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Life Science

Evolution

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Are We Alone?

Are We Alone?

This video segment adapted from NOVA features a variety of scientific perspectives on the age old question, "Are we alone in the universe?" Animations make vivid the improbability that we could intercept a radio wave signaling extra terrestrial intelligence.

6-12

Video

Becoming a Fossil

Becoming a Fossil

This video segment describes how the Australopithecus afarensis skeleton known as Lucy could have been fossilized. Footage courtesy of NOVA: "In Search of Human Origins."

6-12

Video

Beneath the Waters of Cocos Island

Beneath the Waters of Cocos Island

The nutrient-rich waters surrounding Cocos Island set the stage for astounding predator-prey interactions, as seen in this video segment from NOVA: "Island of Sharks." OER Level

6-8

Video

Body Breakdowns

Body Breakdowns

This interactive feature from the NOVA "Surviving Denali" Web site details the variety of ways the body can fail while climbing a high-altitude peak.

6-8

Interactive

Bones of Contention

Bones of Contention

This interactive activity from NOVA invites you to do the work of scientists and use a database to classify actual fossil records of human ancestors and related species.

8-12

Interactive

Bt Corn

Bt Corn

This video segment from FRONTLINE/NOVA: "Harvest of Fear" looks at corn that has been genetically modified to resist one insect pest, and the multiple concerns it raises.

9-12

Video

Build a Family Tree

Build a Family Tree

Both sexes can use this interactive feature that lets you use DNA information from the Y chromosome to complete a male family tree. From the NOVA: "Lost Tribes of Israel" Web site.

9-12

Interactive

Caves: Extreme Conditions for Life

Caves: Extreme Conditions for Life

This video segment adapted from NOVA raises the provocative idea that if life can exist in the most extreme environments on Earth — such as in dark, toxic caves — then perhaps living things can also survive in harsh environments on other planets. OER Level

6-12

Video

Classical vs. Transgenic Breeding

Classical vs. Transgenic Breeding

This video segment from FRONTLINE/NOVA: "Harvest of Fear" explains that genetic engineering and classical breeding both alter the genetic makeup of crop plants.

9-12

Video

Crocodiles! Clickable Croc

Crocodiles! Clickable Croc

This interactive feature from the NOVA "Crocodiles!" Web site details some of the characteristics that have enabled crocodiles to thrive for 200 million years.

6-8

Interactive

Dances with Bees

Dances with Bees

This interactive feature from the NOVA "Tales from the Hive" Web site explores the methods honeybees use to communicate to their hivemates the location, quantity, and quality of nearby food sources.

6-8

Interactive

Deep-Sea Bestiary

Deep-Sea Bestiary

This interactive from NOVA describes the physical and behavioral traits of some of the least-known and most unlikely creatures on Earth.

6-8

Interactive

Desert Biome

Desert Biome

This video segment from NOVA: "A Desert Place" describes the physical characteristics and organisms that define the desert biome. OER Level

3-12

Video

Embryo to Duckling

Embryo to Duckling

This video segment from NOVA: "The Shape of Things" follows the growth of a duck embryo, from a single fertilized egg cell to a complex, hatching duckling.

K-5

Video

Evidence for the Big Bang Theory

Evidence for the Big Bang Theory

This video segment adapted from NOVA tells the story of two scientists who inadvertently discovered microwave radiation that is now believed to be heat left over from the Big Bang.

9-12

Video

Exploring the Arctic Seafloor

Exploring the Arctic Seafloor

In this interactive activity adapted from NOVA scienceNOW, learn what some of the first imagery ever shot on the Arctic Ocean seabed tells us about life in extreme environments.

6-12

Interactive

Fighting Back

Fighting Back

Help the immune system fight off an infection in this interactive feature from the NOVA: "Surviving AIDS" Web site.

6-8

Interactive

Finding Disease Genes

Finding Disease Genes

This video segment from NOVA: "Cracking the Code of Life" explains the process of finding genes that cause disease.

9-12

Video

Finding Lucy

Finding Lucy

This Evolution video segment depicts the landmark hominid fossil finds by Don Johanson and his team in Ethiopia.

9-12

Video

Fossil Evidence of Bipedalism

Fossil Evidence of Bipedalism

This video segment adapted from NOVA shows how scientists use the fossil record to trace when early human ancestors and related species began walking on two legs instead of four, and to determine whether they were more apelike or human in appearance. OER Level

8-12

Video

Frozen Frogs

Frozen Frogs

This video segment adapted from NOVA scienceNOW shows how the common wood frog freezes solid every winter, an adaptation that allows the organism to survive the cold winter. OER Level

6-12

Video

The Function of Sleep

The Function of Sleep

In this video segment adapted from NOVA scienceNOW, discover what researchers are learning about sleep by examining the dreams of rats. OER Level

6-12

Video

Geneticist Pardis Sabeti

Geneticist Pardis Sabeti

In this video profile adapted from NOVA scienceNOW, learn about geneticist and rock musician Pardis Sabeti, whose innovative insights into natural selection demonstrated how beneficial mutations spread quickly through a population. OER Level

6-12

Video

Genetic Variation

Genetic Variation

This video segment from NOVA: "Cracking the Code of Life" explores the genetic similarities and differences among organisms.

9-12

Video

Global Warming: Beyond Fossil Fuels

Global Warming: Beyond Fossil Fuels

Martin Hoffert, professor of physics at New York University, discusses global warming and alternative energies in this interview from the NOVA/FRONTLINE Web site.

6-12

Document

The Grand Canyon: Evidence of Earth's Past

The Grand Canyon: Evidence of Earth's Past

In this video segment adapted from NOVA, a fossil found among the Grand Canyon's rock layers reveals the existence of a shallow sea that once covered most of western North America.

6-12

Video

<i>Homo Sapiens</i> Versus Neanderthals

Homo Sapiens Versus Neanderthals

This video segment, adapted from NOVA, explores reasons why Homo sapiens had an advantage over Neanderthals in the pursuit of territory and natural resources. OER Level

6-12

Video

How Did Life Emerge Here?

How Did Life Emerge Here?

This video segment adapted from NOVA describes the emergence of life on the islands of Hawaiʻi from a barren volcanic platform under the ocean waves to the rich explosion of life that covers the many climate zones of the islands today.

3-12

Video

Human Chromosome 2

Human Chromosome 2

In this video segment adapted from NOVA: "Judgment Day: Intelligent Design on Trial," learn how modern genetics and molecular biology offer compelling support for evolution. The video features an interview with biologist Ken Miller. OER Level

6-12

Video

Journey into DNA

Journey into DNA

Travel deep into the human body to see exactly where your DNA resides. From the NOVA: "Cracking the Code of Life" Web site.

6-12

Interactive

Jupiter: Earth's Shield

Jupiter: Earth's Shield

Jupiter's immense gravity protects Earth from asteroids. In this video segment adapted from NOVA, scientists searching for signs of life in the universe identify solar systems with Jupiter-like planets that may be shielding smaller nearby Earth-like planets from comets and asteroids. OER Level

6-12

Video

Laetoli Footprints

Laetoli Footprints

This Evolution video segment describes how the famous track fossils known as the Laetoli footprints might have been formed and what they can reveal about the creatures who left them.

6-12

Video

Life Before Oxygen

Life Before Oxygen

This Interactive NOVA: "Earth" video segment looks at ancient organisms that lived anaerobically, the origins of photosynthesis, and the new forms of life this process made possible.

3-12

Video

Mammals Get Their Chance

Mammals Get Their Chance

In this video segment adapted from NOVA, animations of an asteroid hitting Earth are used to illustrate this widely accepted theory of dinosaur extinction and the resulting conditions that favored mammals.

K-5

Video

Marathon Migrators

Marathon Migrators

This video segment from NOVA: "The Mystery of Animal Pathfinders" explores how the migratory patterns of shorebirds have evolved to coincide with the spawning of horseshoe crabs. OER Level

6-8

Video

Mass Extinction

Mass Extinction

In this video segment adapted from NOVA scienceNOW, learn about a chain of events, including ancient volcanoes, global warming, and deadly gases, which may have caused Earth's greatest mass extinction 250 million years ago. OER Level

6-12

Video

More Than an Image

More Than an Image

This video segment explores how humans perceive the world through vision. Footage from NOVA: "Mystery of the Senses: Vision."

3-8

Video

Night Vision

Night Vision

This interactive feature from the NOVA "Leopards of the Night" Web site highlights the nighttime habits and abilities of a wide range of nocturnal creatures.

6-8

Interactive

On Human Cloning

On Human Cloning

Three cloning experts share their opinions in these interviews from the NOVA "18 Ways to Make a Baby." Web site.

9-12

Document

Profile: Ethiopian Anthropologist

Profile: Ethiopian Anthropologist

In this video adapted from NOVA scienceNOW, meet Ethiopian anthropologist Zeresenay Alemseged and find out why his work has made him a national hero and the leader of a new generation of African-born anthropologists. OER Level

9-12

Video

Regulating Genes

Regulating Genes

In this interactive activity from NOVA, learn the mechanisms that determine how genetic mutations influence an organism's development.

8-12

Interactive

The Reproductive Role of Flowers

The Reproductive Role of Flowers

In this video segment adapted from NOVA, learn about the critical role of flowers in seed plant reproductive biology. OER Level

6-12

Video

Revealing the Origins of Life

Revealing the Origins of Life

Learn how scientists explore the chemistry behind the first life on Earth and discover one way it may have arisen from simple chemicals and natural pathways, in this video segment adapted from NOVA scienceNOW. OER Level

9-12

Video

RNAi Discovered

RNAi Discovered

In this video segment adapted from NOVA scienceNOW, learn how RNAi, a mechanism that has evolved in cells to prevent viral infection, was discovered and how it works. OER Level

9-12

Video

Robofly

Robofly

Featuring slow-motion footage of insects in flight, this video adapted from NOVA explores the engineering challenge of designing a robotic aerial vehicle that flies like a bug. OER Level

6-12

Video

Sea Turtles

Sea Turtles

This video segment from Interactive NOVA: "Animal Pathfinders" describes the life history of the sea turtle.

6-8

Video

Seeing Through Camouflage

Seeing Through Camouflage

This interactive feature from the NOVA "Leopards" Web site presents a wide variety of ways in which animals use coloration to their advantage.

6-8

Interactive

The Sense of Taste

The Sense of Taste

This video segment explores the sense of taste in humans -- why we have it, and what happens when we lose it. Footage from NOVA: "Mystery of the Senses: Taste."

3-8

Video

Shark Attack! The Hunt

Shark Attack! The Hunt

This interactive feature from the NOVA "Shark Attack!" Web site details the six senses sharks use to find and capture their prey.

6-8

Interactive

Should We Grow GM Crops?

Should We Grow GM Crops?

Learn the pros and cons of genetically modified (GM) crops, and cast your vote on whether they should be grown. From the FRONTLINE/NOVA: "Harvest of Fear" Web site.

9-12

Interactive

Super Salmon

Super Salmon

This video segment from FRONTLINE/NOVA: "Harvest of Fear" explores genetic modification of salmon and possible consequences. OER Level

9-12

Video

Surviving Winter

Surviving Winter

In this lesson designed to enhance literacy skills, students learn about the varied physical and behavioral adaptations that animals rely on to help them survive changing environmental conditions, such as the arrival of winter.

5-12

Self-paced Lesson

Switching Genes On and Off

Switching Genes On and Off

This video segment adapted from NOVA reveals how "junk" DNA helped solve an evolutionary mystery: Why do certain species of fruit flies have wing spots while others don't? OER Level

8-12

Video

<em>Tiktaalik</em>: A Fish Out of Water

Tiktaalik: A Fish Out of Water

In this lesson designed to enhance literacy skills, students learn that transitional fossils provide scientists with evidence to establish how major animal groups are related to one another.

5-12

Self-paced Lesson

Tiktaalik: Evolution of a "Fishapod"

Tiktaalik: Evolution of a "Fishapod"

In this media-rich lesson, students learn about transitional fossils and explore the similarities and differences between the structures of different animals. They focus particularly on Tiktaalik, a transitional fossil between aquatic and terrestrial vertebrates.

9-12

Lesson Plan

Who Owns the Genome?

Who Owns the Genome?

This video segment from NOVA: "Cracking the Code of Life" examines the social and ethical implications of genome research.

9-12

Video