- Are you intrigued with the incredible variety of organisms that inhabit our planet?
- Have you wondered about their origin and how they have evolved?
- Can we manage the capacity of our global-life support system to continue sustaining a rapidly increasing human population?
- Can we reverse the destruction and erosion that threaten the world s most productive soils?
- What lies ahead for the future of genetic engineering?
- Why do cells divide, and how do tissues age?
- What are clones and transgenic animals?
- And, perhaps the most alluring challenge of all, how does the human brain function to articulate, comprehend and pursue these problems?
A human T lymphocyte cell ( pink shere) "communicating" with a macrophage cell. The macrophage is consuming bacillus bacterial cells (yellow). |
Why should I study biology?...I mean ....Is there anything really interesting going on in biology anyway?! |
YES!The world is literally being "turned on its ear" by the recent advances through research in the biological sciences. Biology is the scientific exploration of the vast and diverse world of living organisms; an exploration that has expanded enormously within the last four decades revealing a wealth of knowledge about ourselves and about the millions of other organisms with whom we share this planet Earth. Today, biological research, worldwide, spans an almost infinite spectrum of studies from molecules to landscapes.Ethical judgements may heavily influence the success of applications that develop from many avenues of biological research. Sequencing the human genome, gene localization and identity, gene therapy, the creation and release of genetically engineered organisms, bioengineered pharmaceuticals, and ecosystem management of marine, freshwater and terrestrial environments, are all current and lively areas of applied research that call for cooperation and partnerships between biologists and many other professional and cultural groups in the community. The study of biology has an immediate relevance to our daily lives. It is important for everyone to develop an informed sense of how we may individually and collectively continue to fit into the complex ecology of our planet without rendering horrendous destruction. Some of the greatest engineering feats of the future are likely to involve bioengineering projects, particularly concerning the disposal of municipal and industrial wastes and the development of renewable resources. Governments, industries and
consumers must be informed and up-to-date on biological issues.
The
continual pursuit of biological understanding is essential if societies
are to make informed choices to safeguard the future of the human race.
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