In 1957 two young scientists, Matthew Meselson and Frank Stahl, produced a landmark experiment confirming that DNA replicates as predicted by the double helix structure Watson and Crick had recently proposed. It also gained immediate renown as a “most beautiful” experiment whose beauty was tied to its simplicity. Yet the investigative path that led to the experiment was anything but simple, Frederic L. Holmes shows in this masterful account of Meselson and Stahl’s quest. This book vividly reconstructs the complex route that led to the Meselson-Stahl experiment and provides an inside view of day-to-day scientific research--its unpredictability, excitement, intellectual challenge, and serendipitous windfalls, as well as its frustrations, unexpected diversions away from original plans, and chronic uncertainty. Holmes uses research logs, experimental films, correspondence, and interviews with the participants to record the history of Meselson and Stahl’s research, from their first thinking about the problem through the publication of their dramatic results. Holmes also reviews the scientific community’s reception of the experiment, the experiment’s influence on later investigations, and the reasons for its reputation as an exceptionally beautiful experiment.

Biology for AP® courses covers the scope and sequence requirements of a typical two-semester Advanced Placement® biology course. The text provides comprehensive coverage of foundational research and core biology concepts through an evolutionary lens. Biology for AP® Courses was designed to meet and exceed the requirements of the College Board’s AP® Biology framework while allowing significant flexibility for instructors. Each section of the book includes an introduction based on the AP® curriculum and includes rich features that engage students in scientific practice and AP® test preparation; it also highlights careers and research opportunities in biological sciences.

"Yet another cell and molecular biology book? At the very least, you would think that if I was going to write a textbook, I should write one in an area that really needs one instead of a subject that already has multiple excellent and definitive books. So, why write this book, then? First, it's a course that I have enjoyed teaching for many years, so I am very familiar with what a student really needs to take away from this class within the time constraints of a semester. Second, because it is a course that many students take, there is a greater opportunity to make an impact on more students' pocketbooks than if I were to start off writing a book for a highly specialized upper- level course. And finally, it was fun to research and write, and can be revised easily for inclusion as part of our next textbook, High School Biology."--Open Textbook Library.

Forty years ago, three medical researchers--Oswald Avery, Colin MacLeod, and Maclyn McCarty--made the discovery that DNA is the genetic material. With this finding was born the modern era of molecular biology and genetics.

Bioinformatics, which can be defined as the application of computer science and information technology to the field of biology and medicine, has been rapidly developing over the past few decades. It generates new knowledge as well as the computational tools to create that knowledge. Understanding the basic processes in living organisms is therefore indispensable for bioinformaticians. This book addresses beginners in molecular biology, especially computer scientists who would like to work as bioinformaticians. It presents basic processes in living organisms in a condensed manner. Additionally, principles of several high-throughput technologies in molecular biology, which need the assistance of bioinformaticians, are explained from a biological point of view. It is structured in the following 9 chapters: cells and viruses; protein structure and function; nucleic acids; DNA replication, mutations, and repair; transcription and posttranscriptional processes; synthesis and posttranslational modifications of proteins; cell division; cell signaling pathways; and high-throughput technologies in molecular biology.

Landmark Experiments in Molecular Biology critically considers breakthrough experiments that have constituted major turning points in the birth and evolution of molecular biology. These experiments laid the foundations to molecular biology by uncovering the major players in the machinery of inheritance and biological information handling such as DNA, RNA, ribosomes, and proteins. Landmark Experiments in Molecular Biology combines an historical survey of the development of ideas, theories, and profiles of leading scientists with detailed scientific and technical analysis. Includes detailed analysis of classically designed and executed experiments Incorporates technical and scientific analysis along with historical background for a robust understanding of molecular biology discoveries Provides critical analysis of the history of molecular biology to inform the future of scientific discovery Examines the machinery of inheritance and biological information handling