Dab of DNA Helps Keep Counterfeiters at Bay

Find out in this USA Today article how DNA sequences can vouch for a souvenir's authenticity.

Darwin's Letters: Collecting Evidence

This group of letters is a sample of the extensive correspondence Darwin carried on with a wide group of friends and colleagues as he collected evidence to support his theory of evolution by natural selection. From Charles Darwin's Letters: A Selection 1825-1859.

Darwin's Letters to Lyell

In this letter written to his friend and mentor Charles Lyell less than three weeks after the publication of On the Origin of Species, Darwin describes the reaction of the great anatomist Richard Owen to his theory. From Charles Darwin's Letters: A Selection 1825-1859.

The Dating Game: Radioactive Carbon

In this media-rich essay from the NOVA Web site, learn about the atomic structure of radioactive carbon and how it can be used to determine the age of organic remains, such as bones and teeth.

Decreasing California Snowpack

Approximately 40 percent of California's surface water supply originates from the snowpack in the Sierra Nevada Mountains. However, climate change is significantly altering this precious water source.

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Demolition Woman

Find out how controlled explosions are used to demolish multi-story buildings in this interview from the NOVA Web site.

Desegregation Mandate: Jefferson County, AL

A 1967 federal court order resulted in this document, which mandated school desegregation in Birmingham.

Diamonds: The Science Behind the Sparkle

This illustrated essay from the NOVA Web site explains why the atomic structure of a diamond slows down light and produces a sparkle more brilliant than from any other colorless substance.

Discovering Air

Our understanding about the air we breathe has changed dramatically through time. This illustrated timeline from the NOVA Web site tracks the changing thought on air and the creation of the Periodic Table of the Elements.

DNA Fingerprint Photos

These photographs supplied by Genelex Corporation depict actual DNA fingerprints and show the types of information that can be gleaned from them.

DNA Makes History

Read how DNA was used to solve the mystery of the Romanov family's execution. From Human Genetics: Concepts and Applications by Ricki Lewis.

DNA on the Witness Stand

In this article, Dr. Eric Lander of the Human Genome Project comments on the use of DNA as an identification tool -- the theoretical versus the practical results.

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Documenting Brown 1: The Fourteenth Amendment

The Fourteenth Amendment established the equal protection clause, later used in key desegregation cases.

Documenting Brown 2: Plessy v. Ferguson

The Supreme Court's 1896 ruling legalized the "separate but equal" doctrine that sanctioned segregation.

Documenting Brown 3: Gong Lum v. Rice

The Supreme Court's 1927 opinion in Gong Lum v. Rice affirmed legalized school segregation.

Documenting Brown 4: Mendez v. Westminster

This 1946 federal court ruling marked a victory for Mexican Americans and chipped away at the "separate but equal" doctrine, declaring segregated schools based on national origin unconstitutional.

Documenting Brown 5: Brown v. Board of Education, 1954

The Supreme Court's landmark opinion overturned its earlier ruling in Plessy v. Ferguson and declared segregated schools unconstitutional.

Documenting Brown 6: Brown v. Board of Education, 1955

The Supreme Court's opinion in Brown II reflects the struggle between federal and state governments on how and when school desegregation would occur.

Documenting Brown 7: Civil Rights Act of 1964

The Civil Rights Act of 1964 helped enforce the Brown ruling, a decade later.

Documenting Brown: Collected Excerpts

This collection of excerpts from legislation and court decisions documents key phases of the legal struggle to gain and implement equal education.