History and Science of Cultivated Plants narrates how humans transitioned from foragers to farmers and have arrived at present-day industrial agriculture-based civilization. It entails myths, historical accounts, and scientific concepts to describe how human efforts have shaped and produced easier to grow, larger, tastier, and more nutritious fruits, vegetables, and grains from wild plants. Using examples of various economically and socially important crops central to human civilization, the book describes the origin of crop plants, the evolution of agricultural practices, fundamental concepts of natural selection vs. domestication, experimental and methodical plant breeding, and plant biotechnology.

This course is the first in a three-course sequence that introduces biology in preparation for advanced study in areas of biological science such as medicine, dentistry, cell biology, microbiology, or veterinary medicine. Biol& 211 introduces students to cellular structure and function. Major topics studied include: energy capture and utilization, cellular reproduction, inheritance, genetic mutation, protein synthesis, gene expression, and biotechnology.

People have a deep intuition about what has been called the “nature–nurture question.” Some aspects of our behavior feel as though they originate in our genetic makeup, while others feel like the result of our upbringing or our own hard work. The scientific field of behavior genetics attempts to study these differences empirically, either by examining similarities among family members with different degrees of genetic relatedness, or, more recently, by studying differences in the DNA of people with different behavioral traits. The scientific methods that have been developed are ingenious, but often inconclusive. Many of the difficulties encountered in the empirical science of behavior genetics turn out to be conceptual, and our intuitions about nature and nurture get more complicated the harder we think about them. In the end, it is an oversimplification to ask how “genetic” some particular behavior is. Genes and environments always combine to produce behavior, and the real science is in the discovery of how they combine for a given behavior.

Gene insertion of opsin, light-activated cell-membrane channels, into neurons of interest allows researchers to manipulate light to either excite or inhibit neuronal activity to gain a better understanding of brain function and dysfunction, and explore therapeutic applications.

This textbook is designed specifically for Kansas State's Biology 198 Class. The course is taught using the studio approach and based on active learning. The studio manual contains all of the learning objectives for each class period and is the record of all student activities. Hence, this textbook is more of a reference tool while the studio manual is the learning tool.

Psychology is designed to meet scope and sequence requirements for the single-semester introduction to psychology course. The book offers a comprehensive treatment of core concepts, grounded in both classic studies and current and emerging research. The text also includes coverage of the DSM-5 in examinations of psychological disorders. Psychology incorporates discussions that reflect the diversity within the discipline, as well as the diversity of cultures and communities across the globe.Senior Contributing AuthorsRose M. Spielman, Formerly of Quinnipiac UniversityContributing AuthorsKathryn Dumper, Bainbridge State CollegeWilliam Jenkins, Mercer UniversityArlene Lacombe, Saint Joseph's UniversityMarilyn Lovett, Livingstone CollegeMarion Perlmutter, University of Michigan

By the end of this section, you will be able to:Explain the basic principles of the theory of evolution by natural selectionDescribe the differences between genotype and phenotypeDiscuss how gene-environment interactions are critical for expression of physical and psychological characteristics

This course will introduce you to a general overview of the biological world. Important concepts will be reinforced and expanded upon through completion of weekly laboratory activities and homework assignments. Upon successful conclusion of the course, students will be able to do the following: Describe the nature of science, including its methods and its limitations; Describe the basic methodology of doing science and the scientific method; Use the scientific method to study everyday situations as well as in laboratory/field investigations; Identify, describe, and explain at a rudimentary level and present examples of, the characteristics common to all living things; Explain that living organisms are composed of molecules which interact in a variety of different chemical reactions necessary to sustain life; Explain that living organisms are comprised of one or more cells and are classified as prokaryotic or eukaryotic based on cellular characteristics; Describe the hereditary information possessed by living and explain how that information determines the cellular characteristics and functions (including basic Mendelian genetics); Explain and describe, with examples, the diversity of life, at different levels (basic molecular to ecological) and how it is hierarchically organized into systems; Explain how evolution by natural selection occurs, and describe the evidence that supports the theory of evolution; and more.

This laboratory manual is intended for use in a biology laboratory course taken by non-science majors, pre-biology, and pre-allied health majors.

Laboratory exercises provide students with experience in basic laboratory skills, gathering and organizing data, measuring and calculating, hypothesis testing, analysis of data, writing, and laboratory safety. The skill sets are designed to promote the development of critical thought and analysis. Students work with living and preserved specimens, and laboratory reagents and equipment.