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Humans consist of about 98% of six chemical elements: oxygen, carbon, hydrogen, nitrogen, sulfur, and phosphorus. But what remains is equally important. This book is about the other elements that are vitally important for some animals, plants, or microorganisms, as well as a few elements that are deadly for some organisms, and used as protection by others, are also included.
Photobiology - the science of light and life - begins with basic principles and the physics of light and continues with general photobiological research methods, such as generation of light, measurement of light, and action spectroscopy. In an interdisciplinary way, it then treats how organisms tune their pigments and structures to the wavelength components of light, and how light is registered by organisms. Then follow various examples of photobiological phenomena: the design of the compound eye in relation to the properties of light, phototoxicity, photobiology of the human skin and of vitamin D, photomorphogenesis, photoperiodism, the setting of the biological clock by light, and bioluminescence. A final chapter is devoted to teaching experiments and demonstrations in photobiology. This book encompasses topics from a diverse array of traditional disciplines: physics, biochemistry, medicine, zoology, botany, microbiology, etc., and makes different aspects of photobiology accessible to experts in all these areas as well as to the novice.
The new edition of this authoritative text provides an interdisciplinary treatise of all aspects of the interactions between light and the living world. It starts with a description of the physics of light, and how to deal with it in experiments and observations. The phenomena described in the rest of the book covers all organisms: how light is used by organisms for obtaining energy for life processes, for gathering information about the environment, and for communicating with others of the same or other species. The book also describes "bad" effects of light in causing disease or contributing to formation of environmental toxins. New techniques used by scientists to investigate life processes using light are also explored in the volume. Written by experts in the field, Photobiology: The Science of Life and Light, 3e is a valuable and accessible resource for both advanced undergraduates and established researchers.
Photosynthesis has been an important field of research for more than a century, but the present concerns about energy, environment and climate have greatly intensified interest in and research on this topic. Research has progressed rapidly in recent years, and this book is an interesting read for an audience who is concerned with various ways of harnessing solar energy.Our understanding of photosynthesis can now be said to have reached encyclopedic dimensions. There have been, in the past, many good books at various levels. Our book is expected to fulfill the needs of advanced undergraduate and beginning graduate students in branches of biology, biochemistry, biophysics, and bioengineering because photosynthesis is the basis of future advances in producing more food, more biomass, more fuel, and new chemicals for our expanding global human population. Further, the basics of photosynthesis are and will be used not only for the above, but in artificial photosynthesis, an important emerging field where chemists, researchers and engineers of solar energy systems will play a major role.
A comprehensive overview and summary of recent achievements and the latest trends in bioinspired thermal materials. Following an introduction to different thermal materials and their effective heat transfer to other materials, the text discusses heat detection materials that are inspired by biological systems, such as fire beetles and butterflies. There then follow descriptions of materials with thermal management functionality, including those for evaporation and condensation, heat transfer and thermal insulation materials, as modeled on snake skins, polar bears and fire-resistant trees. A discussion of thermoresponsive materials with thermally switchable surfaces and controllable nanochannels as well as those with high thermal conductivity and piezoelectric sensors is rounded off by a look toward future trends in the bioinspired engineering of thermal materials. Straightforward and well structured, this is an essential reference for newcomers as well as experienced researchers in this exciting field.
Winner of the 2010 Royal Society Prize for science books Powerful new research methods are providing fresh and vivid insights into the makeup of life. Comparing gene sequences, examining the atomic structure of proteins and looking into the geochemistry of rocks have all helped to explain creation and evolution in more detail than ever before. Nick Lane uses the full extent of this new knowledge to describe the ten greatest inventions of life, based on their historical impact, role in living organisms today and relevance to current controversies. DNA, sex, sight and consciousnesses are just four examples. Lane also explains how these findings have come about, and the extent to which they can be relied upon. The result is a gripping and lucid account of the ingenuity of nature, and a book which is essential reading for anyone who has ever questioned the science behind the glories of everyday life.
Beyond the Visible: A handbook of best practice in plant UV photobiology presents methods for research on the responses of plants to ultraviolet (UV) radiation. The knowledge needed to make informed decisions about manipulation and quantification of UV radiation is summarized. Practical recommendations for obtaining reliable and relevant data and interpretations are given. The handbook covers research both on terrestrial and aquatic plants and it deals with experimentation on ecological, eco-physiological and physiological questions. The handbook includes 115 figures, mostly in colour, 19 tables and 12 text boxes. It is the result of the activities of COST action FA0906 "UV4growth", and it i...
Since the publication of the first edition in 2002, there has been an explosion of new findings and applications in the field of photobiology. This brand new edition is fully updated, includes new references, and offers five new chapters for a comprehensive look at photobiology. The chapters cover all areas of photobiology, photochemistry, and the relationship between light and biology. The book starts with the physics and chemistry of light and then deals with the evolution of photosynthesis. Four chapters deal with how organisms use light for their orientation in space and time. There are also several medically oriented chapters and two chapters specifically aimed at the photobiology educator.
It is perhaps not surprising that plants have evolved a mechanism to sense the light environment about them and to modify growth for optimal use of the available `life-giving' light. Green plants, and ultimately all forms of life, depend on the energy of sunlight fixed during photosynthesis. Unlike animals that use behaviour to find food, sedentary plants use physiology to optimize their growth and development for light absorption. By appreciating the quality, quantity, direction and duration of light, plants can control such complex processes as germination, growth and flowering. To perceive the light environment several receptor pigments have evolved, including the red/far-red reversible p...