Teacher Links

Interactive Research Opportunities

	Earth & Sky - an NSF-funded show on natural science, airing daily on more than 800 public and commercial radio stations in the U.S. and Canada. The Young Producers Contest encourages teams of K-12 students to create science radio programs for Earth & Sky broadcasts.
	The GLOBE Program - how you and your students can participate in environmental research
	Jason Project - annual expeditions that complement year-long curricula. Bring real science into the classroom via satellite or Internet.
	Journey North - a global study of wildlife migration. Depending on where you live, your students can help to track the migration of bald eagles, hummingbirds, loons, manatees, monarch butterflies, orioles, robins, whooping cranes, humpback whales, right whales, or gray whales. Or, use several indicators to track the progress of spring across the northern hemisphere.
	NASA Quest - Satellite Town Meetings, WebChats, and WebCasts allow you and your classroom to join in on NASA events (check the current schedule. Also, projects that let kids meet (not just read about) NASA experts: Solar System Online, Deep Space Online, Space Team Online, Aerospace Team Online, Wright Flyer Online, Women of NASA, and archives of past projects.
	National Sky Awareness Week - how your school can participate
	Project Starshine - Anyone can sight this small satellite, given tracking information. Read about Starshine 3 at Science@NASA. Teachers can sign up their schools or classrooms to participate in tracking this "disco ball in space" or in polishing mirrors for its successors, at www.azinet.com/starshine/starform.htm.
	SETI at Home - be part of hundreds of thousands of Internet-connected computers in the Search for Extraterrestrial Intelligence (SETI). Get and run this program that downloads and analyzes radio telescope data when you would normally be running a screen saver. There’s a small but captivating possibility that your computer will detect the faint murmur of a civilization beyond Earth.

Extension Information

- databases, in-depth information, related links, noncurricular educational programs

	Access Excellence - A place in cyberspace for biology teaching and learning. Includes news updates, teaching communities, an activities exchange, collaboration opportunities, and much more!
	Amazing Environmental Organization Web Directory - the Earth’s biggest environmental search engine!
	Animal Diversity Web from U. Michigan - searchable database of mammals, birds, amphibians, reptiles, sharks, bony fishes, mollusks, arthropods, and echinoderms, with images and some sounds
	Animal Information Database from Sea World - Animal info, training, careers, educational resources
	Athena Earth & Space Science projects and lessons using NASA’s Remote Sensing Data
	Atomic Force/Scanning Probe Microscopes - A video animation and clear explanation of how they work from the UVA Virtual Lab.
	Bad Science - Examples of common misconceptions and misrepresentations, including Bad Astronomy, Bad Chemistry, Bad Meteorology, and Bad Physics
	Cell and Molecular Biology - How and where to search the Internet for literature
	Cells Alive - tons of info on all kinds of cells
	Chemistry: Interactive Table of Elements - includes characteristics, history, and uses of each
	Discovery Channel Online - Feature stories, real time adventures, TV programs, virtual expeditions
	Earth and Moon Viewer - View a map of the Earth at the current time or choose to view the Earth or the Moon from various locations, including a satellite orbiting the Earth.
	Earth Science Australia - great background information on geological structures and processes, mineral deposits, gemstones, oil, and how we mine some of these resources; also on paleontology and fossils, energy resources, and space science.
	Earth Science Resources - from the Franklin Institute. Directory of links and online exhibits for topics ranging from volcanoes, ecosystems, to rocks and minerals.
	Earth’s Fidgeting Climate - Science@NASA discusses evidence regarding human impact upon our climate.
	Frank Potter’s Science Gems - tons of WWW resources dealing with Physical Science, Earth Science, Life Science, Engineering, Mathematics, and Health. All sites sorted by subject and "minimum" grade level.
	Gem and Mineral Collection - virtual tour of the Smithsonian Institution
	Geography - Electronic Resources - geography standards, virtual tours and field trips, games & quizzes, teaching geography to special needs kids, and much more!
	Geology Link - from Houghton Mifflin Company, includes virtual field trips, hot topics and news involving geology, a glossary, other links and much more!
	Inventure Place - the National Inventors Hall of Fame - a hands-on, interactive museum presenting the great inventors of our time and unique exhibits featuring fiber optics, lasers, videos and more
	The Invisible Web: Database contents rarely found in search engines
	Learning Technologies Channel - live and archived audio/video programs over the Internet, including monthly tours of the International Space Station, a four-part hurricane series starting in September 1998, and eight lectures on astrobiology [from NASA]
	Live from the Stratosphere - Take an interactive tour of the Kuiper Airborne Observatory and learn about its contributions to astronomy. Also includes photos from KAO and K-12 lesson plans.
	Maps: Local and Global Map Resources (Recommended by J. Kim & friends — thanks!)
	Missouri Botanical Garden: Virtual Tour
	National Biological Information Infrastructure - an electronic gateway to biological data and information maintained by federal, state, and local government agencies; private sector organizations; and other partners around the world
	The Nine Planets - a multimedia tour of the solar system, complete with the history, mythology, and current scientific knowledge of each of the planets.
	NIST Chemistry Web Book - This comprehensive reference includes thermodynamic data for over 5,000 chemical compounds and ion-energetics data for over 10,000 chemical compounds. Compounds can be searched by name, chemical formula, or CAS (Chemical Abstracts Service) registry number. Includes info on enthalpy of formation, heat capacity, entropy, ionization potential, and appearance potential.
	NIST Physical Reference Data - From the National Institute of Standards and Technology, this site links to physical constants, units, conversion factors, spectroscopic data, and much more.
	Periodic Table of Elements - interactive chart giving atomic weight and number, melting and boiling point, density, phase at room temperature, explanation of name, history and uses
	The Physics Page - links to numerous physics websites
	Piezoelectric Crystals - An animation and explanation from the UVA Virtual Lab of how the peizoelectrics in a scanning Probe microscope work.
	Rocks and Minerals - how rock types are formed and used today; links for more info.
	Scanning Electron Microscopes - A video animation and clear explanation of how they work from the UVA Virtual Lab.
	Scanning Probe Microscopes - A video animation and clear explanation of how they work from the UVA Virtual Lab.
	Science Learning Network - excellent K - 8 inquiry-based science resources developed by several prominent science museums around the country and the world. Also offers science hotlists and news, collaborative investigations with schools around the country, and links to SLN’s network of museums.
	Science News Online - weekly science news articles, plus MathTrek, Science Safari in Cyberspace, 70 Years Ago in Science News, and Food for Thought news on nutrition and health
	Science Update and Why Is It? - 100% of your daily science requirement, from the American Assn. for the Advancement of Science
	Scientific American’s Ask the Experts - ask experts any question about the areas of Astronomy, Biology, Chemistry, computers, our environment, Geology, Mathematics, Medicine and Physics. Or check out the Ask the Experts archive and see what others have asked!
	Seeing, Hearing, and Smelling the World - from the Howard Hughes Medical Institute, great information about our senses and how they work.
	Semiconductors & transistors - A video animation and clear explanation of how they work from the UVA Virtual Lab.
	Solar System Live - view the entire solar system, complete with the history, mythology, and current scientific knowledge of each of the planets.
	Tree Identification from MSU Extension Service - gives several places to start in identifying species. Specifically designed for Michigan’s Upper Peninsula but useful for others, too.
	University Of Colorado Health Sciences Center: The Visible Human Database - database of human anatomy; 3D visuals and simulations for both middle school science students and practicing surgeons! The Visible Human Male The Visible Human Female
	U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Detroit District - gives data on water levels and forecasts for the Great Lakes, updated several times daily; pictorial tour of Soo Locks; animation of lock operation; graphical explanation of various Great Lakes and ocean ships, including types, masts and flags; much more!
	U.S. Geological Survey - information on volcanoes, marine geology, acid rain, plate tectonics, maps, coral reef extinction, melting antarctic ice shelves—and lots of satellite images of Earth
	Virtual Autopsy - See a "Virtual Autopsy" (annotated images of computed tomography (CT) scans) of the 5,000 year old preserved body of an Incan teenage girl. Scientist have used CT scan to gain information about her DNA, possible links to living relatives, as well as details of her death that provide new insights into Incan ritual and religion.
	Virtual Field Trips - a list of Web-based experiences
	The Visible Embryo - Follow the development of a human embryo from fertilization to birth.
	Whale Net - about whales and marine research; links to other whale sites
	Whale Watching Web - from Finland, virtual whale watching and more!
	Your Genes, Your Choices, an on-line book describing the Human Genome Project, the science behind it, and the ethical, legal, and social issues (illustrated by examples) that are raised by the project
	Your Sky - use this interactive planetarium to produce sky maps for any time, date, viewpoint, and observation location. Students can also track asteroids or comets.