NOVA Evolution Lab

@thenovalabs
NOVA Labs
EVOLUTION LAB SUPPORT GUIDE
The Evolution Lab uses a phylogeny game (Build A Tree) and an interactive tree of life (Deep Tree) to help
students explore the relationships between species and the history of life on Earth. Below are the tech
requirements for using the Evolution Lab in the classroom:
• Desktop or laptop: Chrome 39 & higher, Firefox 34 & higher, Safari 6.1 & higher, Internet Explorer 10 & higher
• Tablets: iPad Air iOS 8 & higher, iPad 4th generation iOS 7 & higher
• Students should login using either Google, Facebook, or PBS login. They can create a PBS login with an email
address and password.
This icon opens up Deep Tree where
students can explore over 70,000
species in an interactive tree of life.
This icon opens up the fractal tree
toolbar. Complete Build A Tree
missions to increase its complexity.
This icon allows you to share the
Evolution Lab on Facebook and
Twitter.
Homepage
•
•
•
The “Evolution 101” introduction video launches from
the bottom left.
Access Build A Tree by clicking the “Play” buttons
associated with the missions on the bottom right.
The fractal tree in the top half of the screen increases
in complexity as students complete levels in Build A
Tree.
Mission Screen
•
•
Each mission contains an introductory video and
three levels of Build A Tree.
Completion of each mission is tracked by the
number of leaves in the header. Each level is worth
two leaves: one for completing the phylogenetic tree
puzzle and the second for correctly answering the
post-puzzle question.
Having technical issues? Contact us at novalabs@wgbh.org
One Guest Street
Tel 617 300 4340
Funding for NOVA is provided by
Boston, MA 02135
Fax 617 300 1003
the Corporation for Public Broadcasting
Support for the Evolution Lab provided by the Biogen Foundation.
and public television viewers.
NOVA is produced for PBSpbs.org/nova/labs
by WGBH in Boston.
@2015 WGBH Educational Foundation.
Produced for PBS by
the WGBH Science Unit
@thenovalabs
NOVA Labs
EVOLUTION LAB SUPPORT GUIDE
The Evolution Lab uses a phylogeny game (Build A Tree) and an interactive tree of life (Deep Tree) to help
students explore the relationships between species and the history of life on Earth.
Build A Tree Level
•
•
•
Play Build A Tree by dragging species and traits onto
the playing field to build a phylogenetic tree.
Species are placed at the top of the tree while traits
are placed on the branches.
The dots above each species indicate the number of
traits possessed by the species. The puzzle is
complete once each species is placed in the
phylogenetic tree with the correct type and number
of traits.
Magnifying Glass
•
•
•
Click on the magnifying glass or click on a species to
access information about the species.
Click the icon tab of each species for information
about the species.
The last tab allows you to compare all the species in
each puzzle.
DNA Puzzles
•
•
Some puzzles in Build A Tree require the analysis of
DNA sequences in order to find the relationships
between the species.
Use the magnifying glass to display the DNA
sequences. Identify the differences in the sequences
to build the phylogenetic tree.
Having technical issues? Contact us at novalabs@wgbh.org
One Guest Street
Tel 617 300 4340
Funding for NOVA is provided by
Boston, MA 02135
Fax 617 300 1003
the Corporation for Public Broadcasting
Support for the Evolution Lab provided by the Biogen Foundation.
and public television viewers.
NOVA is produced for PBSpbs.org/nova/labs
by WGBH in Boston.
@2015 WGBH Educational Foundation.
Produced for PBS by
the WGBH Science Unit
@thenovalabs
NOVA Labs
EVOLUTION LAB SUPPORT GUIDE
The Evolution Lab uses a phylogeny game (Build A Tree) and an interactive tree of life (Deep Tree) to help
students explore the relationships between species and the history of life on Earth.
Deep Tree
•
•
•
•
Deep Tree lets you explore over 70,000 species in
the tree of life.
Click on the “i” icon on the bottom left to see
instructions for using Deep Tree.
Type in the name of an organism or search through
the species gallery on the bottom right.
Once you select a species, Deep Tree will zoom in to
that species. You can increase the speed of the
zoom with the onscreen icons.
Relate Function
•
•
•
Click on the “Relate” button in the toolbar at the
bottom of the screen to activate the Relate function.
Enter 2 different organisms or drag 2 different
species from the species gallery into the search bars
to trace their shared ancestry.
Click on the glowing DNA icon to see the shared
ancestry and traits of the two species.
Fractal Tree
•
•
As you complete levels in Build A Tree and gain more
leaves, the fractal tree on the homepage will become
more dynamic.
Use the toolbar to increase the angle, complexity,
size, thickness, and color of the fractal tree. The
more leaves you collect, the more options you have
to edit your tree.
Having technical issues? Contact us at novalabs@wgbh.org
One Guest Street
Tel 617 300 4340
Funding for NOVA is provided by
Boston, MA 02135
Fax 617 300 1003
the Corporation for Public Broadcasting
Support for the Evolution Lab provided by the Biogen Foundation.
and public television viewers.
NOVA is produced for PBSpbs.org/nova/labs
by WGBH in Boston.
@2015 WGBH Educational Foundation.
Produced for PBS by
the WGBH Science Unit