A major editing and revision to the textbook has just been completed. New information and plenty of rewrites will hopefully make the book even more useful.

Several users have requested them, so two new features have been added to the textbook.

1. When doing a search, the results now list the chapter and article number
2. The tools menu, visible when reading the book, is now sticky. It will not scroll off the screen as you move down the page. This should make it easier to use the tools. Note that this feature does not work in Internet Explorer because Microsoft refuses to follow the web standards. If you use a windows computer, I suggest you use Firefox instead. It is a much better browser.

If you are interested in purchasing a subscription to Through the Microscope, please follow the directions listed in Buying Through the Microscope. It is very important that you first log in or sign up as a user before you try to purchase the textbook.

This site is a completely updated and expanded version of the previous microbiology textbook located at the Department of Bacteriology. Features of the new textbook include....

• Expanded content: A full 25 chapters is available covering many aspects of microbiology. A detailed table of contents listing every article in the book is available.
• New tools: Users can use the virtual highlighter to emphasize important passages in the book they want to remember using the Toggle Highlight function available in the tools menu.
• Full search: The book is fully searchable.
• Quick quizzes: Quizzes are available after every few sections to allow the reader to test their comprehension and expand their thinking about important subjects
• Complete figures: All figures have been completed for the book, including still graphics, table, animations, and videos

If you are interested, try out the sample chapters by logging in as test user. Username:TestUser, password: tryitout. You can then explore two chapters, Bacterial Structure and Animal defenses against microbes. If you want access to all the content, pay the low subscription fee of $30 to access the entire textbook.