Cosmology 101
This is is a primer on scientific efforts to understand the origin, evolution, and fate of the universe. Among the questions it explores: What types of matter and energy fill the universe? What is the age and shape of the universe? How rapidly is it expanding? The website examines the Big Bang theory, as well as tests and limitations of the theory.
Building a Winogradsky Column: An Educator Guide with Activities in Astrobiology
This 27-page educator guide is a NASA Quest resource about Microbial Ecology and related Astrobiology activities. Students will construct a Winogradsky Column to observe the growth of microbes in a column of mud. During this investigation students will develop a hypothesis, record their observations and results, and form conclusions. They will compare and contrast their methods during the investigation with those of the astrobiologists performing research in the field and the laboratory. It incl
Rio Tinto Images
This collection of images highlights the Rio Tinto area of Spain, specifically where the NASA Mars Analog Research and Technology Experiment (MARTE) took place. The site includes links to related news releases.
Solar Physics: The Sun Spot Cycle
This NASA website contains extensive information on sun spots and sun spot prediction. Users have access to several forms of graphical and numerical data such as sun spot numbers, the Maunder minimum, the Butterfly diagram, the Greenwich sunspot data and sun spot cycle predictions. The site also includes a wealth of information about the sun and NASA's ongoing sun research.
Social:Learn Introduction
An introduction to the Open University's social:learn project.
WolfQuest
Learn about wolf ecology by living the life of a wild wolf in Yellowstone National Park. Play alone or with friends in on-line multiplayer missions, explore the wilderness, hunt elk, and encounter stranger wolves in your quest to find a mate. Ultimately, your success will depend on forming a family pack, raising pups, and ensuring the survival of your pack. The WolfQuest experience goes beyond the game with an active online community where you can discuss the game with other players, chat with w
Basic Political Concepts
The goal of BASIC POLITICAL CONCEPTS is to provide exactly what the title suggests: a small set of carefully defined and interrelated words that can be used to describe and analyze a wide range of political phenomena and issues.
Observe an animation showing the formation of an unconformity.
This website hosts an animation depicting the formation of an unconformity in the rock record. Users can play, rewind, fast forward and stop the animation at any point in the formation as well as read detailed text outlining the process. The animation is part of the Earth Exploration Visualization collection.
GPS Animations
This site features Flash animations that illustrate how the Global Positioning System (GPS) works. The animations depict how GPS signals are derived, compare geostationary and polar orbits, and explain satellites, ground control, and user segments, which comprise the three main GPS components. These resources are suitable for use in lectures, labs, or other teaching activities.
Representing History: Cambodia - Through the Shadows
This unit introduces students to the modern history of Cambodia in the context of the Cold War. It examines the relationship between Cambodia and Vietnam and the way both countries became drawn into the power struggle between the US and Western capitalism and the Sino Soviet communist axis in the east. Through viewing and discussion of the video and investigating the web resources, students can begin to understand the conventions of documentary in offering access to a version of the truth.
Women and Media
In this lesson, students examine the role of women in the media; critique and discuss different portrayals of women in popular culture and focus on how these reflect larger societal and cultural values.
Multiple Perspectives on the Immigrant Experience
In this lesson, students will reflect on the individual Dominican-American experiences of the Ortiz sisters in the film My American Girls, create a talk show that addresses the themes and issues of the film, and conduct research on how Latinos are portrayed in the media.
Exam Skills
The aim of this lesson is to help students acquire skills that help them prepare for examinations in a focused and organized way. Students devise strategies for reviewing material and developing a revision timeline, and learn to identify the areas of study on which they should concentrate to prepare for tests. They review helpful tips and learn to use past examinations as a guide for future ones. It is the seventh lesson in the study skills series and is intended to support adult learners who ar
Using Documentary Film to Explore Family History and Memory
In the third lesson in the Family, History and Memory module, students explore their family stories in a historical context. The PBS documentary Daughter From Danang is used to illustrate the dramatic impact that the Vietnam War had on the family and identity of an Amerasian child as she grew into womanhood. The lessons can be delivered as a module or as individual units.
Religion
This sit eoffers 40 publications written in the 19th century America related to religion -- prayer books, sermons, hymnals, histories, moral instruction, writings about faith and science, missionary evangelism, and more.
Now What a Time: Blues, Gospel, and the Fort Valley Arts Festivals, 1938-1943
This site consists of sound recordings, primarily blues and gospel songs, and related documentation created by John Wesley Work III in 1941 and by Lewis Jones and Willis Laurence James in March, June, and July 1943 at the folk festival at Fort Valley College (now Fort Valley State University), Fort Valley, Georgia.
Marine Microbial Ecology
This image-rich website from the Australian Antarctic Division's Biology program describes its research in marine microbial ecology. It includes an introduction of microbial ecology and microbial processes, followed by information about the research project. Field sampling, microscopy, flow cytometry, pigment analysis, flourometry, HPLC, culturing, feeding experiments, and the research staff are each discussed using vivid imagery. Links are provided to related websites.
Cephalopod Lesson Plans
This collection of lesson plans, created by the Bermuda Biological Station for Research, highlights color change in cephalopods. This page provides links to each lesson plan, which are in PDF format and feature an informative, image-rich introduction followed by a hands-on laboratory activity. The lesson plans highlight cephalopod color change, vision, light quality, and light quantity.
Single-Celled Organisms Unit
This Project Oceanography lesson plan (PDF) explores the symbiotic relationships of single-celled organisms. In this activity, students will compare and contrast three types of symbiotic relationships, describe the relationship between zooxanthellae (a dinoflagellate) and coral, and explain the effects of nitrogen-fixing bacteria on their symbiotic partners. It begins with an introduction to symbiotic relationships, the dinoflagellate/coral system, and cyanobacteria, and then features an interac
Protist Image Data
Protist Image Data (PID) is an online database that provides pictures and short descriptions of selected Protist genera, especially those genera whose species are frequently used as experimental organisms or are important in studies of organismal evolution. Up-to-date information is provided on the morphology, taxonomy and phylogenetic relationships of these organisms. Information on PID pages is arranged by the following: Introduction, Appearance, Ultrastructure, Reproduction and Life History,
