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:

Describe the properties of water that are critical to maintaining life
Explain why water is an excellent solvent
Provide examples of water’s cohesive and adhesive properties
Discuss the role of acids, bases, and buffers in homeostasis

This ZOOMSci video segment shows how to create self-contained environments and explore how plants grow under different conditions. [3:24]

This overview of liquids explores what a liquid is and how matter becomes changes into a liquid.

This site from the Environmental Education for Kids contains colorful and detailed information on water resources. Site covers fascinating tips and facts, as well as engaging quizzes on the wonderful world of water. Best suited for grades 3-6.

This is a very brief overview of the water cycle, but it does have a nice graphical representation.

The paths that water can take through Earth's systems are many and complex. Examine the following diagram from NASA depicting the water cycle. Studying the water cycle is important because changes in the water cycle affect all parts of the Earth system. Background information and teaching tips are provided.

Students design a temporary habitat for a future classroom pet—a hingeback tortoise. Based on their background research, students identify what type of environment this tortoise needs and how to recreate that environment in the classroom. The students divide into groups and investigate the features of a habitat for a hingeback tortoise. These features include how many holes a temporary habitat may need, the animal’s ideal type of bedding, and how much water is needed to create the necessary humidity level within the tortoise’s environment. Each group communicates and presents this information to the rest of the class after they research, brainstorm, collect and analyze data, and design their final plan.

This activity is an investigation regarding evaporation and the factors that affect it.

Explore the concept of evaporative cooling through a hands-on experiment. Use a wet cloth and fan to model an air-conditioner and use temperature and relative humidity sensors to collect data. Then digitally plot the data using graphs in the activity. In an optional extension, make your own modifications to improve the cooler's efficiency.

Students learn about energy and nutrient flow in various biosphere climates and environments. They learn about herbivores, carnivores, omnivores, food chains and food webs, seeing the interdependence between producers, consumers and decomposers. Students are introduced to the roles of the hydrologic (water), carbon, and nitrogen cycles in sustaining the worlds' ecosystems so living organisms survive. This lesson is part of a series of six lessons in which students use their growing understanding of various environments and the engineering design process, to design and create their own model biodome ecosystems.

Students explore heat transfer and energy efficiency using the context of energy efficient houses. They gain a solid understanding of the three types of heat transfer: radiation, convection and conduction, which are explained in detail and related to the real world. They learn about the many ways solar energy is used as a renewable energy source to reduce the emission of greenhouse gasses and operating costs. Students also explore ways in which a device can capitalize on the methods of heat transfer to produce a beneficial result. They are given the tools to calculate the heat transferred between a system and its surroundings.

Hands-on group activity in where children go outside to find clouds, document with pictures, and identify them.

This online textbook chapter discusses dynamic equilibrium between liquids and gases, boiling liquids, and particle attractions. Many pictures help to explain the concepts. Also find a detailed chapter review at the end to check for understanding.

This activity is an investigation where students gather information about the rate of evaporation, interpret their findings, and apply this knowledge to the water cycle.

This activity is an outdoor lab in which students investigate the process of evaporation, record their findings, and use the data to make connections to the environment around them.

This lesson plan introduces the properties of mixtures and solutions. A class demonstration gives the students the opportunity to compare and contrast the physical characteristics of a few simple mixtures and solutions. Students discuss the separation of mixtures and solutions back into their original components as well as different engineering applications of mixtures and solutions.

In a class demonstration, students observe a simple water cycle model to better understand its role in pollutant transport. This activity shows one way in which pollution is affected by the water cycle; it simulates a point source of pollution in a lake and the resulting environmental consequences.