Commercial fishing nets often trap unprofitable animals in the process of catching their target species. In the following activity, students will experience the difficulty that fishermen experience while trying to isolate a target species when a variety of animals are found in the area of interest. The class will then discuss the large magnitude of this problem. Students will practice their data acquisition and analysis skills, through the collection of data and processing of this information to deduce trends on 'target species' distribution. Students will conclude the activity by discussing how bycatch impacts their lives and whether or not it is an important environmental issue that we need to address. As an extension, students can use their creativity and innovative skills to design nets or other methods, theoretically and/or through hands-on building, that fisherman could use to help avoid bycatch.

Bycatch, the unintended capture of animals in commercial fishing gear, is one of the hottest topics in marine conservation today. About 25% of the entire global catch is by-catch This surprisingly high level of by-catch is responsible for the decline of hundreds of thousands of dolphins, whales, porpoises, seabirds and sea turtles each year. Through this curricular unit, students will analyze the significance of by-catch in the global ecosystem and propose solutions to help reduce by-catch Students will become familiar with current attempts to reduce fishing mortality of these animals, such as acoustic alarms, breakaway links, gear modification, and time-area closures. Through the associated activity, the problems that managers face today will be reinforced and students will be stimulated to brainstorm about possible engineering designs or policy changes that could reduce the magnitude of by-catch

This site traces the origins of technological and medical advances. Learn about the genetics of ear wax, a vaccine to control malaria, DNA barcoding, aging and the human brain, a genetic classification of dog breeds, the discovery of the first speech and language gene, how living organisms tune in to the time of day, and more.

This lesson will introduce students to environmental issues. Students will recognize environmental opinions and perspective, which will help them define themselves and others as either preservationists or conservationists. Students also learn about the importance of teamwork in engineering.

This course is aimed at the aspiring planning practitioner, policy-maker, or industry decision-maker with an interest in urban transportation and environmental issues in Latin America. The course will focus on current transport-related themes confronting many cities in the region, including: rapid motorization and suburbanization and subsequent impacts on transportation infrastructure and quality of life; public sector management and improvement of privately-owned and operated transit systems; and, transportation air pollution problems and potential solutions.

The course will be geared towards interactive problem-solving, taking advantage of students' skills and experiences in: institutional analysis, policy analysis, and project and program evaluation and implementation. Detailed knowledge of transportation planning is not required; instead, the course will attempt to place the general practitioner into a specific transportation public policy situation and draw from her skills to devise real solutions. To fulfill this problem-solving orientation, the course will be divided into two parts. Part I of the course will consist of a series of lectures on the principal issues surrounding transportation in the developing world (including motorization, fiscal pressures, urban sprawl), concepts of sustainability as they relate to urban transportation, regional strategic planning approaches, and transportation policy and technology options and examples of successful implementation. After these lectures, Part II of the course will be dedicated to the two case studies, where students will apply the knowledge gained in Part I to develop strategic solutions to the transport-land use-environment challenges in two different cities.