Biology Innovative Uses

The BlueView Transilluminator has a set of super bright blue LEDs that are used to illuminate fluorescent stains. It is often used to look at GFP-transformed bacterial colonies or agarose gels stained with SYBR® Safe DNA Gel Stain. But did you know that you can also use it to show that chlorophyll is fluorescent? Demonstrating…

Subjects: Biology

Evolution is one of the “big ideas” in the new AP Biology curriculum and one of the “core ideas” in the Framework for K–12 Science Education, the foundation for the Next Generation Science Standards. Many teachers have been asking how our sensors can be used to teach concepts in evolution. Recently, we took a standard…

Subjects: Biology

Vitamin B2, also known as Riboflavin, is a vital component of the cofactors that support all flavoproteins. The highest concentrations in the body are found in the liver, kidneys, and heart. This vitamin is very important to the heart because it plays a key role in allowing aerobic (oxygen-based) energy production to occur. A great…

Subjects: Biology, Human Physiology

Laura Cerletty, a physiology teacher at Whitnall High School in Greenfield, WI, and Stephen Biscotte, a physiology teacher at Cave Spring High School in Roanoke, VA , have developed an innovative way to compare two methods of measuring blood pressure using Vernier products. The Data Mark feature in Logger Pro and LabQuest app makes this…

Subjects: Biology, Human Physiology

In the late 1980s, Dr. John Martin made a prediction that iron was a factor limiting phytoplankton growth. He hypothesized that increasing the amount of available iron in the ocean would stimulate phytoplankton growth. This increase in primary productivity would result in a concomitant increase in carbon sequestration in the ocean, ultimately leading to a…

Subjects: Biology

The sense of balance is complex since it combines sensory input from the eyes, inner ear, and stretch receptors located in the tendons and muscles. In the classroom, you can demonstrate that visual input is important for balance. Try balancing on one foot with your eyes open, and then try it again with your eyes…

Subjects: Biology

Collecting data to calculate the primary productivity of an aquatic sample just got easier with our new Primary Productivity Kit. This kit contains seven bottles and stoppers designed for measuring dissolved oxygen (DO) in dark and light environments. The special shape of the bottles prevents air entrapment and makes it easy to collect data with…

Subjects: Advanced Biology, Biology, Environmental Science

Photosynthesis and respiration of plants are fundamental concepts in biology and agricultural science. Our CO2 and O2 Gas Sensors make it easy for your students to study these concepts, producing beautiful data as shown here. However, you can’t just place one leaf in a chamber with a light bulb and expect great results. Our resident…

Subjects: Agricultural Science, Biology

Bio-Rad Laboratories has developed an exciting new kit for investigating enzyme action as part of making biofuels that can be used with our SpectroVis Plus spectrophotometer. This is an excellent investigation for AP biology and college biology courses. The BioFuel Enzyme Kit measures the enzymatic activity of cellobiase. The reaction of the enzyme, cellobiase, breaking…

Subjects: Advanced Biology, Biology

Laura Cerletty, an anatomy and physiology teacher at Whitnall High School in Greenfield, WI, and her students modified our CO2 to O2 Tee for improved performance when connecting the Oxygen Gas Sensor to the Spirometer. We were inspired to create the new O2 Gas Sensor to Spirometer adapter that replaces the CO2 to O2 Tee.…

Subjects: Biology, Human Physiology