28.4 Food, Fuel, and Fiber: Human Use of Plants (pages 554-557)
Humans have always been dependent on plants for food, fiber, and fuel. This dependence became extreme after the domestication of plant species beginning about 10,000 years ago, and with the development of agricultural economies beginning about 8000 years ago. Artificial selection techniques have produced huge increases in the yields of these domesticated plants. Plant biologists now use recombinant DNA technologies to supplement the natural variation that forms the basis of artificial selection. Gene transfer techniques allow researchers to move selected alleles into targeted species.
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Summary Review
Biological Science, Chapter 28, Land Plants
