Biology students learn on-line
By Jonn Fulwider
Staff Reporter
Biology 101 students can’t quite
cuddle up with their computers and
skip their crowded lecturesjust yet.
But William Glider’s biology
students can get a wealth of infor
mation about their class — even
find out their current grades — on
the Internet.
The information is available on
a World W ide Web page created by
Glider, an assistant professor of
biology at the University of Ne
braska-Lincoln.
Glider was the first UNL profes
sor to create a web page for his
course. Since he began his page in
January, five other chemistry and
engineering instructors also have
made their own web pages.
Glider doesn’t post lecture notes
on the web, he said, because that
would encourage people to skip
class. But he does post the course
syllabus, sample exams and answers
to homework problems.
As a bonus feature, Glider said
he includes biofacts—“gee whiz’
bits of information about biolog)
that aren’t found in the textbook
and are hard to find anywhere else
Topics range from “Why cats purr’
to “The Grapes of Wrath” — hou
ethyl alcohol found in wine anc
beer is considered to be a cancer
causing agent.
To encourage students to use his
web page, Glider puts a bonus ques
tion on each test that covers infor
mation from one of the biofacts. Or
a recent test, he said, 95 of the 19C
students got the bonus questior
right.
Glider’s web page makes use ol
graphics, something he said was
not possible last year, when he of
fered much of the same informatior
through Gopher, a text-only Intemei
information browser.
In the future, he said, he wants tc
include graphics from his lectures
on the web page so students don’i
have to sketch them during class.
He said that in large classes like
, his, students didn ’t have much con
tact with their professors. But the
biology web page, combined with
free e-mail accounts for all his stu
dents, helped.
“This puts them a little bit closer
to me as the instructor,” he said.
In addition to graphics from
lectures, Glider said, he wants to
put biology tutorials on the web
; page to help struggling students,
maybe using animation and video
clips. '«
Eventually, he may have alter
native homework assignments,
where students would search the
Internet instead of their textbooks
for answers.
; Alison Frazier, a freshman pre
radiology major, said she used the
web page often and found it help
ful. The most useful feature, she
said, is the grade list. She also con
i tacts Glider through her class e
i mail account.
But what would she like to see
added in the future?
Lecture notes.
Rainy weather signifies
start of spring season
By Angie Schendt
Staff Reporter
A spell of cool weather in Lincoln
recently is not unusual for this time of
year, a climatologist said Monday.
Allen Dutcher, state climatologist
at the High Plains Climatology Cen
ter, said temperatures the past two
days may have felt cool but have been
only slightly below normal.
Dutcher said Nebraska’s winter was
unusually mild, which made recent
weather feel cool.
What is unusual, however, is the
winter storm in eastern Colorado and
western Nebraska.
In the last four years, at least one
big snow storm has hit in April. Bui
this is the third storm this month,
Dutcher said.
Cold rain from the storm should
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While cold temperatures and snow
associated with the storm may be un
usual, he said, the rain is not.
“We are going through our normal
rainy period,” Dutcher said.
April, May and June are Nebraska’s
three rainiest months, he said.
The National Weather Service
forecast today calls for a high of 50
degrees, with a 60 percent chance of
rain. Wednesday will be dry and
cool with a low between 25 and 30
and a high in the upper 40s or low
50s. Thursday and Friday will be
similar, with lows in the 30s and
highs in the 50s. More rain is pos
sible both days.
Highs in the mid 50s and low 60s
and lows in the 40s are average for
April, and next week should be more
like that norm, Dutcher said.
Benefit game
increases
awareness
From Staff Reports
Comhusker basketball fans will
have a chance to watch the men’s and
women’s teams in action tonight when
they play in a benefit game with the
UNL Rolling Storm Wheelchair Bas
ketball Team.
The second annual game, which
will be played at the Campus Recre
ation Center, is sponsored by the As
sociation of Students of the Univer
sity of Nebraska and the Office of
Campus Recreation. The game will
start at 6:30 p.m.
Ashley Wittwer, one of the game’s
organizers, said the game would help
create awareness of disabled students’
capabilities.
Shad Dahlgren, a member of the
wheelchair basketball team, said pro
ceeds from the game would go toward
the team’s travel and training expenses
for next year.
Wittwer, who is a member of
ASUN’s Students with Disabilities
Subcommittee, said members of the
Comhusker football team would be
available to sign autographs at the
game.
No admission will be charged for
the game, but donations will be ac
cepted at the door.
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