeysuckle leaf roller) Family Geometridae 61. Nemoria outina (a geometrid moth) Family Arctiidae 62. Utetheisa ornatrix (the rattlebox moth) Family Saturniidae 63. Automeris io (the io moth) Family Papilionidae 64. Eurytides marcellus (the zebra swallowtail butterfly) Family Pieridae 65. Pieris rapae (the cabbage butterfly) Family Nymphalidae 66. Danaus plexippus (the monarch butterfly) Order hymenoptera Family Pergidae 67. Perga affinis (a pergine sawfly) Family Formicidae 68. Camponotus floridanus (a carpenter ant) Family Apidae 69. Apis mellifera (the honey bee) Epilogue How to Study Insects and Their Kin Acknowledgments Illustration Credits Index

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Book SynopsisThis large-format volume of color photographs takes readers on a magnificent visual journey into the remote world of small tropical organisms critical to biodiversity. A unique introduction to the overlooked life under our feet, this book offers a fully informed, deeply felt understanding of the importance of the world's smaller, teeming life.Trade ReviewThe Smaller Majority represents the best kind of nature writing: by a scientific expert of the subject, beautifully illustrated, and with striking, original examples. -- Edward O. WilsonPiotr Naskrecki is a master at portraying miniature worlds. He combines two skills that are rarely found in one person: as a conservation biologist, he can speak about his subjects with authority and conviction; as a photographer, he makes them come alive with astonishing close-ups. This book is a treasure house of images and information about a world most of us are barely aware of. -- Frans Lanting, photographer-in-residence, National Geographic Society, and author of Jungles and Eye to EyeImagine Gulliver just back from Lilliput. That is the entirely pleasurable feeling a reader will have after traveling through The Smaller Majority. Among the spineless wonders captured in macrophotos are giraffe weevils, tiger beetles, ant lions, shovel-snouted lizards and even a ghost-crab, dancing… The Smaller Majority, vividly written as well as shot by Mr. Naskrecki, an insect biologist, delivers itself of any number of astonishing facts… Small is beautiful—and powerful, too. -- Patti Hagan * Wall Street Journal *This volume celebrates the 'noncharismatic' mesofauna of tropical terrestrial ecosystems. In place of the images of birds and mammals that fill most collections of natural history photography, the author offers portraits of insects, arachnids, flatworms, and amphibians. With a few exceptions—such as island-dwelling coconut crabs and caecilians (subterranean legless amphibians)—the featured organisms would fit within a matchbox. * Science *It's often said that you should buy books of gorgeous, light-saturated photographs for the images alone. Naskrecki's work does contain stunning and unusual nature photographs, even more striking for their subject matter. These photographs of mites, katydids, grasshoppers, lizards display life at the smallest scale ('smaller than a human finger'), and we are fortunate for Naskrecki's patience. It's impossible to tell how he took these head-on shots of bugs, views of one insect devouring another or of frogs' eyelids, but the result is beautiful. Not only the photographs are valuable: the writing also shines. Naskrecki's exuberant, expert knowledge of this microscopic world has been distilled down to the most arresting details. Crisp, enjoyable prose, clearly explains complex biological processes. Naskrecki wants to raise awareness of the perils of extinction and habitat loss, but he also wants to reawaken a childish curiosity and delight in the small wonders of the natural world. * Publishers Weekly *Most of Earth's inhabitants, including insects, amphibians, and crustaceans, are smaller than a human finger. Naskrecki, an entomologist, brings these creatures into sharp focus with more than 400 full-color photographs. His book takes readers to various regions including the tropical forests, savannas, and deserts where these animals make their homes. Some of these critters have amazing camouflage and blend seamlessly into the background. Others stand out, thanks to displays of psychedelic-color combinations. With each photograph, Naskrecki provides background information about the creature, including its physical-features, defensive techniques, and mating habits. The author spotlights some of the odder small creatures, including scorpions that glow under ultraviolet light butterflies that drink 600 times their own weight in water at a sitting, and geckos that slip out of their skins to evade predators. The book ends with a description of the photographic process and the tricks involved in getting close-ups of tiny animals. * Science News *Little critters of the jungle and desert are all ready for their close-ups here, and they are spectacular. -- L. K. Hanson * Minneapolis Star Tribune *It's hard to not to like a book as beautifully photographed as this one. Naskrecki is a technically impeccable photographer. His 400 images bring us fascinatingly close. We're eye to eye with pygmy chameleons in Madagascar, the red-eyed tree frog from Costa Rica, the West African gecko of Guinea, plus all kinds of beetles, ants and butterflies. -- Charlie Fidelman * Montreal Gazette *Naskrecki, a conservation biologist and magical photographer, has produced a dazzling experience, not only for nature enthusiasts but for anyone inspired by colour and design. Hundreds of small creatures were photographed in tropical forests, savannahs, and deserts across the globe. Among chameleons and katydids are life forms stranger than anything on distant planets, yet their lessons in biology often hold true in one's own back garden. -- Michael Viney * Irish Times *You may not feel more comfortable with spiders after reading this book, but you will be captivated by more than 400 full-color, stunning, jaw-dropping photographs, and charmed by Piotr Naskrecki's writing and passion for these small animals. -- Marilyn Dahl * Shelf Awareness *The Smaller Majority…presents many species never before photographed and all on high-resolution, six-color film. Naskrecki spent years in remote locations of Madagaskar, Costa Rica, Guinea, Australia and Bangkok pursuing millipedes, flatworms, tree frogs, spiders, ants and katydids… Naskrecki's macroscopic world view underscores what he calls the bigger issue—that size in nature serves as a great divider, rooted in the human desire to conquer and subjugate. Too often we dismiss the animal kingdom's smaller residents, not appreciating their role in the health of ecosystems. But as a photographer, Naskrecki reveals what seems to be a link between size and beauty, and how the 'insignificant' loom large among nature's most magnificent creations. -- Kurt Loft * Tampa Tribune *I loved (if that's the mot juste) the richly-hued beasties who crawl through Piotr Naskrecki's survey of insects and mini-reptiles. -- Boyd Tonkin * The Independent *The text provides ample background and perspective for the animals included, but the main theme is illustration, as in lush, detailed photographs of the subjects. From a leaf-tailed gecko almost indistinguishable from its perch on a plant to an African weaver ant busy constructing a leaf-based nest with strands of silk, individual subjects provide a glimpse into the varieties of behavior, habitats, diet, and interaction with other animals. Often, however—as in the portrait of the genus Gusteracantha spider or the fig eater butterfly—the natural beauty of the animal's life-form projects its own reason for being included here. Perspective and background may educate, but the overriding impression of this book is aesthetic appreciation of tiny creatures. -- C. R. Stalkind * Bloomsbury Review *Piotr Naskrecki of the Museum of Comparative Zoology at Harvard University used pioneering camera techniques to picture praying mantises, grasshoppers, spiders, geckos, chameleons and much in between, in tropical forests, savannahs and deserts… With all the enthusiasm for finding extraterrestrial life, says Naskrecki, it never ceases to amaze him how little interest there is in investigating life on Earth. * New Scientist *This is more than a collection of excellent photographs and words—it is one person's private view of the small majority's world, one person's ardent, even passionate, attempt to help others get closer and understand the wildlife in miniature that surrounds us all. And his passion is infectious. -- Richard Jones * BBC Wildlife *The vast preponderance of the world's animals—insects and other invertebrates—rarely get much of a look in. But it's this 'smaller majority' that fascinates photographer Piotr Naskrecki… The photos themselves are stunning—interestingly composed and well lit. There's a particularly arresting shot of a helmeted iguana, the lizard's head looming out of the page. However, what is surprising, nay shocking, is that the real joy of this book lies in the text, traditionally where most photographic tomes drop the ball. Naskrecki is a biologist (he works on katydids—hence their abundance in the book), and his writing is both poetic and remarkably accurate and informative. Much of the text is also quite personal, effectively communicating his love of the natural world. A pleasant surprise. -- Geordie Torr * Geographical *Piotr Naskrecki has traveled the world with his camera, seeking out rare and little-known creatures, and The Smaller Majority is a book filled with some of the most beautiful wildlife photographs I have ever seen. -- Tim Flannery * New York Review of Books *It is refreshing to have [a] new book about the 'smaller majority' by [a] naturalist whose enthusiasm for these creatures abounds throughout the text. -- Ghillean Prance * Times Higher Education Supplement *In [Naskrecki's] stunning new coffee-table book, he sets out to 'celebrate everything that is small and misunderstood'… The heart of the book is undeniably his photographs—over 270 pages of glorious colour, outlandish patterns, and extraordinary anatomy. Macroscopic photography is typically haunted by poor depth of field, but these photos leap off the page in their clarity. There are the requisite portraits and headshots, and these are spectacular. But there are also some wonderful depictions of ecological interactions… The photos are generously complemented by informative text, both detailed photo captions and general introductory sections on the habitats of interest and the biology of each animal group portrayed. The general introductory sections merge personal narrative with gee-whiz natural-history accounts and details of evolutionary trajectories… This book is a welcome burst of genuine joy in natural history. -- Diane Srivastava * Discovery *In The Smaller Majority, Piotr Naskrecki, director of the Invertebrate Diversity Initiative at Harvard's Museum of Comparative Zoology, explores a miniature world, transporting the reader through three major biomes—rainforest, savanna and desert—to encounter the microcosms of animals that mostly would 'fit inside a matchbox.' Naskrecki's photography offers insights into the biology and conservation of these creatures; the sumptuous illustrations that make up the bulk of the book are obviously the work of a fine craftsman… With spectacular and sometimes bizarre images…Naskrecki drives home his point that tiny creatures display enormous biodiversity. The Smaller Majority will go a long way toward increasing the public's appreciation of, and support for, conserving small animals. -- Roger Harris * American Scientist *Conservation biologist and accomplished photographer Naskrecki offers the reader a trip to a fascinating world of close-ups of animal life; most are smaller than a human finger… Naskrecki traveled the globe with the Rapid Assessment Program expeditions searching for undiscovered creatures. The accompanying essays are as spellbinding as the photography… [This book is] a treasure and deserves a special place in your bookshelf. -- Florence Waszkelewkz Clowes * Polish American Journal *If photographing insects and other small creatures is your passion, you absolutely must have this book. Not only is it the most excellent book that I have seen on this subject, but it is wonderful quality for the dollar value as well. As a conservation biologist and entomologist, Naskrecki is eminently qualified for his task, and his close-up photography is enviable… Every page elicits a gasp of wonder at the perfection of nature's design, and its frequently jewel-like beauty. Who would not gape at the sight of a four-eyed jumping spider, or an orange polka-dotted spittle bug nestled in its foamy froth? And if it is scientific detail you are after, you definitely have it here. Naskrecki does get very specific and technical in some sections. He devotes a few pages at the end of the book to a discussion of the photography of small subjects, which is quite helpful. The photographs are greatly enhanced by Harvard University Press's decision to use the exclusive Pantone Hexachrome colour technology, rarely used for book-length projects. -- Joy McDonell * Canadian Camera *More than 400 spectacular, colour photographs of an excellent quality accompany the text… In my opinion, Naskrecki's book represents an exception in many respects. -- T. Soldan * European Journal of Entomology *Naskrecki shares his lifelong fascination with the miniature of the natural world in The Smaller Majority, a pictorial homage to 'everything that is small and misunderstood.' The book is a full-color, guided tour of the tiny creatures that inhabit deserts, tropic forests and savannas across six continents. The Smaller Majority, whose title refers to the fact that more than 90 percent of known species are smaller than a human finger, brings you inside animals' habitats. The explanations that accompany Naskrecki's photographs offer a wealth of fascinating detail, with one exception: almost no mention of the animals' dimensions. The omission is intentional, as Naskrecki, ever sensitive to the way size can shape first impressions, feels it would distract from 'our appreciation of the animal's beauty.' His glorious photographs allay any concerns. -- Nora Krug * Washington Post Book World *[Naskrecki] skillfully uses a macro lens to show us a world we seldom see: what he calls 'match-box sized' creatures, mostly insects and invertebrates. Although they make up more than 90 percent of the visible animal species in our world, it's likely that you'll be seeing most of the 450 creatures he has chosen for the first time. They are beautiful, sometimes strange, always fascinating. You or a photographer you know could explore in a similar way the small world found in a back yard. All you need is a sharp eye and a suitable camera. Naskrecki provides the inspiration. -- Jim Williams * Minneapolis–St. Paul Star Tribune *Table of ContentsPrologue: How I Discovered the Smaller Majority Tropical Humid Forests Savannas Deserts Epilogue: New Life Photographing the Smaller Majority Resources Acknowledgments Species Index

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Book SynopsisAlongside Rosamond Purcell's stunning photographs, Linnea Hall and René Corado offer an engaging history of egg collecting, the provenance of the specimens in the photographs, and the biology, conservation, and ecology of the birds that produced them.Trade ReviewWhat kind of genius is Rosamond Purcell? Is she an artist? A scholar? A documentarian? A living cabinet of wonders? Her originality defies category, as does her newest triumph, Egg & Nest. Crack its shell. -- Jonathan Safran FoerRosamond Purcell is one of the great photographers. She has captured the history of objects by photographing them in romantic decline-- books scourged by worms, petrified food-stuffs, biological specimens gone wrong, the inexorable entropic winding down of everything. Egg & Nest is yet another example of her ability to make the ordinary extraordinary: Collecting people, collecting things, collecting people collecting things and creating something new and wonderful. In this collection of eggs and nests made of random bric-a-brac, cassette tape, and wire, we're invited to meditate on oology as ontology, ontology as oology, and the paradox of museums as a lifeless record of life. Rosamond Purcell has magnificently returned to her most fascinating obsession, the repurposing of life as the purpose of life. -- Errol Morris[Purcell's] work is concerned with the magic in ordinary objects, but also the aesthetics of conservation and collection, as many of her images of objects from natural-history museums demonstrate. Purcell's latest project, a collection of photographs taken at the Western Foundation of Vertebrate Zoology, in California, is a more serene and stately work, showcasing the variety of the avian world. -- Andrea Walker * New Yorker blog *[A] fascinating book...While this volume is not an art book per se, it is a lively history of egg collecting, or oology...The photographs, both those taken under laboratory conditions and those taken in the wild, are extraordinary, showing the variety of egg sizes, shapes, patterns, and textures: Mottled blue-gray Emu eggs look like fine-grained granite, while the vigorous dark brown markings of the glossy, tawny-colored eggs of the Northern Jacana of Mexico suggest Easter eggs decorated by Jackson Pollock. Equally compelling are Purcell's photographs of birds' nests, beautifully lit and formed of all sorts of materials: A raven's nest of twigs is lined with cotton batting for comfort. A Guatemalan nest of the Banded Wren looks like a crown of thorns--those thorns offering defense from predators. The miniscule vegetable-down nest of an Anna's Hummingbird collected in Santa Monica, California, in 1903 is ingeniously woven around the glass insulator of a telegraph line. All in all, there is considerable beauty and wonderment in this book. * The Magazine Antiques *Photographer Rosamond Purcell has made a career out of creating intriguing images of decaying objects... Her new book, Egg and Nest, focuses on one of the world's premier collections of bird eggs and nests, located at the Western Foundation of Vertebrate Zoology, near Los Angeles. Nests are held together with whatever materials the birds could find: spider webs, fishing line, mud, and condensed saliva. Eggs, too, are varied: green, blue, speckled, covered by a swirl of markings. -- Jan Gardner * Boston Globe *Purcell uses her camera to transform the everyday ordinary into something extraordinary. She captures the diverse beauty, quirkiness and allure of eggs and the remarkable resourcefulness of birds, focusing on the intricacy of nests and the aesthetic perfection of bird eggs. The rich colors, lighting and textures make her photographs of eggs, nests and birds look three dimensional, as though the eggs could easily fall out of one of the photographs, as if falling from a nest. -- Kurt Shaw * Pittsburgh Tribune Review *If you are wondering why anyone would spend a life in a pursuit as eccentric as collecting eggs and nests, Ms. Purcell's work will tell you. She selected a range of specimens, eggs brightly colored and plain, and nests made conventionally of twigs or of materials as bizarre as nails. Then she photographed them in natural light. Her luminous results explain without words why people have been collecting eggs and nests for centuries. -- Cornelia Dean * New York Times *[Purcell's] work is concerned with the magic in ordinary objects, but also the aesthetics of conservation and collection, as many of her images of objects from natural-history museums demonstrate. Purcell's latest project, a collection of photographs taken at the Western Foundation of Vertebrate Zoology, in California, is a more serene and stately work, showcasing the variety of the avian world. -- Andrea Walker * New Yorker blog *[A] fascinating book...While this volume is not an art book per se, it is a lively history of egg collecting, or oology...The photographs, both those taken under laboratory conditions and those taken in the wild, are extraordinary, showing the variety of egg sizes, shapes, patterns, and textures: Mottled blue-gray Emu eggs look like fine-grained granite, while the vigorous dark brown markings of the glossy, tawny-colored eggs of the Northern Jacana of Mexico suggest Easter eggs decorated by Jackson Pollock. Equally compelling are Purcell's photographs of birds' nests, beautifully lit and formed of all sorts of materials: A raven's nest of twigs is lined with cotton batting for comfort. A Guatemalan nest of the Banded Wren looks like a crown of thorns--those thorns offering defense from predators. The miniscule vegetable-down nest of an Anna's Hummingbird collected in Santa Monica, California, in 1903 is ingeniously woven around the glass insulator of a telegraph line. All in all, there is considerable beauty and wonderment in this book. * The Magazine Antiques *Photographer Rosamond Purcell has made a career out of creating intriguing images of decaying objects... Her new book, Egg and Nest, focuses on one of the world's premier collections of bird eggs and nests, located at the Western Foundation of Vertebrate Zoology, near Los Angeles. Nests are held together with whatever materials the birds could find: spider webs, fishing line, mud, and condensed saliva. Eggs, too, are varied: green, blue, speckled, covered by a swirl of markings. -- Jan Gardner * Boston Globe *Purcell uses her camera to transform the everyday ordinary into something extraordinary. She captures the diverse beauty, quirkiness and allure of eggs and the remarkable resourcefulness of birds, focusing on the intricacy of nests and the aesthetic perfection of bird eggs. The rich colors, lighting and textures make her photographs of eggs, nests and birds look three dimensional, as though the eggs could easily fall out of one of the photographs, as if falling from a nest. -- Kurt Shaw * Pittsburgh Tribune Review *If you are wondering why anyone would spend a life in a pursuit as eccentric as collecting eggs and nests, Ms. Purcell's work will tell you. She selected a range of specimens, eggs brightly colored and plain, and nests made conventionally of twigs or of materials as bizarre as nails. Then she photographed them in natural light. Her luminous results explain without words why people have been collecting eggs and nests for centuries. -- Cornelia Dean * New York Times *Beautiful...Egg & Nest reminds the reader of the civilized, tactile, sensual and emotive pleasures of holding a book in hand as opposed to reading from a glowing light box. Printed in Italy, it combines fabulous image reproduction--each page a magic revelation--with informative and insightful text, Purcell being as adept with words as with a lens. -- Mary Thomas * Pittsburgh-Post Gazette *Spend some time with Rosamond Purcell's enthralling photographs in Egg & Nest, and you might be tempted to become an oologist. Oology is not the science of oohs and ahs but the practice, frowned on in the civilized world, of collecting rare eggs and nests. Most of the photographs were taken at the Western Foundation of Vertebrate Zoology in Camarillo, Calif., which combines the collections of many Victorian bird enthusiasts. There's a woodpecker's nest in the shape of a wooden shoe, a grackle's nest woven of lace and audiotape, and a nest from Wasilla, Alaska, lined with feathers and fur. Unbearably poignant is a photograph of Martha, the last passenger pigeon, who died in the Cincinnati Zoo on Sept. 1, 1914. You'll even find a definitive answer to the age-old conundrum about the chicken or the egg. Hint: Ex ovo omnia. -- Christopher Benfey * Slate *Purcell doesn't just delve into the history of egg obsession. She captures the variety and beauty of eggs and nests in beautiful photographs. Unless you're an ornithologist, you probably don't have a wide frame of reference for the sheer diversity of eggs. From the ultra glossy, Easter eggs of the Tinamou to the brown, blue and purple mottled eggs of the Chuck-Will's-Widow to the pyriform eggs of the Common Murres, pear-shaped to help prevent the eggs from rolling down the cliffs on which their nest perch, the assortment from page to page is stunning. * Curious Expeditions *Anyone who loves birds, nature, or simply exquisite colors and shapes will find this compendium a revelation. Rosamond Purcell's sumptuous photographs are accompanied by a fascinating history of man's obsession with ornithology. * Martha Stewart Living *Transcendent in their beauty, mysterious, softly luminous, fragile yet potent, birds' eggs are highlighted in numerous photos in this thoughtfully assembled volume...This reviewer is grateful for this book and for the generations of work that have gone into building collections like this one. -- S. Hammer * Choice *This magnificently illustrated volume provides readers with a fascinating glimpse into the hidden world of wild bird eggs and nests...The book is alternately enlightening and uplifting, and sobering and alarming, as one reviews the preserved remains of what was and what quite literally might have been. One thing is clear upon turning the final page of Egg & Nest: Only eternal vigilance will protect what little of nature's splendor remains in this world. -- John A. Murray * Bloomsbury *The book consists of 10 groups of photographs, rendered in natural light in simple, striking settings...In [one] image, red-winged blackbird eggs rest on squares of cotton wool, their many shades of sky blue recalling the diversity possible within one species. Egg and Nest subtly suggests that such variety deserves our care: for the artifacts and, crucially, for their present-day relatives. -- Anna Lena Phillips * American Scientist *

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Book SynopsisThe waters around Australia are home to the greatest diversity of sharks and rays on Earth. Fully 100 of these sea creatures (and their little-known relatives, the chimaerids) have been named or described since the first edition of this book. This second edition brings more than 300 of these species to life in full-color illustrations.Trade ReviewIt certainly is the definitive guide to Australia's cartilaginous fishes, but many of the 322 species covered here have such wide distributions that this edition is useful over a much broader area...Although billed as a field guide...it is far too beautiful to risk getting wet or dirty. -- G. C. Jensen * Choice *

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Book SynopsisRex and Etter present the first synthesis of patterns and causes of biodiversity in organisms that dwell in the vast sediment ecosystem of ocean floor. They offer a new understanding of marine biodiversity that will be of general interest to ecologists and is crucial to responsible exploitation of natural resources at the deep-sea floor.Trade ReviewRex and Etter offer a truly novel synthesis of an exciting and dynamic subject. They have done an exceptional job of compiling new data that captures the history, idea development, and current conceptual understanding of the abundance and diversity of the deep sea. -- Lisa A. Levin, Scripps Institution of OceanographyDeep-sea ecology is experiencing an international resurgence. This book should become a landmark. -- Robert S. Carney, Department of Oceanography and Coastal Sciences, Louisiana State UniversitySpecies diversity is considered briefly in the few books that address deep-sea biology but there is nothing to compare with the depth, insight and clarity of Deep-Sea Biodiversity. This book fills an important niche in deep-sea ecology. -- Paul A. Tyler, National Oceanography Centre, SouthamptonRex and Etter's great achievement will be an essential volume on any marine scientist's bookshelf. It relates the great discovery of biodiversity patterns in the deep-sea floor to the physical and biological dynamics of the global ocean and its regions, and provides an important evolutionary and geological history perspective on the assembly of present day patterns of biodiversity. -- Jeffrey Levinton, Department of Ecology and Evolution, Stony Brook University

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Book SynopsisIn 2005 Jackson ventured into the remote swamp forests of the Congo to collect reptiles and amphibians. This book is an account of her research on the front lines of the biodiversity crisis—coping with endless delays in obtaining permits, learning to outrun army ants, subsisting on Spam and manioc, and ultimately falling in love with the forest.Trade ReviewIndiana Jones, step aside! Kate Jackson is an intrepid adventurer and explorer, and her passion for research, discovery, and snakes resonates from every page of this gripping account of a woman in science. -- Meg Lowman, author of Life in the Treetops and It's a Jungle Up ThereThis is the sort of book that makes hardcore field biologists cry out, "take me to the rainforest." For the rest of you, enjoying the sanity and comforts of the armchair adventurer, I suggest you hang on and enjoy the ride. -- Mark W. Moffett, Research Scientist, Smithsonian Institution and recipient of the Lowell Thomas Medal of the Explorer's ClubKate Jackson's field memoir detailing her experiences in the Republic of Congo is a delight that thrills and informs the reader. In relating her adventures conducting a herpetological survey and collecting venomous snakes, she brings to vivid life the harsh realities of fieldwork with its frustrations and disappointments. We're with her as she battles loneliness, parasites, and uncertainties and adapts to a foreign culture. And we share her personal highs and the swamp forest's allure. Bravo to this intrepid herpetologist! -- Marty Crump, author of Headless Males Make Great Lovers and Other Unusual Natural HistoriesThis is what exploratory natural history in a remote place, embedded in a very different culture, is really like--frustrating, confusing, scary, and fraught with prospects for failure. Jackson tells the truth even when it doesn't necessarily reflect well on her, and did I mention she's a small woman working in places where, I'm not kidding, most male herpetologists wouldn't dare to go? Mean and Lowly Things is genuine adventure, without the swashbuckling! -- Harry W. Greene, Cornell University Professor and author of Snakes: The Evolution of Mystery in NatureIt is always exciting to read about remote, natural places in the world and even more so when the story is told by a field researcher. In the tradition of Jane Goodall...Jackson has written a fascinating, adventure-filled memoir, describing how her love of snakes led her to become a herpetologist. She was eventually able to raise money for a survey of reptiles and amphibians in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, specifically in the flooded forest habitat around Lac Télé. Drawing from her journal entries, Jackson takes us through the planning, permits, and travel, as well as her actual time in the field catching animals. Jackson learns to work with her native field staff during her two collecting trips and shows appreciation for all the local people she meets and employs. -- Margaret Henderson * Library Journal *Herpetologist Jackson is candid, funny, and precise as she chronicles her demanding and illuminating experiences collecting snakes, frogs, and toads in the flooded forests of the Congo... Sharply observant, considerate, and rough, Jackson is immensely entertaining in her exuberantly detailed descriptions of swarms of termites, ants, and mosquitoes; unpalatable food; and painfully rugged campsites. Add to that nearly surreal negotiations with officials, confounding relationships with guides and assistants, medical misadventures, and moments ludicrous and dramatic as she chases down poisonous snakes, handles animal remains, and snuggles to preserve and identify priceless specimens and forge cross-cultural scientific partnerships. Jackson is a dynamo, and her riveting, amusing, and revealing tales from the biodiversity front line awaken fresh appreciation for hands-on scientific inquiry and the wonders of nature. -- Donna Seaman * Booklist *In our age of Google Maps, it's comforting to learn that a few places remain relatively impenetrable to the outside world. Nowhere is this more true than the Congo, which has long held a fascination for explorers and scientists and continues to guard its secrets...Descriptions of ant invasions, maggots under the skin, sleepless nights, bad food and even the odd venomous snake bite all keep the pages turning. Against the odds, Jackson's efforts in the Congo eventually pay off--not only does she discover a new species, she also finds romance. This intriguing blend of science and human interest, related in a matter-of-fact style, brings to life a little-known part of the world. -- Dan Eatherley * BBC Wildlife *This book will serve as an inspiration to future field biologists. It is also an exciting adventure story for those who would rather avoid the ants, termites, wasps, and the fly maggots that burrow into the biologists' skin and grow larger there. -- M. P. Gustafson * Choice *Fieldwork is very important but unsung. Jackson deserves respect for her drive, ability to organize and manage her fieldwork alone, train local students, and to learn the local language without losing sight of the scientific aims...She is refreshingly honest about the failures, mistakes and difficulties of her fieldwork as well as the successes...Mean and Lowly Things is full of incident and cultural as well as scientific insight that should carry non-scientific readers right to the end. -- David J. Gower * Times Literary Supplement *As a travel book, Kate Jackson's account of snake collecting in the tropics is both humorous and dramatic...As an account of biological fieldwork under trying conditions, however, Jackson's book is both elegant and appealing...There are probably only a few specialists who can fully appreciate the professional journal articles on the biodiversity of the Congo forest that resulted from Jackson's expeditions. And only a few adventurous readers may share her "irrational longing to return" to the Lac Télé forest, which, judging from her online blog, she did in the summer of 2008. But we can all hope that she will continue writing, and that we won't have to wait too long for the next installment of Kate Jackson's Excellent Adventures, wherever they may lead. -- Laurence A. Marschall * Natural History *Table of Contents* Prologue * How It All Started * Back to the Congo * In Limbo * The Flooded Forest * Neighbors, Nets, and Nothing * The Red Snake * A Bottle of Snakes * A Day of Monsters * Time to Go * Red Tape Revisited * Planning My Return * Back to the Likouala * This Is Impongui * Snake Medicine * Making Herpetologists * The Home Stretch * A Stressful Day * Kende Malamu * Epilogue * Acknowledgments * Index

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Book SynopsisThis book, a rare melding of human and animal research and theoretical and empirical science, ventures into the most interesting realms of behavioral biology to examine the intimate role of endocrinology in social relationships.Trade ReviewThe first volume to pull together the emerging field of human behavioral endocrinology as the product of a long evolutionary history exerting subtle influences throughout modern societies. The distinguished and authoritative assemblage of authors share their enthusiasm and leave no doubt that this will be an influential scientific discipline in the years to come. -- Katherine E. Wynne-Edwards, University of Calgary Faculty of Veterinary MedicineThe editors and their authors have produced a definitive and scholarly, yet readable, state-of-the-art presentation of a fascinating and timely topic. This landmark volume is rich in ideas, conclusions, and questions for the future. As the editors point out, we are all being exposed, like it or not, to hormones in the environment and to ads full of claims about the benefits of administering hormones. We need to understand how such hormones might (or might not) be affecting social relationships. Will spraying on some oxytocin make your colleagues like you? Probably not, but reading Endocrinology of Social Relationships produced warm feelings about the ability of good science to illuminate the human condition. -- Elizabeth Adkins-Regan * Science *[This book] is an incredible resource for anyone who has studied or ever wondered about the biological underpinnings of human's (or even non-human's) social interactions...In the past 15 years, there have been many studies published on the topic of hormones' roles in social relationships, but never before has there been one definitive volume that reviews the entire area with such a high degree of accuracy. Given that some developments within this area have been recent, the book represents a formidable effort to collect the modern work into one volume, and as a result, it will serve as a "go-to" text for many years. -- Maryanne Fisher * Evolutionary Psychology *Table of Contents* Introduction: Endocrinology of Social Relationships Peter B. Gray and Peter T. Ellison Part I: Theoretical and Empirical Context * Evolution and Ecological Diversity in Animal Mating and Parenting Systems Phyllis C. Lee * Neuroendocrine Mechanisms Underlying Social Relationships Kim Wallen and Janice Hassett * Social Relationships and Reproductive Ecology Peter T. Ellison * Hormone-Behavior Interrelationships in a Changing Environment John C. Wingfield * The Endocrinology of the Human Adaptive Complex Jane B. Lancaster and Hillard S. Kaplan Part II: Social Relationships among Non-human Animals * The Endocrinology of Social Relationships in Rodents C. Sue Carter, Ericka Boone, Angela J. Grippo, Michael Ruscio, and Karen L. Bales * The Endocrinology of Family Relationships in Bi-Parental Monkeys Toni E. Ziegler and Charles T. Snowdon * Hormonal and Neurochemical Influences on Aggression in Group-Living Monkeys Lynn A. Fairbanks * The Endocrinology of Intersexual Relationships in the Apes Melissa Emery Thompson Part III: Social Relationships Among Humans * Human Sex Differences in Social Relationships: Organizational and Activational Effects of Androgens Matthew H. McIntyre and Carole K. Hooven * The Role of Sex Hormones in the Initiation of Human Mating Relationships James R. Roney * Human Male Testosterone, Pair Bonding and Fatherhood Peter B. Gray and Benjamin C. Campbell * Neurobiology of Human Maternal Care Alison S. Fleming and Andrea Gonzalez * Oxytocin, Vasopressin, and Human Social Behavior Roxanne Sanchez, Jeffrey C. Parkin, Jennie Y. Chen, and Peter B. Gray * Androgens and Diversity in Adult Human Partnering Sari M. van Anders * Early Life Influences on the Ontogeny of Neuroendocrine Stress Response in the Human Child Pablo Nepomnaschy and Mark Flinn * References * Contributors * Index

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Book SynopsisThough we might not be able to see microbes, the consequences of their activities are readily apparent to our unaided senses. This book shows us how to examine, study, and appreciate microbes in the manner of a birdwatcher, by making sightings of microbial activities and thereby identifying particular microbes and understanding their behavior.Trade ReviewMarch of the Microbes is an impressive, entertaining tour of life's invisible realm. Combining history with new scientific discoveries, John Ingraham shows how microbes make their presence felt everywhere. You just have to know how to look for it. After reading this book, you will. -- Carl Zimmer, author of Microcosm: E. coli and the New Science of LifeTraverse the eclectic landscapes of soil, champagne, a Yellowstone spring, Italian salad dressing, and even the human stomach with microbiologist John L. Ingraham as your guide. This remarkable tour will transform novices into keen microbe-watchers in a mere 300 pages--which sounds like a lot, until you realize how much ground there is to cover in humanity's relationship with our most minuscule "friends." For instance, it was microbes that transformed the entire face of our planet, via the "Oxygen Revolution" some 3 billion years ago. We have them to thank for literally every breath we take. This is but one example. With the Earth estimated to have a nonillion (that's one followed by 30 zeros) microbes in and around it, we might as well get to know our tiny neighbors. * Seed *From the mundane (a smelly fish, a child with earache) to the exotic (hydrothermal vents), Ingraham presents the microbes behind so much of the world around us. He drives home the point that without these overlooked life forms we wouldn't be here at all...Ingraham's fresh perspective makes it an engaging read. -- Jo Marchant * New Scientist *Though most people are only familiar with microbes that cause disease (germs, etc.), those "felonious" microbes actually constitute a tiny percent of all microbes, and just a single chapter in this fascinating survey of single-celled organisms and their role in shaping life on Earth...Among other processes, Ingraham explains how vaccines have been developed, frequently with the aid of other microbes; the carbon, nitrogen, and sulfur cycles which make life possible; and how microbes give us cheese, wine, and other foodstuffs (though some, like xanthan gum, readers may not want to know about). Ingraham also discusses recently-discovered microbes inhabiting extreme environments (hot, cold, salty, etc.) that promise to tell us much about the evolution of life on Earth and what life on other planets might look like. Ingraham's entertaining, breezy style makes even difficult topics accessible, and every chapter contains intriguing anecdotes about microbes in history (did the CIA try to poison Castro's cigars with botulinum toxin?). Highly readable, engrossing, and endlessly informative, this is a standout example of science writing for general audiences. * Publishers Weekly online (starred review) *In this engaging treatment, the microbiologist shows readers the invisible world through observations about its macroscopic manifestations in a range of environments, from the kitchen to the abyss of the sea...Ingraham describes some of their malicious cousins who blight crops, kill trees, and sicken humans. Ingraham's clarity, plus touches of humor, augments the appeal of this fine contribution to popularizing science. -- Gilbert Taylor * Booklist *John Ingraham has written the definitive field guide for microbe watching, a branch of natural history that, to the uninitiated, might seem oxymoronic. Microorganisms being, by definition, creatures too small to be seen by the unaided eye, one might wonder...why anyone would need a guide to seeing the unseeable. Read just a few pages, however, and the puzzle is solved. Sure, microbes are tiny, but they are so prolific that their effects on the world are both profound and highly visible--from the black mold on bathroom walls to the red tide that sporadically discolors and poisons long expanses of shoreline...He blends the deep knowledge of an academic with the passion of a microbe watcher extraordinaire--which makes this guide as entertaining as it is informative. -- Laurence A. Marschall * Natural History *Table of Contents* Foreword * The Microbial Landscape * Just Acquiring Metabolic Energy * Food and Drink * Living Together * Cycling Nitrogen * Cycling Sulfur * Cycling Carbon * Hostile Environments * Fungi, Hostile and Benign * Viruses * Felonious Bacteria * Shapers of Weather, Geology, and the Environment * Closer to Us * Survivors * Notes * Glossary * Index

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Book SynopsisArriving at the port of New York in 1882, a 27-year-old Oscar Wilde quipped he had “nothing to declare but my genius.” But Wilde was, rarely for him, underselling himself. A chronicle of his sensational 11-month speaking tour of America, this book offers an indelible portrait of both Wilde and the Gilded Age.Trade ReviewOscar Wilde's year-long lecture-tour of America was a major cultural event—a Victorian precursor to the British Invasion of the 1960s. Wilde came like an apostle, preaching the gospel of Art, and he left an indelible mark on America, just as America did on the mind of Wilde himself. Morris's is a much-needed and highly enjoyable account, distinguished by wit and insight as much as by his singular command of rarely-told facts. -- Nicholas Frankel, editor of The Picture of Dorian Gray: An Annotated, Uncensored EditionMorris chronicles a year in the life of Irish dandy and belletrist Wilde, who, at age 27, was bent on invading America the way Dickens had a generation before… Wilde was a self-promoting genius, Morris writes, 'created, cultivated and commodified,' like celebrities today. He hadn't yet written his famous works or openly embraced gayness, but in his elaborate, precious outfits, sporting sunflowers and lilies, dropping affected bons mots for journalists to scoop up as he instructed American audiences with authority on 'The Beautiful' and 'The Artistic Character of the English Renaissance,' Wilde was challenging traditional notions of masculinity and also creating his celebrity… A fondly erudite look at a young, likable celebrity in the making. * Kirkus Reviews *[A] delightful account of the tour. -- Anthony Paletta * Daily Beast *When he arrived in New York in January 1882, Oscar Wilde is supposed to have told customs officials: 'I have nothing to declare except my genius.' Roy Morris's contention is that the then 27-year-old Wilde's American tour marked the beginning of the modern cult of celebrity. Wilde, Morris writes, made quite an impression on his American hosts, 'who were naturally predisposed to appreciate rugged individualism in even its most exotic forms.' * New Statesman *Declaring His Genius...is as entertaining a tour through Gilded Age America as Wilde's own journey must have been. -- Adam Kirsch * Barnes and Noble Review *[A] terrifically engaging biographical study...Though a rigorous historian, Morris is at heart a storyteller, and Declaring His Genius is so packed with 19th-century curiosities that it at time reads like an oral history by a contemporary of Twain's, if not by Twain himself. The book is full of digressions, creating a colorful tableau of American characters and their stories. -- Martin Riker * Wall Street Journal *A panorama of life on the road in the Gilded Age. -- Owen Richardson * Sydney Morning Herald *If we think of Wilde in America, it is of a preening show-off announcing at customs that 'I have nothing to declare but my genius'; and going on to epigrammatize his way across the continent. The valuable point made by Morris is that beneath the performance--and it was one, with Wilde conscientiously playing the mocker's role the public paid to see, and the public collecting its due of pleasurable annoyance--there was something deeper. Elaborate mask aside, Wilde possessed an eye that was both avid and innocent; and if there was much in America and Americans to criticize, there was much that surprised, instructed, and pleased him. -- Richard Eder * Boston Globe *[A] delightful romp. -- Fred Setterberg * San Francisco Chronicle *Morris tells the story with verve. It is difficult not to be amused by Wilde's encounter with the ebullient Leadville miners or the dour Jefferson Davis...It is delightful and in depth. Recommended both for those new to Wilde, and for his well-informed fans. -- David Azzolina * Library Journal *Enlightening and entertaining. -- Brooke Allen * New Criterion *Roy Morris Jr.'s exhaustive narrative chronicles everywhere [Wilde] went [in America], everyone he met and (almost) everything he ate. While this is very much a book for Wilde devotees, it still contains valuable insights into the media event that quickly became a blueprint for aspiring celebrities in all walks of life...Wilde may have been an incurable show-off, but Morris's blow-by-blow account shows that he was also an unusually kind man. He never used his wit to humiliate people, only to entertain them. Many Americans came along expecting to jeer at him and were quickly won over by his warm and robust personality...[The book] deserves credit for shedding new light on a period which many Wilde biographers have treated as a frivolous curtain-raiser before the main event. -- Andrew Lynch * Business Post *Roy Morris Jr. treats us to a lively account of Wilde's rollicking tour through post-Civil War America, fleshing out the varied impressions of contemporary newspaper reports with fascinating digressions on the cast of characters Wilde met along the way. -- Justin Beplate * Literary Review *Morris…paints a vivid portrait of Oscar Wilde’s 1882 tour of the U.S. His book is at once a scholarly and thoroughly researched text and an engaging--almost novelistic--narrative that academic researchers and the reading public alike can appreciate. It is replete with fascinating and amusing stories of Wilde’s encounters with Americans from all walks of life and social and economic classes; literature enthusiasts are likely to be particularly interested in tales of his meetings with the likes of Walt Whitman and Henry James. Stories of his ruffling feathers and winning admirers, challenging expectations and changing minds fill these pages of this captivating, must-read book. -- M. E. DiPaolo * Choice *

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Book SynopsisBioluminescence is everywhere on earthmost of all in the ocean, from angler fish in the depths to flashing dinoflagellates at the surface. Wilson and Hastings explore the natural history, evolution, and biochemistry of the diverse array of organisms that emit light and offer an evolutionary explanation for their sporadic distribution and rarity.Trade ReviewWilson and Hastings provide an exceptional, scholarly, clear treatment of bioluminescence. -- J. N. Muzio * Choice *Wilson and Hastings have given us a masterful biology lesson showing how addressing a seemingly simple question—how do different organisms produce light?—leads to fascinating natural history, intriguing ecology, and exciting biochemistry. They show how the study of bioluminescence has given us new tools, new insights, and new questions that need to be answered. -- Martin Chalfie, winner of the 2008 Nobel Prize in ChemistryWilson and Hastings demonstrate that what appears on the surface to be a biological oddity is actually a marvelous entry port into examining the intricacies of biochemistry as molded by evolution. I found this book absolutely captivating. -- Jim Morin, Professor of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, Cornell UniversityThis book is a wonderful introduction to the world of bioluminescent organisms, from bacteria to fungi and animals, through to the technological discoveries and developments for which bioluminescence has been pivotal. Wilson and Hastings are certainly the individuals to bring the whole field together. -- Margaret McFall-Ngai, University of Wisconsin–Madison

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Book SynopsisIn The Fire Ants, Walter Tschinkel provides not just an encyclopedic overview of Solenopsis invicta but a lively account of how research is done, how science establishes facts, and the pleasures and problems of a scientific career. The reader learns much about ants, the practice of science, and humans' role in the fire ant's North American success.Trade ReviewThis is a wonderful book, comprehensive in its coverage of fire ant social biology, extraordinarily lucid in its description of complex topics, and beautifully synthetic in tying together the many disparate threads of evidence relevant to the discussion of each topic. The prose is concise and compact, but the wit and humor of the author penetrate even the most tedious technical parts to lighten up the text and make it a pleasure to read. The book is laced with insightful and humorous interludes that detail the tools and personalities involved in fire ant research, and covers the major topics likely to be of interest to evolutionary biologists and ecologists who study social animals, especially social insects. The Fire Ants is certain to be widely read. -- Kenneth Ross, Professor of Entomology, University of GeorgiaThis book is without parallel as a thorough description of the biology of an important social insect. There are books on particular problems of social insect biology, and of course the landmark volume by Hölldobler and Wilson treats all ant biology. The Fire Ants stands out for its focus on a single species, covering the entire range of an enormous literature. It will therefore be of interest to specialists and to a more general audience who wish to learn about what is important in the ant world. -- Joan Herbers, Dean of Biological Sciences, Department of Evolution, Ecology and Organismal Biology, The Ohio State UniversityI have been reading bits and pieces of the book, dipping in here and there like a chimpanzee with a twig, fishing for ants, and each time I have come up with something tasty and nutritious...My favorite ["Interlude"], an economical two-page essay called "The Porter Wedge Micrometer: Mental Health for Myrmecologists," ought to be required reading for any scientist who wants to write for the public...This brief essay is entertaining and significant, a real glimpse of what science is and how it is done by human beings, rational and un-, grappling with technique, nature and the gathering of information. This is what the public needs to know about science, not just the results presented in the driest form possible. -- James Gorman * New York Times *This book is a masterly and detailed account of some of nature's greatest opportunists, the fire ants. It deals with their phylogeny, biogeography, social organization, parasites, and foraging behavior, together with their impacts on natural ecosystems and agriculture. Walter Tschinkel's holistic approach embraces topics at the molecular level and relates them to the colony and its organization. Tschinkel has researched these ants for thirty-five years at Florida State University, Tallahassee. He and several generations of his postgraduate students have been one of the major driving forces in fire-ant studies. This body of work required the mastery of finely tuned laboratory techniques in analytical chemistry, a detailed understanding of the natural history of the ants, extended periods of uncomfortable fieldwork and getting badly stung...Tschinkel's love of and fascination with the ants shines through the often highly technical aspects of The Fire Ants. He writes with great clarity and his book should appeal to the general reader, as much as the specialist. It is well illustrated with graphs, tables, and excellent photographs. -- Christopher O'Toole * Times Literary Supplement *

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Book SynopsisScientists act within a social context and from a philosophical perspective that is inherently political. Whether they realize it or not, scientists always choose sides. This book explores the political nature of scientific inquiry, advancing its argument within the framework of Marxist dialectic.Trade ReviewThe book successfully achieves the authors’ goal of demonstrating by example the power and nature of the dialectical method. Its usefulness, however, extends well beyond this. The articles are intellectually challenging in content as well as method. And by collecting in one place articles on evolution, scientific analysis and the social dimensions of science—the book’s three major divisions—the authors have provided a valuable tool for exploring the complexity and richness of biology… The Dialectical Biologist is certain to be controversial… This book is a rich source of understanding, and it will undoubtedly stimulate important discussion. * New York Times Book Review *This important and controversial book will be hotly discussed by biologists. * Library Journal *An extremely readable and very provocative book. * New Scientist *Table of ContentsIntroduction 1. On Evolution Evolution as Theory and Ideology Adaptation The Organism as the Subject and Object of Evolution 2. On Analysis The Analysis of Variance and the Analysis of Causes Isidore Nabi on the Tendencies of Motion Dialectics and Reductionism in Ecology 3. Science as a Social Product and the Social Product of Science The Problem of Lysenkoism The Commoditizatjon of Science The Political Economy of Agricultural Research Applied Biology in the Third World The Pesticide System Research Needs for Latin Community Health What Is Human Nature? Conclusion: Dialectics Bibliography Index

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Book SynopsisThis book contains 18 contributions by leaders in the field of ecology, all associates of Robert MacArthur, whose work has stimulated many recent developments in ecology. These papers offer new models for ecological processes, new applications of theoretical and quantitative techniques, and new methods for analyzing and interpreting empirical data.Table of ContentsIntroduction Martin L. Cody and Jared M. Diamond Bibliography of Robert MacArthur I. The Evolution of Species Abundance and Diversity 1. Evolution in Communities Near Equilibrium Richard Levins 2. Population Fluctuations, Community Stability, and Environmental Variability Egbert G. Leigh, Jr. 3. Environmental Fluctuations and Species Diversity John W. MacArthur 4. Patterns of Species Abundance and Diversity Robert M. May 5. On Continental Steady States of Species Diversity Michael L. Rosenzweig II. Competitive Strategies of Resource Allocation 6. Selection for Optimal Life Histories in Plants William M. Schaffer and Madhav D. Gadgil 7. Prey Characteristics and Predator Niche Width Henry A. Hespenheide 8. The Temporal Component of Butterfly Species Diversity Arthur M. Shapiro 9. Markovian Processes of Forest Succession Henry S. Horn III. Community Structure 10. Towards a Theory of Continental Species Diversities Martin L. Cody 11. Ecomorphological Configurations and Convergent Evolution James R. Karr and Frances C. James 12. Niche Relations of Desert Lizards Eric R. Pianka 13. Geographical Ecology of Desert Rodents James H. Brown 14. Assembly of Species Communities, Jared M. Diamond 15. Structure of Stream Communities Ruth Patrick 16. Some Mechanisms Producing Structure in Natural Communities Joseph H. Connell IV. Outlook 17. Variations on a Theme by Robert MacArthur G. Evelyn Hutchinson 18. Applied Biogeography Edward 0. Wilson and Edwin 0. Willis Index Contributors

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