Biology 2e is designed to cover the scope and sequence requirements of a typical two-semester biology course for science majors. The text provides comprehensive coverage of foundational research and core biology concepts through an evolutionary lens. Biology includes rich features that engage students in scientific inquiry, highlight careers in the biological sciences, and offer everyday applications. The book also includes various types of practice and homework questions that help students understand—and apply—key concepts. The 2nd edition has been revised to incorporate clearer, more current, and more dynamic explanations, while maintaining the same organization as the first edition. Art and illustrations have been substantially improved, and the textbook features additional assessments and related resources.

By the end of this section, you will be able to do the following:

Discuss the biogeochemical cycles of water, carbon, nitrogen, phosphorus, and sulfur
Explain how human activities have impacted these cycles and the potential consequences for Earth

College-level online course highlighting the fundamentals of ecology. Course topics include coevolution of the biosphere, geosphere, atmosphere, and hydrosphere; photosynthesis and respiration; and the carbon, nitrogen, and water cycles. Other topics include energy flow through the biosphere and changes in ecosystems. This course features selected lecture notes, assignments with solutions, projects and examples, and exams with solutions.

Students are presented with a guide to rain garden construction in an activity that culminates the unit and pulls together what they have learned and prepared in materials during the three previous associated activities. They learn about the four vertical zones that make up a typical rain garden with the purpose to cultivate natural infiltration of stormwater. Student groups create personal rain gardens planted with native species that can be installed on the school campus, within the surrounding community, or at students' homes to provide a green infrastructure and low-impact development technology solution for areas with poor drainage that often flood during storm events.