Hands-on, inquiry-based, and relevant to every student's life, "Gourmet Lab" serves up a full menu of activities for science teachers of grades 6-12. This collection of 15 hands-on experiments--each of which includes a full set of both student and teacher pages--challenges students to take on the role of scientist and chef, as they boil,…

Plants and insects share a long evolutionary history characterized by relationships that affect individual, population, and community dynamics. Plant-herbivore interactions are a prominent feature of this evolutionary history; it is by plant-herbivore interactions that energy is transferred from primary producers to the rest of the food web. Not…

Describes a relatively simple method of extraction and purification of bacterial DNA. This technique permits advanced secondary-level science students to obtain adequate amounts of DNA from very small pellets of bacteria and to observe some of its polymer properties. (ML)

Describes a simple method for measuring respiration, net photosynthesis, and compensation points of plants in relation to light intensity. Outlines how the method can be used in teaching physiological adaptation. Includes a set of the experiment's results. (ML)

Discusses the change in pressure as a balloon expands. Describes the pressure change in a spherical soap bubble and a rubber membrane on the tube. Provides demonstrations when two balloons are connected by a tube. Lists five further reading materials. (YP)

Reported are observational limits of detectability for several single stimulus and multi-stimuli observation tasks in secondary level chemistry. Provided are tables of actual results obtained including type of observation, chemical system used, method of determining stimulus magnitude, and observational thresholds. (Author/YP)

This collection of lesson plans designed for teachers of 4th- through 12th-grade students utilizes an assortment of teaching strategies for topics related to coal and the coal industry. Activities cover the following topics: coal formation; coal identification; "the geologist's dilemma" (a supply and demand activity); geologic time and…

Cites reasons why Penicillium claviforme is an exceptionally good species for ultraviolet induced mutation experiments. Provides a set of laboratory instructions for teachers and students. Includes a discussion section. (ML)

Explains how the tobacco mosaic virus can be used to study virology. Presents facts about the virus, procedures to handle the virus in the laboratory, and four laboratory exercises involving the viruses' survival under inactivating conditions, dilution end point, filterability, and microscopy. (MDH)

Presents a singular alternative to the Indole Methyl-red Voges-Proskauer Citrate (IMViC) test that uses bile-esculin agar to distinguish between the Escherichia coli and Enterobacter aerogenes bacteria. Includes materials and methods, results, and conclusions for the test. (MDH)

Describes the construction of the Reduced-Gravity Demonstrator, which can be used to illustrate the effects of gravity on a variety of phenomena, including the way fluids flow, flames burn, and mechanical systems behave. Presents experiments, appropriate for classroom use, to demonstrate how the behavior of common physical systems change when…

Presents a simple and inexpensive procedure for determining the moment of inertia of a physical pendulum both experimentally and analytically. The simplicity of the apparatus enables students to easily change parameters and obtain a wide variety of measurements. (JRH)

This manual provides learning activities for use in two vocational agriculture courses--ornamental horticulture I and agricultural technology I. These activities are intended as aids in the teaching of application of science principles. An introductory chart gives a summary of how vocational agriculture objectives match objectives of specific…

Describes a technique which gives an automatic and accurate assessment of photosynthetic oxygen liberation with graphical results available immediately. This program takes readings from an oxygen electrode and a photocell simultaneously. The types of results and unique features of the technique are discussed. (ML)