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Welcome to Ask A Biologist. This site has a large collection of biology learning materials that includes stories, games, activities, videos, and a podcast.
Can storytelling transform biology research? Join us for an engaging conversation with Kayla Burgher and Risa Schnebly, two visionary PhD students at Arizona State University.…
Understanding evolution doesn't just help us figure out how humans evolved...it also helps us understand why we have the health problems we do in today's society. Evolutionary medicine can help us understand our health, why we get sick, and how we can better prevent and treat disease.Also in…
For many organisms, reproduction is a huge part of life. But what, exactly, does reproduction mean? Well, it can mean so many different things, including breeding or not, caring for young (or not), or giving birth (or not)... read on to learn about the diversity of ways that organisms reproduce…
What could possibly be the difference between a cup of dirt and a cup of soil? Dr. Biology talks with microbiologist Ferran Garcia-Pichel about why he avoids the dirty word and prefers to say soil. Could it be there is more in a cup of dirt - excuse me a cup of soil than meets…
What is a media artist doing developing games based on large science data sets? It turns out he is looking into how the planet ticks and also what David McConville calls global weirding. Listen as Dr. Biology learns how a media artist makes his home in the world of science,…
What happens when our brain fails us? As Dr. Biology, my work has never been involved with diseases that affect the mind, but I do have a personal experience with the shadowy realm of Alzheimer's and other dementias. My mother battled against this relentless adversary and I am not alone. …
Going where no one has gone before sounds exciting, but are we ready to go to Mars? Traveling long distances, and living on another planet is going to be a challenge. You could say an extreme challenge because of the conditions in which we will have to live. Dr. Biology learns a bit about the…
Frankenstein's Lab
Play Frankenstein's Lab. Dr. Frankenstein needs your help to learn about how the bodies of different animals work! Build your own creature from 3-D…
Cell Size SIM
Play the Cell Size SIMCertain cell types should have a general size and have proportionate parts. But what if those sizes and proportions are different than…
Bone Zoom Gallery (Up-close Inside Bones)
Take a look at the microscopic world of bone in our virtual bone histology lab. Just pick a microscope slide from below and click on it to view under the virtual microscope.
Pollen Gallery (Pollen up-close)
Pollen comes in many shapes and sizes. These are just a few of the thousands of examples.
Tiger Beetle Zoom Gallery (Up-close with tiger beetles)
Some of the fastest animals on Earth are below. That’s right, if these tiny insects were as large as a horse they would be running 200 miles an hour.
Plankton Zoom Gallery (Plankton up-close)
Plankton comes in many shapes and sizes. These are just a few of the thousands of examples.
How Do Beetles Reproduce?
Every living thing must be able to reproduce and make offspring. Most of us are familiar with how humans and mammals make babies, but do all creatures reproduce in the same way? Do insects,…
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Making Life Crystal Clear
Much like a mechanical watch, living things only work when all the gears work together. Some of the tiniest of gears are proteins. Learning about the shape and size of these proteins is the job…
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Collecting Ants
There are several different ways to get ants for an ant farm, depending on when you would like to start the farm and how long you would like for your ant farm to last.
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Building Blocks of Life
All living beings are made up of cells. Some of them are made up of only one cell and others have many cells. Also in: Español |…
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