Biology: The Science of Life

Was a good source but not what my class assigned do had to send back

“A great and growing volume of facts about life as it goes on about usand within us becomes available for practical application … [But] thisnew material is still imperfectly accessible to ordinary busy people.” H.G. Wells in The Science of Life.1 The Scope of "Life"2 More on the Origin of Life3 The Organism and the Cell4 Proteins—How Things Get Done in the Cell5 Which Molecule Holds the Code?6 The Double Helix7 The Nuts and Bolts of Replicating DNA8 The Central Dogma9 The Genetic Code10 From DNA to RNA11 From RNA to Protein12 When Mistakes Happen13 Dividing DNA Between Dividing Cells14 Mendel and His Pea Plants15 How Sex Leads to Variation16 Genes and Chromosomes17 Charles Darwin and "The Origin of Species"18 Natural Selection in Action19 Reconciling Darwin and Mendel20 Mechanisms of Evolutionary Change21 What Are Species and How Do New Ones Arise?22 More on the Origin of New Species23 Reconstructing Evolution24 The History of Life, Revisited25 From Cells to Organisms26 Control of Gene Expression I27 Control of Gene Expression II28 Getting Proteins to the Right Place29 Genetic Engineering and Biotechnology30 How Cells Talk—Signals and Receptors31 How Cells Talk—Ways That Cells Respond32 From One Cell to Many in an Organism33 Patterns of Early Development34 Determination and Differentiation35 Induction and Pattern Formation36 Genes and Development37 Homeostasis38 Hormones in Animals39 What is Special about Neurons?40 Action Potentials and Synapses41 Synaptic Integration and Memory42 Sensory Function43 How Muscles Work44 The Innate Immune System45 The Acquired Immune System46 Form and Function in Plants I47 Form and Function in Plants II48 Behavior as an Adaptive Trait49 Energy and Resources in Living Systems50 How Energy is Harnessed by Cells51 Enzymes—Making Chemistry Work in Cells52 Cellular Currencies of Energy53 Making ATP—Glycolysis54 Making ATP—Cellular Respiration55 Making ATP—The Chemiosmotic Theory56 Capturing Energy from Sunlight57 The Reactions of Photosynthesis58 Resources and Life Histories59 The Structure of Populations60 Population Growth61 What Limits Population Growth?62 Costs and Benefits of Behavior63 Altruism and Mate Selection64 Ecological Interactions Among Species65 Predators and Competitors66 Competition and the Ecological Niche67 Energy in Ecosystems68 Nutrients in Ecosystems69 How Predictable Are Ecological Communities?70 Biogeography71 Human Population Growth72 The Human AsteroidProfessor Nowicki of Duke University starts out his first lecture with this quote from 75 years ago. He wants to make Biology more accessible to ordinary people also and that is what this course is. I have to be honest and say this was the toughest course I have taken yet in the Great Courses I own. There are a total of 72 thirty-minute lectures and a 460-page book that also comes with the course to get through. I probably retained about a third of what the Professor was teaching and will definitely listen to this again and again until I can absorb it all.What I really loved about this book was the in depth study of how life begins, what each part of a living being does and how it is determined. My other favorite parts were about Mendel and his Peas that he studied and how they differ from Darwin and his Evolutionary theory.I also was fascinated by the Professor talking about how many Humans the Earth can sustain and what is the next step when we finally reach that threshold. I am retired and have tried to keep my brain active by learning something new every day and this course really helped to stretch my mind.I highly recommend this course to anyone who loves science and Biology especially as this is a great overview of the subject. I certainly was entranced by everything the Professor taught.

Don't buy this audio book! The PDF is absolutely necessary for understanding the lectures and they are not provided by audible.com. It's a pity they take such shortcuts, which denotes lack of professionalism and interest in customer satisfaction. Whoever was in charge with adding this audio book to their line did not bother with looking at the requirements or listening to even the first minute of the introduction of the course. Without the PDF, the otherwise worthy course is largely incomprehensible for any listeners.Unfortunately for us, customers of audible.com, this is not an isolated example. There are many other books that don't have the necessary associated PDF, so one should be very careful when ordering from them. And to add insult to injury, all that their customer support service had to say about this matter was they will add a disclaimer in the future. Nice for covering their back, nothing to help the customer.

I wanted DVDs. I got old fashioned CDs instead. This mistake would probably be normal for a third world country. Now, I will have to do a do-over and try buying the DVDs again.

I have read reviews of both - and I hvae had this for so long, when I first purchased it it had the pdf available, but now on my computer and phone, the pdf has disappeared.

This is a good course well presented and quite balanced. I appreciated most of it. BUT. When he got to the last chapter he went into the global warming/CO2 stuff and got silly and ridiculous. He said at least a dozen things that were not true and quoted long debunked statistics and drew conclusions that were a joke. He then made speculations based on this shaky nonsense. However, this didn't really detract from what was otherwise a good course. In most of the actual biology, he was spot on at least when the book was published and before new discoveries came to light--but that is the nature of science.

It DOES provide a PDF. There are people who have a one star without realizing they could download it inside the audible app.This is an amazing journey which begins in the chemicals needed for the molecules which form life to how our internal organs and systems work, jumping on to the theory of how genes influence behavior and more.Even without a degree in these areas, there is plenty to understand, learn and amaze.

In response to the reviews about a needing Guidebook, it is available, after purchasing, if you log into your account at the Audible website, bring up your library and then this book and choose "Download Related PDF" . This PDF is the guidebook and is 450 pages.

I was under the impression that I was getting the full course book. I received part 2 only. What a waste of money!