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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.
Look closely at John Alcock's critter littered yard and you'll be bug-eyed. He decorates the front with cow patties, spends hours watching sleeping bees and occasionally wolfs down a cricket or mealworm to amuse or horrify his guests. "I'm just considered a mildly eccentric person," admits…
As you go about your day, breathing and thinking, with your heart beating, your body is working. It sends and receives signals, grows, and stores fat, among hundreds of other functions. All of these functions make up your physiology, or how your body works. The same is true for every living…
Almost all of our cells contain identical copies of DNA. But wait...with the same instructions, shouldn't all cells look and function the same? Learn how our bodies use the same instructions to make all kinds of different cells.Also in:…
McGaughey (pronounced McGoy) is a researcher at Arizona State University who studies reproduction of mammals. He is a consultant at a hospital, where he is part of a team that implants fertilized eggs into the uterus of women who have not been able to conceive a baby by other methods.
An interview with biologist James Collins who is the person directing the biology section of the National Science Foundation. Listen in and learn about this important science funding agency.
We hear a lot about DNA, but not as much about RNA. It is true that DNA is the encyclopedia of life or the ultimate instruction manual for living things. But what good is a book if it is not read or an instruction manual that is not used? This is where RNA comes into the story of life. It is the…
An interview with biologist Kevin McGraw. Dr. Biology and his co-host Brian Varela learn a lot about feathers and all the ways birds used them. This is a colorful and wild show that you will not want to miss.
An interview with biologist Pierre Deviche and his passion for recording some of natures most interesting animals. Humans are not the only animals that have dialects as you will learn in this show. Dr Biology tests your skills again with a mystery animal quiz at the beginning of…
Nano Building
Play the Bionanoengineering Game. Basic building patterns can be used to think about how technologies are built at the nano-scale. Try your hand at…
Mama Ji's Molecular Kitchen
There are lots of sites out there full of molecular techniques and protocols, but very little information (either online or in readable hardcopy form) that explain how and why these techniques…
Pollen Gallery (Pollen up-close)
Pollen comes in many shapes and sizes. These are just a few of the thousands of examples.
Ant Gallery (Get up-close to ants)
Now is the time to check out these amazing animals from the safety of your own computer.
Plankton Zoom Gallery (Plankton up-close)
Plankton comes in many shapes and sizes. These are just a few of the thousands of examples.
Darwin and Mendel's Afternoon Tea
An imaginary conversation between two great thinkers, Charles Darwin and Gregor Mendel. While the monk, Mendel, had read Darwin’s publications - Mendel's work only came to be known later. We…
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Cloning Ewe
What is cloning and do we have clones living among us today? The answers might surprise you or maybe we should say ewe.
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Spaced Out Physiology
Being an astronaut is a cool job, but before you sign up you should know life in space isn’t all fun and games. The lack of gravity can make our bodies act in strange ways.
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True Bugs
Not all insects are bugs, but all bugs are insects. How can this be? Learn about some particular insects that biologists call true bugs. Also in: Español…
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