Bigelow Laboratory is a private, non-profit organization whose
principal scientific concern is biological productivity of the oceans. We
are also committed to blending research with education, helping people
discover the ties between the marine microbial community and global
ecology. To this end, we team scientists and educators to create
innovative materials for various audiences. For example, young students
can learn about Gulf of Maine circulation, lobster life stages, and
benthic environments by playing our on-line challenge "Hatch to
Catch." Another web-based example, "Toxic & Harmful Algal
Blooms" is aimed at informal learners. Primarily through the use of
engaging graphics, this resource outlines where such blooms occur in U.S.
waters, which organisms in the food web are affected, how toxic algae
affect humans, etc. Our most ambitious outreach endeavor to date is a
multimedia CD-ROM, "Phytopia," now under development. Its
searchable database of phytoplankton information, images, and animations
is a unique framework for personal exploration of these interesting and
diverse organisms. Designed to accommodate future expansion, "Phytopia"
provides the foundation to teach about life on this, and other, Ocean
Planets.
To learn more about Bigelow Laboratory and its programs, please visit
our website at http://www.bigelow.org.
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