"Our goal was to create a text that would give readers the foundation they needed for understanding the many inevitable advances in biotechnology that the coming years will bring and a context for making decisions about them as potential consumers," says Helen Kreuzer of the University of Utah, one of the authors of the book.
Providing a strong basis in the fundamentals of biological science, the book focuses on the material that is needed to understand and evaluate technologies that are available to consumers. Biology and Biotechnology is largely intended for undergraduate non-major science courses; however, biology majors will benefit from the unique perspective. In addition, with its highly readable writing style, this new volume will intrigue members of the lay public who have little scientific background and seek to educate themselves on the burgeoning field of biotechnology.
"By not attempting to explain all of biology and instead focusing on biotechnology and its many applications the authors have been able to pursue argument and present case studies in enough depth to give students a real feeling for the nature of science in its modern context. This course also explicitly aims to connect science to the students' lives and the decisions that they will have to make as citizens in a democratic society," says Bruce Alberts, a past president of the National Academy of Sciences, in the book's foreword.
Biology and Biotechnology: Science, Applications and Issues, has a list price of $79.95 and can be ordered from ASM Press via the website at http://estore.asm.org.
ASM Press is the book publishing division of the American Society for Microbiology (ASM), the oldest and largest single life science membership organization in the world. The ASM's mission is to promote research in the microbiological sciences and to assist communication between scientists, policy makers, and the public to improve health and foster economic well-being.