Virtual Dissection Software Teaches Kids, Spares Animals

AUSTIN, Texas - A textbook comapny has developed a cruelty free, bloodless way for middle and high school grades to dissect animals in school. The company, Holt, Rinehart and Winston, created a virtual dissection labs CD-ROM. The lifelike lab dissections of six specimens give schools an alternative method - animal friendly - for teaching anatomy and physiology.

Students begin a lab with a high-resolution image of a specimen and use their mouse to select the appropriate instrument to perform the procedure. Students can perform dissections step-by-step or in movie mode. It takes 30 steps to dissect a frog and along the way, students see their instrument peel back skin and remove organs with amazing clarity. If stuck, they select hints to help guide their scissors. Additional video clips describe and show how organs, systems and body parts function. An interactive anatomy section lets students investigate anatomy and, in the case of the frog dissection, learn tadpole development as well. The Dissection CD even offers assessment options. Students may be automatically graded on their dissection skills or take an interactive quiz.

"We realize that not every school has the facilities, money or time to allow every student to dissect actual specimens," said Allen Wheatcroft, president of Holt. "This Dissection Lab CD-ROM is designed to extend their learning opportunities and it is also a fabulous refresher tool for students who missed class or who need more study time."

Dissection Labs is available on CD-ROM and features six dissection organisms: a frog, fetal pig, earthworm, perch, crayfish, and a rat. A Web-based demonstration of the product is available at http://www.hrw.com/frog2.

For more information: http://www.hrw.com/