Biology is a Process...

“I have never felt I was wasting time. Science is a process of trial and error. The only sure way to avoid making mistakes is to have no ideas.” — Albert Einstein

I expect most of you have heard of Albert Einstein, even if that knowledge is limited to having a T-shirt with a picture of his face and wild hair.  That’s still pretty impressive for someone born in 1879!   He made a name for himself not only in physics (The 1921 Nobel Prize in Physics) but also used his fame to bring attention to important social issues.

By now, it may also be clear that the title of this blog is a reference to the similar phrase in the above quote.  While Einstein was referring to scientific inquiry, the act of doing scientific research, the phrase also reinforces that learning science is more than just memorizing facts or details.  While those things are important, they are limited in their use.  If you can put them in context of how something works, how different parts interact, in other words, THE PROCESS, your understanding will be SO much greater.  Your experience with the material will be more fulfilling as well.  This blog was created to help you to see the process through the field of details.

While textbooks are great for outlining concepts, stating how they are related and for including great reference images… all this material is static.  While most of your teachers learned in an age where that was all there was available, you now have access to much, much more.  I understood these and other concepts best when I pictured things moving, interacting and such.  In response to technological improvements and demands for different learning tools, the majority of textbooks have websites which contain a great quantity of useful information, interactive tools and, sometimes, animations.  However, no single text’s site includes animations for all the concepts that students sometimes find challenging.  Rather than you having to go hunt for those, I have tried to organize them here.

Focus of the blog:

This site is focused on processes covered in a typical college majors, mixed majors introductory biology course or high school AP course, specifically including basic chemistry, cell and molecular biology, primary metabolism (photosynthesis and respiration) and an introduction to the principle of evolution.

How to use the blog:

The tabs that appear across the top of the blog page represent “Categories” for the organization of posts with animations or posts with links to web sites with animations or useful information.  Once you click on one of these tabs, you’ll be presented with several posts.  When available on YouTube, the animations are playable here.  For most others, the post contains a link to the website with the animation(s).  Some of these links will also take you to recent reports that highlight concepts covered in a course like this.   Just search through the posts for those covering topics you are interested in exploring.

How to get notified of updates:

This blog was built over the course of the fall of 2011 but new posts will still appear when I find quality materials to share with you.  Rather than having to remind yourself to go look to see what is new, simply “subscribe” to the blog by filling in the email subscription widget at the top right of page.

Your feedback on posts that you find most useful and even the least useful is greatly appreciated.   This can be done by either rating the posts or by leaving a comment.

Enjoy!