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We have a fun game for kids on our website. Take a look:

http://pbskids.org/dragonflytv/games/game_dogbreeding.html

Joan Freese
DragonflyTV

-----Original Message-----
From: Informal Science Education Network
[mailto:[log in to unmask]] On Behalf Of David Smith
Sent: Tuesday, October 02, 2007 2:32 PM
To: [log in to unmask]
Subject: Re: Does anyone have genetic traits software to share?

ISEN-ASTC-L is a service of the Association of Science-Technology
Centers
Incorporated, a worldwide network of science museums and related
institutions.
************************************************************************
*****

Can't help on the software end, but there is an excellent learning
activity
based on this same idea at www.k12science.org called Human Genetics: Is
the
dominant trait most prevalent?  The activity is at
http://www.k12science.org/curriculum/genproj/

Dave Smith

On 10/2/07, Glen Moore <[log in to unmask]> wrote:
>
> ISEN-ASTC-L is a service of the Association of Science-Technology
Centers
> Incorporated, a worldwide network of science museums and related
> institutions.
>
>
************************************************************************
*****
>
> Gordon
>
> Thank you for reminding me of this. I agree that it is a fascinating
> exhibit.
>
> Does anyone have some user friendly software to share?
>
> Thanks!
> Glen Moore
> Science Centre and Planetarium
> Wollongong, Australia
> [log in to unmask]
> http://science.uow.edu.au
>
>
> ----- Original Message -----
> From: "Gordon McDonough" <[log in to unmask]>
> To: "CHILDMUS - A Forum for Childrens Museum Professionals" <
> [log in to unmask]>
> Sent: Wednesday, October 03, 2007 4:54 AM
> Subject: Re: [CHILDMUS] Exhibit on Diversity--Need Input
>
>
> > >What kinds of hands-on activities did you develop in relation to
the
> > >exhibit or program?
> >
> > Liz, among our many push-button (yawn) exhibits we have a pretty
cool
> > computer set up to poll visitor's genetic traits and compare them. A
> > few months ago I was asked about it, and I wrote the following
> > description of its contents. We have had this computer for a long
> > time, and I don't know who wrote the program, but I suspect it would
> > be easier to start all over than to try to use the version we are
> > running. (Get a high school computer teacher to assign it to a Java
> > programming class.*)
> >
> > "
> > ..snips... I just sat at that exhibit and learned, among other
> > things, that of the 50,995 other persons who have used it, only 232
> > of them share the same ten traits that I reported. It makes me feel
> > special. (OTOH, statistically, if we split 50,995 in half ten times,
> > we end up in a group of fifty, so I am not that special!)
> >
> > The ten items in the exhibit are:
> >
> > Ring finger longer than index finger? Yes is dominant among men, no
> > among women.
> >
> > Hair on the backs of middles of fingers is dominant.
> >
> > Attached ear lobes is recessive.
> >
> > Hitchhiker's thumb bends far back and is recessive
> >
> > Ability to curl our tongue is dominant.
> >
> > There is a tube that claims to contain a chemical fraction present
in
> > male sweat. (Like 40% of us, I couldn't smell it.) Men tend to find
> > it offensive, women less so. Most people can smell it.
> >
> > If your pinky finger curves inward toward your ring finger, you have
> > the dominant gene.
> >
> > If your eyes are anything besides blue, you have a dominant
> characteristic.
> >
> > If your hair forms a widow's peak, that is dominant.
> >
> > If you have real dimples (not part of smile wrinkles, like me) that
> > is dominant too.
> >
> > I poked around very briefly on the Internet and found nothing useful
> > for a second grader, but these sites may contain information useful
> > for you if you are helping a second grader. Several of them have
> > activities, worksheets, or tables that might be adaptable for your
> > son's purposes.
> >
> > http://learn.genetics.utah.edu/teachers/units/traits_tree.pdf
> >
> >
http://www.glencoe.com/sec/science/internet_lab/olc.php?olcChapter=449
> >
> >
>
http://chroma.gs.washington.edu/outreach/genetics/download/toothpickfish
.pdf
> >
> >
>
http://biosci.usc.edu/courses/2001-spring/documents/bisc102-humantraitsl
ab.pdf
> >
> > "
> >
> > * Our program, as I recall, asks the ten questions and after each
> > question gives some information about that trait (or possibly it
does
> > this at the end.) It keeps track of the ten answers, which are all
> > yes/ no. It stores the results and keeps a running tally of all
> > visitors' responses and reports that at the end. Then I think it
> > gives the visitor the option of going back and seeing what the
> > results would look like if they changed one or more of their
answers.
> > A person with a background in programming will know none of this is
> > rocket science. One could alternatively use demographic questions to
> > underline how wealthy and privileged we, your visitors, are compared
> > to most of the world. Similar the the world as a village of 100
> > people idea:
> >
> > http://ssqq.com/archive/vinlin04.htm
> >
> > I am sorry I can't find the original source.
> > --
> > Gordon McDonough, Science Educator
> > Bradbury Science Museum, MS C330
> > Community Programs Office
> > Los Alamos National Laboratory
> > Los Alamos, NM. USA 87545
> >
> > (505) 606-0822
> >
> > "What one fool can understand, another can."
> > Sylvanus P. Thompson
> >
>
>
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-- 
David L. Smith
Da Vinci Science Center
Allentown, PA
http://www.davinci-center.org

***********************************************************************
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