Life Science | The Happy Scientist

Life Science

NEW! Curriculum Units combine videos and experiments into an organized curriculum.

Food Webs: Follow energy through a living system as it passes from one organism to the next.

Video Title	Description	Topics Discussed
Calling a Woodpecker	A simple technique for attracting woodpeckers.	Life Science, birds
Bendable Bones - Updated	A classic investigation into the chemistry of bones.	Life Science, skeleton
Reading a Skeleton	A bit of forensic osteology can help you read the bones.	Life Science, human body, skeleton
Food Chain: Scavengers and Decomposers	Meet the "clean-up crew" of the Food Web	Life Science, food web
Bird Bones	Dissect a bird to compare its skeleton with ours.	Life Science, birds, vertebrates, skeleton
Foodchain: Secondary Consumers	Take the next step up the foodchain to take a look at predators.	Life Science, food web
Foodchain: Primary Consumers	Following the Producers video, take the next step up the food chain, and learn about herbivores.	Life Science, food web, digestion, animals, plants
Laser Projection Microscope	Turn a $5 laser pointer into a projection microscope!	Life Science, Protists, cells
Heartless Plants	How do plants move water and food without a heart for a pump?	flowering, Life Science, non-flowering, plants, adaptation
Is That a Color Photo?	Trick your brain into seeing color in a black and white photograph.	brain, Life Science, senses
Selective Smelling	How long can you smell something before the scent vanishes?	brain, Life Science, human body, senses, adaptation
Measuring in Feet	Instead of measuring with a ruler, try measuring with your foot.	Life Science, human body, skeleton
Reaction Time	How quick are you?	brain, Life Science, human body, senses
Hear the Ocean?	Why do you seem to hear the ocean inside a sea shell?	Life Science, senses
Got the Red Green Blues	Does your TV really only have three colors?	brain, Life Science, human body, senses
Foot Circles	Try this fun experiment to trick your brain.	behavior, brain, Life Science, human body, senses
Producers	Learn about the lifeforms that make up the base of the foodchain.	Life Science, food web, plants
A Walk in the Park	You don't have to go on safari to see some amazing wild life.	behavior, Life Science, spiders, food web, insects, invertebrates, birds, vertebrates, animals, ecology, plants, fungi, adaptation
When Sugar Isn't Sweet	How can sugar not taste sweet?	Life Science, human body, senses
Why We Sweat	Why do people sweat?	Life Science, human body
Fingerprints	Learn an easy technique for collecting fingerprints.	Life Science, human body
Seed Search	How do plants spread their seeds to new areas?	flowering, Life Science, ecology, plants, adaptation
Illusions	Learn some of the science behind optical illusions.	brain, Life Science, human body, senses
Feathers	For such simple things, feathers have an amazing amount of science built in.	behavior, Life Science, birds, adaptation
Koffka Ring Illusion	An easy illusion to trick your brain.	brain, Life Science, human body, senses
Two Coins	Instant science: An illusion to make two coins look like three.	brain, Life Science, human body, senses
Osmosis	Explore a chemical process that keeps your cells going.	Life Science, cells
Just a Suggestion	Can you resist scratching your nose?	behavior, brain, Life Science, human body, senses
The Stroop Effect	How well does your brain work with two bits of information at the same time	brain, Life Science, human body, senses
Kneesy, Earsy, Nosey	How good are you at moving across the midline?	brain, Life Science, human body
Taking a Marshmallow Apart	Take a marshmallow apart to see what it is made of.	Life Science, human body, digestion, plants
Stable Image	Learn how your brain stabilizes images.	brain, Life Science, human body, senses
Science Fair Panic, part 2	This time we talk about research and forming a hypothesis.	Life Science, plants
The Waterfall Effect	Try this natural, optical illusion, which tricks your eyes and brain with motion instead of color.	brain, Life Science, human body, senses
Nature Watching	Are you a bird watcher or a bird spotter?	behavior, biomes, flowering, Life Science, reptiles, amphibians, food web, insects, invertebrates, non-flowering, birds, fish, animals, ecology, plants, adaptation
Hunting With an Umbrella	What strange creatures would you hunt with an umbrella?	behavior, biomes, flowering, Life Science, spiders, amphibians, food web, insects, invertebrates, ecology, plants, adaptation
Curves Illusion	Which of these curved pieces of paper is longer?	brain, Life Science, human body, senses
Orange Slices	A neat trick for predicting the number of slices in an orange before you slice it.	flowering, Life Science, plants