As in the former editions, the focus here is on participant observation -- giving students a sense of "being there" as some of the field's top practitioners conduct and report on their investigations. Articles examine diverse topics, ranging from the sociology of gender, power, politics, sports, religion, and wealth to the contemporary crises of violent crime, poverty, homelessness, and AIDS. An instructor's manual is available, with suggestions for teaching each selection, and a printed test bank and an electronic test file offer challenging questions to measure students' comprehension and knowledge. In addition, a convenient chart correlates each article in Down to Earth Sociology to related chapters in each of the thirty-eight most widely used introductory textbooks.