Tools for Critical Thinking in Biology (gnv64)

Tools for Critical Thinking in Biology
Stephen H. Jenkins
Oxford University Press | April 2015 | ISBN-10: 0199981043 | True PDF | 344 pages | 22.3 mb
http://www.amazon.com/Critical-Thinking-Biology-Stephen-Jenkins/dp/0199981043

The American Association for the Advancement of Science's report on Vision and Change in Undergraduate Biology Education suggests that instructors "can no longer rely solely on trying to cover a syllabus packed with topics" but rather should "introduce fewer concepts but present them in greater depth." They further suggest that the principles embodied in a set of core concepts and competencies should be the basis for all undergraduate biology courses, including those designed for nonmajors.
The theme of Tools for Critical Thinking in Biology will be the first and most fundamental of these competencies: the ability to apply the process of science. Biology courses and curricula must engage students in how scientific inquiry is conducted, including evaluating and interpreting scientific explanations of the natural world. The book uses diverse examples to illustrate how experiments work, how hypotheses can be tested by systematic and comparative observations when experiments aren't possible, how models are useful in science, and how sound decisions can be based on the weight of evidence even when uncertainty remains. These are fundamental issues in the process of science that are important for everyone to understand, whether they pursue careers in science or not. Where other introductory biology textbooks are organized by scientific concepts, Tools for Critical Thinking in Biology will instead show how methods can be used to test hypotheses in fields as different as ecology and medicine, using contemporary case studies. The book will provide students with a deeper understanding of the strengths and weaknesses of such methods for answering new questions, and will thereby change the way they think about the fundamentals of biology.

About the Author

Stephen H. Jenkins is Emeritus Professor of Biology at the University of Nevada. He is the author of How Science Works: Evaluating Evidence in Biology and Medicine (Oxford University Press, 2004).

CONTENTS
Preface vii
Acknowledgments xiii
1. Discovery and Causation 1
2. Observations as Evidence 25
3. From Observations to Data 44
4. Experiments: The Gold Standard for Research 64
5. Correlations, Comparisons, and Causation 92
6. The Diverse Uses of Models in Biology 118
7. Genes, Environments, and the Complexity of Causation 145
8. From Causes to Consequences: Considering the Weight of Evidence 177
9. Science as a Social Process 206
10. Critical Thinking about Climate Change 227
Appendix 1: Units of Measurement Used in This Book 255
Appendix 2: How Does Evolution Work? 257
Appendix 3: Sensory Worlds of Humans and Other Animals 265
Appendix 4: Global Climate Change: How Can Amateurs Comprehend
Complex Models? 269
Appendix 5: The Mystery of Missing Heritability 275
Appendix 6: Mapping Arguments to Aid Critical Thinking about the
Weight of Evidence 281
Appendix 7: What Are the Benefits of Organic Farming?
The Weight of Evidence 285
Appendix 8: Global Climate Change: Evaluating Expert Opinion 291
Bibliography 295
Credits 311
Index 317

udp://open.demonii.com:1337/announce

udp://9.rarbg.com:2710/announce

udp://tracker.coppersurfer.tk:6969/announce

http://torrent.gresille.org/announce

http://retracker.krs-ix.ru/announce

udp://tracker.aletorrenty.pl:2710/announce

udp://glotorrents.pw:6969/announce

http://tracker.pubt.net:2710/announce

udp://tracker.leechers-paradise.org:6969/announce

udp://tracker.openbittorrent.com:80

udp://tracker.pomf.se/announce

udp://tracker.opentrackr.org:1337/announce

udp://eddie4.nl:6969/announce

http://retracker.telecom.kz/announce