analysis is best.The chapter then moves into detailed, step-by-step instructions on how to run each analysis. The coverage of these procedures is,necessarily,a bit more detailed than the other sections because most users will not be familiar with the specific features of each test.Finally,Chapter15includes four different out-standing laboratory exercises that use JWatcher to teach students:(1)how to develop their own ethogram and score behavior,(2)the differences between time sampling and continuous recordings, (3)how to conduct sequential analysis,and(4)how to use both sequential analysis and basic analysis to refine research questions from initial pilot data.These exercises use video clips downloadable from the JWatcher website free of charge and would be excellent teaching tools in the classroom.This manual is a vast improvement over the Version0.9Manual available on the JWatcher website, which only covers some basic guidelines for running the software,explains what the individual file types do,and indicates how to analyze results.The online manual has no coverage of the complex sequential analysis functions of JWatcher1.0.In summary,this book is a necessity for users at all experience levels who wish to quantify behavior using an event recorder.JWatcher software is free of charge and this manual is affordable enough that several copies could be purchased for use in one’s research laboratory.The money from the sale of the manual is used to support further development of the software so that the future versions of the program can be offered free of charge.Theodore StankowichOrganismic&Evolutionary BiologyUniversity of Massachusetts Amherst Morrill Science Center South,611N.Pleasant Street,Amherst,MA01003E-mail:Advance Access publication February14,2008doi:10.1093/icb/icn005An Introduction to Nervous Systems. Ralph J.Greenspan,editor.Woodbury,NY:Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory Press,2007. 172pp.ISBN978-0-87969-0(hardcover)$65.00,ISBN 978-0-87969-821-8(paper)$45.00.Over the past30years,there have been several iterations of books aimed at capturing in brief the essence of the organization and function of the nervous system.Not uncommonly,they extract general princi-ples that would be more fully explored in a compre-hensive text but do not otherwise deviate significantly from the traditional form and content of presentation. This one does.Ralph Greenspan is an established neuroscientist who has pioneered novel research to explore basic and cognitive aspects of nervous system function using the fruit fly as a model system.As he states in the Preface of this book,the Neurocience Institute,of which he is a staff scientist,aims to be a provocative academy,to“push the envelope.”That philosophy is clearly conveyed in the creative,non-traditional style of presentation in this special book. The title of the book,“An Introduction to Nervous Systems,”is a bit misleading.A more accurate title, although cumbersome,would be something like “An Introduction to Nervous Systems through Exam-ination of Some Invertebrate Models.”The book uses select examples from invertebrate nervous systems to convey some fundamental principles that apply in some respects to the organization and function of thenervous system in general.In the final,short chapter—“Are All Brains Alike?Are All Brains Different?”—theauthor writes“Perhaps all nervous systems make useof common general strategies.Anatomical disparitiesmay mask underlying functional similarities in thetasks performed by various circuits.”At first glance,it is surprising that nowhere in thetext are there descriptions of what has been learnedabout ion channels and membrane potentials from classical studies of squid giant axons;of neuralnetwork properties from studies of the crustacean stomatogastric ganglion;of nervous system develop-ment from experiments on fruit fly nerve cord or nematode worms;of sensory signaling and receptionfrom the moth or cricket;or of insect social structure,for example.The author’s enthusiasm for Drosophila,which represents his main research subject,is reflectedin a substantial fraction of the book.Moreover,thereis little or no discussion of how the principles described are employed in mammals.Surveying thebreadth of the neurobiology landscape seems not to bethe primary purpose of this book.Rather,it describesselect examples that highlight what studies of“simple”invertebrate nervous systems have taught us.The taleslink organization of the nervous system to the organism’s behavior,for which invertebrates haveproven to be especially valuable.In a modern, molecular,mammalian research universe,the rich439 Downloaded from https:///icb/article/48/3/439/627027 by Guangxi University of Nationalities user on 18 September 2023history of fundamental contributions of invertebrates to neuroscience may too often be overlooked.It is especially in this respect that the book is a welcome contribution to the neurobiological literature.In the introduction to Chapter4—“Modulation,The Spice of Neural Life”—the author writes:“The capabilities of invertebrates have traditionally been underesti-mated.Perhaps this is because they are not warm and fuzzy...For whatever reason,it has taken us an inordinately long time to realize that even the simplest animals have the capacity for modifying their behavior by adjusting the activities of their nervous systems. Perhaps this is a fundamental,inseparable property of nervous systems.”Despite the fact that the book deviates from a traditional style,in its own way it follows a rather traditional sequence,e.g.,membrane potentials,then chemical signaling and sensing,then neural circuits,then neuromodulation,then biological clocks,then higher,or cognitive,function.There is a lot to like in this book,not only in its fascinating content but in the style of presentation. Ralph Greenspan weaves a tapestry about the molecular,cellular and network origins of function and behavior,and the implications for speciation, using a variety of invertebrate models.The images he creates are expressed as interesting,often humorous, readable stories about what some nervous systems do, how they do it,and how that has evolved using some basic principles in novel ways.Each chapter begins with a relevant quote or poem from a literary or scientific giant that sets the stage and tone for the often poetic introduction and description that follows. The stories themselves—about swimming in Paramecium and jellyfish,light detection by barnacles, decision making by marine snails,circadian rhythms, flying,and mating—are fascinating because they are set in a context of understanding the generation and modulation of behavior and,in some cases,the impact on ecology and evolution.Although the author states in the Preface that the book is intended for the neurobiology novice posses-sing a basic introductory knowledge of biology,this reviewer believes that it would be more appropriate for an individual with an introductory neurobiological background.For example,in the very first chapter, one quickly discovers that understanding“simple”systems can be quite complex.In particular,students new to neurobiology often struggle with concepts underlying the generation of membrane potentials and the relationship of voltage and current,yet the text and figures require some understanding of these topics.In this respect,the Glossary at the end of the book seems uneven,defining some very basic biological terms yet not defining“receptor potential,”for example,which is named but not explained in the caption of Figure3.10.Not to quibble,but this reviewer and two other neuroscientists who scanned the book question some statements or generalizations proposed,particularly in the Introduction(“What are Brains For”?).For example,on page1it states“When it comes to brains,size unquestionably matters.”While that is no doubt true,it may be the organization of cells,i.e.the way they interact,that is more relevant.If it is size that is so important,then one should note that about three quarters of cells in mammalian brain are glial cells, not neurons,some potentially capable of modulating chemical signaling at up to100,000synapses,yet their contributions are not mentioned(see below). Furthermore,spinal cords also possess much of the organization and cellular interactions,e.g.,integrating sensory input and generating motor output,yet we view their capabilities as somewhat lacking in comparison with brain.What might be the funda-mental differences between invertebrate and verte-brate nervous systems and between brain and spinal cord that yield unique aspects of functional compe-tence?Or,are they as different as we imagine them to be,particularly in comparing function in invertebrates versus vertebrates?These are some interesting questions—not found in a typical comprehensive text—that might be explored a bit further in the Introduction and perhaps elsewhere in the book.In addition,on page2,the author writes“Chemical sensing is almost certainly the original sense...,”yet mechanically gated ion channels that could sense changes in flow or pressure in the ambient environ-ment are universal and also have been identified in prokaryotic organisms.Also,on page4,the author writes“And because none of us wants to submit to being experimented upon...we study animals.”Yet, there is a substantial and rapidly growing literature that provides insights on the organization and function of human brain from studies of living persons—for example from functional MRI or stimulation/recording of brain of awake epileptic patients—or of postmortem tissue samples.There are several other aspects of the book in its current form that would benefit from revision in a second edition.First,the emphasis is on how invertebrate nervous systems inform on nervous systems in general,but it is not clear in many cases to what extent the general organization of the behaviors is similar in invertebrates and vertebrates or whether similar molecules or mechanisms are used for different purposes.Does evolution mix and match bits and pieces of behavioral components that moves behavior in new directions?One also wonders whether440Book ReviewsDownloaded from https:///icb/article/48/3/439/627027 by Guangxi University of Nationalities user on 18 September 2023there are good examples of invertebrate nervous systems and behaviors that do not translate well to a mammalian equivalent.Second,the book has a traditional neurocentric focus—and some inverte-brates indeed have few glial cells—yet in the past couple of decades it has become abundantly clear from studies of mammalian systems that interactions of neurons with glia play vital roles in regulation of neural function,development and blood flow.Third, some of the figures could benefit from greater clarity or correction of the illustration or of the explanation in the caption,including citing the source link that is listed in the Bibliography at the end of the book.In addition,the Preface could note the location of the relevant Bibliography,currently organized by chapters but separate from them.It should be noted that the author also recently co-edited a much more compre-hensive(800pages),related book(“Invertebrate Neurobiology”)with Geoffrey North.In summary,this is an excellent book for gaining an appreciation for the links between form-function and behavior in the nervous system from invertebrate model systems and one that is interesting and enjoyable to read.It should be particularly valuable in inspiring budding or established life scientists to read more on the subject or even to become engaged in the pursuit of elucidating fundamental principles of neurobiology and behavior.It should stimulate broad questions about nervous systems and behavior. From a pedagogical perspective,I could imagine it being assigned as a short text in a general course on neurobiology and behavior or in a specialized neurobiology course that focuses on invertebrates or as a supplement to a more comprehensive text.Robert M.GrossfeldDepartment of Zoology NC State University,Raleigh,NC27695E-mail:*************************Advance Access publication February15,2008doi:10.1093/icb/icn004Rodent Societies–An Ecological and Evolutionary Perspective.Jerry O.Wolff and Paul W.Sherman,editors. Chicago,IL:University of Chicago Press,2007.610pp. ISBN0-226-90536-5(cloth),$125.00and ISBN0-226-90537-3(paper),$49.00.As the editors point out in the first sentence of the first chapter,“The Rodentia is the largest order of mammals consisting of more than2000species and comprising44%of all mammals.”This breadth makes the task of compiling a definitive and comprehensive anthology on rodent societies a nearly impossible task,but the result is undoubtedly the most exhaustive and progressive analysis of rodent social behavior to date.Deftly edited by Jerry Wolff and Paul Sherman,this well-organized book,consisting of41chapters from61contributors is,without doubt,a significant compendium of more than50years of research.That being said,only a true rodent lover is likely to love this book.Its creation was prompted by the success of the two volumes within this series that preceded it:Primate Societies and Cetacean Societies(published by University of Chicago Press).Thus,the scope and format of Rodent Societies is in many ways similar to that of the previous two volumes.The text is organized into nine sections,beginning with a succinct,but satisfying,overview of rodent evolutionary history and proceeding through sexual behavior,life histories and behavior,behavioral development,social behavior, antipredator behavior,comparative socioecology,con-servation and disease,and a final concluding sectionwritten by the editors on potential directions for future research.Each chapter concludes with a summary thatbriefly reviews the material,identifies caveats,and frequently suggests strategies for future research.The chapters are written by some of the most productiveand well-known scholars in the field but,as expected ina multi-authored work,the quality is uneven.Some chapters do a better job than others of achieving thestated goal to“synthesize and integrate the currentstate of knowledge about the social behavior of rodents”and to“provide ecological and evolutionary contexts for understanding rodent societies.”However,it generally succeeds in combining ideasand strategies from a wide range of disciplines to generate new theoretical and experimental paradigmsfor exploring rodent social behavior.Despite this,itfeels outdated in many places.Much of the work citedin the text is not new,with the majority of citationsdating before2000and a substantial number datingbefore1985.Even the photographs,all in black andwhite,are fairly old and some date back to the1950s.Some of the illustrations are even hand-drawn.Thismakes the book feel like historical retrospective rathera breakthrough collaborative of evolutionary and behavioral biology.441 Downloaded from https:///icb/article/48/3/439/627027 by Guangxi University of Nationalities user on 18 September 2023。
