The biology book : from the origin of life to epigenetics, 250 milestones in the history of biology / Michael C. Gerald, with Gloria E. Gerald.

Includes bibliographical references (pages 514-522) and index.

Origin of life -- Last universal common ancestor -- Prokaryotes -- Algae -- Eukaryotes -- Fungi -- Arthropods -- Medulla : the vital brain -- Fish -- Land plants -- Devonian Period -- Insects -- Plant defenses against herbivores -- Amphibians -- Seeds of success -- Reptiles -- Gymnosperms -- Dinosaurs -- Mammals -- Birds -- Angiosperms -- Primates -- Amazon rainforest -- Neanderthals -- Anatomically modern humans -- Plant-derived medicines -- Wheat : the staff of life -- Agriculture -- Domestication of animals -- Coral reefs -- Rice cultivation -- Mummification -- Animal navigation -- Four humors -- Aristotle's The history of animals -- Animal migration -- Botany -- Pliny's Natural history -- Skeletal system -- Pulmonary circulation -- Leonardo's human anatomy -- Sense of hearing -- Vesalius's De humani corporis fabrica -- Tobacco -- Metabolism -- Scientific method -- Harvey's De motu cordis -- Mechanical philosophy of Descartes -- Placenta -- Lymphatic system -- Blood cells -- Refuting spontaneous generation -- Phosphorus cycle -- Egotism and witchcraft -- Leeuwenhoek's microscopic -- Spermatozoa -- Miasma theory -- Circadian rhythms -- Blood pressure -- Linnean classification of species -- Cerebrospinal fluid -- Regeneration -- Theories of germination -- Artificial selection (selective breeding) -- Animal electricity -- Gas exchange -- Nervous system communication -- Paleontology -- Population growth and food supply -- Lamarckian inheritance -- Germ-layer theory of development -- Cell nucleus -- Darwin and the voyages of the Beagle -- Anatomy Act of 1832 -- Human digestion -- Fossil record and evolution -- Nitrogen cycle and plant chemistry -- Cell theory -- Plant nutrition -- Urine formation -- Apoptosis (programmed cell death) -- Venoms -- Homology versus analogy -- Photosynthesis -- Optical isomers -- Testosterone -- Trichromatic color vision -- Homeostatis -- The liver and glucose metabolism -- Microbial fermentation -- Darwin's theory of natural selection -- Ecological interactions -- Invasive species -- Localization of cerebral function -- Biological mimicry -- Mendelian inheritance -- Ontogeny recapitulates phylogeny -- Hemoglobin and hemocyanin -- Deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) -- Sexual selection -- Coevolution -- Nature versus nurture -- Biosphere -- Meiosis -- Biogeography -- Marine biology -- Enzymes -- Phototropism -- Mitosis -- Thermoreception -- Innate immunity -- Germ plasm theory of heredity -- Eugenics -- Gram stain -- Negative feedback -- Germ theory of disease -- Animal coloration -- Neuron doctrine -- Endotoxins -- Global warming -- Adaptive immunity -- Associative learning -- Ehrlich's side-chain theory -- Malaria-causing protozoan parasite -- Viruses -- Ecological succession -- Animal locomotion -- Genetics rediscovered -- Ovaries and female reproduction -- Blood types -- Tissue culture -- Secretin : the first hormone -- Dendrochronology -- Blood clotting -- Radiometric dating -- Probiotics -- Why does the heart beat? -- Hardy-Weinberg equilibrium -- Genes on chromosomes -- Cancer-causing viruses -- Continental drift -- Vitamins and bereberi -- Thyroid gland and metamorphosis -- X-ray crystallography -- Bacteriophages -- Biotechnology -- Neurotransmitters -- Insulin -- Inborn errors of metabolism -- Embryonic induction -- Timing fertility -- Mitochondria and cellular respiration -- "The monkey trial" -- Population ecology -- Food webs -- Insect dance language -- Antibiotics -- Progesterone -- Osmoregulation in freshwater and marine fish -- Electron microscope -- Imprinting -- Factors affecting population growth -- Stress -- Allometry -- Evolutionary genetics -- Coelacanth : "the living fossil" -- Action potential -- One gene-one enzyme hypothesis -- Biological species concept and reproductive isolation -- Arabidopsis : a model plant -- DNA as carrier of genetic information -- Green revolution -- Bacterial genetics -- Reticular activating system -- Phylogenetic systematics -- The immortal HeLa cells -- Cloning (nuclear transfer) -- Amino acid sequence of insulin -- Pattern formations in nature -- Plasmids -- Nerve growth factor -- Miller-Urey experiment -- The double helix -- REM sleep -- Acquired immunological tolerance and organ transplantation -- Sliding filament theory of muscle contraction -- Ribosomes -- Lysosomes -- Prenatal genetic testing -- DNA polymerase -- Second messengers -- Protein structures and folding -- Bioenergetics -- Central dogma of molecular biology -- Bionics and cyborgs -- Pheromones -- Energy balance -- Chimpanzee use of tools -- Cellular senescence -- Cracking the genetic code for protein biosynthesis -- Operon model of gene regulation -- Thrifty gene hypothesis -- Silent spring -- Hybrids and hybrid zones -- Brain lateralization -- Animal altruism -- Optimal foraging theory -- Bacterial resistance to antibiotics -- Endosymbiont theory -- Multi-store model of memory -- Hypothalamic-pituitary axis -- Systems biology -- Cellular determination -- Cell cycle checkpoints -- Punctuated equilibrium -- Sustainable development -- Parental investment and sexual selection -- Lucy -- Cholesterol metabolism -- Sense of taste -- Monoclonal antibodies -- Sociobiology -- Cancer-causing genes -- Bioinformatics -- In Vitro fertilization (IVF) -- Biological magnification -- Can living organisms be patented? -- Genetically modified crops -- HIV and AIDS -- Polymerase chain reaction -- DNA fingerprinting -- Genomics -- Mitochondrial Eve -- Depletion of the ozone layer -- Domains of life -- Sense of smell -- Leptin : the thinness hormone -- Skin color -- Human Genome Project -- Protist taxonomy -- Induced pluripotent stem cells -- Vital mutations and pandemics -- Deepwater Horizon (BP) oil spill -- Translational biomedical research -- Albumin from rice -- Human Microbiome Project - Epigenetics -- American chestnut tree blight -- De-extinction -- Oldest DNA and human evolution.

From the emergence of life, to Leewenhoek's microscopic world, to GMO crops, The Biology Book presents 250 landmarks in the most widely studied scientific field. Brief, engaging, and colorfully illustrated synopses introduce readers to every major subdiscipline, including cell theory, genetics, evolution, physiology, thermodynamics, molecular biology, and ecology. With information on such varied topics as paleontology, pheromones, nature vs. nurture, DNA fingerprinting, bioenergetics, and so much more, this lively collection will engage everyone who studies and appreciates the life sciences.

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