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Corn: Origin, History, Technology, and Production. Edited by C.W. Smith, J. Betrán, and E.C.A. Runge. John Wiley and Sons, Inc. 111 River Street, Hoboken, NJ 07030. 2004. Hardcover, 949 pp., $275.00. ISBN 0-471-41184-1.
Corn or maize (Zea mays L.) is grown in virtually every country in the world today. So, it is fitting that Corn: Origin, History, Technology, and Production is one of the volumes in a series of comprehensive references on the four major crops of the world. This volume's intended target audiences are scientists and academics, as well as producers, processors, grain merchants, and shippers. The editors have assembled the contributions of 42 experts into 21 chapters under four broad categories: origin, domestication, and history; the corn plant; production; and product processing.
The first section contains four chapters pertaining to what is known about the origin of corn as well as considerable information on historically important germplasm, germplasm resources and an examination of changes in successful corn hybrids. For me the most interesting chapter in this...