Annotated Web links, academically oriented and other, on the subject of Biology and related areas.
Anatomy | Bioethics | Botany | Climate Change | Education | Evolution | General | Genetics | Invasive Species | Zoology
Anatomy
Atlas of the Body From the American Medical Association, illustrated introductory overviews of human anatomy.
Bioethics
Bioethics.net Current bioethics news, a bioethics blog, and bioethics research guides. The site also includes current and past table of contents of the American Journal of Bioethics, though only some articles are freely accessible.
Penn Center for Bioethics Download "nanocasts," podcasts of interviews with experts on various bioethics issues. The site also describes the current projects at the Center, including links to project blogs, bibliographies of articles and books, and links to presentations and testimony.
President's Council on Bioethics The Council exists to advise "the president of ethical issues related to advances in biomedical science and technolocy." The site includes links to articles, reports of the Council, and transcripts of Council sessions on various bioethics topics such as genetic enhancement, life extension, bioethics in literature, cloning, choosing the sex of children, nanotechnology, organ transplantation, etc.
Botany
"Bioversity is the world's largest international research organization dedicated solely to the conservation and use of agricultural biodiversity." Includes news and events, information about the agricultural biodiversity in different world regions and plant and animal groups, overviews of different areas of biodiversity research, information on the organization's publications, and links to assorted databases (such as the Germplasm Databases, New World Fruit Database, Bioversity Neglected and Underutilized Species Media Gallery, etc.).B & T World Seeds' homepage: "Plants, People, and the Planet." Includes articles about plants (such as St. John's Wort) that have helped to shape our histories, and links to ethnobotanical/economic botany news.
eFloras.org: "This virtual library of online floras offers resources from leading international institutions of botanical research, including the monumental Flora of China and the Flora of North America" (from Choice reviews).
FAO Forestry Department Information on the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) Forestry Department. Current news, studies and publications (viewable in HTML or PDF), and country information relating to the "effective conservation, sustainable management, and efficient ultilization of forest and related resources."
Forest Biology and Dendrology Educational Sites at Virginia Tech Includes: Fact Sheets for Tree Identification (apprx. 875 trees commonly found in the U.S. with color pictures), ID It (a tree identification tool using leaves and twigs), links to other forest biology sites, and "ask Dr. Dendro" (your questions about trees and forests).
Hypomyces Developed by the Systematic Botany and Mycology Laboratory (of the Agricultural Research Service of the USDA), "this site provides an interactive key, images, descriptions, distributions and nomenclature for the genus Hypomyces.
NewCROP "An information-rich site related to crop plants," NewCROP's data on various crops can be accessed via an alphabetical index of genus and common names, or a keyword search function. The site also contains an interactive map of the U.S.that provides crop information at the county level, useful presentations and websites from Purdue faculty and students, a bibliography of crop reference materials (some accessible online), a directory of crop experts, a guide to aromatic and medicinal plants, and more.
Climate Change
Encyclopedia of the Atmospheric Environment Use the search feature, or browse this online encyclopedia by choosing one of 9 main topics:acid rain, air quality, the atmosphere, the climate, climate change, global warming, ozone depletion, sustainability, and the weater. Click on the icons of Mr. Burns for articles suitable for an older audience, and icons of Bart Simpson for articles suitable for a younger audience. Since the encyclopedia was created by aric (the U.K.'s atmospheric research & information centre), it has a U.K. focus.
Globalchange.gov Datasets, data policies, publications, news, research, frequently asked questions about climate change from eight U.S. agencies (DOD, DOC, DOE, DOI, EPA, NSF, NASA, and USDA). Includes searchable databases for agency datasets and citations.
MIT Joint Program on the Science and Policy of Global Change Information on MIT's Integrated Global System Model (IGSM), and reports, congressional testimony, and technical notes on climate change issues. Journal articles are listed, but not freely accessible.
U.S. Global Change Research Information Office Information on environmental research affecting food, ecosystems, human health, and water resoruces. Includes electronic editions of Our Changing Planet, an annual report by the National Science & Technology Council. Searchable.
Education
Beyond Bio 101: The Transformation of Undergraduate Biology: online edition of report by the Howard Hughes Medical Institute. Describes how science education is changing on college campuses. Directed at biology faculty and other science educators at colleges and universities. Features information on undergraduate programs, curricula, testing, the electronic laboratory, and scholarly research. Brief case histories from many named institutions.
National Academy of Sciences: For different disciplines (education, agriculture, life sciences, medicine and health, physical sciences and math) contains information about and links to online publications, educational standards, program units, news, books in print. The site also contains information about career and educational opportunities.
Evolution
The Alfred Russel Wallace Page Includes a chronology, bibliography, and primary sources such as quotes, texts of Wallace interviews, and the full text of much of Wallace's writings.
Genetics
DNA Interactive Divided into 6 main sections: 1) Timeline- charts the history of DNA science, 2) Code- information about the structure, replication and control of DNA, 3) Manipulation- how scientists have altered DNA, and the surrounding controversies, 4) Genome- how genes are identifies, 5) Applications- the uses of DNA science, and 6) Chronicle- the history of the eugenics movement.
Genome News Network Published by the J. Craig Venter Institute, "the Genome News Network (GNN) produces a lively and trusted online magazine that covers important developments in genomics research around the world. Our news coverage focuses on stories about genomics and human medicine, as well as the ways in which scientists are using genomics to find biological solutions to energy needs and environmental problems."
Linus Pauling and the Race for DNA "Utilizing over 800 scanned documents, photographs, audio clips and video excerpts, this website narrates the breathless details of the pursuit of the discovery of the double helix structure of DNA. Scattered throughout the project are images of a number of very important and extremely rare items, all of which are held within The Valley Library's Ava Helen and Linus Pauling Papers, and many of which have not been previously displayed. Also featured are two original documents hitherto unknown to scholars interested in this period."
Invasive Species
Global Invasive Species Database "The Global Invasive Species Database focuses on invasive alien species that threaten native biodiversity and covers all taxonomic groups from micro-organisms to animals and plants in all ecosystems. Species information is either supplied by or reviewed by expert contributors from around the world." Searchable by species name, country, habitat and organism type. Information includes: description, habitat, impacts, uses, geographical range, invasion pathways to new locations, management information, nutrition, reproduction, lifecycle stages, and bibliography.
Global Invasive Species Programme (GISP) Facts about the problem and management of invasive species.
Invasivespecies.gov: from the National Invasive Species Council, this site contains profiles of invasive species in the United States, Federal government law and regulations for dealing with them, and links to other educational resources about invasive species.
National Invasion Species Information Center "A gateway to invasive species information; covering federal, state, local, and international sources." Information on the laws and regulations and economic impacts of invasive aquatic species, plants, animals, and microbes.
TNC Global Invasive Species Initiative From the Nature Conservancy, includes basic information on the invasive species problem and control methods, links to strategic planning resources, an image archive, red alerts, global resources, news, and links to other useful sites.
Zoology
Animal Info: Rare, Threatened, and Endangered Mammals This site includes a list of the world's rarest mammals, indexes of rare, threatened, and endangered mammals by species, common name, and taxonomically-related group, and country. Each animal profile includes information on habitat, appearance, distribution, diet, behavior, social organization, reproduction, its current IUCN status, current threats, and references. Most include pictures or links to pictures on other sites. Also included are a glossary of terms and links to other sites.
General
National Academy Press: Provides "online reading room" of full texts of more than 1,000 publications from the Institute of Medicine, National Academy of Engineering, National Academy of Sciences, and the National Research Council. Site is divided into 20 subject areas that range from agricultural sciences to rural and urban development. Publications can be viewed in hypertext or Adobe Acrobat, or printed copies can be ordered online. Searchable by keyword and subject terms.
L.L.Bean: Includes schedules of L.L.Bean's "Outdoor Discovery Program" workshops, and the "Park Search" guide to state and national parks, national forests and wild life refuges, and Bureau of Land Management lands.
