Waisel, Y., Eshel, A., Kafkafi, U., eds. Plant roots - the hidden half

Research on plant roots represents an exciting and intriguingfield of science. Undoubtedly, the vast major ity of researcherswithin the field are familiar with the first (1991) and second(1996) editions of this book. Since these editions were published,understanding of root biology has been advanced by using molecularbiology methods and molecular genetic tools which offer novelperspectives for the exploitation and understanding of rootstructure and root processes. The third edition of Plant roots– the hidden half includes revised and expanded informationon topics covered in the previous editions, as well as in     

Lam, E., Fukuda, H., Greenberg, J., eds. Programmed cell death in higher plants

‘For everything there is a season . . . a timeto build up and a time to break down . . . a timeto live and a time to die.’ The quotation comes from the work of a Jewish scholar writingunder the pen name Ecclesiastes or The Preacher, several centuriesBC. His words capture the theme of the book under review here:that death is part of life and may be regulated by factors thatinclude time and season. Programmed cell death in higher plantsis a hardback reprint of a special edition of Plant MolecularBiology, devoted to scholarly     

Murata, N., Yamada, M., Nishida, I., Okuyama, H., Sekiya, J. and Hajime, W. (eds). Advanced research on plant lipids

This volume contains nearly 100 contributed articles from the15th International Symposium on Plant Lipids, held in Okazaki,Japan in May of 2002, and as such reflects the diverse interestsof plant lipidologists in the 21st century. These InternationalSymposia are biennial events which serve as important forumsfor the exchange of ideas and the updating of current thinkingin plant lipid biology research. The attendees of these meetingsalso have the opportunity to crystallize their thoughts on paper,and it is these short papers which form the