Customer Reviews

Study Guide to accompany Cell and Molecular Biology: Concepts and Experiments, 4th Edition

5 star:		(14)
4 star:		(6)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

I've come to appreciate this book more and more over its succeeding editions. It has now replaced both the Alberts et al. and the Lodish et al. books (both nevertheless excellent) as my favorite textbook on cell and molecular biology.

It is concise, covers a very large range of subjects and has very clear graphics. I think it is better balanced than many of its competitors in the sense that the reader never gets the impression that the author sacrificed certain subjects to give more room to his favorite ones. On many occasions, I was surprised to find things in here that I couldn't find in the bigger (and more "fundamental") Alberts and Lodish.

It references papers and review articles that are very current, and is very up to date on its content.

I think Gerald Karp is doing a very good job with each new iteration of this book and I will recommend it to my students.

The book looks suspiciously skinny for a cell biology book but it really is so well written that the author made it comprehensive without being too wordy. Although lots of people swear by the Molecular Biology of the Cell, 4th Edition (Bruce Alberts et al... and I own that one too), I found it too wordy and not as fun to read. This book however is lucidly written and has everything that a graduate student or senior undergrad would need to know in Cell Biology.

I used Cell and Molecular Biology (I just called it Gerald Karp after the author) extensively during my undergrad and am still using it in graduate school (I'm getting my Masters in Microbiology).

Cell and Molecular Biology by Gerald Karp is surpassed only in diagram clarity and simplicity by Cooper and Hausman's "The Cell: A Molecular Approach" which has the best diagrams of all cell biology textbooks but is slightly less comprehensive (I own that one too!). The book is neatly arranged and the continuity of topics within a chapter and from chapter to chapter is very good unlike Molecular Biology of the Cell, 4th Edition.

Although sold separately for something like $38.00, the book has an associated study workbook sort of thing with it that is pretty good for testing your knowledge in the important and tricky concepts. For every chapter in the textbook there is a section of multiple choice questions, a section of experimental-data interpretation questions, a section of thought questions, and explain the role of each of the following" type questions. All questions except the thought questions come with answers. And there is a review of the key topics in the textbook for every chapter. I would greatly recommend buying the text and the study book together, especially if you're gearing to take exams like the Subject GRE.

This is one of the most complete and easy-to-read book ever! I have studied with Gerald Karp books since I was an undergraduate student (Biochemistry, and Karp book was always by my side, very useful). This book explain the cellular metabolism, structures (cytoskeleton, microtubules, filaments, genes,relations between genes and proteins, DNA repair, cell cycle, cell signalling, lot of concepts that are not easy to understand at first, Karp does it very simple. You will love this book. I can strongly recommend it. Another excellent book I can recommend is Molecular Biology of the CELL by Bruce Alberts....is excellent! and before you take an exam, I will suggest the "Outline of Molecular and Cell Biology" by the Schaum's series. Well, that's it for now, I wish you the best in your career (I have been there, I know how hard it can be and choose the proper books!) and always remember, keep working and practicing, because practice make the Master!! :)

All biology, biochemistry, and premed students will find this text an indispensible source of information for anything there is to know about cells. This is one text that can't possibly be read and fully understood overnight; just take a little bit at a time at any convenient moment and it will all come together in your mind before you know it!

Ranking books of this nature is an interesting proposition. First of all it depends while you are here looking at the book, if you need it as a textbook for a course and are looking for a bargain price it is a no brainer - just order it. If you are supplementing other books and you are in the field I think it is also a wise choice as it is very detailed, had great diagrams and is easy to follow.

If you are a not a molecular biologist, like me, and are simply keen to learn I think it is a brilliant book on the topic - understanding that this is not my specialty. I can imagine this does not solve all issues in the field, nor could any book, so I would not hesitate for one second in ordering this. I particularly have interest in the mitochondria and this wonderful book looks at this little organelle from many perspectives - so I am more than happy with this purchase.

What a great source

This book is being used by a 300+ level cell biology class at my university. I just want to say that if I had known how terrible of a study partner this text would be I would have never purchased it. As much as I appreciate the concept of learning a subject through past experiments, it just doesn't work for me. This is coming from a person who truly loves textbooks. In fact, most of the time I would rather read textbooks than listen to professors. Textbooks should present the material clearly and emphasize the important points. There is too much running text in paragraph form. Break it up! This is not supposed to be a dense novel about cell biology. If you wanted dense cell biology go read the Cell Journal. It is a pretty good journal too I might add. But! If you are looking for a guide to understanding cell biology look elsewhere. This is the only review I have ever written, and I mean every word of it. Hopefully a few professors out there will save their students some grief by looking at other options. One more thing... if you want a suggestion for a truly great textbook take a look at Charlie Janeway's Immunobiology. Not a cell bio textbook but by far the most helpful textbook I have ever had.

Another introductory book in the biology of the cell. I would say that the book is divided into mainly two sections, Cell structure and DANA, DANA replications etc. Second part takes almost two thirds of the book. I would prefer to read other Gene books when it comes to that point but for the cell structure, it is not bad. Some colored pictures, computer animations makes it easy to visualize things. Sections called "experimental pathways" scattered throughout the text takes you into current issues related to the subject. They are also quite sophisticated issues rather than practical problems. I think this book requires considerable guidance when read alone. I could not call this book as self sufficient or easy to read one compared to books by Alberts or Baltimore.

The explainations and concepts are well written in this textbook and Gerald Karp is a great author.
It can give you a lot of information about cell and molecular biology. A good book to keep if you are a bio major.

Hardback is in decent condition but the previous owner's name is written in Sharpie along the side and some notes are written in the text, contrary to the advertised condition.

I was really surprised at the cheap price I found this book for so I was a little sketchy when I ordered it, but the product is great! Saving money on any textbook while going through college is amazing!