For perspective students/RA/postdocs to Hu Lab 



If you are interesting in the research subjects of our lab, and maybe consider conduct some studies, here are some tips for preparing yourself on different subjects before you join the lab.

Botany in general

    If you are just into the biology field and not that familiar with plants, I would suggest some basic readings listed below. These books are also good resources even for the experienced botanists. They provide interesting insights on various subjects that will lure you into the fascinating plant world. They are:
Dawson, J. & R. Lucas. 2005. The nature of plants - habitats, challenges, and adaptations. Timber Press, Portland.
Evert, R. F., and S. E. Eichhorn. 2013. Raven biology of plants, 8th ed. Freeman.

Evolution in general

For those who have never taken any evolution course, you can read the book by Zimmer (2006), which is a well-written introductory book.
Zimmer, C. 2006. Evolution: the triumph of an idea. Harper Perennial.

Plant systematics and evolution

    If you are interested in going to the field and knowing plant's names, and also fascinated by all their stories, you are in a good start for field botanist. But systematics is much more than just identifying plants you see.
Some references to start with:
Judd, W. S., C. S. Campbell, E. A. Kellogg, P. F. Stevens, and M. J. Donoghue. 2002. Plant systematics: a phylogenetic approach, second edition. Sinauer Assoc.
Niklas, K. J. 1997. Evolutionary biology of plants. University of Chicago Press.

Plant reproductive biology

    Most of the work related to this subject is in the field. You have to be aware that it is also different from the field works you may have in those of vegetation survey or environmental assessment. The field work involved is highly associated to the life cycle of the plants of interests, so patience and the ability of working long hours in the field are basic requirements.
    Plan things ahead and choose your target species wisely. Most of the plants in Taiwan flower only once a year and in several occasions once per a few year. The book by A.J. Richards is probably the best reference for this topic, but if you want to start with a lighter book, you can try the one by Friedrich Barth.
Barth, F. G. 1991. Insects and flowers - the biology of a partnership. Princeton.
Richards, A. J. 1997. Plant breeding systems, 2nd ed. Chapman & Hall.
Silvertown, J. 2009. An orchard invisible - a natural history of seeds. University of Chicago Press.

Plant evolutionary developmental biology

    Although my major interests are in the evolution of flowers, there are indeed many others that are related to the fast-paced evo-devo field. Below are two books edited by Q. Cronk:
Cronk, Q. C., R. M. Bateman, and J. A. Hawkins. 2002. Developmental genetics and plant evolution. Taylor & Francis.
Cronk, Q. C. 2009. The molecular organography of plants. Oxford University Press.

Molecular evolution

    This field has developed very quickly over the past years. You can started with Graur & Li (2000) for some introductory level concepts, but it is a bit out of date.
Graur, D. and W.-H. Li. 2000. Fundamentals of Molecular Evolution. 2nd ed., Sinauer Assoc., Sunderland, MA, USA.
Felsenstein, J. 2003. Inferring phylogenies, 2nd ed. Sinauer Assoc., Inc., Sunderland, MA, USA.

Plants and human affairs (ethnobotany)

    There are many books talked about this subject. I selected a few that I think is well written and good for starting readers.
Balick, M. J. & P. A. Cox. 1996. Plants, people, and culture: the science of ethnobotany. Scientific American Library.
Pollan, M. 2001. The botany of desire: a plant's eye view of the world. Random House Trade.
Diamond, J. 1999. Guns, germs, and steel: the fates of human society. W. W. Norton & Company, Inc.


Our lab slogan is "think different". This means that I would expect the students to have creative thinking when they are in the lab.