Lysenko’s Ghost - read free eBook in online reader or directly download on the web page. Select files or add your book in reader. Download and read online ebook Lysenko’s Ghost write by Loren Graham. This book was released on 2016-04-11. Lysenko’s Ghost available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. The Soviet agronomist Trofim Lysenko became one of the most notorious figures in twentieth-century science after his genetic theories were discredited decades ago. Yet some scientists, even in the West, now claim that discoveries in the field of epigenetics prove that he was right after all. Seeking to get to the bottom of Lysenko’s rehabilitation in certain Russian scientific circles, Loren Graham reopens the case, granting his theories an impartial hearing to determine whether new developments in molecular biology validate his claims. In the 1930s Lysenko advanced a “theory of nutrients” to explain plant development, basing his insights on experiments which, he claimed, showed one could manipulate environmental conditions such as temperature to convert a winter wheat variety into a spring variety. He considered the inheritance of acquired characteristics—which he called the “internalization of environmental conditions”—the primary mechanism of heredity. Although his methods were slipshod and his results were never duplicated, his ideas fell on fertile ground during a time of widespread famine in the Soviet Union. Recently, a hypothesis called epigenetic transgenerational inheritance has suggested that acquired characteristics may indeed occasionally be passed on to offspring. Some biologists dispute the evidence for this hypothesis. Loren Graham examines these arguments, both in Russia and the West, and shows how, in Russia, political currents are particularly significant in affecting the debates.
Lysenko’s Ghost
Lysenko’s Ghost - read free eBook in online reader or directly download on the web page. Select files or add your book in reader. Download and read online ebook Lysenko’s Ghost write by Loren Graham. This book was released on 2016-04-11. Lysenko’s Ghost available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Conclusion -- Notes -- Bibliography -- Acknowledgments -- Index.
The Dialectical Biologist
The Dialectical Biologist - read free eBook in online reader or directly download on the web page. Select files or add your book in reader. Download and read online ebook The Dialectical Biologist write by Richard Levins. This book was released on 1987-03-15. The Dialectical Biologist available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Scientists act within a social context and from a philosophical perspective that is inherently political. Whether they realize it or not, scientists always choose sides. The Dialectical Biologist explores this political nature of scientific inquiry, advancing its argument within the framework of Marxist dialectic. These essays stress the concepts of continual change and codetermination between organism and environment, part and whole, structure and process, science and politics. Throughout, this book questions our accepted definitions and biases, showing the self-reflective nature of scientific activity within society.
Critical Encounters
Critical Encounters - read free eBook in online reader or directly download on the web page. Select files or add your book in reader. Download and read online ebook Critical Encounters write by Cathy Caruth. This book was released on 1995. Critical Encounters available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle.
The Ants
The Ants - read free eBook in online reader or directly download on the web page. Select files or add your book in reader. Download and read online ebook The Ants write by Bert Hölldobler. This book was released on 1990. The Ants available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. From the Arctic to South Africa - one finds them everywhere: Ants. Making up nearly 15% of the entire terrestrial animal biomass, ants are impressive not only in quantitative terms, they also fascinate by their highly organized and complex social system. Their caste system, the division of labor, the origin of altruistic behavior and the complex forms of chemical communication makes them the most interesting group of social organisms and the main subject for sociobiologists. Not least is their ecological importance: Ants are the premier soil turners, channelers of energy and dominatrices of the insect fauna. TOC:The importance of ants.- Classification and origins.- The colony life cycle.- Altruism and the origin of the worker caste.- Colony odor and kin recognition.- Queen numbers and domination.- Communication.- Caste and division of labor.- Social homeostasis and flexibility.- Foraging and territorial strategies.- The organization of species communities.- Symbioses among ant species.- Symbioses with other animals.- Interaction with plants.- The specialized predators.- The army ants.- The fungus growers.- The harvesters.- The weaver ants.- Collecting and culturing ants.- Glossary.- Bibliography.- Index.
