Stern’s Introductory Plant Biology 13th Edition

Book Preface

Plants and algae are essential for life on earth as it exists today.  They provide our world with oxygen and food, contribute an  essential part of water and nutrient cycling in ecosystems, provide clothing and shelter, and add beauty to our environment.  Some scientists believe that if photosynthetic organisms exist  on planets beyond our solar system, it would be possible to  sustain other forms of life that depend upon them to survive.
Botany today plays a special role in many interests of  both major and nonmajor students. For example, in this  text, topics such as global warming, ozone layer depletion,  acid rain, genetic engineering, organic gardening, Native  American and pioneer uses of plants, pollution and recycling, house plants, backyard vegetable gardening, natural  dye plants, poisonous and hallucinogenic plants, nutritional  values of edible plants, and many other topics are discussed.  To intelligently pursue such topics, one needs to understand  how plants are constructed, and how they function. To this  end, the text assumes little prior knowledge of the sciences  on the part of the student, but covers basic botany, without  excessively resorting to technical terms. The coverage, however, includes sufficient depth to prepare students to go further in the field, should they choose to do so.

The text is arranged so that certain sections can be omitted in shorter courses. Such sections may include topics  such as soils, molecular genetics, and phylum Bryophyta.  Because botany instructors vary greatly in their opinions  about the depth of coverage needed for photosynthesis and  respiration in an introductory botany course open to both  majors and nonmajors, these topics are presented at three  different levels. Some instructors will find one or two levels  sufficient, whereas others will want to include all three.  Both majors in botany and nonmajors who may initially  be disinterested in the subject matter of a required course frequently become engrossed if the material is related repeatedly  to their popular interests. This is reflected, as intimated above,  in the considerable amount of ecology and ethnobotany included with traditional botany throughout the book.

Organization of the Text Organization of the Text
A relatively conventional sequence of botanical subjects is  followed. Chapters 1 and 2 cover introductory and background  information; Chapters 3 through 11 deal with structure and  function; Chapters 12 and 13 introduce meiosis, genetics, and  molecular biology. Chapter 14 discusses plant propagation  and biotechnology; Chapter 15 introduces evolution; Chapter  16 deals with classification; Chapters 17 through 23 stress, in  phylogenetic sequence, the diversity of organisms traditionally  regarded as plants; and Chapter 24 deals with ethnobotanical aspects and other information of general interest pertaining to  16 major plant families or groups of families. Chapters 25 and  26 present an overview of the vast topic of ecology, although  ecological topics and applied botany are included in the preceding chapters as well. Some of these topics are broached in  anecdotes that introduce the chapters, while others are mentioned in text boxes as well as the appendices.

Learning Aids Learning Aids
A chapter outline, review questions, discussion questions, and  additional reading lists are provided for each chapter. New  terms are defined as they are introduced, and those that are  boldfaced are included, with their pronunciation, in a glossary. A list of the scientific names of all organisms mentioned  throughout the text is given in Appendix 1. Appendix 2 deals  with biological controls and companion planting. Appendix  3 includes wild edible plants, poisonous plants, medicinal  plants, hallucinogenic plants, spices, tropical fruits, and natural dye plants. Appendix 4 gives horticultural information on  house plants, along with brief discussions on how to cultivate  vegetables. Nutritional values of the vegetables are included.  Appendix 5 covers metric equivalents and conversion tables.