Product Description
A celebration of the life and pioneering work of the eminent mycologist and scholar R. Gordon Wasson.

A legendary figure in the field of ethnobotany, R. Gordon Wasson's trail-blazing work on hallucinogenic mushrooms with the Mexican curandera Maria Sabina in the 1950s brought increased scholarly attention to the importance of psychoactive plants in the spiritual life of indigenous peoples and had a profound influence well beyond the academic world. His accessible writings helped popularize these discoveries, forming the ground for the social revolution of the following decade. With the growing interest in the role of psychoactive plants in society today, the work of R. Gordon Wasson and the example set by the man himself, so well illustrated here, takes on increasing importance.  ... Read more

Customer Reviews (2)

A unique and compelling contribution
This is a one-of-a-kind tribute to R. Gordon Wasson, widely credited as the primary founder of ethnomycology, whose history-making investigations into fungi across culture led him to the trail of the sacred mushrooms of Mesoamerica.The contributions by various authors are excellent, and the production superb.It features high-quality reproductions of historic photographs of mushroom ceremonies of the Mazatec (some originally published in LIFE magazine), along with some breath-taking pictures never-before-seen.Interesting, informative highlights come one after the other, from a nice assortment of Wasson's highly accomplished colleagues.This is a distinguished work that cannot be praised too highly, and will grow in stature with time.It was fittingly published as #11 in Wasson's Ethnomycological Studies, and goes well on the shelf alongside the others in that series.Very well done, and highly recommended for those with serious interest in this fascinating and important subject.

Entheogens: Professional Listing
"The Sacred Mushroom Seeker" has been selected for listing in "Religion and Psychoactive Sacraments: An Entheogen Chrestomathy."http://www.csp.org/chrestomathy ... Read more

Product Description
Lichens are symbiotic organisms in which fungi and algae and/or cyanobacteria form an intimate biological union. This diverse group is found in almost all terrestrial habitats from the tropics to polar regions. In this second edition, four completely new chapters cover recent developments in the study of these fascinating organisms, including lichen genetics and sexual reproduction, stress physiology and symbiosis, and the carbon economy and environmental role of lichens. The whole text has been fully updated, with chapters covering anatomical, morphological and developmental aspects; the contribution of the unique secondary metabolites produced by lichens to medicine and the pharmaceutical industry; patterns of lichen photosynthesis and respiration in relation to different environmental conditions; the role of lichens in nitrogen fixation and mineral cycling; and the use of lichens as indicators of air pollution. This is a valuable reference for both students and researchers interested in lichenology. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (4)

Detailed overview of what makes lichens tick
The first decade of the 21st century has been very good to those of us interested in lichens. There were Brodo and the Sharnoffs' majestic Lichens of North America, the Hinds' The Macrolichens of New England (Memoirs of The New York Botanical Garden, Volume 96), the second edition of McCune and Geiser's Macrolichens of the Pacific Northwest: Second Edition, the completion of Nash, Gries, and Bungartz's three-volume Lichen Flora of the Greater Sonoran Desert Region, plus the new edition of the British Lichen Society's The Lichens of Great Britain and Ireland. (These last two are not available through Amazon.)

But these are all chiefly guidebooks to individual species, comprising mostly descriptions, keys, and photographs. To complement them, we now have the second edition of Lichen Biology, edited by Nash. This is a broad and detailed overview of what makes lichens tick, with chapters on anatomy and morphology, reproduction, biochemistry, ecology, physiology, biogeography, taxonomy, and more.

Lichen Biology won't help you tell an Usnea from a Bryoria but it will help you understand the many complex dimensions of these interesting symbiotic organisms. Others commenting on the first edition noted that it is a technical book. This is true, and some chapters are denser than others. (For someone like me who forgot everything he knew about organic chemistry many years ago, the chapter on secondary metabolites was especially challenging.)

My only reservation about Lichen Biology is that the pace of current research using DNA sequence data to establish phylogenies will make the chapters on systematics and taxonomy out of date very quickly.

I will give Lichen Biology four stars - terrific for serious students but destined to be a disappointment to a beginner. If you want a first book on lichens, this is not the place to start. Spring for the big one, Lichens of North America.

Lichen Biology
I agree with the other two reviewers: if you have no experience with the life sciences it would be best to begin with a book like W. Pervis's Lichens. However, Nash's Lichen Biology is an outstanding text for more detailed and advanced questions on the interworkings of these unique organisms/ecosystems. Each chapter is authored by experts in smaller aspects of lichenology (chemistry, anatomy, taxonomy, ecology etc.), making the complete work very well-rounded.

Excellent introduction for serious students of botany
This book is not light reading.It is, however, the best book currently available for a complete introduction to the biology of lichens.Topicsrange from morphology and physiology to ecology.It would benefit fromdiagrams to accompany the many photographs.

Very Technical--Not a book for the amateur!
Good B&W photos, more info on lichens than you'll find anywhere but nearly impossible to read and understand if you are not a bontanist. ... Read more

Product Description
Today’s accelerated pace of research, aided by new instruments and techniques that combine the approaches of genetics, biochemistry, and cell biology, has changed the character of mycology. A new approach is necessary for the organization and study of fungi.
Fungi: Experimental Methods in Biology presents the latest information in fungal biology generated through the application of genetics, molecular biology, and biochemistry. This book analyzes information derived through real experiments, and focuses on unresolved questions in the field. Divided into six sections comprising 14 chapters, the text describes the special features of fungi, interactions of fungi with other organisms, model fungi in research, gene manipulation, adaptations, and natural populations.
Each chapter is self-contained and written in a style that enables the reader to progress from elementary concepts to advanced research, benefiting both beginning research workers and experienced professionals. A comprehensive appendix covers the principles in naming fungi and discusses their broad classification. ... Read more

Product Description
Originally published in 1892-95.This volume from the Cornell University Library's print collections was scanned on an APT BookScan and converted to JPG 2000 format by Kirtas Technologies.All titles scanned cover to cover and pages may include marks notations and other marginalia present in the original volume.Please note original contains color images and Cornell's version is printed in black and white only. ... Read more

Product Description
Originally published in 1892-95.This volume from the Cornell University Library's print collections was scanned on an APT BookScan and converted to JPG 2000 format by Kirtas Technologies.All titles scanned cover to cover and pages may include marks notations and other marginalia present in the original volume.Please note original contains color images and Cornell's version is printed in black and white only. ... Read more

Product Description
Despite an upsurge in national and international debate on environmental issues since the Earth Summit in Rio de Janeiro in 1992, fungi, vital to the functioning of terrestrial and aquatic ecosystems, are rarely mentioned. This volume helps redress this imbalance by considering fungi in the context of the impact of humankind's activity on their habitats. The presentation of experimental evidence is a major feature of the volume. Contributions on the effects of global warming, UV-B radiation, atmospheric and terrestrial pollutants, deforestation in the tropics, loss of biodiversity, genetic engineering and chaos theory ensure a topical and balanced coverage, with both ecological and physiological viewpoints being represented. This timely review will be of interest to all mycologists and those ecologists concerned with environmental change. ... Read more

Product Description
This broad introduction to the field of mycology explores the more dynamic aspects of the fungi — including their morphology, taxonomy, evolution, physiology, ecology, pathologicalrelationships, and commercial utilization.Provides information on the history of mycology as well as applications of molecular biology techniques for the study of fungi. Also covers the role of fungi in degradation of pesticides, food spoilage, biological control utilizing fungi, and fungi as human allergens. ... Read more

Product Description
This book is concerned with the most devastating fungal diseases in history. These are the plagues of trees and crop plants, caused by invisible spores that have reshaped entire landscapes and decimated human populations. The Triumph of the Fungi focuses on the fascinating biology of the well- and lesser-known diseases, and also tells the stories of the scientists involved in their study, and of the people directly impacted by the loss of forest trees like the chestnut, and cash crops such as coffee and cacao. In a surprisingly brief time, human knowledge of the fungi that infect plants has evolved from Biblical superstition, to the recognition of the true nature of plant disease, and, more recently, to a sense of awe for the sophistication of these microbes. The crucial issue of human culpability in these fungal epidemics is addressed in the books closing chapter. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (4)

Laugh While You Learn
Could a book on fungus make you laugh out loud?If the book in question is Dr. Nicholas Money's wonderful The Triumph of the Fungi, it certainly could. I laughed the whole way through, starting with the subtitle - A Rotten History, and learned so much along the way.

Each chapter of the book tackled a crop I take for granted, describing how it gained prominence, revealing who it enriched, and delving into what fungus destroyed or has the power to destroy it.Dr. Money tied in the historical aspects of each mycological disaster, making the book easy going, even for a nonscientist. As an English major, I only took two semesters of biology, so it would have been easy to lose me in the details.The numerous real-life examples, comparisons, quips, and allusions, however, made what would have been dry and inaccessible material in another author's hands fresh and fun.

Before this book, I knew nothing about how dangerous monocultures are and how at risk current farming practices make us.I had only a glimmer of how complex the life cycles of fungi are.I certainly didn't realize how impossible it is for fungicides to keep up with the rapidity of evolution in the fungal world.And now I do.

It took me months to read this book because I'm a teacher and, during the school year, I only get to read in 15-minute "Silent Reading" intervals.This kind of interrupted reading makes even great books take a loooong time to finish.To Dr. Money's credit, the book was so well written that even a sporadic reader found it easy to pick up where she left off and forge on. It's a rare book that entertains as well as it educates; Triumph of the Fungi does just that.

Manifesto against monocultures
Apart from some strained attempts at humour, starting with the subtitle, Nicholas Money has produced an excellent book.The book is a well-organised and expressively written presentation of how various fungi [and their relations] have and are assaulting valuable trees and crops around the planet.With excellent graphics to support the text, the author describes how fungal infections have attacked decorative or lumber tree species, such as the chestnut and jarrah, crop plants like coffee, potatoes and rubber.He explains how the infections were detected and investigated by various researchers and what steps have been taken to curb or eliminate the infestation.The latter point is the one that should prompt the reader's close attention.

Although to many people, the blight causing the Irish Potato Famine may be the best known of fungal infections, Money opens with a story of the extermination of the American Chestnut.The account shows how little was known of fungi life cycles at the turn of the last century.Coping with the spreading infection was sporadic and ineffective.The spores, Money calculates, spread at the rate of over 100 metres per day.Small wonder governments failed to address the epidemic successfully.Control, in any case, would have meant an interdict on seed and seedling importation and transport, a multi-million dollar business.Such a draconian imposition would have raised the ire of business and governments alike.So we lost the chestnut.And the elm.The oaks and redwoods in California are presently under threat from a similar infestation.How can microbes be so destructive and apparently so immune to counter-measures?

Fungi are insidious in their invasive tactics and are talented breeders.Not only may a species have multiple mechanisms for breeding, many actually breed across species to create hybrids.These cross-bred organisms are highly adaptable to changing conditions.In fact, variations in environment may prompt species' mix to address the change.The breeding of multiple species may have immense impact, since some fungi may infect more than a hundred different types of plants.Money demonstrates mixed feelings as he describes some fungi as "the most exuberant swingers of the microbial world".It's an amazing capacity in such a simple organism.The genome of some species is nearly the size of a human's - but, far more importantly, the large genome imparts the ability to change rapidly as needed.This is one reason why so many fungi aren't "species-specific" in their infections.

In his descriptions of the historical efforts to identify the various rusts, blights, blasts and bunts attacking plants, Money recounts the efforts of investigators.There are the losers who went along almost fantastic idea tracks, attributing infections to malodorous mists and even moonlight.More rational researchers found ways of tracking infectors and how they operated.His first hero is Henry Murrill, who struggled to cope with the American chestnut epidemic that originated in the Bronx Zoo grounds in 1904.Rev. Miles Berkeley, working in limited circumstances, produced a landmark essay on the cause and effect of fungal infection of the "Irish" potato.Money's chapter heading, "Potato Soup" is telling as a descriptor.

Farther afield, Money admires the work achieved by a group of women in the Netherlands.Johanna Westerdijk, Christine Buisman and Marie Schwarz all made key contributions in revealing the mechanics of what is known as Dutch elm disease.Some of this work provided pointers to the evolutionary path of these fungi, information being applied elsewhere.Money's real praise, however, reaches further back in time in lauding two French scientific pioneers.Mathieu Tillet and Benedict Prevost proved to be the first to apply sound research methods in determining how plant disease operates.He would have this pair granted Nobel Prizes if the rules allowed posthumous awards.He notes that in France experimental research was held in low regard in their day.It was a serious uphill climb for them to gain recognition for their work.

It's not an uphill struggle to read this book, however.Money, who has published other works on mycology - the study of fungus - has an admirable way of making his point.The point here is that with fungi so adaptive, so easily disseminated over vast distances and so difficult to eradicate, the human species stands in some peril of indirectly succumbing to its effects.Wheat, maize, cocoa, coffee and rubber may join chestnuts in disappearing from our ken.These products are fundamental to our society, and more research must be undertaken to reveal how to address the problem.With so many of these crops being clones of earlier strains, their vulnerability is high, as is ours as a result.Read this and find out what you may be confronting.[stephen a. haines - Ottawa, Canada]

An alright book
As I had read the author's other books on fungi I thought this one would be great. I was wrong. It fine for folks who know little about fungi and their influences in the world but not of much value otherwise. Mr Money can do better.

Fantastic book!
It is often said that the cockroaches will outlast us--but Nicholas Money's new book convinces me it will be the fungi who triumph in the end. This wonderful, terrifying book details the devastation wrought by the fungi and our feeble efforts to keep them at bay. How is it possible that a book with such a grim message is a page-turner that makes you laugh out-loud on nearly every page? Because this guy can WRITE. Money is the Steven Jay Gould of mycology, the Richard Dawkins of the fungi, and this book is fantastic. ... Read more

Product Description
This illustrated manual of clinical fungi provides a source of identification of both frequently seen and unusual clinical fungi. It includes a discussion of conidiogenesis as related to fungal identification, and uses accurate taxonomy, nomenclature and classification of organisms. ... Read more

Product Description
Providing a holistic view of the entire clavicipitalean family, this reference analyzes the ecology, evolution, genetics, physiology, and taxonomy of this diverse group of fungi for identification of common biological, biochemical, and genetic features and discovery of potential medical and agricultural applications. ... Read more

Product Description
Although fungi are included in the plant kingdom, they differ fundamentally from our usual idea of plants.They have been sadly neglected, partly because of their unusual form, but mainly because few books have presented an easy and interesting guide to their study.

Bruce Fuhrer is noted for his knowledge of natural history and his accomplished photography.In A Field Companion to Australian Fungi he has compiled a fascinating collection of photographs with informative text to enable the layperson to develop a knowledge of these fascinating plant forms.He gives information that allows for the identification of fungi, their natural habitats, whether the fungi are edible and much more.

The range of fungi is surprisingly vast, their colors and forms often beautiful.They truly represent an exciting part of nature to study, whether it be a serious study or simply the enjoyment of observing while bushwalking. ... Read more

Product Description
The first multidisciplinary analysis of principles and casestudies on ethnomycology and fungal biotechnology, covering biologicalcontrol, mycorrhizal fungi and applied mycology. ... Read more

Product Description
This is the one essential handbook for all who work with or are interested in fungi (including lichens, slime moulds and yeasts). This new edition, with more than 20,500 entries, provides the most complete listing of generic names of and terms used to describe fungi available. For each genus, the authority, the date of publication, status, systematic position, number of accepted species, distribution, and key references are given. Diagnoses of families, orders and higher categories are included for most groups. In addition, there are biographic notes, information on well-known metabolites and mycotoxins, and broad accounts of almost all pure and applied aspects of the subject (including citations of important literature). All information has been updated as necessary since the publication of the eighth edition in 1995. In addition the ninth edition has the following new features: a refined classification of fungal phyla reflecting the latest molecular evidence, including a major revision of the classification of the Ascomycota; a full integration of anamorphic genera in the classification; a revised synopsis of the proposed classification. ... Read more

Product Description
In this volume, first published in 1976, Dr Ainsworth gives a straightforward account of the main views held about fungi for the past three millennia and the development of the study of fungi as a branch of science for the last 250 years. The existing literature is widely scattered and much of it suffers from difficulty of access. In this volume there is documented an outline of the development of the main areas of mycology, with emphasis on the solution of the major problems that have confronted students of fungi and novel discoveries which have given new insights.A number of important themes form the basis of the account, each one being traced from early timesto the twentieth century. The themes are arranged in the chronology of their appearance in mycological studies. Most chapters are thus self-contained. Whilst an elementary knowledge of mycology is assumed, technicalities have been kept to a minimum so that not only mycologists but other biologists and historians of science can understand the history of the development of knowledge of an important group of organisms. ... Read more

Product Description
This new edition of the universally acclaimed textbook on fungal biology has been completely re-written, to take account of recent progress in the taxonomy, cell and molecular biology, biochemistry, pathology and ecology of the fungi. Features of taxonomic relevance are integrated with natural functions, including their relevance to human affairs. Special emphasis is placed on the biology and control of human and plant pathogens, providing a vital link between fundamental and applied mycology. The emphasis throughout is on whole-organism biology from an integrated, multidisciplinary perspective. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (2)

Excellent buy
I purchased this book and recommend it to every professional mycologists and plant pathologists. I'm really happy with the purchase.

What is behind all those mushrooms and toadstools?
Introduction to Fungi
I haven't read much scientific literature on fungi after my PhD in 1976. This book is for me a very good re-introduction in this field of science. The third edition appeared in 2006, 27 years after the second edition. Many things have changed in the field of mycology in this period: the introduction of DNA-techniques formed a major break-through in the identification of fungal mycelium and the relationship between mycelium and fruiting bodies like mushrooms, toadstools, puff balls, wood crusts, lichens etc. At the same time DNA has introduced completely new views on the taxonomy, filogeny and evolution of fungi.
All these new views are combined in this book with the classic knowledge about fungi, based on light and electron microscope observations, biochemical studies and biological and ecological aspacts. The authors have succeeded in a presentation of the huge material in an attractive way, with numerous drawings and photographs, including 12 full color plates.
The book is an excellent starting point for deep specialisation in all aspects of mycology: the text counts for about 700 pages, followed by 120 pages of references to original literature and a subject index of 25 pages. ... Read more

Product Description
The work presented here is based on the modern classification of this group. Barring some tropical examples, it covers essentially genera found in the temperate zone of the Northern hemisphere. The book will interest medical and veterinery mycologists, phytopathologists, food scientists, and ecologists. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (1)

I would like to have this book
I would like to ask you help me to have the book ... Read more