NEWSPAPER ARTICLE
Dr. Art was featured in The Washington Post on Thursday, November 4, 1999.
CD REVIEW
From: The American Biology Teacher, Volume 63, NO.7, September 2001, pp. 530-532
SOFTWARE REVIEW: BIOLOGY CONCEPTS
Dr. Art - The Singing Scientist is actually Dr. Arthur W. Siebens, a biology teacher in the Washington, DC public schools. For many years he has put biological concepts to music and sung the songs for his students. Now these songs are available on a CD-ROM. All of the 15 songs on the CD are written and performed by Dr. Art. A few of the songs are sung to original melodies, but most are familiar tunes such as "Chains," "La Bamba," and even "Parigi, o cara" from La Traviata . Bio-Rhythms I includes songs written primarily for introductory biology students, but they would be useful for AP or college students as a great way to reinforce core concepts. Bio-Rhythms I includes the songs: "A Singing Summary of Biotechnology," "Every Body's Made From Cells," "Chains," "Those Magic Membranes," "Glucose," and "Christmas and Biology." Bio-Rhythms II includes: "Enzymes," "Replication," "Amino Acids Are Surrendered," "Wonder Why Operons," "The Cell Cycle Rap," "Meiosis All Rapped Up," "Respiration: What Goes in, What Comes Out," "Photosynthesis," and "Do You Know How Much I Miss You?" Although most of the songs in Bio-rhythms II are clearly at the AP/ college level, "The Cell Cycle Rap" and "Meiosis All Rapped Up" are very appropriate for introductory high school biology students.
Unquestionably, some students find certain biology concepts difficult and sometimes frustrating. Research tells us we should address complex topics from a number of different perspectives designed to reach students' multiple intelligences. Bio-Rhythms I + II are great additions to a teacher's repertoire of classroom techniques; this CD is educational and fun! Dr. Art encourages teachers to photocopy the lyrics for distribution to students. With the lyrics in front of them, it is easy to persuade students to listen once and then to sing along. I used the song "Chains" with my introductory biology classes this past year. Reluctant at first to sing along, they were soon having a wonderful time singing about starch, protein, DNA and lipids. The chorus (try it yourself) is easy, and my students got louder each time they sang it.
Chains - biology is all full of chains
But they ain't the kind, that you can see.
No, to see these chains takes electron microscopy.The content of the CD is accurate. This is not surprising, given Dr. Siebens' background. He majored in biology at Oberlin College, earned a Ph.D. in physiology at George Washington University and completed his post-doctoral work at the Yale School of Medicine and NIH. It's difficult in a song to include all the concepts of complex subjects such as respiration or photosynthesis, but Dr. Art's lyrics certainly address the most important ideas. In "Meiosis All Wrapped Up," for example, he reviews the steps of meiosis, the purpose of meiosis, and the key differences between meiosis and mitosis. There is one song that is of questionable use for teachers. "Christmas and Biology" is a spoof Christmas song about human evolution resulting from adaptations to the stress of Christmas. The evolution content is not an issue, but the spoof of Christmas could be controversial.
For any teacher who wants to add some fun to her classroom, Dr. Art - The Singing Scientist is a wonderful tool to use. The songs can be used as introduction, reinforcement or review. Although some of the tunes might not be as familiar to students, they can easily identify with the rap songs. Some will definitely enjoy writing biology songs of their own. The final song on Bio-Rhythms II, "Do You Know How Much I Miss You," is primarily for teachers, and it is a wonderful expression of the feelings we all have when we are not in school. It provides a fitting ending to a CD that teachers will find extremely useful and enjoyable.
Betty Carvellas
Essex High School
Essex Junction, VT 05452
Any questions contact our Webmaster.
