While this text covers a large majority of genetics related to plants/agronomy, there is no information about genetics in animals/livestock. While the book description covers this, the title is misleading. While there is no index, the table of. read more
Reviewed by Jessica Baggerman, Assistant Professor of Agriculture, Huntington University on 6/20/22
Comprehensiveness rating: 4 see less
While this text covers a large majority of genetics related to plants/agronomy, there is no information about genetics in animals/livestock. While the book description covers this, the title is misleading. While there is no index, the table of contents is sufficient to find the necessary information. As it is offered in a PDF format, using the "find in text" function can serve as a index.
Content Accuracy rating: 5
The text provides an accurate description of plant genetics in relation to production agriculture.
Relevance/Longevity rating: 4
While the major information will be durably relevant, the examples and video links will likely need updated over time.
Clarity rating: 4
Some contexts and terms are used without any explanation for students; however, the general concepts are explained in a way that can be comprehended without much difficulty.
Consistency rating: 3
As each chapter is written by different authors, there is a lack of consistency in how the chapters are set up. The terminology is consistent throughout the text.
Modularity rating: 4
The chapters are set up in a way that most can be read in portions, but not all are due to the lack of consistency of framework throughout the text.
Organization/Structure/Flow rating: 4
The information is mainly in a logical order, but some of the chapters could be placed together (ie: chapters 4 and 11) to make a section on biotechnology and laboratory procedures.
Interface rating: 3
In the ePub version, images/figures occasionally overlap text, and the links are not functional. The interface is ideal in the PDF format.
Grammatical Errors rating: 5
No grammatical errors were noted.
Cultural Relevance rating: 5
No cultural insensitivities were noted. Further examples than the usual US crops/genes could be used to make it more applicable for more situations.
This textbook provides an introduction to plant genetics and biotechnology for the advancement of agriculture. A clear and structured introduction to the topic for learners new to the field of genetics, the book includes: an introduction to the life cycle of the cell, DNA and how it relates to genes and chromosomes, DNA analysis, recombinant DNA, biotechnology, and transmission genetics.
Walter Suza: Suza is an Adjunct Associate Professor at Iowa State University. He teaches courses on Genetics and Crop Physiology in the Department of Agronomy. In addition to co-developing courses for the ISU Distance MS in Plant Breeding Program, Suza also served as the director of Plant Breeding e-Learning in Africa Program (PBEA) for 8 years. With PBEA, Suza helped provide access to open educational resources on topics related to the genetic improvement of crops. His research is on the metabolism and physiology of plant sterols.
Donald Lee: Lee is a Professor of Plant Breeding and Genetics at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln. For 30 years, he has taught Introductory Genetics, Crop and Weed Genetics, and Crop Genetic Engineering. His research is on detection and assessment of molecular genetic variation in crops, weeds and native plants, and development of Internet resources for teaching genetics to a wide variety of learners.
