Schaum's outlines: biology

Unit I. Fundamentals of biology

1. The basic structure of science

The methods of science

Biology as a science

The significance of evolution

Organization of life

2. The chemistry of life : an inorganic perspective

Atoms, molecules, and chemical bonding

Chemical reactions and the concept of equilibrium

Colligative properties of solutions

The laws of thermodynamics

The special case of water

Maintaining stable pH in living systems

3. The chemistry of life : the organic level

Carbohydrates

Proteins

Structure and functions of lipids

The chemical basis of living systems

Unit II. Biology of the cell

4. The cellular organization of life

The cell doctrine

Cellular organization

Cellular organelles

Plant and animal cells : tissue organization

Cell size and its constraints

Movement into and out of the cell

5. Energy transformations

Energy and life

Thermodynamics

Cell metabolism

Bioenergetics

6. Photosynthesis

The light reaction

The dark reaction (Calvin-Benson Cycle)

Photorespiration

The C4 pathway

Structure and function in the chloroplast

Unit III. Genetics and inheritance

7. The nature of the gene

The concept of information processing in the cell

The search for the chemical bases of inheritance

Encoding information : the language of the gene

Processing the information : protein synthesis

Reproduction of information : DNA replication

Modification of information : mutation

Genetic engineering

8. Cell reproduction

Cell cycles and life cycles

The chromosomes as packaged genes

Mitosis

Meiosis

A possible mechanism for crossing over

Sexual reproduction and genetic variability

9. The mechanism of inheritance

Pre-Mendelian concepts

Mendel's Laws

Linkage

Mapping the chromosomes

Sex linkage

Variations in gene expression

Chromosomes and gene expression

Treating genetic diseases

10. Control mechanisms in genetics

The Operon Hypothesis

Cistron, recon, and muton

Gene regulation in eukaryotes

Cancer as a genetic aberration

11. Embryology

Animal development

Human development

Plant development

Control of differentiation

Major contributions to the field of embryology

12. Animal reproduction

An evolutionary survey

Male reproductive system in humans

Female reproductive system in humans

Sexual response in humans

Contraception

Sexual preference

Sexual dysfunction

Unit IV. Plant biology

13. Basic structure and function in vascular plants

Plant nutrition

Movement of water and minerals in xylem

Movement of food through the phloem

14. Interactions of vascular plants with their environment

Tropisms

Plant hormones

Photoperiodism

Plant diseases.

Unit V. Animal biology

15. Homeostasis : regulation of physiological functions

Feedback control

Regulation of temperature

Regulation of blood sugar

16. Animal nutrition and the digestive system

Food procurement

Digestion and absorption

The vertebrate liver

Diet and health

Special case of the vitamins

Obesity and eating disorders

Deficiency diseases

17. The excretory system

Excretion in invertebrates

Structure of the vertebrate kidney

Functioning of the vertebrate kidney

Human kidney function

Homeostatic function of the kidney

Accessory excretory structures

18. The circulatory system

Comparative cardiovascular systems of vertebrates

The human heart

Arteries, veins, and capillaries

Control of blood pressure

Constituents of blood and lymph

Osmoregulation

19. Immunology

The human immune systems

The immune response

Hybridomas

AIDS

Human blood groups

20. The respiratory system

Mechanisms of external respiration

Mammalian respiration

regulation of breathing

Exchange of O2 and CO2 in the blood

21. Hormones and the endocrine system

Early endocrine systems

Vertebrate endocrine systems

Mode of action of hormones

22. The nervous system

Phylogenetic development of the nervous system

The neuron as the functional unit of nervous activity

The neural impulse

The synapse

Reflex arc

Receptors and effectors

Special sense organs

Brain and spinal cord

Autonomic nervous system

23. The musculoskeletal system: support and movement

Invertebrate support systems

The vertebrate endoskeleton

Anatomy and physiology of vertebrate muscle

24. Animal behavior

What is behavior?

Components of behavior

Cyclic behavior patterns

Sexual behavior

Social organization

Modes of communication

Biological determinism and behavior

Unit VI. Evolution and ecology

25. Evolution : the process

Abrief history of the concept of change in organisms

The notion of a gene pool : Hardy-Weinberg equilibrium

Natural selection : a modern synthesis

Punctuated equilibrium

Molecular biology of evolutionary change

Control of gene pools

Speciation

Microevolution versus macroevolution

26. Ecology

Anatomy of an ecosystem

Types of ecosystems

Stability and ecological succession

Biomass and species dispersal

Upsetting the stability of an ecosystem

27. Origin of life

The Oparin Hypothesis

Heterotroph to autotroph

Origin of cells

Unit VII. Biological diversity

28. The kingdom Monera (the prokaryotes)

Archaebacteria and eubacteria

The significance and origin of organelles

Bacteria, the ecosphere, and human interactions

29. The kingdom Protista

Protozoans

Algal protists

Fungilike protists

30. The kingdom Fungi

Basic structure of fungi

Divisions of fungi

Reproductive strategies of the fungi

Fungi as friends and foes

31. The kingdom Plantae

Bryophytes and the challenge of a terrestrial environment

The vascular plants

Seed plants

Economic importance of plants

The Green Revolution

32. The kingdom Animalia

Subkingdom parazoa : the sponges

Radiata : cnidaria and ctenophora

Bilateria : deuterostomes and protostomes

Acoelomates

Pseudocoelomates : rotifera and nematoda

Protostome coelomates

Deuterostome coelomates

33. The primates

Primate lineages

Primate characteristics

Humankind and its destiny

Misconceptions of the evolutionary relationship between humans and apes.