Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory
Genes Are Real Things
Proving microscopic structures exist is a difficult task. Learn how scientists did just that in the mid-1800s as they set out to identify the cellular structures related to genetics. The online lesson explains the collection of work that...
Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory
Genes Can Be Turned On and Off
Regulations exist in many places from business to schools, but what about in our genes? Learn about gene regulation with an online interactive. It uses an animation to introduce the topic, many photographs of the scientists best known...
Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory
DNA Is Only the Beginning for Understanding the Human Genome
Mario Capecchi requested funding for a new procedure targeting genes and was rejected. Four years later, after he proved it worked, the NIH apologized and funded his research. Use an online interactive to learn about his research and the...
Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory
Chromosomes Carry Genes
Some traits only exist in males and some only in females. Pupils learn how the location of genes on sex chromosomes determines them using an interactive lesson. An animation illustrates how scientists know this to be true and shows how...
American Museum of Natural History
What Do You Know About the Human Microbiome?
Scholars answer 10 multiple choice questions to test their knowledge about the human body and microbes. Correct answers come with a rewarding tone and brief description.
Howard Hughes Medical Institute
Regulation of the Lactase Gene
All human infants are lactose tolerant, yet some adults are lactose intolerant—why is that? Individuals discover the process of gene mutation through a study of the lactase gene (LCT). They understand the geographic connections,...
Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory
Some Genes Are Dominant
Dominate a lesson on genetic traits. Young scholars learn about the difference between dominant and recessive traits with an interactive lesson. An animation demonstrates Mendel's work on the inheritance of traits, and interactive...
Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory
Master Genes Control Basic Body Plans
Have you ever been so tired you missed a major announcement? Eric Wieschaus woke to a call explaining he won the Nobel Prize, but he thought it was just a dream until Christiane Nusslein-Volhard, a co-winner, explained it to him later...
Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory
Evolution Begins with the Inheritance of Gene Variations
Connect Mendelian genetics with Darwinian theories. An interactive lesson lets pupils explore how George Shull used research from other scientists to explore genetic variation. The resource outlines the statistical analysis of genetic...
Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory
The RNA Message Is Sometimes Edited
In 1993, Phillip Sharp and Richard Roberts won the Nobel Prize for their discovery of split gene theory. Learn about the breakthrough with the help of an online interactive. Hear both scientists explain it in their own words, watch an...
Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory
Bacteria and Viruses Have DNA Too
In the 1940s, scientists discovered bacteria conjugation, the process of DNA transfer or bacterial sex. The discovery proved that bacteria and viruses contain DNA and led to a Nobel prize. Interested individuals learn about the...
Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory
Genes Can Be Moved Between Species
Biotechnology changes lives every day, but how did it all start? Learn about Cohen and Boyer's technique for recombinant DNA and the founding of this new scientific study. Then, scholars use the online interactive to discover how Hanahan...
Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory
A Genome Is an Entire Set of Genes
Today researchers identify a gene suspected of causing a genetic disease in a matter of days rather than years, thanks to the Human Genome Project. Young scientists learn about the Human Genome Project and the scientists who designed the...
CK-12 Foundation
Sex-Linked Inheritance
Sex-linked traits indicate a gene's location on a specific chromosome. Scholars learn about sex-linked traits and the specifics behind color blindness in the videos. Then they complete the online interactive to apply their knowledge...
Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory
Some Viruses Store Genetic Information in RNA
Can a high school program alter the entire course of your life? David Baltimore and Howard Temin participated in high school programs working in research laboratories and went on to win the 1975 Nobel Prize. Learn about these two...
Howard Hughes Medical Institute
Central Dogma and Genetic Medicine
Scientists work every day to find solutions to genetic diseases. Scholars learn about the process of gene sequencing, mutations, and the results. They explore genetic diseases and therapies to intervene and help and, through case...
Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory
Some DNA Can Jump
Some people have a natural ability to jump, but did you know DNA also naturally jumps? Learn about the fun habit by looking at the research of a pioneering female scientist. Barbara McClintock fought prejudice and surpassed her mentors...
Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory
Genetic Inheritance Follows Rules
Rules are not meant to be broken in genetics. Scholars learn to build Punnett squares to track the inheritance of dominant and recessive traits in an interactive animation activity. Online questions help individuals reflect on their...
Howard Hughes Medical Institute
Genetic Switches
Is it reasonable for us to alter genes in plants to make them more nutritious and better tasting? Is it reasonable for us to alter genes to make babies smarter or better looking? The human genome contains millions of gene switches for...
Howard Hughes Medical Institute
Neural Control of Walking and Running
Physical therapists state that relearning how to walk often motivates stroke and brain injury patients. Researchers spend a great deal of time focused on understanding the neural control required for walking. They pass along that...
Howard Hughes Medical Institute
Test Your Knowledge of Sex Determination
Humans, fruit flies, and reptiles have their own rules where sex chromosomes are concerned. Scholars flip through a slide show offering an explanation of the chromosomes that determine the sex of different species. What is female in one...
Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory
Some DNA Does Not Encode Protein
Roy John Britten easily earned a PhD in nuclear physics—but he found painting with water colors too difficult. Young scientists learn about Britten's life, career, and research with an online interactive. They read a biography, view...
Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory
Children Resemble Their Parents
Gregor Mendel's work revolutionized agriculture from an art to a science. Explore Mendel's work with an interactive lesson that includes animations, video, and practice problems. The instruction describes the early discoveries that...
Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory
Sex Cells Have One Set of Chromosomes; Body Cells Have Two
What's the difference between body cells and sex cells? Learners explore the question and the process of meiosis using an interactive lesson. An animation describes the discovery of meiosis and describes its phases for a detailed and...