Cell Biol Educ 4(2): 105-111 2005
DOI: 10.1187/cbe.05-02-0070
© 2005 American Society for Cell Biology
WWW.Cell Biology Education: Using the World Wide Web To Develop a New Teaching Topic
Robert V. Blystone, and
Barbara MacAlpine
Department of Biology and Elizabeth Huth Coates Library, Trinity
University, San Antonio, TX 78212
Cell Biology Education calls attention each quarter to several Web
sites of educational interest to the biology community. The journal 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 E-mail:
rblyston{at}trinity.edu.
The sites listed below were last accessed on February 21, 2005.
The Internet provides access to an enormous array of potential teaching
materials. Below, we describe one approach for using the World Wide Web to
develop a new college biology laboratory exercise. As a topic example for the
search strategy, we have selected signal transduction.
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INTRODUCTION
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Evolt
http://browsers.evolt.org/
There are two essential ingredients for collecting information from the
Internet: 1) a World Wide Web (Web) browser, and 2) an Internet search engine.
The two most widely used Web browsers are Microsoft's Internet Explorer and
Netscape Communications Corporation's Navigator. There are, however, more than
120 browser software possibilities available. These browsers have been
cataloged by Adrian Roselli and may be found at Evolt, a site that supports
the exchange of Web design information. Web browsers are like brands of shoes;
some fit better than others. By visiting Evolt, whose uniform resource locator
(URL) is listed below, one might find a browser that works better. For
example, some Internet users prefer Firefox
(Figure 1) and Safari, because
Web browsers have different efficiencies in displaying Internet information on
different computer platforms.
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Figure 1. Search page from the Web browser known as Firefox. Image used with
permission of Mozilla, parent of Firefox. For a free copy of Firefox, which
operates on either Apple or IBM compatibles, visit
http://www.mozilla.org.
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As is the case with Web browsers, there are a number of Internet search
engines. Each search engine has a variety of features that address different
objectives for finding information from the Internet. The State University of
New York at Albany has organized an excellent list of Internet search
engines.
University Libraries Internet Search Engines
http://library.albany.edu/internet/engines.html
The Albany site also includes a guide on "How to Choose a Search
Engine or Directory." More than 80 search engines are placed into
categories ranging from Meta Search, Deep Web, and Domain Names, to FTP
Search. The choice of Internet search engine resembles the decision of which
library one wishes to visit. Some libraries may have more books, others have
better photo archives, and some are simply more comfortable to sit in.
Currently, the most widely used Internet search engine is Google. Other
popular search engines include HotBot, Lycos, AltaVista, and Dogpile.
For the purpose of this report, we will use Internet Explorer as the Web
browser and Google as the initial Internet search engine. Most college
undergraduates are thoroughly familiar with both.
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THE INITIAL SEARCH
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We begin our initial research into Internet resources for developing a new
lab on signal transduction by using the Internet search engine Google.
Google
http://www.google.com/
Google is a California-based company whose corporate name refers to the
number known as a googol: a 1 followed by 100 zeros. The organization was
started in 1998, and its prominence today as an Internet search engine is
clear.
The term "signal transduction" is typed into the search box
with quotes to limit the search to this exact two-word phrase
(Figure 2). This query results
in 1,760,000 returns (or "hits"), which is clearly far too many
possibilities to be worthwhile. Google has a feature that will allow the
search to be narrowed with a category called "Search within the
results." Into that box we typed "lab exercise" in quotes.
These two combined search phrases result in 94 hits. The first listing of the
94 returns is to an article titled "Signal Transduction and Control of
the Cell in Yeast, Saccharomyces cerevisiae: A Collaborative
Laboratory Exercise." Google provides a path to that article.
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Figure 2. Google is the trademark of Google, Inc. The image shown is the famous DNA
logo celebrating the 50th anniversary of the 1953 article on the structure of
DNA. The phrase "signal transduction" is entered into the search
box.
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Association for Biology Laboratory Education Archives
http://www.zoo.utoronto.ca/able/volumes/vol-19/05-hoopes/05-hoopes.htm
This complete lab exercise was presented to the 1998 Association for
Biology Laboratory Education (ABLE) meeting by Barbara Hoopes, Nancy L.
Pruitt, Kathleen Baier, and Sherry Brooks of Colgate University. The
Google-located reference is on target as a lab exercise based on signal
transduction. ABLE is an organization that meets annually for the purpose of
sharing tested lab exercises among the participants. The organization's Web
site is found below.
ABLE
http://www.zoo.utoronto.ca/able
Dr. Hoopes indicated that the figure used in the exercise is out of date
(see Figure 3). She also
indicated that the lab exercise was in need of revision because of advances in
the field. She also had a very interesting observation. It is harder to get
innovative lab exercises into print today, she argues, because such exercises
must be accompanied by extensive assessment documentation. For lab developers
at smaller institutions, such documentation is prohibitively expensive (B.
Hoopes, personal communication).
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Figure 3. Title page of the lab exercise as available at the ABLE Web site along with
the first figure from the article illustrating a principle being explored by
the lab exercise. The image is used with the permission of Dr. Hoopes, whose
important comment is found in the text.
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An examination of the other 93 Google returns results in very little, for
the phrase "signal transduction" is frequently used in course
syllabi and in vitae. Thus, from the 94 hits, one viable resource was located
for a possible lab exercise.
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THE SECOND ITERATION
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This Google search can be considered to be both successful and
unsuccessful: one good reference and only one reference from the whole of the
Internet. A different search strategy might identify more Internet resources.
Perhaps different key terms for the search might yield better results. What
terms should be used instead of "signal transduction"?
We suggest turning to a respected Internet biology textbook, Kimball's
Biology. John W. Kimball has converted his 1994 general biology textbook
into digital form. The original text is continually updated and expanded.
Kimball's Biology Pages
http://users.rcn.com/jkimball.ma.ultranet/BiologyPages/
Typing the term "signal transduction" yields no returns;
however, "second messengers" and "cell signaling" do.
Topics under cell signaling include NO receptors, steroid receptors,
G-protein-coupled receptors, cytokine receptors, and TGF receptors. Second
messenger topics include cyclic nucleotides, inositol trisphosphate, and
calcium ions. Although no lab material is found at Kimball's textbook site,
both topics found here serve as an excellent reference for students being
introduced to signal transduction. Kimball's topic selection also suggests
that a return to Google might yield more by using "second
messenger" and "cell signaling" as search terms.
Another source of general information may be found at the URL listed
below.
Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Main_Page
This Internet-based encyclopedia was initiated in 2001 by Jimmy Wales and
Larry Sanger. Today the site has over 1,300,000 articles from more than 13,000
contributors. This reference has information on just about any topic
imaginable. The search term "signal transduction" yields a
detailed article on the topic that has key terms "hot-linked" to
other articles in the encyclopedia (Figure
4). Information is provided about extracellular, intracellular,
and intercellular signaling. Transmembrane, nuclear, steroid, and even orphan
receptors are described. Signal amplification is briefly mentioned. The entry
concludes with a short bibliography and external links. The site, however,
must be used with caution, for the articles are "user" edited.
Undergraduate students would find this a good site for background information
on signal transduction, but because of the lack of professional editing, the
site should be cited in articles with caution.
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Figure 4. Wikipedia is a free, user-developed encyclopedia that is also user edited.
Permission has been given to use the image with proper notification of
source.
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A metasite (a site that lists links to other sites) can be found at The WWW
Virtual Library, the oldest metasite on the Internet, founded in 1991. One of
its divisions is Biochemistry and Cell Biology, which is maintained by Gabriel
Fenteany of the University of Illinois at Chicago.
The Virtual Library of Biochemistry and Cell Biology
http://www.biochemweb.org/signaling.shtml
This Virtual Library of Biochemistry and Cell Biology (VLBCB) has a section
specifically oriented toward signal transduction information. The links found
here include The Medical Biochemistry Page, Dynamic Signaling Maps, The
Signaling Pathway Database, and 10 receptors and signaling effector sites. One
exceptional resource listed here is to the Sigma-Aldrich Chemical Company,
where one can download over 80 free, remarkable graphics representing cell
signal pathways that may be used for instruction
(Figure 5). The main VLBCB page
concludes with a listing of nearly 40 research labs that are focused on signal
transduction research. This site would serve to educate the college instructor
as well as the student; however, it does not list any lab exercises on signal
transduction.
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Figure 5. One of more than 80 digital posters available at the Sigma-Aldrich site.
The posters, in PowerPoint format, may be downloaded free for personal use or
for educational presentations. Sigma-Aldrich is a producer and distributor of
chemicals with corporate offices in St. Louis, MO.
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Sigma-Aldrich Cell Signaling Pathway Slides and Charts
http://www.sigmaaldrich.com/Area_of_Interest/Life_Science/Cell_Signaling/Scientific_Resources/Pathway_Slides___Charts.html
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A FINAL ITERATION
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Several groups with significant financial support have developed Web
locations of science teaching information. One of the more established sites
representing this effort is MERLOT.
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Figure 6. A screen shot of the MERLOT return information box for the search on the
phrase "signal transduction." Image used with permission.
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MERLOT
http://www.merlot.org
MERLOT, a term representing Multimedia Educational Resource for Learning
and Online Teaching, was founded in 1997 by the California State University
Center for Distributed Learning. It is an open-source collection of nearly
4,000 Web-based learning sites and materials. In 1998, MERLOT expanded to
include the University of Georgia System, Oklahoma State Regents for Higher
Education, and the University of North Carolina System. By 2000, 23
educational systems were incorporated into MERLOT. Individuals can also join
MERLOT at no expense, and there is an extensive membership directory with over
3,100 members in the science and technology area.
By typing the phrase "signal transduction" into the prominent
search box at the top of the MERLOT homepage, three returns are obtained. The
first is authored by Joyce J. Diwan of Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute
(Figure 6). The teaching
resource is extensive, and the section on signal transduction has excellent
learning materials, including three animations. The second listing is for
teaching materials developed by Larry L. Keeley of Texas A&M University.
One of his animations focuses on G-protein signaling. The third represents a
collection of materials by Yu-Wai Peter Lin of Barry University. It consists
of information dealing with Nobel Prizes in physiology and medicine dealing
with membrane-based signaling events. Using the phrase "cell
signal(l)ing" results in two more hits, both of which contain
animations.
The MERLOT site is well conceived and executed. Each reference clearly
identifies the URL, the author, and the source. Each resource outlines
requirements for use. Most resources have been rated as to content quality and
potential effectiveness as a teaching tool. There is also an ease-of-use
assessment. However, a laboratory exercise on signal transduction is not among
its holdings.
Our last stop is at the National Science Foundation-sponsored National
Science Digital Library, also known as NSDL. The Mission Statement of the NSDL
states: "NSDL provides educational resources for science, technology,
engineering, and mathematics education. The NSDL mission is to both deepen and
extend science literacy through access to materials and methods that reveal
the nature of the physical universe and the intellectual means by which we
discover and understand it." This educational resource opened in
December of 2002, and it continues to grow
(Figure 7).
National Science Digital Library http://nsdl.org/
NSDL's simple homepage has a search box near the top, not unlike MERLOT.
When "signal transduction" is entered, 245 records are retrieved.
Unlike Google, these hits are all very pertinent, including Science's
Signal Transduction Knowledge Environment (STKE). STKE is a weekly electronic
publication of current events in signal transduction research and is a joint
venture between the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS)
and Stanford University. A portion of STKE is public, and the rest can be
accessed through AAAS membership. Regular visits to this site would keep an
instructor up to date as to developments in cell signaling.
STKE: Signal Transduction Knowledge Environment http://stke.sciencemag.org/
Currently, the NSDL has over 420 collections of educational information
ranging from "All about Birds" to "The Learning
Matrix." Like a good book, it is difficult not to browse through the
Science Library. When the term "lab" is added to the search
strategy, six hits result, with two being labs demonstrating signal
transduction. The Hoopes et al. yeast lab mentioned earlier is one of
the two. As resources are identified and cataloged, they are being added to
this database.
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IN CONCLUSION
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Signal transduction is a major research topic today. Surprisingly few
teaching lab exercises exist that provide undergraduate students hands-on
exposure to the topic. We knew that teaching material in this area would be
difficult to find, and thus the topic served us well in defining a strategy
for locating teaching material using Internet resources. As one identifies the
need to locate new teaching material, changing "signal
transduction" to some other key term should lead to useful references
using the strategy outlined here.
Address correspondence to: Robert V. Blystone
(rblyston{at}trinity.edu).
TOP
INTRODUCTION
THE INITIAL SEARCH
