Welcome to Ask A Biologist. This site has a large collection of biology learning materials that includes stories, games, activities, videos, and a podcast.

Alzheimer’s disease makes it difficult to remember many things – like where you live, the names and faces of family members, and even your own name. ASU professor Diego Mastroeni’s job is to study Alzheimer’s disease, and to hopefully find a way to cure it.
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…
Coral reefs are a brimming with life; they are home to more than 25% of all marine life. Dive into coral reefs to learn about unusual partnerships, threats to coral reefs, and ways scientists are trying to save these important structures and habitats.

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

For hundreds of years, scientists have explored life on Earth with their feet firmly planted on the ground. Doing research was either in the laboratory, or out in the field. But in recent years exploring our planet has taken to the air. Dr. Biology gets to spend some time with ecologist

What would life be like on other planets? This is just one of many questions that Biochemist and author Nick Lane talks about while visiting with Dr. Biology. Listen in as Nick explores not only life on our Earth, but also what it might be like on other planets. Nick also reads…

There is more to our memory than you might think. In fact, we have three types of memory. Just how these memory systems work, and work together is the subject of this episode. We also learn that there are sometimes errors in our memory. Take a few minutes to learn how we remember things and even…

Natural history museums may not come to life as they do in a Hollywood movie, but they do have some amazing stories. They also have all kinds of cool stuff that many of us never get to see. Paleontologist Richard Fortey talks about the life and some of the treasures hidden…

monarch butterflies in puzzle pieces

Monarchs

Read Migrating Monarchs and then take this quiz to test your knowledge!

a digger bee excavating

Digging Bees

Read Desert Diggers and then take this quiz to test your knowledge!

Can you see DNA?

Seeing DNA

Every living thing uses DNA as the instructions for life. But how can we be sure that something so small is actually there at all? Here is one experiment that you can do at home or school that…

Cartoon of two scientists one male and one female.

Doctor Know

Play Doctor Know

Play doctor in the 21st century! Practice modern medicine by examining all dimensions of the body, from organs to molecules, as…

An illustration of different cell sizes and a ruler, to measure nuclear cytoplasmic ratios

Cell Size SIM

Play the Cell Size SIM

Certain cell types should have a general size and have proportionate parts. But what if those sizes and proportions are…

Learn about the peppered moth

Picking off the Peppered Moth

Play the Peppered Moths Game

Get your beaks ready, it's moth-hunting time. In the Peppered Moths Game, you take on the role of the hunter and…

A snake in an underground burrow.

Desert Survivor

Play Desert Survivor

In this story-based game, you are a young rattlesnake learning to survive in a harsh desert environment. You'll search…