Science Friday
Mineral Madness
Science does not need to be as hard as a rock. Pupils test 10 different minerals to determine their properties. The learners observe luster, streak, hardness, and fluorescence for each specimen. Afterwards, they compare and contrast the...
TeachEngineering
Teach Engineering: Glowing Flowers
Student teams learn about engineering design of green fluorescent proteins (GFPs) and their use in medical research, including stem cell research. They simulate the use of GFPs by adding fluorescent dye to water and letting a flower or...
Vision Learning
Visionlearning: Earth Science: Minerals Ii: Properties
Instructional module focusing on the physical properties of minerals. Discussion includes the identifying characteristics such as color, hardness, luster, crystal forms, density, and cleavage. Site also includes an interactive practice...
Science Education Resource Center at Carleton College
Serc: Who Has the Light?
This instructional activity explores bioluminescence. Discover which deep-sea organisms are capable of bioluminescence, and how this ability benefits these organisms. In this activity, students compare and contrast chemiluminescence,...
American Association of Physics Teachers
Com Padre Digital Library: Physics to Go: Explore Physics on Your Own
Contains a full physics curriculum with links to games, webcasts, and activities. By creating a free account, students and teachers can create their own personal collection of resources.
Amethyst Galleries
Amethyst Galleries: Physical Characteristics of Minerals
The properties of minerals are defined in this resource, such as color, luster, cleavage, hardness, streak, and more. Included are pictures of minerals along with detailed descriptions. You can also search for minerals by name, class, or...
University of California
Uscb: The Bioluminescence Web Page
A very detailed covering of bioluminescence including myths, organisms, chemistry, physiology, and photos. Contains many links for further information.
University of California
University of California at Santa Barbara: Chemistry of Bioluminescence
A very nice animated basic explanation of the difference between fluorescence and bioluminescence.
Other
Fluorescent Mineral Society: The Ultraviolet Spectrum
This resource presents a discussion of the nature and properties of ultraviolet light. The manner in which minerals emit UV light is described and explained.