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Campbell Biology, 12th edition

Published by Pearson (13 July 2021) © 2022

  • Lisa A. Urry Mills College at Northeastern University
  • Michael L. Cain New Mexico State University
  • Steven A. Wasserman University of California
  • Peter V. Minorsky Mercy College
  • Rebecca B. Orr Collin College
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In this eTextbook — More ways to learn

  • More support. Get AI help with personalized summaries, instant explanations, and quick translations.
  • More flexible. Start learning right away, on any device.
  • More interactive. Learn through audio, video, and practice.
  • More memorable. Study better with notes, highlights, and flashcards.
 
Products list

In this eTextbook — More ways to learn

  • More support. Get AI help with personalized summaries, instant explanations, and quick translations.
  • More flexible. Start learning right away, on any device.
  • More interactive. Learn through audio, video, and practice.
  • More memorable. Study better with notes, highlights, and flashcards.
 
Products list

In this eTextbook — More ways to learn

  • More support. Get AI help with personalized summaries, instant explanations, and quick translations.
  • More flexible. Start learning right away, on any device.
  • More interactive. Learn through audio, video, and practice.
  • More memorable. Study better with notes, highlights, and flashcards.
Products list

In this eTextbook — More ways to learn

  • More support. Get AI help with personalized summaries, instant explanations, and quick translations.
  • More flexible. Start learning right away, on any device.
  • More interactive. Learn through audio, video, and practice.
  • More memorable. Study better with notes, highlights, and flashcards.

Title overview

Campbell Biology, 12th Edition is the definitive college biology textbook created by Neil Campbell, available in an eTextbook format on Pearson+. The author team of Lisa Urry, Michael Cain, Steven Wasserman, Peter Minorsky, and Rebecca Orr continue Campbell’s vision in a textbook that guides you through every unit of the course. You’ll learn to connect concepts across scales, interpret data, and build scientific skills.

Units explored include chemistry of life, cell structure and energetics, genetics and gene expression, mechanisms of evolution, biological diversity, plant and animal form and function, and ecology. Scientific Skills exercises help you learn to interpret data; End-of-chapter Summary of Key Concepts questions reinforce main ideas in each chapter; and Test Your Understanding questions prepare you for exam-type questions.

The 12th Edition meets your needs with new student-centered features. It supports you further with new visual presentations of content and new study tools while engaging and guiding you in an active process of inquiry and learning.

Table of contents

  1. Evolution, the Themes of Biology, and Scientific Inquiry

UNIT 1: THE CHEMISTRY OF LIFE

  1. The Chemical Context of Life
  2. Water and Life
  3. Carbon and the Molecular Diversity of Life
  4. The Structure and Function of Large Biological Molecules

UNIT 2: THE CELL

  1. A Tour of the Cell
  2. Membrane Structure and Function
  3. An Introduction to Metabolism
  4. Cellular Respiration and Fermentation
  5. Photosynthesis
  6. Cell Communication
  7. The Cell Cycle

UNIT 3: GENETICS

  1. Meiosis and Sexual Life Cycles
  2. Mendel and the Gene Idea
  3. The Chromosomal Basis of Inheritance
  4. The Molecular Basis of Inheritance
  5. Gene Expression: From Gene to Protein
  6. Regulation of Gene Expression
  7. Viruses
  8. DNA Tools and Biotechnology
  9. Genomes and Their Evolution

UNIT 4: MECHANISMS OF EVOLUTION

  1. Descent with Modification: A Darwinian View of Life
  2. The Evolution of Populations
  3. The Origin of Species
  4. The History of Life on Earth

UNIT 5: THE EVOLUTIONARY HISTORY OF BIOLOGICAL DIVERSITY

  1. Phylogeny and the Tree of Life
  2. Bacteria and Archaea
  3. Protists
  4. Plant Diversity I: How Plants Colonized Land
  5. Plant Diversity II: The Evolution of Seed Plants
  6. Fungi
  7. An Overview of Animal Diversity
  8. An Introduction to Invertebrates
  9. The Origin and Evolution of Vertebrates

UNIT 6: PLANT FORM AND FUNCTION

  1. Vascular Plant Structure, Growth, and Development
  2. Resource Acquisition and Transport in Vascular Plants
  3. Soil and Plant Nutrition
  4. Angiosperm Reproduction and Biotechnology
  5. Plant Responses to Internal and External Signals

UNIT 7: ANIMAL FORM AND FUNCTION

  1. Basic Principles of Animal Form and Function
  2. Animal Nutrition
  3. Circulation and Gas Exchange
  4. The Immune System
  5. Osmoregulation and Excretion
  6. Hormones and the Endocrine System
  7. Animal Reproduction
  8. Animal Development
  9. Neurons, Synapses, and Signaling
  10. Nervous Systems
  11. Sensory and Motor Mechanisms
  12. Animal Behavior

UNIT 8: ECOLOGY

  1. An Introduction to Ecology and the Biosphere
  2. Population Ecology
  3. Community Ecology
  4. Ecosystems and Restoration Ecology
  5. Conservation Biology and Global Change

APPENDICES

  1. Answers
  2. Classification of Life
  3. A Comparison of the Light Microscope and the Electron Microscope
  4. Scientific Skills Review

Author bios

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