Hungry Planet

This comprehensive book delivers everything we have come to appreciate and expect from a Schumann and D’Arcy offering. It tells the stories of plant pathology with a passionate voice and laces each tale with the essential research-based information to help readers understand the interrelationship among agriculture, the human condition, and the science that connects the two. The book examines the effects plant diseases have had on human culture by weaving together true-life tales from ancient days and modern times. Hungry Planet explores sometimes controversial topics that challenge readers to think beyond the disease outbreaks to consider the impact these biological events have on our personal lives. Anyone interested in science, environmental issues, food production, or sustainability will find the book fascinating.



This clearly written book is an ideal entry-level text for inquisitive college students who are majoring in a subject other than plant pathology, especially those in general education and core science classes. There is a student resources website organized around the book’s topics that will help bring the stories of plant diseases to life through podcasts, exercises, and other teaching tools. For those teaching with this book, there is an instructor-only web interface with resources that will provide a course guide throughout the semester. If you wish to build a course around Hungry Planet, these award-winning educators have already done the preparation work for you—it is only a click away on APSnet. Anyone who has taught a course with Schumann’s earlier book, Plant Diseases: Their Biology and Social Impact, will find Hungry Planet to be an amazing update of one of the perennial favorites among APS PRESS titles.



Highlights for Readers and Students


• Controversial and complex topics such as pesticide use and genetic engineering are presented in a real-world context, encouraging the reader to apply critical thinking.

• Descriptions of the impact of plant diseases on where and how crops are grown give gardeners, students, and anyone interested in science or agriculture a comprehensive and approachable presentation of the subject matter.

• The relationship between plant disease and the food supply is emphasized, so that readers gain a better understanding of the connections between the two.

• A historical and sometimes political context is used to present the development of agriculture, giving the reader a perspective on the people that throughout history were trying to understand the world around them and secure a reliable food supply.

• The comprehensive online resources enhance learning for today’s multifaceted student. Free online resources include color images, Internet resources, a Words to Know section with an illustrated glossary, Questions for Discussion, podcasts, and Selected Readings.



These student resources complement the printed book. Each chapter includes an Image Gallery with color images. Words to Know are individually linked to an online illustrated glossary. Additional print and Internet resources are listed. Each short podcast discusses a major concept or issue, clarifies a particular point of possible confusion, and offers review questions. Finally, Questions for Discussion may be used to continue the conversation after reading the chapter.



Highlights for Instructors


Many free instructor resources, written by the authors themselves, give instructors ideas for teaching assignments and shorten the prep time needed for lesson plans and lectures.



Hungry Planet is designed as a textbook for general education or core courses in biology for nonscience major undergraduates. It teaches basic biological concepts within a framework of stories of plant diseases. Such a course should help students become more aware of the importance of plants and agriculture in their everyday lives and the challenges of providing food, fiber, and fuel for a growing population.



Like the student materials, the instructor resources are organized by chapter: Teaching Resources, Podcasts, Demonstrations and Desktop Lab Exercises, Group Discussions, Short and Long Writing Assignments. These instructor resources include many exercises successfully used by the authors. Instructors are invited to use these resources as classroom exercises or to get ideas for additional exercises. In addition, many peer-reviewed sources of information related to plant diseases, including an illustrated glossary, are available in other areas of the APSnet Education Center. Student resources for each chapter of Hungry Planet also are available on this site.



Educators may review the print edition (but not the eBook editions) of Hungry Planet: Stories of Plant Diseases for consideration as a course textbook. Call 1.800.328.7560 U.S. and Canada (+1.651.454.7250 elsewhere) or send an e-mail to aps@sicsoc.org. Please include name of course, name of institution, your name, address, phone number, e-mail address, and the name of the book. Instructors who examine this textbook for course adoption will be given login and password information to access the online resources.