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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.

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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…

2016 Ugly Bug video

An interview with biologist Gro Amdam, one of the members of the group that brought us the bee genome. Hey just what is a genome and could bees hold the answer to aging? In this show we learn the answers to these questions and why researchers are buzzing around bees.

Most of us wish we could predict the future. We want to know everything from who will win the big football game to whether or not our favorite superhero will defeat the super villain. Biologists want to know the future too.

The evening news, your local paper, online websites, blogs, twitter, Facebook, and yes podcasts all are communicating the latest science news. In this mix of messages are often conflicting stories about what is good and bad for you. It also seems that every other day there is a cure for cancer or…
Changing careers can be a challenge. It can also be rewarding. And for some people it is an opportunity to fulfill a childhood dream. This is the case for John Truong who has been an artist and animator on some of the popular movies produced by Pixar, DreamWorks, and Disney. While…

So you think zombies are only on television and in the movies, think again. Dr. Biology learns the details of a nasty fungus and something called the "death grip" from biologist David Hughes. It turns out there are real live, well maybe not live, zombies. The good news is this…

Life in the year 2050, what will it look like? Will it be the age of intelligent computers? Could this happen even sooner? Physicist and author Max Tegmark talks about the future of artificial intelligence and how it might impact biological life on this planet. Dr. Biology learns…

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.

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.

Feather Zoom Gallery (Feathers up-close)

There is nothing like seeing a feather up close.

Ant Gallery (Get up-close to ants)

Now is the time to check out these amazing animals from the safety of your own computer.

Girl inspecting ecosystems

I Spy an Ecosystem

We hear the word ecosystems in the news and at school but just what are ecosystems? It turns out there are lots of ecosystems. You might even learn you have some inside you! Also in:…

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Monarch butterfly

Metamorphosis – Nature’s Ultimate Transformer

Transforming robots are favorites of television and movies, but nature has some of the best transformers. Animals that can change in ways that almost seem unbelievable. Also in:…

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A classroom Globe

Where In The World Is Kazakhstan?

Where in the world is Kazakhstan (Ka-zakh-ston)? This may be a puzzling question to some, but no longer. This story we will help put the pieces together.

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Two green salamanders

He Ain't Tasty He's My Brother

While cannibalism is fairly common among insects and crustaceans, most backboned animals avoid feeding on their own kind.

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