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Browse textbooks that also appear on the University of Minnesota's Open Textbook Library. These textbooks are either in use at academic institutions or have been produced by subject matter experts affiliated with academic or professional institutions.

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The Art of Being Human: A Textbook for Cultural Anthropology
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CC BY-NC-SA
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Anthropology is the study of all humans in all times in all places. But it is so much more than that. “Anthropology requires strength, valor, and courage,” Nancy Scheper-Hughes noted. “Pierre Bourdieu called anthropology a combat sport, an extreme sport as well as a tough and rigorous discipline. … It teaches students not to be afraid of getting one’s hands dirty, to get down in the dirt, and to commit yourself, body and mind. Susan Sontag called anthropology a “heroic” profession.” What is the payoff for this heroic journey? You will find ideas that can carry you across rivers of doubt and over mountains of fear to find the the light and life of places forgotten. Real anthropology cannot be contained in a book. You have to go out and feel the world’s jagged edges, wipe its dust from your brow, and at times, leave your blood in its soil. In this unique book, Dr. Michael Wesch shares many of his own adventures of being an anthropologist and what the science of human beings can tell us about the art of being human. This special first draft edition is a loose framework for more and more complete future chapters and writings. It serves as a companion to anth101.com, a free and open resource for instructors of cultural anthropology.

Subject:
Anthropology
Social Science
Material Type:
Textbook
Provider:
New Prairie Press
Author:
Michael Wesch
Date Added:
08/30/2018
Astronomy
Unrestricted Use
CC BY
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Astronomy is designed to meet the scope and sequence requirements of one- or two-semester introductory astronomy courses. The book begins with relevant scientific fundamentals and progresses through an exploration of the solar system, stars, galaxies, and cosmology. The Astronomy textbook builds student understanding through the use of relevant analogies, clear and non-technical explanations, and rich illustrations. Mathematics is included in a flexible manner to meet the needs of individual instructors.

Subject:
Astronomy
Physical Science
Material Type:
Textbook
Provider:
Rice University
Provider Set:
Openstax College
Author:
Andrew Fraknoi
David Morrison
Sidney C. Wolff
Date Added:
04/27/2020
Astronomy for Educators
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CC BY-SA
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Astronomy for Educators provides new and accomplished K-12 instructors with concepts and projects for low-cost, high-impact STEM classroom instruction that is built around the National Academies National Research Council's K-12 Framework for Science Education.

Subject:
Astronomy
Physical Science
Material Type:
Textbook
Author:
Daniel E. Barth
Date Added:
01/30/2019
Attenuated Democracy: A Critical Introduction to U.S. Government and Politics
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CC BY-NC-SA
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The U.S. political system suffers from endemic design flaws and is notable for the way that a small subset of Americans—whose interests often don’t align with those of the vast majority of the population—wields disproportionate power. Absent organized and persistent action on the part of ordinary Americans, the system tends to serve the already powerful. That’s why this text is called Attenuated Democracy. To attenuate something is to make it weak or thin. Democracy in America has been thin from the beginning and continues to be so despite some notable progress in voting rights. As political scientists Benjamin Page and Martin Gilens wrote, “The essence of democracy is not just having reasonably satisfactory policies; the essence of democracy is popular control of government, with each citizen having an equal voice.” (1) Since this is likely to be your only college-level course on the American political system, it is important to point out the structural weaknesses of our system and the thin nature of our democracy. Whenever you get the chance—in the voting booth, in your job, perhaps if you hold elected office—I encourage you to do something about America’s attenuated democracy.

Subject:
Political Science
Social Science
Material Type:
Textbook
Provider:
Salt Lake Community College
Author:
David Hubert
Date Added:
11/02/2021
Au Boulot! First-Year French
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CC BY-NC
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Au boulot! is a two-year college French program consisting of: a textbook, workbook and 21 accompanying audio exercises; as well as a reference grammar, to be used the entire two years. We also insist that our students obtain a full-sized dictionary, and we recommend the HARPER-COLLINS-ROBERT bilingual New Standard Edition. (Instructors will note in reviewing the materials that we provide vocabulary lists at the ends of chapters, with translations, but no glossary. We have become convinced after years of experience that glossaries are counter-productive. It is vital that students learn to use dictionaries, and the sooner the better.)

Subject:
Arts and Humanities
Languages
Material Type:
Textbook
Provider:
University of Kansas
Author:
Herve Pensec
Hope Christiansen
Madeleine Kernen
Date Added:
04/27/2020
Australian Politics and Policy - Senior
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CC BY-NC-SA
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This book is a broad introduction to Australian politics and public policy. This field of study is important for Australians to understand the exercise of political power, their history and the scope for change. It is also important for analysts outside Australia looking for comparative cases. Within this volume are diverse topics and perspectives, demonstrating that the study of Australian politics and policy is not ‘fixed’. Rather, it is a contested field of academic scholarship. Indeed, the volume’s editors do not all agree on the content of this introduction!

Subject:
Political Science
Social Science
Material Type:
Textbook
Provider:
Sydney University Press
Author:
John R. Butcher
Nicholas Barry
Peter J. Chen
Date Added:
11/05/2021
BC Reads: Adult Literacy Fundamental English - Course Pack 1
Unrestricted Use
CC BY
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Description: This course pack is designed to meet the learning outcomes for Adult Literacy Fundamental English Level 1 (roughly equivalent to beginner to grade 1.5 in the K-12 system). Every of the nine chapters includes a level-appropriate, high-interest reading of approximately 100 words. The readings are freely available in a separate reader with convenient links to the readings in each chapter of this course pack. The online version of this course pack also contains audio recordings of each story in the reader. These recordings, combined with vocabulary and word pattern exercises, prepare the Level 1 student to read each paragraph-long text with greater independence. Font size and line spacing can be adjusted in the online view, and have been enhanced for the print and PDF versions for easier reading. This course pack has been reviewed by subject experts from colleges and universities.

Subject:
English Language Arts
Material Type:
Textbook
Provider:
BCcampus
Provider Set:
BCcampus Open Textbooks
Author:
Shantel Ivits
Date Added:
04/27/2020
BC Reads: Adult Literacy Fundamental English - Course Pack 2
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CC BY
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This course pack is designed to meet the learning outcomes for Adult Literacy Fundamental English Level 2 (roughly equivalent to grades 1.5 to 3 in the K-12 system). Every of the eight chapters includes a level-appropriate, high-interest reading of approximately 200 words. The readings are freely available in a separate reader with convenient links to the readings in each chapter of this course pack. The online version of this course pack also contains audio recordings of each story in the reader. These recordings, combined with vocabulary and word pattern exercises, prepare the Level 2 student to read each chapter with greater independence. Font size and line spacing can be adjusted in the online view, and have been enhanced for the print and PDF versions for easier reading. This course pack has been reviewed by subject experts from colleges and universities.

Subject:
English Language Arts
Material Type:
Textbook
Provider:
BCcampus
Provider Set:
BCcampus Open Textbooks
Author:
Shantel Ivits
Date Added:
01/01/2015
BC Reads: Adult Literacy Fundamental English – Course Pack 5
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CC BY
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This course pack is designed to meet the learning outcomes for Adult Literacy Fundamental English Level 5 (roughly equivalent to grades 6 to 7.5 in the K-12 system). Every chapter includes a level-appropriate, high-interest reading of between 500 and 800 words. The readings are freely available in a separate reader with convenient links to the readings in each chapter of this course pack. Font size and line spacing can be adjusted in the online view, and have been enhanced for the print and PDF versions for easier reading. This course pack has been reviewed by subject experts from colleges and universities.

Subject:
Education
Material Type:
Textbook
Provider:
BCcampus
Author:
Shantel Ivits
Date Added:
11/08/2021
BC Reads: Adult Literacy Fundamental English Course Pack 6
Unrestricted Use
CC BY
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This course pack is designed to meet the learning outcomes for Adult Literacy Fundamental English Level 5 (roughly equivalent to grades 6 to 7.5 in the K-12 system). Every chapter includes a level-appropriate, high-interest reading of between 500 and 800 words. The readings are freely available in a separate reader with convenient links to the readings in each chapter of this course pack. Font size and line spacing can be adjusted in the online view, and have been enhanced for the print and PDF versions for easier reading. This course pack has been reviewed by subject experts from colleges and universities.

Subject:
Education
Material Type:
Textbook
Provider:
BCcampus
Author:
Shantel Ivits
Date Added:
11/08/2021
BSc Optics
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CC BY-NC-SA
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This book treats optics at the level of students in the later stage of their bachelor or the beginning of their master. It is assumed that the student is familiar with Maxwell’s equations. Although the book takes account of the fact that optics is part of electromagnetism, special emphasis is put on the usefulness of approximate models of optics, their hierarchy and limits of validity. Approximate models such as geometrical optics and paraxial geometrical optics are treated extensively and applied to image formation by the human eye, the microscope and the telescope.

Subject:
Applied Science
Engineering
Material Type:
Textbook
Provider:
Delft University of Technology
Author:
Aurèle J.L. Adam
H. Paul Urbach
Sander Konijnenberg
Date Added:
11/01/2021
Bad Ideas About Writing
Only Sharing Permitted
CC BY-NC-ND
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Bad Ideas About Writing counters major myths about writing instruction. Inspired by the provocative science- and social-science-focused book This Idea Must Die and written for a general audience, the collection offers opinionated, research-based statements intended to spark debate and to offer a better way of teaching writing. Contributors, as scholars of rhetoric and composition, provide a snapshot of and antidotes to major myths in writing instruction. This collection is published in whole by the Digital Publishing Institute at WVU Libraries and in part by Inside Higher Ed.

Subject:
Composition and Rhetoric
English Language Arts
Material Type:
Teaching/Learning Strategy
Provider:
West Virginia University
Provider Set:
Open Access Textbooks
Author:
Cheryl E. Ball
Drew M. Loewe
Date Added:
01/01/2017
The Balance of Personality
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CC BY-NC-SA
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This open access textbook was developed as an upper division undergraduate textbook for theories of personality. Its intended audience are students from Portland State University enrolled in Psychology 432 Personality course. The chapters are shorter than some personality textbooks and in this particular course Psy 432 the textbook is combined with other readings including scientific articles on personality.

Subject:
Psychology
Social Science
Material Type:
Textbook
Provider:
Portland State University
Author:
Chris Allen
Date Added:
11/08/2021
Bankruptcy Law and Practice
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CC BY-NC-SA
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This is the third edition of Bankruptcy Law and Practice, a Casebook Designed to Train Lawyers for the Practice of Bankruptcy Law. It is designed for a one-semester course in debtor/creditor law and bankruptcy. The book deals with both creditor remedies and debtor protections, starting with state law collection remedies, exemptions, and the important special protections for secured creditors under both Article 9 of the Uniform Commercial Code and state real property recording acts. After a thorough review of state law debt collection practice, the book covers the basics of straight bankruptcy law with a focus on Chapter 7 of the Bankruptcy Code, both for individuals and businesses. Although the book has a practice focus, it covers the major Supreme Court cases, and important appellate cases with an emphasis on areas of uncertainty. The book also emphasizes the Bankruptcy Code itself, using problem sets to get students to work through the language of the Bankruptcy Code.

At the end of the book are two abbreviated chapters on bankruptcy reorganizations for consumers under Chapter 13 and for businesses under Chapter 11. These chapters are intended to outline the reasons that debtors choose to file for reorganization rather than liquidation, and focuses on the rules for confirming a plan.

The primary goal of the book is to prepare students for the practice of bankruptcy law. Students who understand these materials should be well prepared to anticipate and address the kinds of issues that arise in real bankruptcy cases, whether in a small dollar consumer practice or a big dollar corporate reorganization. Students will learn the language of commercial law and bankruptcy, along with the skills to find their way around the Bankruptcy Code.

This is a true digital book, with links to both the cases and the statutes. The case links jump to the full text in the free Google Scholar website, while the statutory links jump to reprinted statutes in the appendixes of the book. No materials other than the book are needed.

Subject:
Law
Material Type:
Textbook
Provider:
The Center for Computer Assisted Legal Instruction (CALI)
Provider Set:
The eLangdell Bookstore
Author:
Gregory Germain
Date Added:
04/27/2020
Basic Analysis: Introduction to Real Analysis
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CC BY-NC-SA
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This free online textbook is a one semester course in basic analysis. These were my lecture notes for teaching Math 444 at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign (UIUC) in fall 2009. The course is a first course in mathematical analysis aimed at students who do not necessarily wish to continue a graduate study in mathematics. A Sample Darboux sums prerequisite for the course is a basic proof course. The course does not cover topics such as metric spaces, which a more advanced course would. It should be possible to use these notes for a beginning of a more advanced course, but further material should be added.

Subject:
Mathematics
Material Type:
Textbook
Provider:
University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
Author:
Jiří Lebl
Date Added:
04/27/2020
Basic Blueprint Reading
Unrestricted Use
CC BY
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This is an entry level blueprint reading book written for the first year welding student. The book will be used in the first term of a two year welding program to familiarize the student to sketching and reading blueprints.

Subject:
Career and Technical Education
Welding
Material Type:
Textbook
Provider:
Linn-Benton Community College
Author:
Ric Costin
Date Added:
11/01/2021
Basic Cell and Molecular Biology 3e: What We Know & How We Found Out
Unrestricted Use
CC BY
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A grasp of the logic and practice of science is essential to understand the rest of the world around us. To that end, the CMB3e iText (like earlier editions) remains focused on experimental support for what we know about cell and molecular biology, and on showing students the relationship of cell structure and function. Rather than trying to be a comprehensive reference book, CMB3e selectively details investigative questions, methods and experiments that lead to our understanding of cell biology. This focus is nowhere more obvious than in the chapter learning objectives and in external links to supplementary material. The Basic CMB3e version of the iText includes links to external web-sources as well as the author’s short, just-in-time YouTube VOPs (with edited, optional closed captions), all embedded in or near relevant text. Each video is identified with a descriptive title and video play and QR bar codes.

Subject:
Biology
Life Science
Material Type:
Textbook
Provider:
University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee
Provider Set:
University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee Digital Commons
Author:
Gerald Bergtrom
Date Added:
04/27/2020
Basic Concepts of Structural Design for Architecture Students
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CC BY-NC
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This book aims to narrate fundamental concepts of structural design to architecture students such that they have minimum involvement with math problem-solving. Within this book, students learn about different types of loads, forces and vector addition, the concept of equilibrium, internal forces, geometrical and material properties of structural elements, and rules of thumb for estimating the proportion of some structural systems such as catenary cables and arches, trusses, and frame structures.

Subject:
Applied Science
Architecture and Design
Material Type:
Textbook
Provider:
Portland State University
Author:
Anahita Khodadadi
Date Added:
10/29/2021
Basic Engineering Science - A Systems, Accounting, and Modeling Approach
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CC BY-NC-SA
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This textbook is based on a different paradigm for organizing an engineering science core --- a systems, accounting and modeling approach --- that emphasizes the common, underlying concepts of engineering science. Although this approach is not new, as most graduate students have been struck by this idea sometime during their graduate education, its use as the organizing principle for an undergraduate curriculum is new. By focusing on the underlying concepts and stressing the similarities between subjects that are often perceived by students (and taught by faculty) as unconnected topics, this approach provides engineering students a foundational framework for recognizing and building connections as they travel through their education.

Subject:
Applied Science
Engineering
Material Type:
Textbook
Provider:
Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology
Author:
Donald E. Richards
Date Added:
10/29/2021
Basic Hindi I
Unrestricted Use
CC BY
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Basic Hindi I is an online, interactive, and tech-enhanced textbook that promotes speaking, listening, reading, writing, and cultural skills. Each Chapter in this book has clear stated learning outcomes, a review of previous chapters, reading/listening sections, study abroad section, relevant grammatical items, and cultural notes. The pedagogical approach in the book is mixed and informed by the socio-cultural approaches and the generative approaches of the Second Language Acquisition theory. The mixed theoretical backgrounds match diverse learning and teaching philosophies and styles. Following the learning outcomes guided by American Council of Teaching Foreign Language (ACTFL), this textbook aims for the novice learners to attain intermediate low to mid-level proficiency level. The textbook incorporates pictures, audio-visual materials, and activities developed on the H5P platform to keep learners engaged.

Subject:
Arts and Humanities
Languages
Material Type:
Textbook
Provider:
Michigan State University
Author:
Rajiv Ranjan
Date Added:
11/01/2021