Any of my Fall Developmental Biology students reading this?

If I was any good at science, Dr. Myers, I'd fervently wish I could take one of your classes.

If you taught Python programming or literary criticism, I think I'd move back to Minnesota just to attend UMM.

Yeah, we want a distance-learning course, so that those of us stuck in grad-school in Florida can follow along too. I'd be the first to register.

I've just bought "Endless Forms", and I've had "At the Water's Edge for several years ... If I get the Wolpert (I like his "Unnatural nature of Science") - no I can't join, it's a long way to Minnesota!

Your first link doesn't seem to work, PZ.

I really enjoyed Zimmer's "Evolution: The Triumph of an Idea". Great overview of the state of the the world.

Would you recommend "At the Water's Edge" for someone who just reads this stuff for fun? I've been looking for a new Evo or science book to curl up with. I'm familiar with much of the language of evo-devo (even if my understanding may be limited), even to the point of "getting" basic genetics. (BTW, between your discussion of HOX genes, and Sci-Am articles talking about those and founder genes, I've found my understanding of the basics has just increased so much. The web made me SMRTR! Who knew?)

Something that digs into evo-devo a bit more might be just the ticket.

Are these titles from a first-year course?

Would you recommend "At the Water's Edge" for someone who just reads this stuff for fun?

I would, since I read this stuff for fun myself. Zimmer is very good at taking lots of disparate research and sythesizing it into a story that laypersons can grasp.

I've also read Endless Forms Most Beautiful, but I think that perhaps Carroll is not quite as good a writer as Zimmer is. Or at least, I found myself being more overwhelmed and confused by some of the technical details in Carroll's book.

One thing that I particularly felt irritated by was the way that the early embryo is described using Earth directions (north, south, east, west). Since the whole point is that the embryo is going to develop into something with a back and a front and a head and a rear, I would have preferred using terms like those instead. Perhaps that whole section, important as it was scientifically, was just a bit too information-dense for my poor brain.

At the Water's Edge is a stong candidate to follow Zimmer's earlier Evolution. The material is a bit more technical, but he gives a similar lucidity of exposition. And Zimmer does have his own website/blog.

For evo-devo, there's Carroll and the other single-author expositions mentioned elsewhere in the site. To which I'll add the multi-authored Keywords & Concepts in Evolutionary and Developmental Biology, 2003, ed. by Brian Hall & Wendy Olson. Short clear essays on each topic. As the preface notes, the essay to start with is "Development, Evolution, and Evolutionary Developmental Biology" - an overview. I've only started the book, but it may compare well to the classic Keywords in Evolutionary Biology by Keller & Lloyd, 1992.

"Would you recommend "At the Water's Edge" for someone who just reads this stuff for fun?"

I would echo the others on this one. It is an absolutely brilliant book telling compelling stories lucidly. Get it immediately. Anyone who doesn't find it thrilling is incapable of being thrilled by science.

"And Zimmer does have his own website/blog."

Considering the quality of articles Carl posts, I sometimes feel like I'm stealing a book when reading them.

I had a look at Principles of Development at Amazon. I think I'll wait until the paperback is out Amazon says October), but will likely get that one. It looks like a good resource to keep around.

"I've also read Endless Forms Most Beautiful, but I think that perhaps Carroll is not quite as good a writer as Zimmer is. Or at least, I found myself being more overwhelmed and confused by some of the technical details in Carroll's book."
I found the same, I don't think this is a good book for a general reader without a biology/genetic background. However, it did inspire me to buy the teaching company's course on biology so I might do better next time. Now all I need is more time...

Man. If it were just me (i.e. not me and a husband and two kids), I would so fly out to MN just to take your class! Meanwhile, I hope your students know how lucky they are :)

I enjoyed "endless forms," but as a developmental biologist found it too simplified. i think maybe it falls into an unfortunate gap between being appropriate for people in the field and appropriate for general readers. Few books are both. I did really enjoy the parts about things I know nothing about, like human evolution. Also, Carroll's prose is often a bit clunky.

PZ, any particular reason you prefer Wolpert over Gilbert?

A question: What are the prerequisites for your course, PZ? I've learned a lot since my required biology course (one semester of general biology) many years ago, but I am still weak in many areas of physiology and that sort of thing. I'm just curious what level this is pitched at.

This is an undergraduate class at a small institution, and it is the only class in development offered, so it tries to be all things at once -- the only prerequisite is cell biology (by comparison, when I taught at Temple, we had FOUR undergrad db courses, each with a different domain of specialization: mine was invertebrate development). That means I struggle to both give students a grounding in the basic ideas and let 'em know where the action is, just in case they end up in grad school somewhere.

Gilbert is THE standard text in developmental biology, and it would have been my first choice if we were offering a two-semester course in the subject. I like Wolpert, though, and I think he's a little easier to digest for students new to the subject, and since I'm throwing those supplemental books at them, a book that's a little less dense is helpful.

This is not a first year course. It's an upper level elective, and the students will be juniors and seniors.

I know some people find Carroll to be a confusing slog. This is why universities are still necessary: they can read the book, come to class, and there I am to help them figure out the difficult parts!

Oh, and there is a course blog that students will be expected to post to regularly, so you can follow along and see what they're thinking. It will not be anything like that horrid ID course.

http://www.ncf.edu/PublicAffairs/Documents/US_News_2007.htm

Both my school and yours are under a military acadamy?

Gilbert is THE standard text in developmental biology

Is that this? If so, how does what is online compare to the dead tree edition?

http://www.devbio.com/