Biology

Introduction:
This biology collection encompasses genetics, genetic engineering, biotechnology, bioethics, microbiology, immunology, and epidemiology.

Questions for Inquiry:
How do humans genetically compare to flies, worms, mice and other animals? What are the factors that can determine the outcome of a gene mutation? What is the significance of the Human Genome Project and how is it affecting modern medicine?

Keywords:
Life Sciences, Cells, Organisms, Physiology, Immunology, Bioethics, Bioscience, Diseases, Biodiversity, Variation, Human Biology, Bionics, Cloning

Subject Headings:
Biology, Cytology, Genetics, Genetic engineering, Molecular biology, Evolution, Natural selection, Biotechnology, Communicable diseases, Epidemiology

Dewey Decimal Classification(s):
174 Professional ethics 176 Ethics of sex and reproduction 570 Life sciences 574 Biology 575 Evolution and genetics 576 Microbiology 611 Human anatomy, cytology, histology 616 Diseases

Reference:
Hine, Robert. __The Facts on File Dictionary of Biology__. 4th ed. New York : Facts On File, 2005. Defines the basic principles and terms used in the field of biology. Includes entries on beta-oxidation, cerebral nuclei, DNA fingerprinting, and rapid eye movement. The appendices include charts of the animal and plant kingdoms and amino acids, as well as a list of online resources.

McGrath, Kimberley A. __World of Biology__. Detroit, MI : Gale Group, 1999. Offers 1,000 essays, definitions and biographies; about 350 illustrations; and other information in all aspects of biology, including anatomy, physiology, ecology, botany, genetics, biochemistry, medicine and molecular biology.

Stone, Carol Leth. __The Basics of Biology__. Westport, Conn. : Greenwood Press, 2004. Describes the discipline's history as well as its basic theories and concepts. Discusses noteworthy discoveries and demonstrates modern methods and research tools. Topics include the biosphere, evolution, cells and genetics, organs and systems, organisms, and human beings.

Knight, Jeffrey A. __Encyclopedia of Genetics__. Pasadena, CA: Salem Press, 2004. Among the topics included are altruism, ancient DNA, antibodies, bioethics, biological determinism, cancer, cell culture of plants and animals, diabetes, epistasis, eugenics, genetically modified foods, and pseudogenes. Several entries are devoted to case studies of model organisms, and there are multiple entries on aspects of DNA, gene regulation, gene therapy, genetic code, genetic engineering, and chromosomes.

Lerner, K. Lee, and Brenda Wilmoth Lerner. __World of Microbiology and Immunology.__ Detroit: Gale Group, 2003. A two-volume encyclopedic guide that covers the concepts, theories, discoveries and pioneers in microbiology and immunology using a mix of traditional academic and topical articles. Addresses current ethical, legal and social issues with special emphasis given to biological warfare and terrorism.

Yount, Lisa. __Biotechnology and Genetic Engineering__. New York : Facts on File, 2004. Overviews issues in biotechnology, genetic engineering, and the law regarding research and applications in these areas. Features a chronology, biographical listings, a glossary, an annotated bibliography, and a list of organizations and agencies. Appendices summarize four US cases and provide an excerpt from a July 2002 document by the President's Council on Bioethics. Includes material on biotechnology as a business, the debate on embryonic stem cells, and the connection between biotechnology and bioterrorism.

Non-fiction:
Bobick, James. __The Handy Biology Answer Book__. Canton, MI: Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication, 2004.

__The Facts On File Illustrated Guide to the Human Body: Cells and Genetics__. New York: Diagram Group, 2005.

Hays, J. __Epidemics and Pandemics: Their Impacts on Human History__. Santa Barbara, California: ABC-CLIO, Inc., 2005.

Jonsen, Albert. __The Birth of Bioethics__. New York: Oxford University Press, 1998.

Bridget Heos. __The Human Genome__. New York: Rosen Pub, 2011.

Patrick Guilfoile. __Antibiotic-resistant Bacteria__. New York: Chelsea House, 2007.

Carmen Ferreiro. __Causes of Cancer__. New York: Chelsea House, 2007.

Evelyn B. Kelly. __Gene Therapy__. Westport, Conn.: Greenwood Press, 2007.

Fiction:
__Three Complete Novels: Contagion, Invasion, Chromosome 6__ by Cook, Robin (G.P. Putnam's Sons,1999) //Contagion// addresses the consequences of managed healthcare in an age when even the wariest consumer may be at risk, while a sinister cabal involved with unacceptable medical ethics provides the backdrop for //Chromosome// 6. //Invasion// explores a sudden outbreak of a disease unlike anything humankind has ever seen.

__Cause of Death__ by Patricia Cornwell (Berkley Books,1997) A labyrinthine case wraps a web of danger around those closest to Dr. Kay Scarpetta and threatens to wreak fear and death far beyond the confines of Virginia. New Year's Eve and the final murder scene of Virginia's bloodiest year since the Civil War takes her thirty feet below the Elizabeth River's icy surface to investigate the death of a scuba diver.

__Next__ by Michael Crichton (HarperCollins, 2006) Ina time when one fifth of all our genes are owned by someone else, and an unsuspecting person and his family can be pursued cross-country because they happen to have certain valuable genes within their chromosomes, //Next// blends fact and fiction into a breathless tale of a new world where nothing is what it seems and a set of new possibilities can open at every turn.

__Never Let Me Go__ by Kauzo Ishiguro (Faber and Faber, 2005) Kathy, Ruth and Tommy were pupils at Hallsham, an idyllic establishment situated deep in the English countryside. The children there were tenderly sheltered from the outside world, brought up to believe they were special, and that their personal welfare was crucial. But for what reason were they really there?

__My Sister's Keeper: A Novel__ by Jodi Picoult (Washington Square Press, 2005) Anna is not sick, but she might as well be. She is a teen conceived as a bone marrow match for her sister, beginning to question who she really is.

__Behemoth__ by Scott Westerfeld (Simon Pulse, 2010) Continues the story of Austrian Prince Alek who, in an alternate 1914 Europe, eludes the Germans by traveling in the Leviathan to Constantinople, where he faces a whole new kind of genetically-engineered warships.

__Regenesis__ by C.J. Cherryh (Dae Books, 2009) Ari Two, the genetic clone of Ariane Emory, the scientific genius who served as head of ReseuneLabs and the Bureau of Science on the planetary hub of Cyteen before her murder, has all the resources she needs to carry on her predecessor's work, but finds herself consumed with efforts to save her own life from a killer who is still at large.

__The Gardener__ by S.A. Bodeen (Feiwel and Friends, 2010) When high school sophomore Mason finds a beautiful but catatonic girl in the nursing home where his mother works, the discovery leads him to revelations about a series of disturbing human experiments that have a connection to his own life.

__Cure__ by Robin Cook (Putnam's, 2010) New York City medical examiner Laurie Montgomery returns to work to investigate the mysterious death of CIA agent Kevin Markham, and questions why the toxicology report doesn't agree with her suspicions that he was poisoned.

• Print:
//Biology Digest// from Plexus Publishing is a comprehensive abstracts journal covering more than 200 journals in all the life sciences. Each monthly issue contains over 300 abstracts which are, in essence, individual digests of articles and research reports gathered from worldwide sources. Important information is retained in the abstracts to give a precise, inclusive summary of the original material.

• Online via NOVEL's Gale Databases:
DePalma, Angelo. "The molecule: the big picture." //Bioscience Technology// 30.12 (Dec 2005): 10(3). //Business and Company ASAP//. Thomson Gale. NYC CSD #72-Bronx High Sch of Science. 2 Feb. 2007< . Williams, Elizabeth A. "Biology." //Europe////, 1450 to 1789: Encyclopedia of the Early Modern World//. Ed. Jonathan Dewald. Vol. 1. New York: Charles Scribner's Sons, 2004. 265-268. 6 vols. //Gale Virtual Reference Library//. Thomson Gale. NYC CSD #72-Bronx High Sch of Science. 2 Feb. 2007 .

//ScienceDirect// [|http://www.sciencedirect.com] Offers more than a quarter of the world's scientific, medical and technical information online. Over 2,000 peer-reviewed journals, hundreds of book series, handbooks and reference works--all back to volume one, issue one.
 * Databases:**

Web Sites:
//Actionbioscience// [|http://www.actionbioscience.org] Provides articles by scientists, science educators, and science students on issues related to seven bioscience challenges: environment, biodiversity, genome, biotechnology, evolution, new frontiers, and bioscience education.

//Biology Project// [|http://www.biology.arizona.edu] Designed for high school and college biology students, this site has problem sets and tutorials in Biochemistry, Cell Biology, Chemicals and Human Health, Developmental Biology, Human Biology, Immunology, Mendelian Genetics, and Molecular Biology. Some modules are available in Spanish.

//Biozone BioLinks// http://www.biozone.co.nz/links.html Over 500 links that cover biology, biotechnology, diseases, evolution and microbiology.

//DNA Interactive// http://www.dnai.org/index.html This site is divided into: Timeline; Code (what is it); Manipulation (how do you work with it); Genome (analyzing, mapping, sequencing); Applications (how DNA applies to healthcare and our past); and Chronicle (using knowledge responsibly, can we do it?). [Flash required]

Videos/DVDs:
__Elements of Biology__. DVD (6 videodiscs). Discovery Channel School, 2006. Includes "Biological Evolution," "Biomes," "Organisms and their Environment," "Genetics," "Organization in Living Systems," and "Cells".

EdVideo:
//What Is Biology?// http://www.powermediaplus.com/player.asp?mediaID=1116 Takes a broad-ranging look at the many different areas of biology (marine biology, wildlife biology, genetics, molecular biology, and more) and profiles many scientific accomplishments of biologists, including Darwin, Mendel, Watson, and Crick. 27 min.

//Careers in Biology// http://www.powermediaplus.com/player.asp?mediaID=1094 Spark student interest in the field of biology with this helpful program, which surveys different careers in science. 18 min.

Community Resources:
//American Museum of Natural Science// [|http://www.amnh.org] The museum includes The Institute for Comparative Genomics, The Division of Physical Sciences, The C. V. Starr Natural Science Building, The Center for Biodiversity and Conservation, and more.

//SIBL// http://www.nypl.org/research/sibl/index.html New York Public Library for research in science, industry and business.

Curriculum Standards Related to This Topic:
//New York// //State// //Learning Standard 4: Science// //(Commencement) The Living Environment// 1. Living things are both similar to and different from each other and nonliving things. 2. Organisms inherit genetic information in a variety of ways that result in continuity of structure and function between parents and offspring. 3. Individual organisms and species change over time. 4. The continuity of life is sustained through reproduction and development. 5. Organisms maintain a dynamic equilibrium that sustains life. 6. Plants and animals depend on each other and their physical environment. 7. Human decisions and activities have had a profound impact on the physical and living environment.