Soil microbiology, ecology and biochemistry: an exciting present and great future built on basic knowledge and unifying concepts -- The soil habitat -- The bacteria and archaea -- The soil fungi: occurrence, phylogeny and ecology -- Soil fauna: occurrence, biodiversity and roles in ecosystem function -- Molecular approaches to studying the soil biota -- Physiological and biochemical methods for studying soil biota and their functions -- The spatial distribution of soil biota -- The metabolic physiology of soil microorganisms -- The ecology of the soil biota and their function -- Plant-soil biota interactions -- Carbon cycling: the dynamics and foramation of organic matter -- Methods for studying soil organic matter: nature, dynamics, spatial accessibility and interactions with minerals -- Nitrogen transformations -- Biological N inputs -- Biological cycling of inorganic nutrients and metals in soils and their role in soil biogeochemistry -- Modeling the dynamics of soil organic matter and nutrient cycling -- Management of soil biota and their processes