Make your Selection!

Hello Everyone,

The 2013 AP Biology Exam is behind us, and by next Monday, May 20th, you should have made your selection and obtained your book. Below is a list of books that I have recently read and I feel are a good read:

The Greatest Show on Earth - Richard Dawkins 
Unscientific America - Chris Mooney
The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks - Rebecca Skloot
What Evolution Is - Ernst Mayr
The Ominvore's Dilemma - Michael Pollan

The World Without Us - Alan Weisman

The Journey of Man or Deep Ancestry - Spencer Wells
The Ancestor's Tale - Richard Dawkins

The Origin of Species - Charles Darwin
The Hot Zone or The Demon in the Freezer - Richard Preston
Your Inner Fish - Neil Shubin
Genome - Matt Ridley
The Coming Plague - Laurie Garrett
Why Darwin Matters - Michael Shermer
Collapse - Jared Diamond

The New Killer Diseases - Elinor Levy and Mark Fischetti

Why Darwin Matters - Michael Shermer

The Blind Watchmaker - Richard Dawkins

Feel free to choose any other new titles on biology you like as well - just run it by me first. Also, if you and a few of your classmates want to read as a group (that is, all read the same book), go right ahead...  I have read all of the above and will be active in responding to your posts. Please ask me if you have any questions regarding the topic or difficulty of the book.  I have also invited past AP Bio students to enter the fray.

Once again, the goal is for you to think while you read. I do not want a book report or a summary of a chapter. But every once and a while, when you read something that makes you stop and have an original thought or idea, put the book down, reference (or quote) the passage that made you stop, and write your thoughts about it here. Your classmates and I will then (hopefully) continue the discussion with comments and other posts.  Take a look at some past posts (shown below) to get an idea on what we're looking for.

We will be reading in class and also posting every other day in the computer lab. To first be able to make your posts (and not just a comment--which anyone can do), you need to sign up (use your real name as your handle--no "Fireball", "S.O.T.C." or other nicknames). I will then add you as a 'Contributor'. You can then blog away! For more info, just ask!

Enjoy using your mind!