Cell Biol Educ 2(1): 14-15 2003
DOI: 10.1187/cbe.02-11-0058
© 2003 American Society for Cell Biology
WWW.Cell Biology Education
Robert Blystone
Department of Biology, Trinity University, San Antonio, Texas 78212
Submitted November 13, 2002;
Accepted November 14, 2002
Cell Biology Education (CBE) calls attention each quarter
to several web sites of educational interest to the life science community.
CBE does not endorse or guarantee the accuracy of the information at
any of the listed sites. If you want to comment on the selections or suggest
future inclusions, please send a message to
rblyston{at}trinity.edu.
The sites listed below were last accessed on November 10, 2002.
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DEFORMED AMPHIBIAN RESEARCH AT HARTWICK COLLEGE
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http://info.hartwick.edu/biology/def_frogs/index.html
An excellent and interesting implementation of the scientific method is
found at this interactive site created and maintained by Stanley Sessions at
Hartwick College in Oneonta, New York. Reports of malformed frogs in North
America have been increasing over the last 10 years, with at least nine web
information centers tracking the decline in frog populations. One of the
centers that tracks information and reports research on the phenomenon is
located at Hartwick College. Sessions has created a highly useful web site
that presents the amphibian malformation problem in a highly useful way to
students and biology educators.
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Figure 1. Frogs that demonstrate leg deformities. From the laboratory of Stanley
Sessions of Hartwick College. Reprinted by premission of Stanley Sessions
(November 10, 2002).
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The exercise allows a student to move through the malformation evidence in
a directed free-form manner. The student is given some visual evidence of
malformations (see Figure 1)
and then offered seven hypotheses to explore. Detailed evidence with
references is provided for four of the hypotheses. Two explanations developed
are the well-known effects of vitamin A and ultraviolet light on vertebrate
limb growth. This captivating exercise allows the student to draw a conclusion
that most would never consider. The scientific method is beautifully explored
in a real-time problem. The deformed amphibian web site provides an excellent
entreé into the inquiry approach to laboratory learning. There are also
some wonderful examples of photomicroscopy.
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C. elegans MOVIES
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http://www.bio.unc.edu/faculty/goldstein/lab/movies.html
The international group of researchers using Caenorhabditis
elegans as a model has just announced the complete genome sequence,
consisting of just over 100 million base pairs, for the worm. Supporting this
effort, Robert Goldstein at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
has assembled thirty-five movies demonstrating various activities of C.
elegans. Drawn from 20 laboratories worldwide, the movies provide the
developmental sequences of normal and mutant worms (see
Figure 2). Topics include
visualizations of cytoplasmic flow, P granules, tubulins, and histone
movement. Techniques using POP-1, PIE-1, and PES-1 reveal highly informative
developmental events. The worms are shown crawling, rolling, mating,
ovulating, trafficking, and in seizure. From spermiogenesis to calcium
transients, the Goldstein collection provides a wonderful resource of C.
elegans movies. Even three RNA interference (RNAi) screens are
referenced. For an instructor who wishes to explain to students why a
roundworm was the focus of a 2002 Nobel prize, this web site is a good place
to begin.
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Figure 2. Developing C. elegans showing apoptosis at arrowheads. From the
laboratory of Robert Goldstein of the University of North Carolina at Chapel
Hill. Printed by permission of Robert Goldstein (November 10, 2002).
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MICROBE LIBRARY
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http://www.microbelibrary.org/
This source of educational information is part of the Microbiology
Education Library maintained by the American Society for Microbiology. The
information is organized into four areas: visual resources, curriculum
resources, reviews, and articles. As of September 2002, 324 visual images were
associated with 223 entries, all with legends and annotations. There are
currently 43 classroom and laboratory entries available. A search engine is
provided that makes use of headings such as topics, groups of organisms, core
concepts, and pedagogy keywords.
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Figure 3. Vibrio cholerae bacteria among Volvox. From Rita Colwell
of the National Science Foundation. Printed by permission of the American
Society of Microbiology (ASM) and ASM News (November 11, 2002).
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Figure 3, from Rita Colwell,
is an example of the high-information content graphics available from the
resource. Animations and videos accompany the library of still images. One of
the curriculum resources is an exercise titled "Do-It-Yourself
Immunoglobulin Gene Rearrangement." It is a highly effective, low-cost,
and simple demonstration of gene rearrangement, a perfect way to introduce the
subject to a class. Another curriculum resource is titled "Virology,
Genome Sequencing, and Bioinformatics." The various parts and pieces of
this laboratory exercise can be downloaded from the site. There is a wonderful
review article that could be titled "Who Killed C.
elegans?" The actual article deals with cyanide production by
P. aeruginosa and its effect on worms. The material could be
developed into a case study concerning cystic fibrosis. One of the articles
available, titled "Significant Events of the Last 125 Years," is a
delightful history of microbiology with links to support materials. This URL
is a superb educational resource, and it is growing in content and
usefulness.
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NATIONAL SCIENCE DIGITAL LIBRARY
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http://about.nsdl.org/
The National Science Digital Library (NSDL), funded by the National Science
Foundation, will come on-line during early 2003. The NSDL represents one of
the most important science education developments of the next 10 years.
Currently the site provides a tour of what is to come. You may want to be one
of the first to explore this new educational
resource.
Corresponding author. E-mail address:
rblyston{at}trinity.edu.
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DEFORMED AMPHIBIAN RESEARCH AT...
C. elegans MOVIES
