biology

Principles of Biology

Principles of Biology is a biology topic covered in the lgStudy science library. This page brings together a partial reference excerpt, illustrations, worked examples, real-world applications and a short study plan, so you can understand Principles of Biology rather than just read about it. In short: Principles of Biology is a college level biology electronic textbook published by Nature Publishing in 2011. The book is not a digitally reformatted version of a paper book.

Key takeaways

Principles of Biology belongs to biology; place it in that map before memorising details.
Learn the definition first, then one example that makes the definition concrete.
Connect Principles of Biology to a quantity you can measure, compute or draw — that is where exam questions come from.
Reproduce the core statement of Principles of Biology from memory before moving on to harder problems.

Reference excerpt

Principles of Biology is a college level biology electronic textbook published by Nature Publishing in 2011. The book is not a digitally reformatted version of a paper book. The book, the first in a projected series, is Nature Publishing's first foray into textbook publishing.

Format Principles is composed of 200 modules, which can be customized by the instructor. The modules combine text, images, simulations, interactive exercises, self-tests, and formal tests. The book draws on the science journal Nature's archive of research papers. It was created by a group of more than 100 scientists, instructors, scientific illustrators, interaction designers, and faculty reviewers. It is available in formats for computers, tablets, and smartphones. No traditional paper edition is available. The book is purchased on a one-time payment subscription basis, with the purchase covering all future updates or supplements.

Reception The book has been adopted for use at California State University. One favorable reviewer described the text as "post-Gutenberg", referring to the Printing Revolution that occurred upon the development of the movable type printing press by Johannes Gutenberg ca 1439. The book, and its umbrella textbook publishing division, has been described as potentially breaking down the traditional textbook publishing business model. The work has been compared with other publishers' electronic textbook experiments, including Wolfram Research.

References

External links Principles of Biology at the Nature Publishing Group website Archived 2017-05-13 at the Wayback Machine Principles of Biology at the Principles of Science (beta) textbook series website Archived 2011-11-20 at the Wayback Machine

Worked examples

Example 1 — a first encounter with Principles of Biology

Start with the simplest possible case. Write down what Principles of Biology claims or describes in one sentence, then invent the smallest concrete situation in which that sentence is true. In biology, the smallest case is usually a single object, a single equation or a single measurement. Check that every symbol or term in your sentence has a meaning in that case.

Example 2 — changing one variable

Take the situation from Example 1 and change exactly one quantity: double it, halve it, or set it to zero. Predict what should happen to Principles of Biology before you calculate. Comparing your prediction with the result is the fastest way to find out whether you understand the idea or only the words.

Example 3 — an exam-style question

Typical questions about Principles of Biology ask you to (a) state it precisely, (b) apply it to given data, and (c) explain a limitation. Practise writing all three answers in under five minutes; the third part is what separates a full-mark answer from an average one.

Applications of Principles of Biology

In research: Principles of Biology appears in biology research whenever the underlying quantities have to be modelled precisely. Papers usually cite it as a starting assumption and then explore where it breaks down.
In technology and industry: Engineering practice reuses Principles of Biology in design rules, simulations and safety margins. Knowing the idea lets you read a specification sheet and understand why the numbers look the way they do.
In the classroom: Principles of Biology is common in secondary-school and first-year university syllabi. It links to neighbouring topics 2011 in biology, 2011 non-fiction books, Biology book stubs, so understanding it makes those chapters shorter.
In everyday life: Look for Principles of Biology outside the textbook — in sport, cooking, traffic, electronics or the sky above you. An example you found yourself is remembered far longer than one you were given.

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How to study Principles of Biology in 20 minutes

Read the reference excerpt below once, without taking notes.
Close the page and write down what Principles of Biology means in your own words.
Compare your version with the excerpt and mark what you missed.
Work through the three examples above with pen and paper.
Explain Principles of Biology out loud to somebody else — or to Teacher Smith in the lgStudy chat.

Frequently asked questions

What is Principles of Biology in simple terms?

Principles of Biology is a college level biology electronic textbook published by Nature Publishing in 2011. The book is not a digitally reformatted version of a paper book.

Why does Principles of Biology matter?

Because it connects several biology ideas at once: it gives you a definition you can apply, a quantity you can calculate, and a way to check whether a result is plausible.

How should I study Principles of Biology?

Read the excerpt, restate it from memory, then work through the examples and applications listed on this page. The five-step study plan above takes about twenty minutes.

What does this page cover?

It gives you a compact reference excerpt plus original lgStudy explanations, examples, applications and study material on Principles of Biology.