Isn't life amazing? An egg from your mother meets a spermfrom your father and, hey presto, a new life is formed. Yet while the processes behind this biological act sound incredibly simple, in practice, they are incredibly complicated. Mitosis (the division which follows the duplication of chromosomes, and thus allows one cell to become two and so on) and Meiosis (the halving of the number of chromosomes during cell division to produce sperm or ova), require some extraordinary genetic juggling. Mitosis and Meiosis: An Interactive Approach (third edition) aims to describe these two processes and does a fine job in doing so.
Most of the content consists of large animations which can be accompanied by spoken narration or subtitles (which can be switched on or off). At the top of the screen is a tool bar, which lets you control the program by selecting the subject level, topic and additional features, such as a glossary. The sections are very thorough (containing 25 or so screens-worth of material) and take the student through each process step-by-step. The narration is pretty matter-of-fact and to be blunt, not very inspiring, but it does describe things clearly.
The glossary is very useful, because some terms are dropped in with little or no introduction. You also get an excellent set of multiple choice questions and an interactive quiz section, which really do challenge students to think carefully about each process. A nice touch is photographic images that can be linked to a specific step in an animation. If you're looking for a program that will help your students understand the wonderful world of genes, chromosomes, DNA and cell division, then look no further.
Details
Mitosis and Meiosis: An Interactive Approach (3rd edition)
Ilumination Educational Software
Windows CD-Rom
£69.95 including site licence
AS/A2/GCSE
www.illuminationed.co.uk
