A highly controlled laboratory experiment was conducted that suggested computer-based image training of rock classifications can provide a useful supplement to physical rock training. Two groups of participants learned to classify samples of 12 major types of rocks during a training phase. One group was trained using computer images of the rock…

The problem of how people process novel and unexpected information--"deep learning" (Ohlsson in "Deep learning: how the mind overrides experience." Cambridge University Press, New York, 2011)--is central to several fields of research, including creativity, belief revision, and conceptual change. Researchers have not converged…

"Candida" spp. includes more than 160 species but only 20 species pose clinical problems. "C. albicans" and "C. parapsilosis" account for more than 75% of all the fungemias worldwide. In 1995 and 2005, one "C. albicans" and two "C. parapsilosis"-related species were described, respectively. Using…

An undergraduate organic chemistry experiment demonstrating real-life application of GC-MS to arson accelerant identification is described. Students are given the task of comparing a sample recovered from a "crime scene" to that from a "suspect's clothing". Accelerants subjected to different conditions are recovered using a quick and simple…

This monograph is the first attempt to collect and share some of the teaching techniques, activities, and ideas of former recipients of the Outstanding Biology Teacher Award. The lessons are organized into topical themes to facilitate their incorporation into standard curriculum. The manual is divided into two main sections, "Labs" and "Ideas."…

In the elementary and secondary schools, there is a movement toward a sequential instructional program which would involve the offering of a laboratory science each year from kindergarten to high school graduation. In some schools teachers have turned to science kits as a partial solution to the problems presented by restricted space, inadequate…