National Association of Biology Teachers

The staff members at the National Association of Biology Teachers (NABT) have put together a stellar array of websites that deal with ten different areas of biology, including animals, bioethics, evolution, and stem cell research. The items here are arranged alphabetically and visitors can review the brief descriptions to learn more about the content covered within each site. There is quite a variety of useful sites, with each area consisting of about two dozen suggested resources. Additionally, the site has a place where visitors can also suggest resources for inclusion. 

·http://www.nabt.org/websites/institution/index.php?p=38

From The Scout Report, Copyright Internet Scout 1994-2013. 
https://www.scout.wisc.edu/

Introductory Biology

This lovely offering from the MIT OpenCourseWare project takes interested parties through the world of biology via course readings, discussion questions, assignments, and exams. The topics cover genetics, cell biology, molecular biology, developmental biology, and evolution. The Study Terms section is quite useful, as it covers a host of useful terms from cell signaling, immunology, cancer biology, and genetics. Moving on, the recitations are worth a look as they offer lecture notes in a succinct and learned fashion. It's worth noting that visitors can download each set of activities separately or they can also use the Download Course Materials area to download everything at once. 
http://ocw.mit.edu/courses/biology/7-013-introductory-biology-spring-2013/

From The Scout Report, Copyright Internet Scout 1994-2013. 
https://www.scout.wisc.edu/

Photobiological Sciences Online

Photobiological Sciences Online (PSO) has modules covering such topics as Photomorphogenesis, Photomovement, Photophysics, Photosensitization & Photosynthesis. The content is owned by the American Society for Photobiology. 

 http://www.photobiology.info/

As Many Exceptions As Rules

Dr. Lasbury is a scientist, educator, and writer who lives in Indiana. In his entertaining blog, exceptions to biological rules are used as a base to explore and reinforce the core concepts of biology. Ranked by Blogtopsites as once of the best science blogs, recent topics include free will (neural parasitology and domoic acid toxicity) and zombies (characteristics of life, cell theory, reproduction, homeostasis and  evolution). 
http://biologicalexceptions.blogspot.com.au/

Cell Biology Online Videos

The iBioSeminars are dedicated to bringing the world's best biology to you. They do deliver, and these lectures can be used in the classroom or for personal edification. On this site, visitors can find over a dozen lectures by professors from the University of Utah, the Howard Hughes Medical Institute, MIT, and other schools. Lectures include Tissue Engineering, Fruits of the Genome Sequence, and Bacteriophages: Genes and Genomes. Each lecture has a series of extras that may include a speaker bio, related scientific articles, teaching tools, or the option to include subtitles. Visitors are encouraged to share the videos with others and as a whole, they present a wealth of information that is both scholarly and accessible to a wide range of people.

http://ibioseminars.hhmi.org/lectures/cell-bio-a-med.html

From The Scout Report, Copyright Internet Scout 1994-2013. https://www.scout.wisc.edu/

USGS Science Resources for Undergraduate Education

The United States Geological Survey (USGS) has brought together a unique blend of materials designed to complement and enhance the experiences of teachers and students seeking to understand the wide world of geology and other sciences including biology and ecology. These items are designed for use in collegiate settings, and each resource is here marked by a symbol that indicates the type of resource, such as a data set, teaching module, or classroom activity. Visitors can scroll through the thematic areas, which include Amphibians, Climate Change, and Maps and Geospatial Data. The Land Use History and Changing Landscapes area is a real pip, and it includes a document on the land use history of North America and a link to "Urban Growth in American Cities," an online publication that illustrates the spatial history of urban growth in 16 areas around the United States.

http://education.usgs.gov/undergraduate.html

From The Scout Report, Copyright Internet Scout 1994-2013. https://www.scout.wisc.edu/  

NOAA Education Resources: Aquatic Food Webs

This nice site from NOAA starts with a bold statement: "Big fish eat little fish; that's how the food cycle works." It's a fitting introduction to this exploration of aquatic food webs. Offered as part of NOAA's main Education Resources site, this site offers a dozen well-produced videos, lesson plans, and data sets divided into areas that include Background Information and Multimedia. These items include "Tagging of Pacific Pelagics," "Census of Marine Life Biodiversity," and "Components of a Food Web." Visitors can also look over the Features area near the bottom of the site, whose offerings range from a profile of the Stellwagen Bank National Marine Sanctuary to a longitudinal study of sea trout in the food web. Finally, visitors can use the social media tabs to share resources from the site with colleagues and others.

http://www.education.noaa.gov/Marine_Life/Aquatic_Food_Webs.html

From The Scout Report, Copyright Internet Scout 1994-2013. https://www.scout.wisc.edu/

15 Evolutionary Gems

Teachers and members of the general public will find this resource from Nature magazine quite wonderful. Crafted by Henry Gee, Rory Howlett, and Philip Campbell, this collection of 15 evolutionary gems brings together items "for those wishing to spread awareness of evidence for evolution by natural selection." The 16-page document explains key scientific discoveries under headings like "A case of co-evolution," "The origin of feathers," and "Darwin's Galapagos finches." Each of these sections features a narrative essay, along with references and links to additional resources for further exploration.

http://www.nature.com/nature/newspdf/evolutiongems.pdf

From The Scout Report, Copyright Internet Scout 1994-2013. https://www.scout.wisc.edu/

Wallace Online

A searchable collection of the writings of British naturalist Alfred Russel Wallace which provides access to a collection of primary documents that will help raise awareness of Wallace's contributions to science, particularly in the fields of evolutionary biology and biogeography. Featuring scanned images of Wallace's 22 books/book chapters and more than 900 articles, the website allows researchers to view all of Wallace's original published works as well as transcripts of the texts.Images and specimens are also included.

http://wallace-online.org/

Evolutionary Biology Digital Dissection Collections

This remarkable collection was created to serve the illustrative and narrative needs of the students in the University of Buffalo Evolutionary Biology course. It is designed to "offer opportunities for unlimited interactive engagement with the laboratory content." Visitors can browse through the collection at their leisure, and may use the drop-down menu to look at the various species covered here. Some of the animals include mice, grasshoppers, sand dollars, snails, and earthworms. Each profile includes clear anatomical labels, a variety of cut-away shots, and additional details. First-time visitors shouldn't miss the crayfish, as it is well-photographed and exquisitely documented.

http://digital.lib.buffalo.edu/cdm/landingpage/collection/BIO001 

From The Scout Report, Copyright Internet Scout 1994-2013.  https://www.scout.wisc.edu/

AGRIS: International Information Systems for the Agricultural Sciences and Technology

 "The AGRIS Network is an international initiative based on a collaborative network of institutions, whose aim is to promote free access to information on science and technology in agriculture and related subjects...
 The AGRIS open archives and bibliographical databases cover the many aspects of agriculture, including forestry, animal husbandry, aquatic sciences and fisheries, and human nutrition, extension literature from over 100 participating countries. Material includes unique grey literature such as unpublished scientific and technical reports, theses, conference papers, government publications, and more."

http://agris.fao.org/

Map of Life

This demo release "allows you to map and produce list of species anywhere for ~ 25,000 species (including all described birds, mammals and amphibians...)"

Future releases "plan to greatly increase and enhance data coverage and functionality. We will soon add more datasets for vertebrates and extend coverage to plants and invertebrates. You will be able to:

1. Filter data based on characteristics such as seasonality, or date of observation
2. Flag and edit distribution data and provide feedback about those edits"

 http://www.mappinglife.org/

Edgar: Climate Change Impact on the Distribution of Australian Bird Species

Developed by a team at JCU's eResearch Centre, Edgar is a website where visitors can explore the future impact of climate change on Australian birds. Edgar shows locations where a bird species has been observed and uses this information to calculate and display how well the climate across Australia suits that species. Edgar can also show an animation of how the suitable climate for a species may change into the future. 
Birdwatchers and other experts can improve the accuracy of Edgar's projections by classifying observations. 
http://spatialecology.jcu.edu.au/Edgar/

IUCN Red List of Threatened Species

The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species provides taxonomic, conservation status and distribution information on plants and animals that have been globally evaluated using the IUCN Red List Categories and Criteria. This system is designed to determine the relative risk of extinction, and the main purpose of the IUCN Red List is to catalogue and highlight those plants and animals that are facing a higher risk of global extinction. The IUCN Red List also includes information on plants and animals that are categorized as Extinct or Extinct in the Wild; on taxa that cannot be evaluated because of insufficient information; and on plants and animals that are either close to meeting the threatened thresholds or that would be threatened were it not for an ongoing taxon-specific conservation programme. 

http://www.iucnredlist.org/

NOAA Habitat Conservation

"The NOAA Fisheries Office of Habitat Conservation protects, restores, and promotes stewardship of coastal and marine habitat to support our nation's fisheries for future generations.

Our vision is healthy and sustainable habitat that provides a range of benefits for abundant fish and wildlife, commercial and recreational opportunities, and resilient coastal communities that can withstand hurricanes, flooding, and other threats"

http://www.habitat.noaa.gov/

ITIS: Integrated Taxonomic Information System

The Integrated Taxonomic Information System provides "authoritative taxonomic information on plants, animals, fungi, and microbes of North America and the world"
 
http://www.itis.gov/

Digital Teaching Resources Laboratory

Based at the University of Alberta, the Digital Teaching Resources Laboratory (DiTRL) is a computer lab for students and faculty designed to help undergraduates learn about biology. DiTRL's site contains instructional multimedia resources that will be useful to a wide range of people, as well as a database of lesson plans and such. Visitors can click on the Instructional Multimedia area to look through multimedia clips on a range of topics, including botany, ecology, and entomology. The Cell Biology section is quite well-developed, and includes interactive activities like "Animal cell mix and match" and "Nerve Action Potential." The Database link leads to an online collection that includes animations, video clips, and text excerpts. Currently, the entire database contains over 8,900 items, and visitors can browse around at their leisure or perform a full-text search. Finally, the site is rounded out by the option for visitors to provide their own feedback. 

http://www.biology.ualberta.ca/facilities/ditrl/?Page=4431

From The Scout Report, Copyright Internet Scout 1994-2012. http://scout.wisc.edu/

Wyss Institute for Biologically Inspired Engineering

The Wyss Institute for Biologically Inspired Engineering was created "to develop biologically inspired materials and devices that will solve critical medical and environmental problems and to translate these transformative technologies into products that have an impact on society and the world." The Institute's team of specialists includes technology development fellows, professors, postdocs, and a range of other partners. On the homepage, visitors can browse areas that include Innovation, Translation, and Collaboration. Each area includes multimedia clips, press releases, and interviews with Wyss researchers. Some compelling discoveries include human organs made on a small chip and a novel coating that repels almost every type of liquid and solid. Additionally, the Library section contains interactive features, along with speeches and essays from the Wyss faculty. Visitors are encouraged to sign up for the Wyss Twitter and RSS feeds. 

http://wyss.harvard.edu/ 

From The Scout Report, Copyright Internet Scout 1994-2012. http://scout.wisc.edu/

Molecular Workbench

Created by the Concord Consortium, the Molecular Workbench is "a modeling tool for designing and conducting computational experiments across science." First-time visitors can check out one of the Featured Simulations to get started. The homepage contains a number of curriculum modules which deal with chemical bonding, semiconductors, and diffusion. Visitors can learn how to create their own simulations via the online manual, which is available here as well. The Articles area is quite helpful, as it contains full-text pieces on nanoscience education, quantum chemistry, and a primer on how transistors work. A good way to look over all of the offerings here is to click on the Showcase area. Here visitors can view the Featured simulations, or look through one of five topical sections, which include Biotech and Nanotechnology. Visitors will need to install the free Molecular Workbench software, which is available for Windows, Linux, and Mac.

http://mw.concord.org/modeler/

From The Scout Report, Copyright Internet Scout 1994-2012. http://scout.wisc.edu/

The Reptile Database

"This database provides a catalogue of all living reptile species and their classification. The database covers all living snakes, lizards, turtles, amphisbaenians, tuataras, and crocodiles. Currently there are about 9,500 species including another 2,800 subspecies ....The database focuses on taxonomic data, i.e. names and synonyms, distribution and type data and literature references. There is little other information in the database, such as ecological or behavioural information"

http://www.reptile-database.org/