Using aerial photographs to study shrubs biomass allows students to avoid unpleasant working conditions and to study communities that are inaccessible or distant. (BB)

Coastal ecosystems are the most highly productive in the world. This article discusses seagrasses, major coastal producers, and provides information on their ecology, productivity, position in food chains, and role in sediment stabilization. Recent attempts to restore seagrasses in areas of massive kills are described. (MA)

The rhizosphere is the area directly surrounding the roots of a plant and an area of tremendous microbial growth. This article described techniques for studying this soil biome. Illustrations are included. (MA)

Describes an experiment used to demonstrate the relationship among hypertonic, hypotonic, and isotonic solutions and provides and open-ended research opportunity for additional individual investigation by students. (Author/MA)

Early land plants and their ancestry remained an important, controversial issue in paleobotany this past year. Current research and theories on the subject are reviewed. (MA)

Describes activity relating to the study of trees. (SL)

Discusses the use of native Australian plants in 8th and 9th grade Biology classes. (SL)

Includes procedures for demonstrating anaerobic respiration in peas, isolating virgin Drosophila females, solving mortality problems in young gerbils, measuring dissolved oxygen, constructing models for transpiration and DNA molecules, freezing chick embryos, mixing nutrient media, illustrating Darwinian ecological principles, and detecting…

Describes a simple method for measuring respiration, net photosynthesis, and compensation points of plants in relation to light intensity. Outlines how the method can be used in teaching physiological adaptation. Includes a set of the experiment's results. (ML)

Describes activities, games, experiments, demonstrations, and computer-oriented exercises in all science areas. Topics include energy flow through a marine ecosystem, using 2,4-dichlorophenoxyethanoic acid to demonstrate translocation in plants, use of the dichotomous key, use of leaf yeasts to monitor atmospheric pollution, and others. (JN)

Provides an outline of a presentation which focused on teaching science environmentally and extending the teaching outdoors. Includes a discussion of the sumac as a typical topic to illustrate the ideas and strategies cited. (BC)

Ways to relate wild plants to history are given. Plants discussed are Queen Anne's lace, trailing arbutus (mayflower), ginseng, Joe-Pye weed, witch hazel, common plantain, mullein, yarrow, teasel, pokeweed, blue vervain, and columbine. (MH)

Describes the construction, design, and operation of an inexpensive, precision, multiple seed planter. (JN)

The educational design of a project option in an Open University course on evolution is described. Also described is the simulation which models the genetic and evolutionary consequences of two populations of a species of flowering plant coming together after a period of genetic isolation. (Author/JN)

Considers the classification of organisms into five kingdoms based on evidence from molecular biology and microscopic techniques. Divides organisms into Protoctista, Monera, Fungi, Plantae, and Animalia, discussing characteristics of prokaryotes and eukaryotes as related to division of the kingdoms--prokaryotes in kingdom Monera and eukaryotes in…