Steinhart Aquarium [.pdf]
http://www.calacademy.org/aquarium/
A visit to the Web site of the California Academy of Sciences Steinhart Aquarium must be nearly as good as a trip to the aquarium itself. The site offers a number of engaging features for exploring the aquarium and its resources. For example, clicking the seahorse photo on the main page will call up well-presented background information about seahorses and pipefish, related Web references, and a number of great photos. The Web site also provides information about overfishing and sustainable seafood harvest, including a downloadable Seafood Buyer's Guide. Other features include a penguin cam where visitors can watch live Web feeds of the aquarium's black-footed penguin colony, recent ocean news, a guide to exploring and protecting California's tide pools, and more. On the whole, any visitor should enjoy this virtual visit to the Steinhart Aquarium. [RS]
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Two from Lawrence Berkeley Laboratory
A New Branch on the Tree of Life
http://enews.lbl.gov/Science-Articles/Archive/JGI-tree-of-life.html
Mice Offer Lessons on Aging
http://enews.lbl.gov/Science-Articles/Archive/LSD-lesson-offering-mice.html
The Lawrence Berkeley Laboratory's Science Beat offers interesting feature articles about research from Berkeley lab and partner organizations. The two Web sites above contain recent Science Beat stories. The first article describes new findings that the insect-like collembolans, a group commonly thought to have given rise to true insects, are not closely related to insects at all and in effect constitute a newly discovered branch of the phylogenetic tree. The second article offers a fascinating look at aging research utilizing transgenic mice -- an inquiry into "the genetic roots of aging in everyone." Both articles include Web links to related material from the institutions participating in these research projects, as well as links to academic articles from the journal Science (not available without paid subscription). [RS]
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AARP: Evaluating Health Information on the Internet
http://www.aarp.org/confacts/health/wwwhealth.html
The American Association of Retired Persons (AARP) offers this informative Web site on evaluating health information found on the Internet. As the introduction explains, "the sheer breadth of information in cyberspace can be overwhelming," and "separating reliable from questionable heath information can be a significant challenge." Fortunately, AARP provides a valuable crash course on assessing the quality of online sources, outlining the issues that require a healthy dose of consumer skepticism. The site also provides useful links for further information, such as the US Food and Drug Administration guide to buying pharmaceuticals online and Medline Plus from the National Library of Medicine. [RS]
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Real Men. Real Depression. [.pdf]
http://menanddepression.nimh.nih.gov/
The National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH) presents this tremendously comprehensive Web site as part of an information campaign designed to increase public awareness of depression in men, who "are less likely than women to recognize, acknowledge, and seek treatment for their depression" even though an estimated six million men suffer from this illness in the US alone. The main feature of the campaign and this companion Web site is a series of candid, personal stories from men describing their experience with depression. Participants include a retired US Air Force First Sergeant, a firefighter, a writer, a publisher, a national diving champion, a lawyer, a police officer, a student, and others. In addition to their stories, which may be read or heard as audio clips, the Web site offers a wealth of information and resources on depression for sufferers as well as for their friends and families. A number of downloadable publications on the subject are also available, which may also be ordered through the mail free of charge. [RS]
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NOVA: Deep Sea Invasion [Flash]
http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/algae/
This is the companion Web site to "Deep Sea Invasion," a PBS NOVA documentary broadcast April 1, 2003. The program follows marine biologist Alexandre Meinesz and his scientific detective work to explain the rampant spread of the tropical alga Caulerpa taxifolia through the Mediterranean and his struggle to instigate control efforts. The features of this Web site include a timeline chronicling the invasion, an article by Meinesz on the impact of invasive species, another article addressing strategies for controlling invasives, and an interactive quiz in which users match up species with their invasive characteristics. With interesting material covering a range of ecological topics, this Web site should be of interest to any reader. [RS]
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National Geographic Magazine: Jane in the Forest Again
http://magma.nationalgeographic.com/ngm/0304/feature5/index.html
In this Web site from National Geographic magazine, readers can follow the adventures of Jane Goodall, "the famed primatologist [as she] meets the chimpanzees of Congo's Goualougo Trainge, animals so isolated they have no fear of human -- at least for now." In addition to a substantial excerpt from the print article (by David Quammen), the Web site offers a number of Web-only items, including a number of engaging multimedia features such as video footage of tool-wielding chimps. Other features include field notes from photographer Michael Nichols, an online-only image gallery (including the photographer's technical notes), related Web links, and more. [RS]
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MyNaturePhotos.com
http://www.mynaturephotos.com/
Nature lovers and photographers are invited to upload and share their favorite wildlife photos in this straightforward, privately hosted Web site, a place where "viewers from around the world can see what animals, plants, and landscapes look like in other places." MyNaturePhotos.com currently features a modest collection of images grouped by class (all vertebrate): birds, fish, mammals, and reptiles. Future versions of this Web site will be organized by taxonomy and by geographic location, with plans to map out territories and migration routes of each species. This could be an interesting site to watch as contributions from visitors start to increase. [RS]
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National Wildlife Health Center: Chronic Wasting Disease [.pdf]
http://www.nwhc.usgs.gov/research/chronic_wasting/chronic_wasting_text.html
The US Geological Survey's National Wildlife Health Center offers this no-frills Web site for information on chronic wasting disease (CWD). The introductory material provides a condensed background to the disease and the still problematic CWD outbreak, followed by an extensive collection of Web links for more detailed information. Many links lead to related USGS Web sites. The site also provides a link to a full-text academic article on transmissible spongiform encephalopathies (including, of course, CWD). Graphic version of this Web site not available. [RS]
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