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Principles of Development
The process of biological development is an amazing feat of tightly regulated cellular behaviors--differentiation, movement, and growth--powerful enough to result in the emergence of a highly complex living organism from a single cell, the fertilized egg. Now in a new edition, Principles of
Development clearly illustrates the universal principles that govern this process of development.
Developmental biology has grown enormously as a discipline in recent years. Designed for undergraduates, this text focuses on key principles and concepts rather than attempting to offer an encyclopedic treatment of the field. It equips students with a conceptual framework that will be invaluable to
them throughout their educational careers.
Written by two highly respected and influential developmental biologists, Lewis Wolpert and Cheryll Tickle, Principles of Development, Fourth Edition, combines a careful exposition of the subject with insights from several of the world's pioneering researchers. It guides students from the
fundamentals to the latest discoveries in the field.
DISTINCTIVE FEATURES
Focuses on the underlying principles, thereby addressing one of the biggest challenges facing instructors and students of developmental biology; covering and learning in one semester the vast amount of information encapsulated by the field.
Offers the right balance of breadth and
Addresses all key topics in the field in a uniformly authoritative way, but at a depth that makes it possible to deliver a coherent, well-balanced course in one semester. Rather that attempting to offer exhaustive coverage, it sets out to ensure that, at the end of the course, students have a
well-rounded, sound understanding on which to base further studies.
Integrates vivid illustrations that have been carefully designed and chosen to illuminate both experiments and mechanisms, clarifying basic principles in a visual manner.
Provides focused examples, concentrated on vertebrates and Drosophila, but not to the exclusion of other organisms, such as the nematode and the sea urchin, where they best illustrate a concept.
Covers plant development --which is frequently neglected in general textbooks on developmental biology--addressing striking recent advances in the understanding of the subject.
Includes carefully selected suggestions for further reading and an extensive glossary of key terms
Development clearly illustrates the universal principles that govern this process of development.
Developmental biology has grown enormously as a discipline in recent years. Designed for undergraduates, this text focuses on key principles and concepts rather than attempting to offer an encyclopedic treatment of the field. It equips students with a conceptual framework that will be invaluable to
them throughout their educational careers.
Written by two highly respected and influential developmental biologists, Lewis Wolpert and Cheryll Tickle, Principles of Development, Fourth Edition, combines a careful exposition of the subject with insights from several of the world's pioneering researchers. It guides students from the
fundamentals to the latest discoveries in the field.
DISTINCTIVE FEATURES
Focuses on the underlying principles, thereby addressing one of the biggest challenges facing instructors and students of developmental biology; covering and learning in one semester the vast amount of information encapsulated by the field.
Offers the right balance of breadth and
Addresses all key topics in the field in a uniformly authoritative way, but at a depth that makes it possible to deliver a coherent, well-balanced course in one semester. Rather that attempting to offer exhaustive coverage, it sets out to ensure that, at the end of the course, students have a
well-rounded, sound understanding on which to base further studies.
Integrates vivid illustrations that have been carefully designed and chosen to illuminate both experiments and mechanisms, clarifying basic principles in a visual manner.
Provides focused examples, concentrated on vertebrates and Drosophila, but not to the exclusion of other organisms, such as the nematode and the sea urchin, where they best illustrate a concept.
Covers plant development --which is frequently neglected in general textbooks on developmental biology--addressing striking recent advances in the understanding of the subject.
Includes carefully selected suggestions for further reading and an extensive glossary of key terms
656 pages, Hardcover
First published January 1, 1997
8 people are currently reading
339 people want to read
About the author
Lewis Wolpert
34 books108 followersLewis Wolpert CBE FRS FRSL (born October 19, 1929) is a developmental biologist, author, and broadcaster.
Career
He was educated at the University of Witwatersrand, Imperial College London, and at King's College London. He is presently Emeritus Professor of Biology as applied to Medicine in the Department of Anatomy and developmental biology at University College London.
He is well known in his field for elaborating and championing the ideas of positional information and positional value: molecular signals and internal cellular responses to them that enable cells to do the right thing in the right place during embryonic development. The essence of these concepts is that there is a dedicated set of molecules for spatial coordination of cells that is the same across many species and across different developmental stages and tissues. The discovery of Hox gene codes in flies and vertebrates has largely vindicated Wolpert's positional value concept, while identification of growth factor morphogens in many species has supported the concept of positional information.
In addition to his scientific and research publications, he has written about his own experience of clinical depression in Malignant Sadness: The Anatomy of Depression. This was turned into three television programmes entitled 'A Living Hell' which he presented on BBC2.
He was made a Fellow of the Royal Society in 1980 and awarded the CBE in 1990. He was made a Fellow of the Royal Society of Literature in 1999.
He is a Vice-President of the British Humanist Association.
Theories
Wolpert is regarded as a rationalist. In an April 7, 2005 article entitled "Spiked", The Guardian asked a series of scientists "What is the one thing everyone should learn about science?" Wolpert responded, "I would teach the world that science is the best way to understand the world, and that for any set of observations, there is only one correct explanation. Also, science is value-free, as it explains the world as it is. Ethical issues arise only when science is applied to technology – from medicine to industry."
In a lecture entitled "Is Science Dangerous?", he expanded on this: "I regard it as ethically unacceptable and impractical to censor any aspect of trying to understand the nature of our world."
On May 25, 1994, Wolpert conducted an hour-long interview with Dr. Francis Crick called "How the Brain 'sees' " for The Times Dillon Science Forum; a video of the interview was produced by Just Results Video Productions for The Times.
On January 15, 2004, Wolpert and biologist/ parapsychologist Rupert Sheldrake engaged in a live debate regarding the evidence for telepathy. It took place at the Royal Society of Arts in London.
In the late 1960s Wolpert proposed the illustrative French flag model, which explains how signalling between cells early in morphogenesis could be used to inform cells with the same Genetic regulatory network of their position and role.
He is credited with the famous quote: "It is not birth, marriage, or death, but gastrulation which is truly the most important time in your life."
An early book was The Unnatural Nature of Science. His most recent book is Six Impossible Things Before Breakfast.
In May 2008, he gave one of four plenary lectures at the European Society for the Study of Science and Theology in Sigtuna, Sweden. His talk was reported as follows:
Lewis Wolpert's plenary address entitled "The Origins of Science and Religion" was provocative, amusing and from a totally materialist perspective. In his view, religion arose from the uniquely human need for causal explanations, and neither religion nor philosophy contributed anything of importance to scientific undersanding. ... ESSSAT is to be congratulated for offering its platform to a strong-minded materialist, but in the end Wolpert proved unable to enter serious debate with the conference theme or its participants.
-
Career
He was educated at the University of Witwatersrand, Imperial College London, and at King's College London. He is presently Emeritus Professor of Biology as applied to Medicine in the Department of Anatomy and developmental biology at University College London.
He is well known in his field for elaborating and championing the ideas of positional information and positional value: molecular signals and internal cellular responses to them that enable cells to do the right thing in the right place during embryonic development. The essence of these concepts is that there is a dedicated set of molecules for spatial coordination of cells that is the same across many species and across different developmental stages and tissues. The discovery of Hox gene codes in flies and vertebrates has largely vindicated Wolpert's positional value concept, while identification of growth factor morphogens in many species has supported the concept of positional information.
In addition to his scientific and research publications, he has written about his own experience of clinical depression in Malignant Sadness: The Anatomy of Depression. This was turned into three television programmes entitled 'A Living Hell' which he presented on BBC2.
He was made a Fellow of the Royal Society in 1980 and awarded the CBE in 1990. He was made a Fellow of the Royal Society of Literature in 1999.
He is a Vice-President of the British Humanist Association.
Theories
Wolpert is regarded as a rationalist. In an April 7, 2005 article entitled "Spiked", The Guardian asked a series of scientists "What is the one thing everyone should learn about science?" Wolpert responded, "I would teach the world that science is the best way to understand the world, and that for any set of observations, there is only one correct explanation. Also, science is value-free, as it explains the world as it is. Ethical issues arise only when science is applied to technology – from medicine to industry."
In a lecture entitled "Is Science Dangerous?", he expanded on this: "I regard it as ethically unacceptable and impractical to censor any aspect of trying to understand the nature of our world."
On May 25, 1994, Wolpert conducted an hour-long interview with Dr. Francis Crick called "How the Brain 'sees' " for The Times Dillon Science Forum; a video of the interview was produced by Just Results Video Productions for The Times.
On January 15, 2004, Wolpert and biologist/ parapsychologist Rupert Sheldrake engaged in a live debate regarding the evidence for telepathy. It took place at the Royal Society of Arts in London.
In the late 1960s Wolpert proposed the illustrative French flag model, which explains how signalling between cells early in morphogenesis could be used to inform cells with the same Genetic regulatory network of their position and role.
He is credited with the famous quote: "It is not birth, marriage, or death, but gastrulation which is truly the most important time in your life."
An early book was The Unnatural Nature of Science. His most recent book is Six Impossible Things Before Breakfast.
In May 2008, he gave one of four plenary lectures at the European Society for the Study of Science and Theology in Sigtuna, Sweden. His talk was reported as follows:
Lewis Wolpert's plenary address entitled "The Origins of Science and Religion" was provocative, amusing and from a totally materialist perspective. In his view, religion arose from the uniquely human need for causal explanations, and neither religion nor philosophy contributed anything of importance to scientific undersanding. ... ESSSAT is to be congratulated for offering its platform to a strong-minded materialist, but in the end Wolpert proved unable to enter serious debate with the conference theme or its participants.
-
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