Lizard Evolution Virtual Lab vs Vernier Spectral Analysis

The virtual lab includes four modules that investigate different concepts in evolutionary biology, including adaptation, convergent evolution, phylogenetic analysis, reproductive isolation, and speciation. Each module involves data collection, calculations, analysis and answering questions. The “Educators” tab includes lists of key concepts and learning objectives and detailed suggestions for incorporating the lab in your instruction. The lab is appropriate for students in high school biology and environmental science classes, and undergraduate biology, ecology, environmental science courses. The focus on observation, measurement, and experimental methods makes the lab a good fit for addressing "science as a process" or "nature of science" aspects of the curriculum. The emphasis on the collection, analysis, and graphing of data, connects to the mathematical dimension of biology and general goals of STEM integration. The Howard Hughes Medical Institute (HHMI) is a nonprofit medical research organization that ranks as one of the nation's largest philanthropies. HHMI plays a powerful role in advancing biomedical research and science education. HHMI brings the latest biomedical research into the classroom with the award-winning BioInteractive website, featuring free resources for science education, including lectures, animations, short films, interactive features, and classroom-ready lesson plans and activities. Topics include all areas of biology and earth and environmental science. Vist the website at www.biointeractive.org.

Our free Spectral Analysis app makes it easy to incorporate spectroscopy into your biology and chemistry labs. Using the app, students can collect a full spectrum and explore topics such as Beer’s law, enzyme kinetics, and plant pigments. The user-friendly interface walks the students through the data-collection process and includes analysis features such as curve fitting and data interpolation.