The Science of Animal Growth and Meat Technology, Second Edition, combines fundamental science- based and applied, practical concepts relating to the prenatal and postnatal growth of cattle, sheep and pigs. It provides the necessary components to understand the production and growth of livestock for safe and quality meat products and presents an understanding of the principles of meat science and technology that is needed to understand the meat industry. Information on the slaughter process of animals, muscle structure and meat tenderness, meat quality, meat safety, and microbiology makes this a valuable self-study reference for students and professionals entering the field. - Describes principles in muscle metabolism, meat quality and meat safety using case studies - Discusses the microbial safety of meat products, primary pathogens of concern, and pathogen detection - Offers solutions on how to control bacterial growth to improve the safety and quality of meat - Presents a new chapter on packaging for meat and meat products that focuses on flexible film technology, packaging materials and equipment technology - Includes new information on inspection systems prior to slaughter, during slaughter, and the inspection of meat processing systems

The study of animal cognition has undergone enormous growth in the last two decades. In the early part of the 20th century, the work was conducted primarily by psychologists who studied animal behavior in the laboratory as a model of human cognition. By the middle of the century, ethological studies of animal behavior in the natural environment revealed an amazing array of cognitive abilities in different species, worthy of study in their own right. In many cases, scientists in these two disciplines were investigating the same process (e.g., learning, navigation, communication) from very different perspectives. Psychologists tended to focus on developmental or mechanistic explanations, whereas ethologists and behavioral ecologists emphasised adaptive or functional ones. Eventually, it became clear that the two fields are complementary with a full description of any cognitive process, depending on both proximate and ultimate explanations. This text builds on the tradition of combining data from laboratory and field studies of animal behavior as a means of understanding the evolution and function of cognition. In keeping with contemporary terminology, cognition refers to a wide range of processes from modification of simple reflexes to abstract concept learning to social interactions to the expression of emotions, such as guilt. These are examined throughout the text in animal groups ranging from insects to great apes. A general theme across chapters is that the evolution of behavioral patterns is adaptive, thereby reflected in underlying neural structures. Many of the authors go on to examine the adaptive significance of a behavior in relation to a species ecological history in order to develop theories of cognitive evolution. These issues are becoming increasingly important in a world with rapidly changing environments to which all animals, including humans, must adjust. A primary goal of this volume is to introduce the exciting field of animal cognition to a new group of young scientists. The editor also hopes to encourage experienced researchers to expand their ideas of what constitutes animal cognition and how it can be studied in the future. From the editors own reading, one area of potential growth is the development of more formal models of cognition to guide quantitative predictions of behavior. Although no chapter focuses exclusively on humans, readers should have no difficulty extrapolating research findings and theories from other species to those of our own. Differences are clearly based on degree, not kind.

Retitled to reflect expansion of coverage from the first edition, Handbook of Meat and Meat Processing, Second Edition, contains a complete update of materials and nearly twice the number of chapters. Divided into seven parts, the book covers the entire range of issues related to meat and meat processing, from nutrients to techniques for preservati

This book describes human development including sexual reproduction and stem cell research with the development of model organisms that are accessible to genetic and experimental analysis in readily understandable texts and 315 multi-colored graphics. The introductory account of model organisms selected from the entire animal kingdom presents general principles, which are then outlined in subsequent chapters devoted to, for example, sexual development; genes controlling development and their contemporary molecular-analysis methods; production of clones and transgenic animals; development of the nervous and circulatory systems; regenerative medicine and ageing. Finally the evolution of developmental toolkits and novelties is discussed including the genetic basis of the enlargement of the human forebrain. Separate boxes are devoted to controversial questions such as the benefits and problems of prenatal diagnostics or the construction of ancient body plans.

Principles Of Animal Growth And Development makes the readers familiar with the various aspects that are related to the process of growth in the animals and the various kinds of growth in the animals as it takes place in the different body parts and the various forms of growth cells. It provides the basic information on the role of various mechanisms of the body in the growth and development of the various parts in the body. This book also discusses about the development of the several kinds of tissues in the animals, the growth of muscles in the animals, the molecular control of adipogenesis, the factors that affect the composition of adipose tissue and lipid metabolism, the growth of bones and the relationship between the growth, development and the quality of meat in various animals.