Biology of Humans Concepts, Applications, and Issues

Known for its unique “Special Topic” chapters and emphasis on everyday health concerns, the Fifth Edition of Biology of Humans: Concepts, Applications, and Issues continues to personalize the study of human biology with a conversational writing style, stunning art, abundant applications, and tools to help you develop critical-thinking skills. The authors give you a practical and friendly introduction for understanding how their bodies work and for preparing them to navigate today’s world of rapidly expanding—and shifting—health information. 

Each chapter now opens with new “Did You Know?” questions that pique your interest with intriguing and little-known facts about the topic that follows. The Fifth Edition also features a new “Special Topic” chapter (1a) titled “Becoming a Patient: A Major Decision,” which discusses how to select a doctor and/or a hospital, how to research health conditions, and more.

Judith Goodenough

Judith received her B.S. in biology from Wagner College (Staten Island, NY) and her doctorate in biology from New York University. She has more than 35 years of teaching experience at the University of Massachusetts, Amherst, until recently specializing in introductory level courses. In 2009, she was selected as a College of Natural Sciences Fellow for Blended Learning and developed a hybrid course in introductory physiology. The insights into student concerns and problems—gained from more than 30 years of teaching Human Biology and 20 years of team-teaching the Biology of Social Issues—have helped shape this book. In 1986, Judith was honored with a Distinguished Teaching Award from UMass. In addition to teaching, she has written articles in peer-reviewed journals, contributed chapters to several introductory biology texts, and written numerous laboratory manuals. With the author team of McGuire and Jakob, she wrote Perspectives on Animal Behavior, Third Edition.

Betty McGuire

Betty received her B.S. in biology from Pennsylvania State University, where she also played varsity basketball. She went on to receive an M.S. and Ph.D. in zoology from the University of Massachusetts, Amherst, and then spent 2 happy years as a postdoctoral researcher at the University of Illinois, Champaign-Urbana. Her field and laboratory research emphasize the social behavior and reproduction of small mammals. She has published more than 50 research papers, coauthored the text Perspectives on Animal Behavior as well as several introductory biology study guides and instructor manuals, and served as an associate editor for Mammalian Species, a publication of the American Society of Mammalogists. Betty taught Human Biology, Introductory Biology, Vertebrate Biology, and Animal Behavior at Smith College. She now teaches Mammalogy and Vertebrates: Structure, Function, and Evolution at Cornell University.

1. Humans in the World of Biology

1a. Special Topic: Becoming a Patient: A Major Decision

2. Chemistry Comes to Life

3. The Cell

4. Body Organization and Homeostasis

5. The Skeletal System

6. The Muscular System

7. Neurons: The Matter of the Mind

8. The Nervous System

8a. Special Topic: Drugs and the Mind

9. Sensory Systems

10. The Endocrine System

10a. Special Topic: Diabetes Mellitus

11. Blood

12. The Cardiovascular and Lymphatic System

12a. Special Topic: Cardiovascular Disease

13. Body Defense Mechanisms

13a. Special Topic: Infectious Disease

14. The Respiratory System

15. The Digestive System and Nutrition

15a. Special Topic: Food Safety and Defense

16. The Urinary System

17. Reproductive Systems

17a. Special Topic: Sexually Transmitted Diseases and AIDS

18. Development Through Life

18a. Special Topic: Autism Spectrum Disorder

19. Chromosomes and Cell Division

19a. Special Topic: Stem Cells—A Repair Kit for the Body

20. Genetics and Human Inheritance

21. DNA and Biotechnology

21a. Special Topic: Cancer

22. Evolution and Our Heritage

23. Ecology, The Environment, and Us

24. Human Populations, Limited Resources, and Pollution

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