Search results

Health and the Human Body

How do the cells in different systems of the human body differ in form and function? Explore human body systems, their cellular components, and biological hazards that affect your body's health.

Format: bibliography/help

Genetics

Eye color, hair color, height, and other traits as well as predisposition to certain diseases are all determined by genes. This sampling of resources take you into the world of heredity and genetics and the cutting edge technologies of cloning, gene therapy, and DNA forensics.

Format: bibliography/help

Disease and catastrophe

In Prehistory, contact, and the Lost Colony, page 5.3

Of all the kinds of life exchanged when the Old and New Worlds met, lowly germs had the greatest impact. Europeans and later Africans brought smallpox and a host of other diseases with them to America, where those diseases killed as much as 90 percent of the native population of two continents. Europeans came away lucky -- with only a few tropical diseases from Africa and, probably, syphilis from the New World. In America, disease destoyed civilizations.

Format: article

By David Walbert.

Spain and America: From Reconquest to Conquest

In Prehistory, contact, and the Lost Colony, page 3.1

In 1491, no European knew that North and South America existed. By 1550, Spain -- a small kingdom that had not even existed a century earlier -- controlled the better part of two continents and had become the most powerful nation in Europe. In half a century of brave exploration and brutal conquest, both Europe and America were changed forever.

Format: article

By David Walbert.

Resources on the web

Infection Detection Protection

Microbes, bacteria, infection and the flu... how biological hazards can make you sick and what you can do to prevent it. (Learn more)

Format: website/activity

Provided by: American Museum of Natural History

Bacteria ballistics

In this Science Update, from Science NetLinks, students hear about the possibility that microbes from Mars may have once seeded the Earth. In this interview, students learn about an unusual experiment that could help provide the answer. (Learn more)

Format: activity/lesson plan (grade 6 Science)

Provided by: American Association for the Advancement of Science

What's bugging you?

This lesson demonstrates that some “bad” microorganisms can get into the body through food ingestion and how some environments support pathogens. This lesson is intended to build on a basic understanding of microbes. (Learn more)

Format: lesson plan (grade 8 Science)

Provided by: American Association for the Advancement of Science

Microbe World

MicrobeWorld.org provides educators, parents, and students with online resources and tools for microbiology education. Try out the experiments, find out why hand washing is important, and get the scoop on becoming a microbiologist. (Learn more)

Format: website/activity

Provided by: American Society for Microbiology

Microbe Zoo

Sponsored by Michigan State University this website is a "Digital Learning Center for Microbial Ecology." Discover the many worlds of hidden microbes! Visit Dirtland, the Animal Pavilion, the Snackbar, the Space Adventure, and Water World to see where microbes... (Learn more)

Format: website/general

Provided by: Michigan State University

LIFE: From diversity to DNA

A collection of four units for seventh and eighth grade science covering human body systems, genetics, cells, and microbes and disease. (Learn more)

Format: lesson plan (grade 7–8 Science)

Provided by: Kenan Fellows for Curriculum and Leadership Development

Evolution: a journey into where we're from and where we're going

A multimedia website that uses interactive activities, video, audio, timelines, polls, games, and roundtable discussions to explore the multi-faceted topic of evolution. (Learn more)

Format: website/lesson plan

Provided by: PBS