AP Biology Workshop
AP Biology Summer Institute, RJ Patterson, Athens Academy
Some AP Biology Supplemental Materials
A. Molecules and Cells:
1. Darnell, Lodish & Baltimore. Molecular Cell Biology. Scientific American Books.
2. Stryer, Lubert. Biochemistry . W. H. Freeman.
3. DeRobertis & DeRobertis. Cell and Molecular Biology. Saunders College Publishing.
4. Alberts el al. The Molecular Biology of the Cell. Garland Publishing, Inc., 1994. (In depth information
about just about everything cellular. A great reference. You have to see the photo on the back cover)
5. Head, J. J. Student's Collection of Electron Micrographs. Carolina Biological Supply, 1976.
B. Genetics and Evolution:
Genetics:
1. Watson, J. The Molecular Biology of the Gene. W. A. Benjamin Inc.
2. Watson, Tooze & Kurtz. Recombinant DNA: A Short Course. Scientific American Books, 1983.
3. Ridley, Matt. Genome: The Autobiography of a Species in 23 Chapters. Harper Collins Publishers, 1999. Catch up quickly on new information from the Human Genome Project. Ridley selects one interesting gene from each chromosome and uses it to make an important point about inheritance and what it means to be human.
4. Ridley, Matt. Nature Via Nurture: Genes, Experience and What Makes Us Human. Harper Collins Publishers, 2003. Following the historical thread of the “nature vs. nature” debate, Ridley delves more deeply into the genetics of human behavior and personality. This is a fascinating book.
5. Maddox, Brenda. Rosalind Franklin: The Dark Lady of DNA. Harper Collins Publishers, 2002. This is the best biography of Rosalind Franklin yet written. Given access to Franklin’s personal letters helped the author to paint an accurate portrait of this amazing, and generally misunderstood, scientist.
6. Keller, E. F. A Feeling of the Organism: The Life and Work of Barbara McClintock. W. H. Freeman, 1983.
7. Watson, J. The Double Helix. Signet Book, 1968.
8. Watson, J. DNA: The Secret of Life. Alfred A. Knopf, New York, 2003. Written to bring the public up to speed on the 50th anniversary of the discovery of the double helix, the insights one gets from reading this book into how the science of genetics has unfolded, especially over the last five decades is quite good. Strongly recommended.
9. Crick, Francis. What Mad Pursuit: A Personal View of Scientific Discovery. New York: Basic Books, Inc., 1988. Crick discusses the breaking of the genetic code and other autobiographical matters. Kids can read this.
10. Weiner, Jonathan. Time, Love, Memory: A Great Biologist and His Quest for the Origins of Behavior. Vintage Books, New York, 1999. This is about Nobel Prize winner, Seymour Benzer, and other Drosophila geneticists’ quest for the understanding of genes governing behavior. Sounds dry, but it’s a great read.
11. Judson, Horace Freeland. The Eighth Day of Creation. New York: Touchstone, 1979. A superbly written history of the molecular biology revolution starting with Watson and Crick’s discovery of the structure of DNA in 1953 and covering what happened over the next 25 years. If you want to know more about the scientists, what they were like, and what they each contributed to our understanding of molecular biology, this is the book for you. A long, dense, well-written book.
12. FILM: Double Helix (or “Life Story”). “This fast-paced classic dramatization starring well-known actor Jeff Goldblum is about the race to solve one of the greatest mysteries of 20th-century science—the structure of DNA. It is the story of the diligent research, creative analysis, and perseverance of James Watson and Francis Crick that led to the discovery. With the help of their colleague, Maurice Wilkins, they also earned the 1962 Nobel Prize. Students of biology and genetics will benefit from the process of problem-solving used to identify the structure of DNA, as well as the clear, concise summary of research evidence. A BBC Production.” Kids really like it.
Go to this website: http://ffh.films.com/id/9491/Double_Helix.htm $149.00
13. Gonick, Larry. A Cartoon Guide to Genetics. Harper Collins, 1991. Fun and quite useful for overheads.
Evolution:
1. Dobzhansky, Ayala, Stebbins & Valentine. Evolution. W. H. Freeman, 1977.
2. Stanley, S. The New Evolutionary Timetable. Basic Books, 1981.
3. Margulis, L. Symbiosis in Cell Evolution. W. H. Freeman, 1981.
4. Smith, J. M. (Ed.). Evolution Now: A Century After Darwin. W. H. Freeman, 1982.
5. Gould, S. J. Ontogeny and Phylogeny. Belknap/Harvard, 1977.
6. Mayr, E. The Growth of Biological Thought: Diversity, Evolution, and Inheritance. Belknap/Harvard, 1982.
7. Mayr, E. Toward a New Philosophy of Biology: Observations of an Evolutionist. Belknap/Harvard, 1988.
8. Mayr, E. One Long Argument: Charles Darwin and the Genesis of Modern Evolutionary Thought. Harvard University Press, 1991. A brief, readable history of Darwin’s theory from its original publication which caused the “first scientific revolution” up to and beyond the “second revolution” when naturalists and geneticists reached consensus in the 1930’s. Mayr just celebrated his 100th birthday—he lived this stuff.
9. Hardin, G. Nature and Man's Fate. Mentor Book, 1959.
10. Eiseley, L. Darwin's Century: Evolution and the Men Who Discovered It. Doubleday Anchor Book, 1961.
11. Gould, S. J. The Panda's Thumb, Hen's Teeth and Horse's Toes, Ever Since Darwin, The Flamingo's Smile, and
many others. W. W. Norton & Co.
12. Gould, S. J. Time's Arrow, Time's Cycle. Harvard University Press, 1987.
13. Gould, S. J. Wonderful Life: The Burgess Shale and the Nature of History. Norton, 1989.
14. Attenborough, D. Life on Earth. Little, Brown, 1979.
15. Simpson, G. G. Fossils and the History of Life. Scientific American Library, 1983-
16. Stein, Sara. The Evolution Book. Workman Publishing, 1986. {for 10-14 yrs.}
17. Science and Creationism: A View from the National Academy of Sciences. National Academy Press, 1984.
18. Adridge, N. The Monkey Business: A Scientist Looks at Creationism. Washington Square Press, 1982. (Kids can read this easily. Well written)
19. Futuyma, D. Science on Trial: The Case for Evolution. Pantheon Books, 1983.
20. Godfrey, L. (Ed.). Scientists Confront Creationism. W. W. Norton & Co., 1983.
21. Kitcher, P. Abusing Science: The Case Against Creationism. The MTT Press, 1982. (A scholarly view of the controversy by a philosopher of science. Very well done. Mostly college-level reading)
22. Skehan, James W. Modern Science and the Book of Genesis. NSTA, 1986.
23. Ruse, Michael. Taking Darwin Seriously. Basil Blackwell Ltd., 1986.
24. Desmond, Adrian & Moore, James. Darwin: The Life of a Tormented Evolutionist. Warner Books, 1991.
(A phenomenally thorough (long) and scholarly work. Quotes from Darwin's letters to his wife Emma as their favorite daughter was dying a lingering death are heart-wrenching and a stalk reminder of the nature of medicine at that time and perhaps why he became an atheist)
25. Larson, Edward. Summer for the Gods: The Scopes Trial and America's Continuing Debate over Science and
Religion. Basic Books, 1997. This book won a 1998 Pulitzer Prize. This is the real story of the Scopes trial. If you like to read about history, Larson’s story gives you a thorough look at the political, scientific, journalistic, legal and cultural climate of the 1920’s. This is an excellent book, if you like to read about history.
26. Larson, Edward. Evolution’s Workshop: God and Science of the Galapagos Islands. Basic Books, 2001. Larson examines the history of scientific investigation of this remarkable archipelago from pre-Darwinian times to the huge numbers of scientists and eco-tourists of today. It is a wonder there is a single tortoise left alive. Only Larson could make this topic interesting. Not an engrossing page-turner, however.
27. Larson, Edward. Evolution: The Remarkable History of a Scientific Theory. Modern Library Cronicles Book, 2004. Very small book with Larson’s good writing. (Similar to Mayr’s book #8 above.)
28. Dawkins, Richard. The Selfish Gene. Oxford University Press, 1976. A classic.
29. Dawkins, Richard. The Blind Watchmaker. W. W. Norton, 1987. Also see Climbing Mount Improbable. Dawkins gives an eloquent defense of natural selection as a mechanism capable of producing the diversity of “well-designed” life forms on earth today.
30. Edey, M. and Johanson, D. Blueprints: Solving the Mystery of Evolution. Penguin Books, 1989. A wonderful
look at the personalities involved in the development of evolutionary science and their stories.
31. Carroll, Sean B. Endless Forms Most Beautiful: The New Science of Evo Devo. W. W. Norton, 2005. An outstanding introduction to this new branch of evolutionary biology. “Carroll, a genetics professor at the University of Wisconsin–Madison, guides us along the broad contours of development and the ways in which its study sheds light on the underlying mechanisms of evolution. He explains in concrete terms how small changes in the genetic code of a given species can lead to dramatic differences in physiology is the ‘missing piece’ of evolutionary theory.”
32. Carroll, Sean B. The Making of the Fittest: DNA and the Ultimate Forensic Record of Evolution. W. W. Norton, 2006. DNA evidence is the most reliable and trusted evidence one can use these days in a criminal or civil trial. It is now providing some of the best evidence for evolutionary theory available.
33. Carroll, Sean B. Into the Jungle: Great Adventures in the Search for Evolution. Pearson/Benjamin Cummings, San Francisco, CA, 2009. The book invites students to step into the lives of naturalists who followed their dreams, and often risked their lives, to explore the unknown and who made some of the most important discoveries that have shaped our understanding of how life has evolved. Written for high school kids.
34. Eldredge, Niles. The Triumph of Evolution; The Failure of Creationism. W. H. Freeman, New York, 2000
35. Weiner, Jonathan. The Beak of the Finch. Vintage Books, New York, 1996. This won a Pulitzer Prize and tells about Peter and Rosemary Grant’s 25 years of research conducted on the Galapagos Islands into finch evolution. (Also see #8 above by Weiner)
36. Miller, Kenneth. Finding Darwin's God: A Scientist's Search for Common Ground Between God and Evolution. Harper Collins, 1999. “Miller, professor of biology at Brown University, believes firmly in evolution. He also believes in God--a belief not widely shared among scientists. Here he sets out to offer thoughts on how to reconcile the conflict many people see between the two positions. A tremendous response to the claims of Intelligent Design Creationism.” AP Biology kids like this book.
37. Shubin, Neil. Your Inner Fish. From Amazon: “Neil Shubin, a leading paleontologist and professor of anatomy who discovered Tiktaalik—the "missing link" that made headlines around the world in April 2006—tells the story of evolution by tracing the organs of the human body back millions of years, long before the first creatures walked the earth. By examining fossils and DNA, Shubin shows us that our hands actually resemble fish fins, our head is organized like that of a long-extinct jawless fish, and major parts of our genome look and function like those of worms and bacteria. Shubin makes us see ourselves and our world in a completely new light. Your Inner Fish is science writing at its finest—enlightening, accessible, and told with irresistible enthusiasm.” Highly recommended—an excellent, informative read for any biology teacher. This is my summer reading assignment for my AP Biology students.
38. Collins, Francis. The Language of God: A Scientist Presents Evidence for Belief. Simon & Schuster, 2006. Francis Collins is the head of the Human Genome Project. His “faith in God has been confirmed and enhanced by the revolutionary discoveries in biology that he has helped to oversee. He has absorbed the arguments for atheism of many scientists and pundits, and he can refute them. Darwinian evolution occurs, yet, as he explains, it cannot fully explain human nature -- evolution can and must be directed by God. He offers an inspiring tour of the human genome to show the miraculous nature of God's instruction book.”
39. Prothero, Donald. Evolution: What the Fossils Say and Why It Matters. A very thorough and thoughtful book about the extensive evidence for evolutionary change contained in the fossil record.
40. Hosler, Jay with Kevin and Zander Cannon, (illustrators). Evolution: The Story of Life on Earth. This is a hard-backed comic book written like a graphic novel. From Eugenie C. Scott, Ex. Dir. Natl Center for Sci Education, “This serious comic book manages to be fun and entertaining as well as accurate. …Readers will sort out the humor and snark from the science! The story of evolution on earth has rarely been presented in quite so entertaining a manner.”
C. Organisms and Populations:
1. Raven et al. The Biology of Plants. Worth.
2. Schlossberg & Zuidema. The Johns Hopkins Atlas of Human Functional Anatomy. Johns Hopkins Univ. Press.
3. The Anatomy Coloring Book, The Zoology Coloring Book. The Botany Coloring Book. Barnes & Noble.
4. Nilsson, Lennart. Behold Man. Little, Brown & Co. (Visually stunning-great for classroom projection)
5. Kessel & Kardon. Tissues and Organs: A Text-Atlas of Scanning Electron Microscopy. W. H. Freeman, 1979.
(Many transmission and especially scanning EM photos—great for classroom projection)
6. Alcock. Animal Behavior: An Evolutionary Approach (3rd Ed.). Sinauer Associates, Inc.,1984.
7. Ackerman, Diane. A Natural History of the Senses. Vintage Books, 1990. The author is a poet and has written a
fascinating story of human senses.
8. Mowat, Parley. Never Cry Wolf. Bantam Books, 1963. A classic. Middle School-aged kids love this one.
9. Brandenburg, Jim. White Wolf: Living With An Arctic Legend. Northword Press, Inc., 1988. (A beautiful look at
the animal featured above in Mowat’s book. Fabulous photographs.)
10. Ahlgren, A. & Halberg, F. Cycles of Nature: An Introduction to Biological Rhythms. NSTA, 1990.
General Interest Reading:
1. Bronowski, J. The Ascent of Man. Little-Brown, 1973.
2. Bronowski, J. Science and Human Values. Colophon Books, 1965. (A scholarly but entirely readable look at the
history of science as the stimulus for the Renaissance)
3. Sagan, Cari. The Demon-Haunted World: Science as a Candle in the Dark. Ballantine Books, 1996. (Sagan at his balony-busting best)
4. Huff, D. How To Lie With Statistics. W. W. Norton & Co., 1954. (A classic. If you have not read this, you will