Microbe (Paperback)

~ Moselio Schaechter (Author), John L. Ingraham (Author), Frederick C. Neidhardt (Author) "Most living things are microbes, organisms not visible to the unaided eye; the organisms that are visible are a small minority..." (more)
Key Phrases: fueling pathways, transcriptional monitoring, microbes and human history, United States, Conclusions Study, Pol Ill (more...)

Editorial Reviews

Product Description

"Microbe", a brand-new, general microbiology textbook intended for upper-division undergraduate and beginning graduate courses, is an exciting introduction to the world of microbes. With a distinct ecological and evolutionary orientation, "Microbe" invites readers to partake of the most current advances in the field. Written by prominent scientists with practical teaching, textbook writing, and research experience, this new textbook will engage students in the learning process with its clear, reader-friendly style and unique perspective of the field. This work: emphasizes the roles of microbes in sustaining all life on Earth; presents paradigm-driven material in a clear, reader-friendly style; deals with the complexities of medical microbiology from the standpoint of both the microbe and its human host; provides unifying frameworks for understanding microbial metabolism and physiology; offers study questions at the end of each chapter for reinforcement of material covered; and, features companion Web site with valuable student resources that is regularly updated by authors.

Product Details

• Paperback: 534 pages
• Publisher: ASM Press; 1 edition (November 30, 2005)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1555813208
• ISBN-13: 978-1555813208
• Product Dimensions: 10.8 x 8.5 x 1.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 3.4 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (5 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #531,226 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

5 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars An Interesting Introduction, February 19, 2007

By	Merry C. Youle (Ocean View, HI United States) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

Reading the previous reviews, it is evident that each reviewer's rating directly reflected what they had been seeking in this book. Any textbook that attempts to cover the field of microbiology is destined to be "superficial." The terrain is vast, including all three domains of life as well as the viruses. In this case, the authors intention, as stated in the preface, was to emphasize concepts and to provide an interesting introduction to the field in a book of moderate length. They have indeed done that. If every college student, whatever their major field of study, understood the microbial world as presented in this book, we would be able to collectively make better choices in many areas which affect the well-being of our species and the planet, including medicine, agriculture, and resource management. And we would feel more at home on this living Earth.

3 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Very readable, February 16, 2007

By	BoardGamer - See all my reviews

I used this textbook as the basis for my Microbiology course this year as it presents core concepts in very readable language. I supplemented it with more specific, in depth reading and lectures on specific topics associated with each chapter. My students loved the book (though they hated the price!). This is not the typical encyclopedic microbiology text we are used to seeing and thank goodness!

5 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars horrible, horrible textbook, November 28, 2006

By	a medical student (USA) - See all my reviews

I had to buy this book for a microbiology class, and I've now resorted to trying to supplement all the assigned readings with bits of last year's textbook borrowed from a friend. First, this book is very superficial - it doesn't have a serious amount of information on anything. It looks like a book for children compared to the old, traditional textbook. There is a graphic in the margins suggesting the reader visit a website for supplemental info every few pages, but I shouldn't have to be sitting at a computer to read a textbook. There are 3 inches of blank margin, why didn't they just print the information there? It wouldn't be "cutting-edge" enough?
Further, I hope the previous reviewer didn't try too hard to learn molecular bio from this, because it's riddled with errors. Our prof told us to cross out a whole page of fueling diagrams because they were so wrong it was beyond saving. Another page shows glycolysis making ATP in the first step (that's way more awesome than that old-fashioned glycolysis cycle I learned last year in biochem!) Another page says reduction when it means oxidation. Another page miscategorizes Pseudomonas as a hydrogen bacteria. And that's all in chapter 6 alone! There are also constant grammar and punctuation errors, which are inexcusable and distracting, but not as scary as all the wrong info.