The National Institute of General Medical Sciences offers this online science education booklet. Booklet is a bit of a misnomer. Granted, Inside the Cell is shorter than many of the other materials featured on The Free Textbook List, but it is more like a short biology textbook than a guide. It’s written by three former science professionals turned science writers who work for the Institute – Alisa Machalek (biochemistry graduate degree and advanced training in science writing), Alison Davis (Ph.D. in pharmacology and freelance writer) and Kirstie Saltsman (Ph.D. cell biology).
Biology students can learn about the parts of a cell, how they function, what they do, how they multiply and why they die. The authors filled the text with bright, vivid images and a narrative that is suitable for both high school and college students, i.e. enough explanation for younger students and enough meat for more advanced ones.
Table of Contents for Inside the Cell Biology Textbook
- PREFACE: THE MICROSCOPIC METROPOLIS INSIDE YOU
- CHAPTER 1: AN OWNER’S GUIDE TO THE CELL
- Nucleus: The Cell’s Brain
- Cell Membrane: Specialist in Containing and Communicating
- Endoplasmic Reticulum: Protein Clothier and Lipid Factory
- Golgi: Finishing, Packaging, and Mailing Centers
- Lysosomes: Recycling Centers and Garbage Trucks
- Mitochondria: Cellular Power Plants
- Cytoskeleton: The Cell’s Skeleton…and More
- The Tour Ends Here
- Cool Tools for Studying Cells
- Science Schisms
- CHAPTER 2: CELLS 101: BUSINESS BASICS
- Got Energy?
- Priority: Proteins
- Cellular Rush Hour
- The Mark of Death
- CHAPTER 3: ON THE JOB: CELLULAR SPECIALTIES
- Fit for the Job
- All-In-One Stem Cells
- You’ve Got Nerve(s)!
- Nursing Baby Eggs
- The Science of Senses
- Cells on the Move
- Big Science
- CHAPTER 4: CELLULAR REPRODUCTION: MULTIPLICATION BY DIVISION
- The Two Faces of Cell Division
- The Cycling Cell
- Mitosis: Let’s Split!
- Meiosis: Sex, Heredity, and Survival
- Why You’re Not Just Like Your Relatives
- CHAPTER 5: THE LAST CHAPTER: CELL AGING AND DEATH
- Aging: A World of Theories
- Thieving Oxygen
- Damage, Yes. But Aging?
- Telomeres: Cellular Timekeepers
- Cells That Never Die Can Kill You
- Death of a Cell
- Apoptosis and Mitosis: Life in Balance
- Getting Rid of Troublemakers
- Cell Biology: The Science of Life
- GLOSSARY
