Understanding Biotechnology: An Integrated and Cyber-Based Approach - Softcover

Acquaah, George

9780130945006: Understanding Biotechnology: An Integrated and Cyber-Based Approach

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0130945005 ISBN 13: 9780130945006

Publisher: Prentice Hall, 2003

The only introduction to biotechnology on the market today, this timely book has an easy-to-comprehend style that makes it suitable for readers with or without a background in biology. While emphasizing biotechnology's core principles and practices, its cyber-based approach provides a built-in mechanism for updating information in the rapidly evolving biotech field, keeping this book from becoming current and timely. Taking the approach that DNA is universal and can be transferred across natural genetic barriers, this book covers the following topics in the field of biotechnology: the nature of living things and the principles of manipulating them; enabling technologies; different approaches of biotechnology; specific applications such as agricultural (plants and animals), medical, judicial, industrial, and environmental; and social issues such as risk and regulations, ethical implications, developing economies, and biowarfare. This is an excellent reference tool for biotech professionals and those working in the fields of agriculture, medicine, environmental science, nutrition, and health.

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From the Back Cover:

BIOTECHNOLOGY is a rapidly-evolving field in which new information is generated at an astronomical rate. Understanding Biotechnology: An Integrated and Cyber-Based Approach is a textbook designed to enable the reader to quickly access the most current information as well as obtain alternative perspectives on various subjects. Furthermore, while the applications of biotechnology are varied, the principles and concepts are essentially the same. Consequently, an integrated approach to the presentation provides a holistic understanding of the subject of biotechnology.

KEY FEATURES:

Each chapter begins with a list of Expected Outcomes and ends with an Outcomes Assessment to ensure one's understanding of the material presented
Copious photographs and line drawings
A list of Internet sites at the end of each chapter, for further reading and graphical illustrations
Internet links to sites where significant biotechnology activities are in progress
Extensive glossary of terms
Coverage of biotechnology applications in agriculture, medicine/health, industry, and environment
A discussion of the controversies surrounding the development and application of biotechnology

The book is comprehensive in its coverage and is suitable as a text for an introductory course in general biotechnology in any academic discipline. It provides a detailed discussion of the underlying science and technology of biotechnology presented at a level that can be appreciated by non-science majors. It is also useful as a supplement to an early graduate course in biotechnology. In addition, anyone who is interested in learning about biotechnology in a non-formal setting will find this book tremendously interesting and useful.

About the Author:

George Acquaah is Distinguished Professor and Chair of the department of Agriculture and Natural Resources at Langston University. He is the author of four critically acclaimed textbooks, and has received numerous awards, including the prestigious USDA Award for Excellence in College and University Teaching in Food and Agricultural Sciences, and the Millennium Award for Excellence in Teaching, presented by the White House Initiative on Historically Black Colleges and Universities in the US.

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