Basic Cell and Molecular Biology 5e: What We Know and How We Find Out (CMB5e) is the latest edition of an interactive Open Educational Resource (OER) digital Textbook, (open access covered by a Creative Commons CC-BY license). Like earlier editions, CMB5e opens with a review of the origins of cell biology and a discussion of scientific method. The book remains focused on how evolution informs all of life sciences, and on providing experimental support for what we know about cell and molecular biology. A sense of how science is practiced and how investigators think about experimental results is essential to understanding relationships of cell structure and function, not to mention the natural world around us.

Anyone interested in how cells work, how molecules interact and dictate life, and how cells change in evolution, is invited to download the Basic and/or Annotated iText (links 1 and 2). An Art & Illustration Resource is available at link 3. This link downloads a zipped folder to your computer. Extract the folder to access a PDF introducing the art resource along with individual chapter folders. Each chapter folder containing high resolution JPEG files of the figures (photographs, illustrations etc.) for all versions of CMB5e, useful for PowerPoint or similar presentations to support classroom projection, online teaching and learning, and/or to support in-class or homework assignments. Each chapter folder includes a file listing image source; these are Open Access (either public domain, CC-licensed, or equivalent).

After filling in and submitting a short anonymous survey form for the Basic or Annotated CMB5e at the links below, you can access PDF files of the iText and the art program (I just count survey submissions to gauge interest in these different resources). Instructors can access a CMB5e sample chapter with full Index (link 4) or just access the full INSTRUCTORS iText at link 5. Instructors can share this version with students but may choose otherwise to keep control of some of the additional activities/assessments in this, the most interactive iText version.

Use the PDF of any version of the book in your course as is or use an MS-Word file to build a custom iText. After adding or deleting content, annotations, assignments, etc., your customized iText can be converted to a PDF file for distribution to students. Use the Art Resource to create and supplement PowerPoint presentations for online or face-to-face learning and to create quiz and exam questions. Note that your modifications and use of these iTexts come under the guidelines of the Creative Commons CCBY license.

I encourage instructors concerned about the high cost of textbooks and with an interest in interactive learning to use (and customize) CMB5e to engage their students in thinking about science. You can assign challenge box questions as homework or even get students reflect on what they are learning by creating their own Challenge Box essay questions. And of course, think about how AI (e.g., ChatGPT) can enhance learning in this course and with this book!

If you are a student, check out the links in whichever version you are reading to think about how good experiments were designed, how data was interpreted, and what questions the investigators (and you!) might want to ask next. If you are using the Annotated or Instructor’s CMB5e, I encourage you to accept the challenges in some of the Challenge boxes (even if they are not assigned by your instructor), and to wonder about cell and molecular biology and how it all works!

1. Basic CMB5e
   https://milwaukee.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_78PUpgWpDeq0XYx
   After submitting your survey, the download link is at the lower left of the screen that appears.
2. Annotated CMB5e
   https://milwaukee.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_4Ing57venm8zzDf
   After submitting your survey, the download link is at the lower left of the screen that appears.
3. Art & Illustration Resource, for all CMB5e versions
   https://minds.wisconsin.edu/handle/1793/94443
   On the next screen, click the link at the lower left of the screen that appears to download a zip folder to your computer and extract to access all of the Resource folders.
4. CMB5e Sample Chapter (direct PDF download)
   10_19_22_CMB5e_1_Sample_Chapter_1.pdf (3.580Mb)
5. Instructors CMB5e
   https://milwaukee.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_dnyKwhyUxxKgZoN
   Instructors completing and submitting the form at this link will receive an email with a link to PDF and MS-Word files of all CMB5e versions along with the Art & Illustration Resource.