Introductory Plant Biology [Hardcover]

Kingsley R Stern (Author), Jim Bidlack (Author), Shelley Jansky (Author), Kingsley Stern (Author)

Book Description

ISBN-10: 0072930381 | ISBN-13: 978-0072930382 | Publication Date: April 23, 2003 | Edition: 9

This introductory text assumes little prior scientific knowledge on the part of the student. It includes sufficient information for some shorter introductory botany courses open to both majors and nonmajors, and is arranged so that certain sections can be omitted without disrupting the overall continuity of the course. Stern emphasizes current interests ethnobotanical while presenting basic botanical principles.

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Kingsley Stern is currently Professor Emeritus of Botany at California State University, Chico. He received his Ph.D. in botany from the University of Minnesota. He is a member of the Botanical Society of America, American Society of Plant Taxonomists, and the California Botanical Society.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 640 pages
• Publisher: McGraw-Hill Science/Engineering/Math; 9 edition (April 23, 2003)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0072930381
• ISBN-13: 978-0072930382
• Product Dimensions: 10.9 x 8.7 x 1.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 3.2 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (12 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #40,079 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #36 in Books > Professional & Technical > Professional Science > Biological Sciences > Botany

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

11 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Introductory Plant Biology, 8th Edition, January 24, 2000

By 

Erica Kipp (USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Introductory Plant Biology (California State University - chico) (Hardcover)

This text offers students a solid introduction to the plant sciences. At an undergraduate level, the text material is well complimented by diagrams, photos, and drawings. Each chapter begins with a chapter outline and ends with review questions, discussion questions, chapter summaries, and additional readings. The on-line student resources (available via McGraw-Hill Higher Education site) offer weblinks, chapter quizzes, flash cards, and other study aids. This latest edition has an additional chapter on biomes, an expanded biotechnology chapter, etc. I did not find chapter 22, the gymnosperms, to be full of the inaccuracies stated by a previous reviewer. Cycads are plainly listed as the cycadophyta division; ginkgo in ginkgophyta, etc. While no text is perfect, this introductory text comes close and is my chosen text for both the continuing education and the undergraduate botany courses that I teach.

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Great Introductory Botany Text, February 7, 2004

By A Customer

This review is from: Introductory Plant Biology (Hardcover)

Introductory Plant Biology is a classic and continues to improve with each edition. I've used several editions and have always been pleased to see that it is one of the few textbooks that actually contains pertinent and updated information. The artwork is easy-to-understand. The straightforwardness and clarity of cell biology, metabolic schemes, genetics, and especially life cycles are what make this book a success. This 9th Edition of Introductory Plant Biology is the best yet. I've used several college botany textbooks and this is the most straightforward, accurate, error-free, and current book on the market. There are some new authors - Drs. Jansky and Bidlack - who have joined with Stern in this edition. They write like Stern and that makes the book flow very well. The new cell, metabolism, genetics, and biotechnology chapters bring the book up-to-date. And, as expected, Stern et al. have put together the most current taxonomic treatment of plant-related kingdoms on the market. This has been, and continues to be, the only botany textbook that my students read and understand.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A very good intro to Botany book!, September 17, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: Introductory Plant Biology (Ed) (Paperback)

This book provides a very good introductory lesson to Botany. Being an introductory book, it is 100 miles wide and 1 inch deep. It covers quite a bit of material that stretches the mind of someone with a little science background and certainly presents a challenge for those without any background. No introductory book will be right on target with everything; as for systematics, there are two sides to every issue and this book claims one side of the classifications controversy.