Biology/General Biology

Track a Plant’s Movement

Though you may not realize it, every day the plants around you are moving…all by themselves. Even though most plants have roots that bind them to the surface they grow on, plants are able to stretch, grow, and bend to adjust to changes in their environment. Some plants, like Venus flytraps, can move quickly, but […]

Dissect a Silkworm Cocoon

Science Friday Discussion: Negotiating the Challenges of Teaching Evolution

Science Friday Live Panel Discussion: Negotiating the Challenges of Teaching Evolution

How Can We Build Homes That Are Resistant to Mold?

Engineer a ‘Filter Feeder’

Objective: Students will engineer a water filter based on observations of manta ray feeding filters, then test its effectiveness Time: About 60 minutes Grades: 3rd -9th Subjects: Life Science, Engineering and Technology Topics: Structure and function, adaptation, engineering and design People use filters every day to separate solids from liquids or gases. For example, we […]

Snotty Plots: How Do You Graph a Sneeze?

Target Grades:  Grades 6-8 Content Areas: Mathematics Topics: Probability and statistics, epidemiology, measurement, data analysis, histograms. Time required: One 60-minute class period, with possibility to extend CCSS: Math.Content.6.Sp.B.4, Math.Content.6.Sp.B.5, Math.Content.6.Sp.B.5.A, Math.Content.6.Sp.B.5.B, Math.Content.8.Sp.A.1 You and a friend are sitting down to lunch, and all of a sudden…“AAACHOOOO!” One of you sneezes! Your first thought after “bless […]

#ObserveEverything Reflection

Here is a sampling of some of our favorite submissions from the #ObserveEverything Science Club project. As you listen along to our final #ObserveEverything discussion on October 24th, scroll through the submissions below to get the full experience.  Same species. Similar leaf change: top down, sort of… #ObserveEverything pic.twitter.com/oyh8wxtbzs — Serena Sanborn (@maineserena) October 4, […]

Jumping Spider Shake Down

The courtship displays of male jumping spiders in the family Salticidae combine a number of flashy signals to woo females. Displaying males might shake their mouthparts, bob their abdomens, wave their legs, dance from side to side, and flash bright colors. In addition to their crazy dance moves, males will simultaneously generate vibrational signals that […]

One For All: A Natural Resources Game

Introduction Renewable resources are natural resources that naturally replenish themselves, such as fish and trees. Humans can use renewable resources again and again if we manage them properly. But if we don’t give these resources an opportunity to reproduce, we can exhaust them quickly, especially as our demand grows. The tragedy of the commons theory […]