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Modern Genetic Analysis Preface
Focus on Genetic Analysis

We focus on the questions that underlie much of modern genetics, such as, "How many genes affect this phenotypic difference? Are the genes linked? Are the mutations allelic? What is the cellular function of the gene?" In short, the focus is on the modes of inference used in genetics today.

PROBLEMS at the end of each chapter have been created for students to apply and exercise their analytical skills. Problems are arranged to start from the simple and proceed to the more complex. All problems have been classroom tested. Of particular interest is a new type of problem called Pattern Recognition. These problems are symbolic representations of the results of simple cross systems, shown graphically with a minimum number of words. They have been designed to aid students in recognizing hereditary patterns in data, a key skill in genetic analysis. Most chapters also include a problem containing an exercise titled Unpacking the Problem.. Such exercises reveal the underlying levels of knowledge that must be applied for a problem to be solved constructively. The unpacking exercise accesses this underlying knowledge and even addresses fundamental misunderstandings that sometimes prevent students from solving problems successfully.

Each chapter also includes several SOLVED PROBLEMS that walk students through the way in which geneticists apply principles to experimental data. The Solved Problems prepare students for solving problems on their own.

© 1999 by W. H. Freeman and Company. All rights reserved.