Author Description

A Textbook Of General Botany Is An Outgrowth Of The Experience Of The Authors In Teaching Of Elementary Botany. In Its Preparation The Authors Have Been Guided By The View That The Subject Of Botany Should Be Presented As A Unit. The Beginning Student Is Not Interested In, And Should Not Be Burdened With, Distinctions Between The Artificially Abstracted Phases Of The Subject Morphology, Physiology, Ecology, And The Like Distinctions Which Have Their Place In Defining And Limiting The Scope Of More Advanced And Special Courses. Especially Should The Study Of Structure And That Of Function Be Intimately Correlated In An Elementary Course. In The Present State Of Development Of The Teaching Of Science, Forms Selected For Study Should, Whenever Possible, Be Such As Are Already Known To The Student, Either Because Of Their Widespread Occurrence In Nature Or In Cultivation, Or Because Of Their Economic Importance; Or That General Conceptions Should Be Illustrated By Familiar Facts. Particularly In Botany Should The Beginning Of The Study Be An Observation Of Everyday Plants. Attempts Are Made To Avoid Technical Terms Except Those Which Were Found Indispensable To A Clear Presentation. Only Such Facts And Conceptions Have Been Introduced As The Experience Has Shown Can Be Successfully Treated In The Course Of The Beginning Year. The Subject Matter Has Been Arranged In A Logical Order, On The Assumption Of A Continuous Year S Course.