Concepts and definitions of soil; terminology and relationships between segments of the earth's crust; ABC system of horizon nomenclature; introduction to ways of thinking about and studying soil genesis; mineral and organic matter transformation; eluviation and illuviation and closely related processes (diffusion, wicking); phyto- and other biocycling; pedoturbation and soil structure formation; erosion, alluvation and other additions to soils; sulfidization and sulfuricization; salinization, solonization, and solodization; calcification; lessivage; podzolization; latosolization and lateritization; gleization; general principles and kinds of soil classification systems; soil classification in the past - roots and philosophies; history leading to the development of soil taxonomy; pedons and polypedons and their relationship to mapping delineations; soil taxonomy: epipedons; diagnostic subsurface horizons; pans and plinthite; proposed special diagnostic characteristics for highly man-influenced soils; other characteristics and terms used in defining mineral soils and classes of them; dignostic criteria for organic soils; general view of division of soils into orders; entisols; vertisols; inceptisols; aridisols; mollisols; spodosols; alfisols; ultisols; oxisols; histosols; the factors of soil formation - overview; soils in relation to their parent material; soils in relation to their age; soils in relation to climate; soils in relation to organisms other than man; effects of man; soils in relation to topography; minerals and mineral stabilities; overview for water movement in soils and soil genetic effects; subgroups of udorthents and classification of some highly man-influenced soils; textural triangles.