Discusses the dilemma between evolution and creationism in biology teaching. Explains the position of the Louisiana House Education Committee and presents an example from the Louisiana State University (LSU). (Author/SOE)

Examines implications of creation stories from a Montessorian perspective. Claims that each era has an epic narrative guiding it, and that current ecology epic can educate and inspire children to fulfill their unique role within the larger meaning of life on earth. Suggests that children have a sense of wonder motivating them to realize their…

Analyzes 50 major textbooks in the fields of evolution, biology, ecology, genetics, paleontology, and systematics, focusing on how the conceptual framework of evolution as a process is presented and developed in those fields. Lists definitions of evolution provided in the textbooks and discusses the implications of the findings. Contains 56…

Presents an exercise to demonstrate adaptive landscaping. Describes the effects of selection and genetic drift. (YDS)

Questions why the presentation of evolution in class frequently does not achieve acceptance of evolutionary theory. Suggests using a simple test formulated to try to direct students toward the application of information on evolution to material already familiar to them. Reports positive impact of the questionnaire on student attitudes towards…

Studied the perceptions of 165 Mexican American and Euro-American adolescents and their parents about healthy and attractive female body sizes and shapes using a pictorial measure. Results suggest that Euro-American and Mexican American participants report similar preferences for females' body sizes and shapes, but little agreement was found…

Describes a laboratory experiment on resistance to teach about evolution and issues of misuse of antimicrobial compounds. Investigates Escherichia coli's response to treatment of triclosan, a biocide used in consumer products. (Contains 12 references.) (YDS)

Describes a science activity on the importance of meiosis for variability. Uses a coin flip to demonstrate the random arrangement of genetic materials and explains how this results in zygotes with a new DNA combination. (YDS)

A model of the Darwinian evolution of creative thinking is proposed. Creative thinking is modeled as a re-linkage of connections among mental representations, occurring in relationship to gene-culture heterarchy, which is a system of causative and motivational connections among the individual, the innate regularities of cognitive development, and…

Suggests ways to overcome the perception by some people that plants are less understood and interesting than invertebrates or vertebrates. Describes the specialization of reproductive systems and the development of plant-animal interactions to help raise the awareness level of the fossil record of plants. (RT)

Examines collaboration between the sciences of ecology and paleontology that could lead to a new understanding of the history of life and inform present efforts to maintain biological diversity. Discusses research that employs an ecological approach to studying fossil records. (LZ)

Traces the roots of social trap situations and describes a parasitism-symbiosis model, showing that when each organism attempts to maximize its survival potential without regard for the other's, neither does as well as when they behave collectively. Discusses a model social trap situation, "Prisoner's Dilemma" ("PD") and a…

Explores the nature of the changes in students' explanations (n=50) of evolutionary scenarios. Teleological and Lamarckian explanations accounted for over half of the students' explanation on the pretest but dropped to less than 20% on the posttest. (ZWH)

Studies of mitochondrial DNA imply that modern humans arose in Africa 150,000 years ago and spread throughout the world, replacing all prior human groups. But many paleontologists see continuity in human fossils on each continent and over a much longer time. Modeling may help test these alternatives. (Author/MKR)

The evolutionary paths by which the characteristic properties of sex chromosomes may have evolved are reviewed. The evolution of the X and Y chromosomes from a cosexual ancestor is discussed. (CW)