Essential Biology: An Applied Approach

Peter Daempfle was raised in Queens, NY in the 1970s and was a child of immigrants. He started early in life asking a key science question: "Why are things the way they are?" From the media's role in selling junk science to big tobacco's misuse of math to get people hooked on smoking, Dr. Daempfle explores good and bad science in his books.

He is a nature lover and enjoys the outdoors - hiking, swimming and writing in the forest - the roots of his love for science. His singular goal is to help others see the excitement in studying the world around. His books help readers to evaluate science reports and empower them to be better consumers of science - he seeks to help them to think like a scientist.

As a child in the city, one of the few natural settings of the buildings was his eight-foot backyard. Here he learned about nature -- he remembers thinking about the ants in the yard working hard to serve their colony. They seemed selfless and he wished for a world with their cooperation. His books show us why those ants are not so good as they appear and why science compels us to question. A theme of his books is to bring forth our scientific skepticism so the media and big business do not fool us.  This text gives the foundation in biology to help students become their own advocates, from food and wellness to medical care.

He moved to the Catskills as a teen and obtained an education in science and biology to the doctoral level. His goal has been to improve science literacy, contributing to the betterment of science education.  Dr. Daempfle has taught in the sciences for over 20 years and is also the author of several books including, Good Science, Bad Science, Pseudoscience and Just Plain Bunk: How to Tell the Difference and Science and Society. He is a science advisor in the standards-based reform effort, and has also authored several refereed journal articles, various science reviews, a laboratory manual, Introduction to Anatomy and Physiology: A Guide to the Human Body, and lectures to scientific and general audiences.

Dr. Daempfle has held faculty positions at Hobart and William Smith Colleges, Western New England University and is currently an associate professor of biology in the State University of New York, College of Technology at Delhi. He earned his Ph.D. in Science Education and his M.S. in Biology at the University at Albany, State University of New York; M.S. in Education from the College of Saint Rose; and B.A. in Biology from Hartwick College. He was class valedictorian of both Forest Hills High School, Queens, NY in 1988 and Hartwick College, Oneonta, NY in 1992 and graduated summa cum laude with departmental distinction in biology and German.

From 2001-2009 he was a science advisor to the Bush Administration’s No Child Left Behind Act (NCLB) through Measured Progress, Inc.  He focused on science content applications to psychometrics and test design in relation to standards development.  He is known in the science literature for publications focusing on the development of scientific reasoning, retention of students in science, studying the tenuous transition between secondary and post-secondary science programs, and human biology and microbiological applications.  This new text contributes to the effort begun by the standards-based reform movement and the Common Core curriculum to improve national science literacy and advance the importance of scientific thinking.

Dr. Daempfle is dedicated to his family, his wife Amy, his children, Justina and Konrad, and his father, Tobias.  They share an interest in exercise and fitness, as well as philosophy and natural studies.  He is also a fan of old movies (Turner Classic Movies) and is an avid history buff.

See "Science Impact TV Show" interview with Peter Daempfle: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XNDAKUrKxuE