Botany For Dummies

by Rene Fester Kratz

Overview

The easy way to score your highest in botany

Employment of biological scientists is projected to grow 21% over the next decade, much faster than the average for all occupations, as biotechnological research and development continues to drive job growth.

Botany For Dummies gives you a thorough, easy-to-follow overview of the fundamentals of botany, helping you to improve your grades, supplement your learning, or review before a test.

• Covers evolution by natural selection
• Offers plain-English explanations of the structure and function of plants
• Includes plant identification and botanical phenomenon

Tracking a typical course in botany, this hands-on, friendly guide is your ticket to acing this required course for your major in biology, microbiology, zoology, or elementary education.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781118006726
Publisher:	Wiley
Publication date:	07/12/2011
Series:	For Dummies Books
Pages:	384
Sales rank:	450,928
Product dimensions:	7.40(w) x 9.20(h) x 1.10(d)

About the Author

Rene Fester Kratz, PhD is a Biology instructor at Everett Community College. As a member of the North Cascades and Olympic Science Partnership, she worked to develop science curricula that are in alignment with research on human learning.

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Table of Contents

Introduction 1

Part I: Plant Basics 5

Chapter 1: Exploring Botany 7

Chapter 2: Peering at Plant Cells 13

Chapter 3: Identifying Plant Tissues 43

Chapter 4: Vegetative Structures: Stems, Roots, and Leaves 57

Chapter 5: Reproductive Structures: Spores, Seeds, Cones, Flowers, and Fruits 81

Part II: The Living Plant: Plant Physiology 99

Chapter 6: Metabolism: How Living Things Get Energy and Matter 101

Chapter 7: Photosynthesis: Making Sugar from Scratch 109

Chapter 8: Cellular Respiration: Making Your Cake and Eating It, Too 131

Chapter 9: Moving Materials Through Plants 147

Chapter 10: Regulating Plant Growth and Development 163

Part III: Making More Plants: Plant Reproduction and Genetics 179

Chapter 11: Greening the Earth: Plant Reproduction 181

Chapter 12: Passing Plant Characteristics to the Next Generation 199

Part IV: The Wide, Wonderful World of Plants: Plant Biodiversity 215

Chapter 13: Changing with the Times: Evolution and Adaptation 217

Chapter 14: The Tree of Life: Showing the Relationships Between Living Things 231

Chapter 15: Examining the Forest Floor: Bryophytes and Seedless Vascular Plants 243

Chapter 16: Their Seeds Are Naked: Gymnosperms 265

Chapter 17: Say It with Flowers: Angiosperms 275

Part V: Plants and People 289

Chapter 18: Making Connections with Plant Ecology 291

Chapter 19: Altering Plants by Using Biotechnology 311

Chapter 20: Thriving on Plants in Everyday Life 323

Part VI: The Part of Tens 341

Chapter 21: Ten Weirdest Plants 343

Chapter 22: Ten Tips for Improving Your Grade in Botany 349

Index 355