The Oedogoniales are remarkable filamentous green algae. Their method of cell elongation is unique, utilizing a donut-shaped ring of soft wall material which is stretched to form the new daughter cell. While Oedogonium is a simple filament, the related Bulbochaete and Oedocladium are branched and Bulbochaete differentiates long hair cells. The zoospore is large and multiflagellated. Sexual reproduction is oogamous and either “macrandrous” or “nannandrous.”...

Combining images of living plant stages with computer simulations allows you to easily bridge the gap between the familiar plant and the micro-environment contained within it. Three dimensional animations take you in and around reproductive structures such as the sorus, sporangium, and antheridium and archegonium. You see dynamic events such as spore formation, spore release, prothallus formation, sperm release, fertilization and embryo growth..

For convenience, biologists divide living organisms into five “Kingdoms”: the Monerans (bacteria and cyanobacteria), Protists, Fungi, Plants, and Animals. The Kingdom Protista includes a vast array of tiny eukaryotic cells that lead complex and extraordinary lives far from the eyes of most humans; a dedication to microscopy is vital to see them in all their splendor. This video is a unique resource introducing the viewer to a considerable range...

The Volvocales and Chlorococcales share a common ancestry from a cell type exemplified by Chlamydomonas. Using live cells, this video shows how simple evolutionary trends working on Chlamydomonad ancestors have generated diversity and complexity.. In Volvocalean evolution, unicellular ancestors became multicellular (e.g., Volvox) by daughter cells adhering after division. Concurrently, they evolved various advanced characters (e.g., differentiation...

Reproduction in the red algae is unique. No flagellated stages are ever formed, and it is generally assumed that the various reproductive spores are inert. This video demonstrates that spores in many species are actively motile, either by gliding or amoeboid activity. This limited power of movement may turn out to be of considerable significance in survival strategies (e.g. dispersion, optimization of a germination site).. Sexual reproduction is also...

Diatoms are an extraordinarily successful group of organisms and their many thousands of species have diversified and specialized so as to occupy every environmental niche. Part of their success derives from their unique protective cell walls, beautifully elaborate structures made of pure silica. However, living inside walls made of this rigid, refractory material creates many problems. Just how diatoms circumvent these problems provides the major...

Mitosis requires cells to organize numerous jumbled chromosomes and then separate them with absolute fidelity into two equal groups. How this extraordinary process is accomplished is still poorly understood.. This video reveals the events of mitosis at a level of detail usually seen only in research laboratories. In addition, two Appendices show mitosis in a classical system, the diatom cell, and some experiments on living cells that illustrate why...

See what scientific research shows about our evolving emotional landscape, and why older people tend to be happier than the young. Depression can still be a problem for older adults, though—consider the most common causes, discover how symptoms may differ from those of younger people, and learn to match the treatment to the situation.

This film explores both the heartbreak and the glory of trying to unravel the secrets of outer space. Mark Devlin, PhD (the filmmaker’s brother) launches revolutionary telescopes on NASA high-altitude balloons. Dangerous, but necessary if he wants to look back in time and reveal a hidden Universe of never-before-seen galaxies. ..BLAST! follows Mark and his team on their grueling journey across 5 continents, from Arctic Sweden to Antarctica, as they...

The film explains the biological logic behind the altruism behavior, through the extraordinary research of Prof. Amotz Zahavi on cooperative breeding birds in the Israeli desert: the Arabian Babbler birds..