Biology Labs Online vs StarGenetics

Biology Labs Online is a free web collection of 12 interactive biology simulations and exercises for college and AP high school students. Topics include inheritance, evolution, genetics, population growth, protein structure and function, electron transport, plant physiology, cardiovascular homeostasis, and enzyme biochemistry. The inquiry-based activities are designed to reinforce scientific methodology, including principles that may be dangerous, expensive, or time-consuming to study in wet labs. They are not intended to replace traditional labs, operate as standalone tutorials, or serve as online courses. Older Java applets are converted to JavaScript through CheerpJ, a process the site says can have minor quirks. The listed tested browsers on Windows and Mac include Chrome, Firefox, Edge, Opera, and Brave, plus Safari on Mac. The applets assume mouse input and do not work well on mobile devices. Many can export data and graphs, but pop-ups must be allowed for the output window to appear. Notebook data must be exported locally or copied elsewhere to preserve it. Instructors can request access to instructor resources by email.

StarGenetics is a free simulator for Mendelian genetics crosses, intended to teach genetics concepts and experimental design. Its stated audience ranges from high school biology to advanced undergraduate biology. Students can use visualizers for cows, fish, flies, peas, a smiley face and yeast. Instructor resources cover genetic crosses, Punnett squares, complementation, epistasis, gene linkage and mapping, and tetrad analysis. Instructors can customize exercises using Excel workbooks in XLS format. The Punnett Square tool summarizes expected genotypic distributions for monohybrid and dihybrid crosses. Fly mating results can be viewed individually, sorted by sex and phenotype, or summarized by phenotype; DNA markers for genetic mapping are available in the Fly and Fish visualizers. Experiments can be saved to a file and reopened later. Excel export is limited to Fly exercises. StarGenetics is accessible through the web and downloadable for Linux, Windows and macOS. MIT recommends Java Web Start and provides operating-system downloads for users with limited internet connectivity. Users can submit bug reports, feature requests, comments or questions through the in-app suggestions form.