Description

For introductory courses for biology majors.

Uniquely engages biology students in active learning, scientific thinking, and skill development.

Scott Freeman’s Biological Science is beloved for its Socratic narrative style, its emphasis on experimental evidence, and its dedication to active learning. Science education research indicates that true mastery of content requires a move away from memorisation towards active engagement with the material in a focused, personal way. Biological Science is designed to equip students with strategies to assess their level of understanding and identify the types of cognitive skills that need improvement.

With the 6th Edition, content has been streamlined with an emphasis on core concepts and core competencies from the Vision and Change in Undergraduate Biology Education report. The text’s unique BioSkills section is now placed after Chapter 1 to help students develop key skills needed to become a scientist, new “Making Models” boxes guide learners in interpreting and creating models, and new “Put It all Together” case studies conclude each chapter and help students see connections between chapter content and current, real-world research questions. New, engaging content includes updated coverage of global climate change, advances in genomic editing, and recent insights into the evolution of land plants.

Features

Develop skills-based learning in biology : Building on the extensive skills instruction in previous editions, the 6th Edition places an even greater emphasis on developing important science skills that reinforce concepts in biology.

• Unique BioSkills reference section is now placed earlier in the text to draw attention to key skills students need to succeed in biology. Previously located in an appendix at the end of the text, this easy-to-find reference material now follows Chapter 1 to better support the development of skills throughout the course. Each BioSkill includes practice exercises in the book
  • Opening roadmap introduces the BioSkills section and places science skills in context with student success in biology.
  • BioSkill on Reading and Making Visual Models teaches students how to interpret visual models and how to create their own models to visualise and understand biology concepts.
  • BioSkill on Recognising and Correcting Misconceptions alerts students to ways that preconceptions about ideas can hinder their understanding of biology. This BioSkill helps students develop metacognition about misconceptions, and it provides some strategies students can employ throughout the course to avoid common pitfalls.
  • EXPANDED! BioSkill on Interpreting Standard Error Bars and Using Statistical Tests includes a new discussion of commonly used tests, such as Chi square, t-test, and analysis of variance (ANOVA). A new section discusses interpreting P values and statistical significance.
  • BioSkill on Using Spectrophotometry covers this technique that is commonly taught and used in introductory labs.
  • BioSkill on Using Molecular Biology Tools and Techniques relocates material previously covered in genetics chapters. Coverage includes Making and Using DNA Libraries, PCR, Dideoxy Sequencing, Shotgun Sequencing, and DNA Microarray.
• Unique Making Models boxes appear at strategic points throughout chapters to guide students in deepening their understanding of biology concepts by learning how to interpret and create visual models.
  • Brief, easy-to-follow instructions are provided in each Making Models box, including a short introduction that describes how to make a useful drawing, a simple sketch that models how to draw the concepts, and an activity question that prompts students to create their own model or modify the example sketch.
• Additional quantitative questions have been added throughout the text, and are labeled for easy identification to encourage students to practice quantitative reasoning skills. Engage students in scientific inquiry and active problem-solving: Throughout every chapter, the authors emphasise the scientific process and prompt students to think like a scientist.
• End-of-chapter case studies appear in every chapter and provide a brief summary of contemporary biology research in action. Titled “Put It All Together,” each case study helps students connect what they learn in class with current, real-world biology research questions.
  • Case study questions ask students to synthesise and apply their knowledge of chapter concepts. Each case study includes at least one question that requires students to analyse real data or apply quantitative skills.
  • Classroom activity questions are available for clickers and in Learning Catalytics to help instructors easily incorporate the case studies into their classroom teaching.
• A wide variety of practice que

New to this Edition

Develop skills-based learning in biology : Building on the extensive skills instruction in previous editions, the Sixth Edition places an even greater emphasis on developing important science skills that reinforce concepts in biology.

• Unique BioSkills reference section is now placed earlier in the text to draw attention to key skills students need to succeed in biology. Previously located in an appendix at the end of the text, this easy-to-find reference material now follows Chapter 1 to better support the development of skills throughout the course. Each BioSkill includes practice exercises in the book and in MasteringBiology that reinforce each skill.
  • Opening roadmap introduces the BioSkills section and places science skills in context with student success in biology.
  • BioSkill on Reading and Making Visual Models teaches students how to interpret visual models and how to create their own models to visualize and understand biology concepts.
  • BioSkill on Recognizing and Correcting Misconceptions alerts students to ways that preconceptions about ideas can hinder their understanding of biology. This BioSkill helps students develop metacognition about misconceptions, and it provides some strategies students can employ throughout the course to avoid common pitfalls.
  • EXPANDED! BioSkill on Interpreting Standard Error Bars and Using Statistical Tests includes a new discussion of commonly used tests, such as Chi square, t-test, and analysis of variance (ANOVA). A new section discusses interpreting P values and statistical significance.
  • BioSkill on Using Spectrophotometry covers this technique that is commonly taught and used in introductory labs.
  • BioSkill on Using Molecular Biology Tools and Techniques relocates material previously covered in genetics chapters. Coverage includes Making and Using DNA Libraries, PCR, Dideoxy Sequencing, Shotgun Sequencing, and DNA Microarray.
• Unique Making Models boxes appear at strategic points throughout chapters to guide students in deepening their understanding of biology concepts by learning how to interpret and create visual models.
  • Brief, easy-to-follow instructions are provided in each Making Models box, including a short introduction that describes how to make a useful drawing, a simple sketch that models how to draw the concepts, and an activity questionthat prompts students to create their own model or modify the example sketch.
  • Interactive whiteboard videos accompany each Making Models box to deepen the learning and to dynamically show students how to build visual models. Students can access the videos via QR codes, through the eText, or in the Study Area of MasteringBiology.
• MORE! Additional quantitative questions have been added throughout the text, and are labeled for easy identification to encourage students to practice quantitative reasoning skills. These questions are available for auto-graded assignments in MasteringBiology.

Engage students in scientific inquiry and active problem-solving : Throughout every chapter, the authors emphasize the scientific process and prompt students to think like a scientist.

• End-of-chapter case studies appear in every chapter and provide a brief summary of contemporary biology research in action. Titled “Put It All Together,” each case study helps students connect what they learn in class with current, real-world biology research questions.
  • Case study questions ask students to synthesize an

Table of Contents

• 1. Biology and the Tree of Life
• BioSkills
• I. THE MOLECULAR ORGIN AND EVOLUTION OF LIFE
• 2. Water and Carbon: The Chemical Basis of Life
• 3. Protein Structure and Function
• 4. Nucleic Acids and the RNA World
• 5. An Introduction to Carbohydrates
• 6. Lipids, Membranes, and the First Cells
• II. CELL STRUCTURE AND FUNCTION
• 7. Inside the Cell
• 8. Energy and Enzymes: An Introduction to Metabolism
• 9. Cellular Respiration and Fermentation
• 10. Photosynthesis
• 11. Cell-Cell Interactions
• 12. The Cell Cycle
• III. GENE STRUCTURE AND EXPRESSION
• 13. Meiosis
• 14. Mendel and the Gene
• 15. DNA and the Gene: Synthesis and Repair
• 16. How Genes Work
• 17. Transcription, RNA Processing, and Translation
• 18. Control of Gene Expression in Bacteria
• 19. Control of Gene Expression in Eukaryotes
• 20. The Molecular Revolution: Biotechnology and Beyond
• 21. gGenes, Development, and Evolution
• IV. EVOLUTIONARY PATTERNS AND PROCESSES
• 22. Evolution by Natural Selection
• 23. Evolutionary Processes
• 24. Speciation
• 25. Phylogenies and the History of Life
• V. THE DIVERSIFICATION OF LIFE
• 26. Bacteria and Archaea
• 27. Protists
• 28. Green Algae and Land Plants
• 29. Fungi
• 30. An Introduction to Animals
• 31. Protostome Animals
• 32. Deuterostome Animals
• 33. Viruses
• VI. HOW PLANTS WORK
• 34. Plant Form and Function
• 35. Water and Sugar Transport in Plants
• 36. Plant Nutrition
• 37. Plant Sensory Systems, Signals, and Responses
• 38. Plant Reproduction and Development
• VII. HOW ANIMALS WORK
• 39. Animal Form and Function
• 40. Water and Electrolyte Balance in Animals
• 41. Animal Nutrition
• 42. Gas Exchange and Circulation
• 43. Animal Nervous Systems
• 44. Animal Sensory Systems
• 45 Animal Movement
• 46. Chemical Signals in Animals
• 47. Animal Reproduction and Development
• 48. The Immune System in Animals
• VIII. ECOLOGY
• 49. An Introduction to Ecology
• 50. Behavioral Ecology
• 51. Population Ecology
• 52. Community Ecology
• 53. Ecosystems and Global Ecology
• 54. Biodiversity and Conservation Biology