This textbook has been modified from OpenStax Biology by faculty at Virginia Commonwealth University. The goal was to provide students with a complete textbook with interactive features (reading quizzes, videos, links) that was highly engaging and, of course, at no cost to the students.

1. 1.1 Processes and Patterns of Evolution
2. 1.2 Evidence of Evolution
3. 1.3 Mutations
4. 2.1 Population Genetics
5. 2.2 Population Evolution
6. 2.3 Adaptive Evolution
7. 3.1 Speciation: Allopatric and Sympatric
8. 3.2 Speciation Isolation and Adaptation
9. 3.3 Reconnection and Speciation Rates
10. 4.1 Evolution and Classification
11. 4.2 Determining Phylogenetic Connections
12. 5.1 Prokaryotic Cell Structures
13. 5.2 Prokaryotic Growth & Metabolism
14. 5.3 Prokaryotic Diversity
15. 6.1 Evolution of Eukaryotic Cells
16. 6.2 Evolution of Simple Multicellularity
17. 6.3 Challenges to Complex Multicellularity
18. 7.1 Characteristics of Fungi
19. 7.2 Ecology of Fungi
20. 7.3 Classifications of Fungi
21. 7.4 Fungal Parasites and Pathogens
22. 7.5 Importance of Fungi in Human Life
23. 8.1 Land Plant Ancestors
24. 8.2 Adaptations of Plants to Land
25. 8.3 Seedless Non-Vascular Plants
26. 8.4 Seedless Vascular Plants
27. 8.4 Seedless Vascular Plants
28. 8.5 Seed Plants: Gymnosperms
29. 8.6 Seed Plants: Angiosperms
30. 9.1 Shoot Growth and Development
31. 9.2 Water Transport in Plants
32. 9.3 Sugar Transport in Plants
33. 10.1 Features of the Animal Kingdom
34. 10.2 Features Used to Classify Animals
35. 10.3 Early Animals
36. 10.4 Neurons and Glial Cells
37. 11.1 Types of Skeletons
38. 11.2 Muscles and Movement
39. 11.3 Protostomes
40. 11.4 Deuterostomes
41. 12.1 Evolution of Fishes
42. 12.2 Systems of Gas Exchange
43. 12.3 Evolution of Tetrapods
44. 12.4 Overview of the Circulatory System
45. 12.5 Fertilization in Animals
46. 12.6 Homeostasis in Animals
47. 13.1 Population Dynamics
48. 13.2 Population Growth
49. 13.3 Population Dynamics
50. 13.4 Interspecific Interactions

LibGuide detailing several different topics associated with the open course for biology created by GA professors for the Galileo Network.

Note: Some of the links in this course are for library databases and require authentication to access.

This book was modified from Biology at OpenStax.org. It was initially modified by instructors at Front Range Community College (FRCC, Colorado) in June 2019, and further modified by Katherine R. Mattaini in July 2020. Major changes made included reordering the chapters, replacing some images, and some rewording.

Working with a partner from the class, students will choose a topic of interest relevant to the field of neuroscience, explore the relevant literature, write a 5-7 page paper on the topic, and present the results of their research to the class in the form of a 5-10 minute oral presentation.

Un manuel libre pour les étudiantes et étudiants de premier cycle en biologie cellulaire et moléculaire à l’Université d’Ottawa. Cette ressource éducative libre (REL) est une traduction partielle et une adaptation des chapitres portant sur la biologie cellulaire et moléculaire du manuel libre Biology 2e de OpenStax.

This book is an introduction to the diversity of structure and function in animals at the tissue and organ system level. The focus of this book is on principles and mechanisms that sustain life and maintain homeostasis, including water balance, gas exchange, acquisition and transport of oxygen and nutrients, temperature regulation, electrical and chemical signal transmission, sensory processing, and locomotion. The content in this open textbook was adapted from other open textbooks (cc by 4.0) resources or created/written by Sanja Hinic-Frlog and collaborators. Collaborators include: Jessica Hanley, Simone Laughton, and invited undergraduate and graduate students at the University of Toronto Mississauga.

This set of lecture materials, laboratory notes, and activities are ancillary materials created for use with OpenStax Microbiology. The materials were created under a Round Nine Textbook Transformation Grant.

Topics covered include:

The Cell
Prokaryotes
Eukaryotes
Acellular Pathogens
Microbial Metabolism
Microbial Growth
Biochemistry of the Bacterial Genome
Microbial Genetics
Microbial Growth
Antimicrobial Drugs
Pathogenicity
Epidemiology
Immune System

Introduction to Statistics for the Life and Biomedical Sciences has been written to be used in conjunction with a set of self-paced learning labs. These labs guide students through learning how to apply statistical ideas and concepts discussed in the text with the R computing language.

The text discusses the important ideas used to support an interpretation (such as the notion of a confidence interval), rather than the process of generating such material from data (such as computing a confidence interval for a particular subset of individuals in a study). This allows students whose main focus is understanding statistical concepts to not be distracted by the details of a particular software package. In our experience, however, we have found that many students enter a research setting after only a single course in statistics. These students benefit from a practical introduction to data analysis that incorporates the use of a statistical computing language.

In a classroom setting, we have found it beneficial for students to start working through the labs after having been exposed to the corresponding material in the text, either from self-reading or through an instructor presenting the main ideas. The labs are organized by chapter, and each lab corresponds to a particular section or set of sections in the text.

There are traditional exercises at the end of each chapter that does not require the use of computing. More complicated methods, such as multiple regression, do not lend themselves to hand calculation and computing is necessary for gaining practical experience with these methods. The lab exercises for these later chapters become an increasingly important part of mastering the material.

An essential component of the learning labs are the "Lab Notes" accompanying each chapter. The lab notes are a detailed reference guide to the R functions that appear in the labs, written to be accessible to a first-time user of a computing language. They provide more explanation than available in the R help documentation, with examples specific to what is demonstrated in the labs. The notes cover topics such as constructing histograms, writing loops, and running regression models.

The text introduces students to molecular cell biology within the context of a semester-long research project in functional genomics. In the Pathways over Time project, students study the evolutionary conservation of genes in methionine synthesis. Each chapter includes both theoretical background material as well as detailed experimental procedures. Chapters can be used alone or in combination, depending on the course.

This laboratory manual for a foundations course Public Health is unique in the sense that very rarely, a foundations course in the field has a lab component offered with the lecture. This lab manual provides basic laboratory exercises that could be useful to introduce undergraduate students to the basics of public health laboratory practices.

At the end of the semester, students are asked to create a concept map of the four main concepts covered over the duration of the course. They are provided with a grading rubric and 4 the main nodes that are required on the map (plate tectonics, the rock cycle, geologic time and scientific research). The four concepts can be arranged in any manner, and the connecting lines must be labelled with appropriate terms and examples. Students have the option of creating a paper map (11'' x 17'' or larger) or a digital map using a free software program, VUE.

(Note: this resource was added to OER Commons as part of a batch upload of over 2,200 records. If you notice an issue with the quality of the metadata, please let us know by using the 'report' button and we will flag it for consideration.)

This text is an introduction to life as it exists in biological environments.

This free, open course is offered by Charles Darwin University to provide an introduction to Charles Darwin, the theory of evolution, Alfred Russel Wallace, and an overview of adaptation of tropical organisms in the Northern Territory of Australia. You will experience highly engaging videos and innovative, interactive media. This course won Blackboard’s 2014 Exemplary Course Award and Director’s Choice for Courses with Distinction.

Drawings and visualizations are used to help participants conceptualize the location and steps involved in the light reactions of photosynthesis. The drawings include light reactions of photosynthesis including location and steps for non-cyclic and cyclic photophosphorylation.

This is the second in a series of majoręs biology classes covering the principles of biology. The course is an integrated study of basic concepts concerning animal biology emphasizing animal evolution, diversity, phylogeny and a comparative look at general principles of animal form and function. This course is a lab science class and students will be required to participate in weekly lab activities and document their lab work for successful course completion.

Biol & 213 is the third course of a year-long series of biology courses for Biology majors. The first third of the course surveys prokaryotes, protists, fungi, and plants, focusing on diversity, evolution, and life cycles from an evolutionary perspective. We will then describe plant anatomy, physiology, growth, responses to the environment, and reproduction, emphasizing flowering plants. We will finish with ecology, focusing on population, and community ecology and expanding outward to ecosystems and the introduction of biodiversity and conservation.

This course is the first in a three-course sequence that introduces biology in preparation for advanced study in areas of biological science such as medicine, dentistry, cell biology, microbiology, or veterinary medicine. Biol& 211 introduces students to cellular structure and function. Major topics studied include: energy capture and utilization, cellular reproduction, inheritance, genetic mutation, protein synthesis, gene expression, and biotechnology.

Microbiology covers the scope and sequence requirements for a single-semester microbiology course for non-majors. The book presents the core concepts of microbiology with a focus on applications for careers in allied health. The pedagogical features of the text make the material interesting and accessible while maintaining the career-application focus and scientific rigor inherent in the subject matter. Microbiology’s art program enhances students’ understanding of concepts through clear and effective illustrations, diagrams, and photographs.

In this textbook the focus will be on the bacteria and archaea (traditionally known as the “prokaryotes,”) and the viruses and other acellular agents.