Beyond Chaos: The Expert Edge in Managing Software Development

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Software project management issues and solutions.......2005-09-27

Beyond Chaos is a collection of 45 chapters by different authors with about 8 pages per chapter on average. So you can pick this book and read a few chapters whenever you have time. Even though the book is a collection of chapters by different authors, they are organized in a very logical manner and the flow from one chapter to another is very natural. Most of the software project managers have to deliver quality product under time pressure by making use of effective project and process management and leadership skills. It covers each of these aspects so it makes a nice complete set.

Beyond Chaos can be very useful asset for any project manager especially those working in smaller or newer software companies where they need to manage the process and development in parallel while working under time pressures. It helps them to understand common issues and how to resolve them without having to learn them the hard way. If you are a seasoned professional you will find the short highlighted notes in every chapter a very useful reference.

There are six parts in this book. The first part contains essays on how to work and deal with different stake holders above and below in the hierarchy. This part covers important aspects of project management. I felt that some more space should have been given to this important subject in the book.

The second part deals with project management. Chapter 7 "Primer On Project Management" is one of the best in the entire book. It covers some of the most important issues in project management such as
- Importance of separating the process from daily project management.
- Keeping all stake holders in sync on the definition of quality and priorities
- Prioritizing real customer requirements rather than nice features which product should have.

Chapter 16 "Avoiding The Iceberg" is another very interesting writing. It describes various signs of trouble that you can easily identify and then it goes on describing their possible cause and solution.

Remainder of the book deals with leadership, managing under pressure, quality, processes and practices to meet constantly changing environment. I was delighted to see a chapter on delivering quality under tight timelines as I am currently in this situation myself and this reading has provided me a different perspective to deal with it.

Beyond Chaos covers many topics in the software project management area. You are likely to benefit by at least some of the topics. As you read this book, you will be able to relate to many situations described in this book and find out if you took the right decisions under those situations as described in this very practical book.

Great thought-invokers.......2003-07-04

This book, consisting of short essays, had been sitting on my bookshelf for a long time. Finally, I picked it up when my summer vacation started and I actually felt sorry I hadn't done it earlier. Constantine and others present their thoughts about common problems in software development organizations and some methods to tackle these issues with. I keep nodding and sighing while reading the problem descriptions and keep on nodding as the authors proceed to how they have successfully solved the problems before. Good stuff!

A Must Have For Team Leaders.......2003-04-08

I bought this book when I was promoted to team leader 6 months ago. This is a great collection of wisdom for the new manager, especially Chapter 7 - First Things First: A Project Manager's Primer. As this chapter says from the start, most people are promoted without much if any training. This is a good starting point. The close of the book - Chapter 45 - was also one of the highlights. This is Constantine's advice to new leaders and those who wish to become leaders. He makes a nice distinction between pure management, to which he claims to have nothing new to add, and leading software development.

The book is broken down into 6 areas (It's About People, Project Management, Under Pressue, Quality Required, Processes and Practices, and Leadership and Teamwork) each containing about 8 chapters. You may think that is a lot of ground to cover in a book, and it is. The chapters in Quality Required didn't seem to be as relavent to their area as the others did. Quality means a lot of different things to a lot of different people so this is difficult no doubt. I found the firt two and last two areas of the book to be the most helpful.

This may seem contradictory to the above paragraph, but I felt the book was too long. Compared to other books such as "The Manager Pool" and "Facts and Fallacies of Software Engineering", this book is hard to finish in short bursts. Five pages was about tops for a chapter in the other books while it was typically the minimum for this book. That doesn't make Beyond Chaos a bad book. As I've said it has great information. Just don't expect to breeze through the information.

Great for browsing or as a straight read.......2003-03-03

Having been in the software development business for many years, I have experienced most of the situations that are described in this instructive series of essays. The writers of the articles in the book and the editor, Larry Constantine, are all long time practitioners in the field and bring share deep experience level with entertaining case studies and solid advice. Although some of the ideas are somewhat idealistic (programmers forming an international software guild to enforce standards), others are practical and immediately useful. Even if, for you, some of the articles are "preaching to the choir", they may give you a different way to explain something you may already be doing, or help with additional justification for using an approach that many managers of the "ready, fire, aim" school of management don't see the need for. This not to say that this is one of those "heavy methodology" books; it isn't.

Great for browsing or as a straight read.......2003-03-03

It is disheartening when you see organizations make the same mistakes over and over. Readers of this book may be able to use some of the techniques described to keep their particular organization out of trouble. This book is an excellent and readable contribution to software development and software development management.

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Beyond Chaos - The Expert Edge in Managing Software Development
Constantine
Manufacturer: Addison-Wesley Professional
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
ASIN: B000OOQFXI

Book Description

The effects of a government's budget on society and the political economy are of considerable concern to economists as well as to consumers and taxpayers. The original contributions in this book analyze all of the budget's components expenditures, revenues, the deficit - with a special emphasis on issues that have assumed increasing importance over the last decade or so, such as intergenerational transfers of debt and declines in corporate tax revenues.

Chapters deal with both microeconomic and macroeconomic aspects of the effects of budgets, and demonstrate how budgetary policies affect inflation, efficiency, the balance of payments, exchange rates, and the decision-making process.

The contributions are grouped into five sections. The first covers the revenue side of the budget - taxation policy and its interaction with emigration, corporate tax revenues, personal income taxes, and fiscal policies. The second takes up intergenerational transfers, consumption decisions, and Ricardian equivalence and neutrality. Budget deficits and optimal policies, inflation and its relationship to budget deficits are examined in parts three and four.

The book concludes by looking at stabilization in open economies, and includes treatments of the consequences of balance-of-payments crises, exchange rate management under uncertainty, and foreign exchange operations.

Elhanan Helpman, Assaf Razin, and Efraim Sadka are professors of economics at Tel-Aviv University.

The Economic effects of the savings & loan crisis (SuDoc Y 10.2:Ec 7/6)

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The Economic effects of the savings & loan crisis (SuDoc Y 10.2:Ec 7/6)
U.S. Congressional Budget Office
Manufacturer: Congress of the U.S., Congressional Budget Office
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Unknown Binding
ASIN: B000109F3C

The Effects of Government Deficits: A Comparative Analysis of Crowding Out (Essays in international finance)

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The Effects of Government Deficits: A Comparative Analysis of Crowding Out (Essays in international finance)
Charles E. Dumas
Manufacturer: Princeton Univ Intl Economics
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

Public Finance | Economics | Business & Investing | Subjects | Books
ASIN: 088165065X

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The Inevitability of Government Growth
Harold G. Vatter , and John F. Walker
Manufacturer: Columbia Univ Pr
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

General | Popular Economics | Business & Investing | Subjects | Books

Macroeconomics | Economics | Business & Investing | Subjects | Books

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Comparative advantage and government budget effects: an application to the grain trade of the former USSR.: An article from: American Journal of Agricultural Economics

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Comparative advantage and government budget effects: an application to the grain trade of the former USSR.: An article from: American Journal of Agricultural Economics
William M. Liefert
Manufacturer: American Agricultural Economics Association
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Digital
ASIN: B00097UC7U
Release Date: 2005-07-28

Book Description

This digital document is an article from American Journal of Agricultural Economics, published by American Agricultural Economics Association on August 1, 1997. The length of the article is 8011 words. The page length shown above is based on a typical 300-word page. The article is delivered in HTML format and is available in your Amazon.com Digital Locker immediately after purchase. You can view it with any web browser.

From the author: Key words: comparative advantage, former USSR, gains from trade, government revenue, grain trade.

Citation Details
Title: Comparative advantage and government budget effects: an application to the grain trade of the former USSR.
Author: William M. Liefert
Publication: American Journal of Agricultural Economics (Refereed)
Date: August 1, 1997
Publisher: American Agricultural Economics Association
Volume: v79 Issue: n3 Page: p715(11)

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The effect of government deficits on consumption and interest rates: a two equation approach.: An article from: Quarterly Journal of Business and Economics

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The effect of government deficits on consumption and interest rates: a two equation approach.: An article from: Quarterly Journal of Business and Economics
Dean D. Croushore
Manufacturer: University of Nebraska-Lincoln
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Digital

General | Business & Investing | Subjects | Books

Book Description

This digital document is an article from Quarterly Journal of Business and Economics, published by University of Nebraska-Lincoln on March 22, 1989. The length of the article is 8129 words. The page length shown above is based on a typical 300-word page. The article is delivered in HTML format and is available in your Amazon.com Digital Locker immediately after purchase. You can view it with any web browser.

Citation Details
Title: The effect of government deficits on consumption and interest rates: a two equation approach.
Author: Dean D. Croushore
Publication: Quarterly Journal of Business and Economics (Refereed)
Date: March 22, 1989
Publisher: University of Nebraska-Lincoln
Volume: v28 Issue: n2 Page: p85(45)

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Government budget deficits, nominal and ex ante real long-term interest rates in the U.K., 1960:1-1990:2.: An article from: Atlantic Economic Journal

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Government budget deficits, nominal and ex ante real long-term interest rates in the U.K., 1960:1-1990:2.: An article from: Atlantic Economic Journal
Amer K. Al-Saji
Manufacturer: Atlantic Economic Society
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Digital

General | Business & Investing | Subjects | Books

Book Description

This digital document is an article from Atlantic Economic Journal, published by Atlantic Economic Society on June 1, 1993. The length of the article is 3475 words. The page length shown above is based on a typical 300-word page. The article is delivered in HTML format and is available in your Amazon.com Digital Locker immediately after purchase. You can view it with any web browser.

From the author: This paper explores the impact of government budget deficits on the U.K. nominal and ex ante real long-term interest rates over the period from 1960:1 to 1990:2 utilizing an open and closed economy IS-LM model. An open economy IS-LM model indicates that nominal and ex ante real long-term interest rates are affected by the expected rate of inflation, the real money stock, the real government budget deficit, the real government spending, and the real balance of trade. The evidence presented suggests that increases in the U.K. budget deficits do contribute significantly to increases in nominal and ex ante real long-term interest rates. This implies that rising nominal and ex ante real long-term interest rates, as a result of high government budget deficits, would crowd out private investment and deter capital formation and long-term economic growth. (JEL H62)

Citation Details
Title: Government budget deficits, nominal and ex ante real long-term interest rates in the U.K., 1960:1-1990:2.
Author: Amer K. Al-Saji
Publication: Atlantic Economic Journal (Refereed)
Date: June 1, 1993
Publisher: Atlantic Economic Society
Volume: v21 Issue: n2 Page: p71(7)

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Interest rates and the net deficit of all government levels combined: an empirical note.: An article from: Atlantic Economic Journal

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Interest rates and the net deficit of all government levels combined: an empirical note.: An article from: Atlantic Economic Journal
Richard J. Cebula , and Gerald Scott
Manufacturer: Atlantic Economic Society
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Digital
ASIN: B00091XYTO
Release Date: 2005-07-28

Book Description

This digital document is an article from Atlantic Economic Journal, published by Atlantic Economic Society on March 1, 1992. The length of the article is 458 words. The page length shown above is based on a typical 300-word page. The article is delivered in HTML format and is available in your Amazon.com Digital Locker immediately after purchase. You can view it with any web browser.

Citation Details
Title: Interest rates and the net deficit of all government levels combined: an empirical note.
Author: Richard J. Cebula
Publication: Atlantic Economic Journal (Refereed)
Date: March 1, 1992
Publisher: Atlantic Economic Society
Volume: v20 Issue: n1 Page: p104(1)

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Physical activity programs and the federal budget--the effect on Medicaid, Social Security, and IDEIA.(Legislative Update) : An article from: Palaestra

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Physical activity programs and the federal budget--the effect on Medicaid, Social Security, and IDEIA.(Legislative Update) : An article from: Palaestra
Robert W. Arnhold , and David A. Auxter
Manufacturer: Challenge Publications Limited
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Digital

Medicaid & Medicare | Administration & Policy | Medicine | Subjects | Books

Book Description

This digital document is an article from Palaestra, published by Challenge Publications Limited on March 22, 2005. The length of the article is 1865 words. The page length shown above is based on a typical 300-word page. The article is delivered in HTML format and is available in your Amazon.com Digital Locker immediately after purchase. You can view it with any web browser.

Citation Details
Title: Physical activity programs and the federal budget--the effect on Medicaid, Social Security, and IDEIA.(Legislative Update)
Author: Robert W. Arnhold
Publication: Palaestra (Magazine/Journal)
Date: March 22, 2005
Publisher: Challenge Publications Limited
Volume: 21 Issue: 2 Page: 5(2)

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The Balanced Budget Act of 1997: Effects on Medicare's Home Health Benefit and beneficiaries who need long-term care

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The Balanced Budget Act of 1997: Effects on Medicare's Home Health Benefit and beneficiaries who need long-term care
James A Reuter
Manufacturer: Georgetown University, Institute for Health Care Research
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Unknown Binding

Public Affairs & Administration | Government | Nonfiction | Subjects | Books

Medicaid & Medicare | Administration & Policy | Medicine | Subjects | Books
ASIN: B0006RBJD4

Book Description

Regulatory Competition and Economic Integration addresses one of the hottest policy questions on both sides of the Atlantic: at what level of government should regulation be undertaken? Whether called 'federalism' or 'subsidiarity', the struggle between those who wish to centralize governmental functions and those who seek to decentralize them looms large. Esty and Geradin bring together top-notch scholars from both Europe and the United States to examine the various aspects of the debate between 'harmonization' and 'regulatory competition' across three comparative dimensions: first, across regulatory areas (environment, banking, corporate law, labor, tax and antitrust); second, across models of economic integration (from highly integrated systems, such as the United States or the European Union, to loosely integrated regimes, such as the WTO); and third, across disciplinary perspectives (law, economics, business, political science). The book provides a sharp focus on the circumstances that would yield gains from regulatory competition and to contrast those cases where heightened co-operation in standard setting or broader regulatory harmonization might increase social welfare.

Comparative Competition Policy: National Institutions in a Global Market

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Comparative Competition Policy: National Institutions in a Global Market

Manufacturer: Oxford University Press, USA
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

Strategy & Competition | Management & Leadership | Business & Investing | Subjects | Books

General | Popular Economics | Business & Investing | Subjects | Books

International | Economics | Business & Investing | Subjects | Books

General | Politics | Nonfiction | Subjects | Books

General | International Law | Law | Subjects | Books
ASIN: 0198280629

Book Description

This original collection comprises the first comparative study of competition policy, an area which has emerged as a vibrant and influential discipline within the study of economic policy and policy-making. The victory of market economics means that every capitalist country has created or intensified competition policy. The study compares the six `model' policy regimes of the USA, Germany, Japan, the UK, Canada, and the European Union. The role of institutions and political process in controlling monopolies, cartels, and mergers is emphasised. the case for convergence and the emergence of a global regime is evaluated. Cutting through the traditional arena of lawyers and economists, this edited volume provides incisive political analysis of the mechanics of international competiton policy. It is an exciting and original new look at how policy is formed on the international stage.

Competition Law and Industrial Policy in the EU

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Competition Law and Industrial Policy in the EU
Wolf Sauter
Manufacturer: Oxford University Press, USA
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

International | Economics | Business & Investing | Subjects | Books

General | Europe | History | Subjects | Books

Comparative | Perspectives on Law | Law | Subjects | Books

General | Law | Subjects | Books

General | International Law | Law | Subjects | Books

European Union | International Law | Law | Subjects | Books

General | Science | Subjects | Books

International Law | Law | Professional & Technical | Subjects | Books

Book Description

This book provides a new analytical framework for legal problems concerning the economic order of the European Union. In order to determine the remaining scope for national economic sovereignty, and the improvement of the economic order of the Community itself, the focus of the book is the contentious relationship between competition and industrial policy under European law. The theoretical perspective used is based on a comparison between the concepts of the Treaty as an economic constitution and as a political constitution. On this basis, the convergence of competition and industrial policy at the Community level is explained as the result of the rationalisation of public policy, and the reduction of the economic independence of the member states. The study concludes that the market orientation of the European Union is not in doubt, but that a clear link remains to be established between the legitimacy of public intervention in the economy and the distribution of power in the Community system.

Competition Law Reform in Britain and Japan: Comparative Analysis of Policy Network (European Institute of Japanese Studies East Asian Economics and Business Studies Series)

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Competition Law Reform in Britain and Japan: Comparative Analysis of Policy Network (European Institute of Japanese Studies East Asian Economics and Business Studies Series)
Kenji Suzuki
Manufacturer: Routledge
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

General | International | Business & Investing | Subjects | Books

General | Law | Subjects | Books

Military | Specialties | Law | Subjects | Books

General | Taxation | Law | Subjects | Books

General | Politics | Nonfiction | Subjects | Books

Book Description

As market competition replaces state regulation in many economic fields, competition policy has become an area of increasing significance. Against this background, Suzuki highlights the importance of the domestic political structure for competition policy. He does this through the comparative analysis of competition law reforms in Britain and Japan. He argues - controversially - that a country's domestic political structure should be considered a major factor in causing the reform of competition law, and rejects the established view that is necessarily a result of changes in international economic and political conditions.

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EC Public Procurement Law
Christopher Bovis
Manufacturer: Addison Wesley Longman
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

Economic Policy & Development | Economics | Business & Investing | Subjects | Books

General | Europe | History | Subjects | Books

General | Law | Subjects | Books

General | International Law | Law | Subjects | Books

European Union | International Law | Law | Subjects | Books

International Law | Law | Professional & Technical | Subjects | Books

General | Reference | Subjects | Books
ASIN: 0582294398

International and Comparative Competition Laws and Policies (INTERNATIONAL COMPETITION LAW SERIES Volume 3)

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International and Comparative Competition Laws and Policies (INTERNATIONAL COMPETITION LAW SERIES Volume 3)
Yang-Ching Chao
Manufacturer: Kluwer Law International
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

Management | Management & Leadership | Business & Investing | Subjects | Books

Antitrust | Business | Law | Subjects | Books

Commercial | Business | Law | Subjects | Books

Comparative | Perspectives on Law | Law | Subjects | Books

General | Law | Subjects | Books

General | International Law | Law | Subjects | Books

General | Law | Professional & Technical | Subjects | Books

International Law | Law | Professional & Technical | Subjects | Books
ASIN: 9041116435

Book Description

Competition policy is today in the process of adoption in dozens of nations worldwide, at a time when competition laws have necessarily become applicable to such new fields as trade, investment, intellectual property rights, information technology, and global consumer protection. Although vigorous enforcement -- especially across borders -- remains the most serious challenge to global success, it is also important to recognize that the established American--European model of competition policy may not be the `right thing' for countries with radically different cultural traditions, especially less-developed countries. This timely and valuable book explores the prospects for competition policy, its likely development, and its ever-more-central role in the world trade regime. With this book, interested parties everywhere may benefit from the insightful perspectives of outstanding scholars and policymakers representing Asia Pacific, Europe, and North and South America. Among the crucial issues investigated are the following: + the costs of absorbing a new technology; + distinct and evolving national competition policies and the fabric of world trade; + extraterritorial enforcement and cooperation agreements; + criteria for `material injury' in international trade rules; + collusive technology transfer barriers; + the re-emergence of transnational cartels; and + the tendency of anti-dumping rules to foster cartelization. The major competition policy issues on the international agenda -- the harmonization of national policies and international trade rules; the integration of intellectual property rights, technology transfer, and investment; and enforcement cooperation across borders -- are all analyzed in depth from many different angles. This is an enormously important and valuable book for practitioners, government officials, and academics in this critical area of contemporary law and policy.

Model Law On Competition: Substantive Possible Elements for a Competition Law: Commentaries and Alternative Approaches in Existing Legislations (UNCTAD Series on Issues in Competition Law and Policy)

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Model Law On Competition: Substantive Possible Elements for a Competition Law: Commentaries and Alternative Approaches in Existing Legislations (UNCTAD Series on Issues in Competition Law and Policy)
United Nations Conference on Trade & Development
Manufacturer: United Nations Pubns
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

Exports & Imports | Economics | Business & Investing | Subjects | Books

Comparative | Perspectives on Law | Law | Subjects | Books

General | Law | Subjects | Books

General | International Law | Law | Subjects | Books
ASIN: 9211127165

Tax competition, benefit taxes, and fiscal federalism.(Symposium: What Do We Mean by "Taxpayer Relief"?): An article from: National Tax Journal

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Tax competition, benefit taxes, and fiscal federalism.(Symposium: What Do We Mean by "Taxpayer Relief"?): An article from: National Tax Journal
Timothy J. Goodspeed
Manufacturer: National Tax Association
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Digital

Book Description

This digital document is an article from National Tax Journal, published by National Tax Association on September 1, 1998. The length of the article is 4109 words. The page length shown above is based on a typical 300-word page. The article is delivered in HTML format and is available in your Amazon.com Digital Locker immediately after purchase. You can view it with any web browser.

From the author: As the world becomes more globalized and resources become more internationally mobile, the issue of tax competition is moving to the forefront of debates surrounding national tax systems. Those who have studied taxation in a federal system of government will recognize that this debate is not new. This paper presents the conceptual issues that have arisen concerning tax competition in the fiscal federalism literature, and explores the reasons why the empirical measurement of the effects of tax competition, particularly corporate tax competition, is so difficult. Given the complicated nature of the problem and the theoretical ambiguity on the consequences of tax competition, it should perhaps not be surprising for the empirical literature to find that competition sometimes increases and sometimes decreases tax rates.

Citation Details
Title: Tax competition, benefit taxes, and fiscal federalism.(Symposium: What Do We Mean by "Taxpayer Relief"?)
Author: Timothy J. Goodspeed
Publication: National Tax Journal (Refereed)
Date: September 1, 1998
Publisher: National Tax Association
Volume: 51 Issue: n3 Page: 579-586

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Book Description

Rice is the most important food crop for half the world's population. Over the last three decades, the imporvement in human nutrition and health in Asia has largely been attributable to a relatively stable and affordable rice supply. The challenge to produce enough rice for the future, however, remains daunting, as the current rate of population growth outpaces that of increases in rice production. Science has a central role to play in raising rice productivity and this book highlights areas of plant science that are particularly relevant to solving the major constraints on rice production. Examining molecular, genetic and cellular techniques, it considers recent advances in four research approaches for increasing yields and improving the nutritional quality of rice.

Plant genomics: knowing the identity and location of each gene in the rice genome is of immense value in all aspects of rice science and cultivar improvement.
Molecular biological approaches to increase yield: to produce more biomass by increasing photosynthetic rate and duration, and by improving grain filling.
Enhancing tolerance to biotic and abiotic stresses: with new DNA array technologies, it is now possible to assess global genomic response to stresses. Understanding the relationships among stress pathways may create new opportunities for gene manipulation to enhance tolerance to multiple biotic and abiotic stresses.
Improving nutritional quality in the grain: knowledge of the biosynthesis of micronutrients in plants permits genetic engineering of metabolic pathways to enhance the availability of micronutrients.

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