This case study uses a PowerPoint (~1MB) combined with role-playing to present the epidemiology and pathophysiology of Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS). Students learn about the etiology and pathophysiology of the disease, and then argue different health professionals' perspectives on a plan of action for dealing with its consequences. Developed for a pathophysiology course for undergraduates, the case could also be used in a microbiology course or in a course in public or international health.

This Gulf of Maine educational website takes students aboard the submersible Alvin. Classroom activities explore nautical and mythical names, such as the Titanic, instruct students how to make a model of the ocean floor in a shoebox, and introduce topics such as deep sea vents and plate tectonics.

Access Excellence, launched in 1993, is a national educational program that provides health, biology and life science teachers access to their colleagues, scientists, and critical sources of new scientific information via the World Wide Web. The program was originally developed and launched by Genentech Inc., and in 1999 joined the National Health Museum, a non-profit organization founded by former U.S. Surgeon General C. Everett Koop as a national center for health education. Access Excellence will form the core of the educational component of the National Health Museum Website that is currently under development. .

This Public Broadcasting Service (PBS) activity explores the controversy over whether or not there is life on Mars. Part of the Mysteries of Deep Space Program that originally aired in April 1997, the activity includes instructional objectives, background information, and discussion/essay questions related to life on Mars. It also features an activity where students can grow microorganisms, examine them under a microscope, and analyze their observations with the aid of follow-up questions.

AlgaeBase is a database of information on algae that includes terrestrial, marine and freshwater organisms. At present, the data for the marine algae, particularly seaweeds, are the most complete. For convenience, we have included the sea-grasses even though they are flowering plants.

The material found at this site provides original, multidisciplinary, inquiry-based ideas to help enrich science teaching using the world famous Great Salt Lake as a springboard theme. During the lesson students will have the opportunity to view two types of algae (fresh water and Great Salt Lake species) under 400x magnification with a compound microscope. Students will make observations and record their observations on a recording sheet where they will describe what they see through drawing and words. The students will learn to identify different qualities such as cell structure, movement and other behavioristic qualities of the two different types of algae.

In this lesson, students investigate the physical and behavioral characteristics of different microbes and create research- based 'Microbe Biographies.' Students then visually compare microbe sizes and examine how the size of a microbe relates to its physical and behavioral characteristics. This lesson is part of the New York Times Learning Network, a service in which lesson plans are created to accompany newspaper articles.

This Ocean Explorer lesson plan (PDF) explores the questions: What colors, if any, are visible down in the deep sea? What is bioluminescence? Students will learn about white light (visible light), the quantity and quality of light as related to ocean depth, the difference in water penetration between red light and blue light, bioluminescent organisms, the color of most bioluminescent light, and why organisms bioluminesce. The lesson plan includes background information and keywords, a list of materials, teacher preparation instructions, learning procedures, related links, evaluation and extension ideas, and correlation to the national standards.

This activity from our family magazine series provides a fun way for kids to learn about how early microbe discoveries led to later ones. The online activity begins with a page of directions for how to play this "hidden picture" challenge. Kids meet the people behind six key discoveries: Anthony van Leeuwenhoek, Edward Jenner, Louis Pasteur, Alexander Fleming, Jonas Salk, Luc Montagnier, and Robert Gallo. To uncover each portion of the hidden picture (an animated microscope) and move to the next discovery, kids must correctly answer a multiple-choice question about what they just learned.

In this lab activity, students will observe the minute animals that live between sand grains. The activity includes a list of materials, procedures, and discussion question. It is supplemented with reference images and a list of species and their phyla, including Gastrotrichicha, Crustacea/Ostracoda, Crustacea/Copepoda/Harpacticoidea, Nematoda, Turbellaria, Nemertina, Archiannelida, Polychaeta, and Oligochaeta.

This site features links to broadcast quality audio files and transcripts from an interview with Dr. Carol Stoker about the Mars Analog Research and Technology Experiment (MARTE) which is to take place near the Rio Tinto in Spain. Interview topics include the MARTE expedition, the definition of an extremophile, the significance of the color and pH of Rio Tinto, equipment for the MARTE experiment, the possibility of a Mars drilling mission, and the resemblance of Rio Tinto geochemistry to that of Mars.

This activity from our family magazine series challenges kids to go on a microbe quest to solve a riddle. The online activity begins with a page of directions for how to find the missing letters of the riddle. As kids click their way around a virtual lunchroom, they are given 11 Yes/No questions asking whether the featured bacteria helps people. Along with the answer to the riddle, kids get a round of applause when they correctly answer all 11 questions.

This resource provides detailed technical protocols, background information for students, and instructors notes for running laboratory exercises on bacterial transformation and conjugation.

This laboratory investigates one form of genetic recombination in bacteria. This process, called conjugation, occurs when one bacteria transfers DNA to another bacteria. Two different strains of Escherichia coli are used: an Hfr strain with the F factor integrated into the bacterial chromosome acting as the donor, and an F-strain lacking the fertility factor acting as a recipient. The F-strain is auxotrophic for certain genetic markers and the ordered transfer of markers from the Hfr strain to the F-strain is used to map gene locations on the bacterial chromosome.

The bacterium Vibrio fischeri produces light when it is growing symbiotically in the light organ of certain fish and squid species. The bacteria sense they are in a light organ because they are present at a high bacterial cell density, which they detect through "quorum sensing." We use several bacterial strains, each of which carry only part of the genes responsible for the quorum sensing and bioluminescence process. We use chemical and genetic complementation to determine which genes are lacking in each strain by measuring their ability to produce and/or detect a quorum-sensing signal.

Used in conjunction with lecture material to illustrate genetic mapping.

The Center for Food Safety and Applied Nutrition (CFSAN) prepared this online handbook on foodborne pathogenic microorganisms (bacteria, viruses and parasites) and natural toxins. Chapters are arranged under the following headings: Pathogenic Bacteria, Enterovirulent Escherichia Coli Group, Parasitic Protozoa and Worms, Viruses, Natural Toxins, Other Pathogenic Agents, and Appendices. The intent of each chapter is to provide basic facts regarding these organisms and toxins including their characteristics, habitat or source, associated foods, infective dose, characteristic disease symptoms, complications, recent and/or major outbreaks, and any susceptible populations. The chapters also contain minimal information on the analytical methods used to detect, isolate, and/or identify the pathogens or natural toxins.

As Jen pores over her introductory biology textbook, she falls asleep and enters a nightmarish world in which bacteria and viruses dwarf human beings. This engagingly written case explores the differences between viruses and bacteria while teaching about the basic components and "life" cycle of a T-even bacteriophage. The case includes a follow-up assignment in which students explore the risks and potential benefits of using bacteriophage to control bacterial disease. The case is appropriate for general biology and microbiology college courses as well as AP biology high school classes.

This resource uses a student-designed laboratory exercise as a model to demonstrate the techniques and concepts surrounding the scientific method.