free online life sciences education resource update 05/28/15
Mark Lasbury
Good morning,
Did you know that snails
determine whether hermit crabs live or die? They need asymmetry to survive, but
evolution tells us that symmetry implies good genes, so we see symmetry as
pretty (although symmetric people tend to have more affairs). On the other
hand, did you know that some plants have three sexes, not just males and
females – your tropical fruit salad depends on them. And there are some animals
that don’t decide, they are exactly one half male and one half female.
These are some of the recent stories we have addressed on a
free online resource developed to increase learner engagement and educator
content knowledge. As Many Exceptions As Rules tells the stories of organisms that
break biological rules or norms in order to survive and thrive. Through these
stories, the core concepts of the science are reinforced.
The resource can be accessed at: http://biologicalexceptions.blogspot.com
Posted weekly, each story includes pertinent vocabulary with
etymology, interesting questions to spark discussion, links to the reports from
the latest research on the subject being discussed, and a list of online
resources for more information and classroom activities.
Upcoming topics will
include the story of left handers have more symmetric brains, and the major
asymmetry that made Einstein so smart. We will also talk about how the
Fibonacci sequence determines the asymmetry of your lungs and how the master
gland of your brain is really a part of your mouth!
If you wish to receive weekly e-mail notifications of new
posts, reply to the sender individually.
Mark E. Lasbury, MS, MSEd, PhD
Indiana University School of Medicine
IUPUI School of Education
As Many Exceptions As Rules