The Digital Frog Blog

If you teach science this conference is a must. We have been exhibiting at the National Science Teachers Association national conference for many, many years and we always learn something new—from the teachers who visit our booth to other exhibitors and, when we have time, from session presenters.

Our favorite presenter of all time is Nancy Harrison (and not just because she recommends The Digital Frog 2.5). Nancy is a practicing pathologist who loves animals and firmly believes that cutting up dead animals in high school is of little pedagogical value and countless animals die unnecessarily.

Nancy’s love of animals led her to research all the computer-based alternatives on the market. Recognizing that teachers are pressed for time, she felt this would help them make the switch from cutting up dead animals to a computer-based alternative. Initially, Nancy showed the teachers several programs, but eventually honed her presentation to just two programs, which she deemed to be the “best of the best”.

Whenever we can, we attend Nancy’s presentation and listen as Nancy explains to a hushed audience how her high school science teacher influenced her life and her career. And, of course, we love it as she tells the audience why The Digital Frog is “the best of the best”. We are very fortunate that Nancy endorses our program (as did eSchool News readers) but we do NOT give her any financial support. In fact, Nancy will not even allow us to buy her a cup of coffee.

Nancy’s presentation at CSTA in Long Beach last year was full to overflowing. This year NSTA is in Boston and Nancy will be presenting “Virtual Dissection: The Best of the Best” on Friday Mar. 28 from 12:30 to 1:30 in the Amphitheater of the Seaport World Trade Center (so you might actually get a seat).

By the way, our booth number is 1337 and we will be holding a draw for an unlimited Building Site License for The Digital Frog 2.5 (list price $899). Stop by our booth, mention the “secret” password - The Year of The Frog - and triple your chances of winning.

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I may be known as the frog lady these days, but there was a time when I could not tell a frog call from a bird call. That all changed when I became involved in Digital Frog International. The biodiversity section of The Digital Frog 2.5 features frogs and toads of North and South America, together with sound recordings of their calls.

Way back in 1995, we gave the first version of The Digital Frog to our vet to review. She reported back that her two year old son spent hours and hours clicking on the frogs and listening to their calls.

A few years ago we donated software to the Toronto Zoo and I spent a day in their conservation area helping visitors navigate our software. The frog calls were extremely popular.

I have also used this section to help children identify the spring peepers, northern leopard frogs, green frogs, wood frogs and tree frogs that can be found on our country property. Last summer my grandchildren were fascinated as they watched a grey tree frog, quickly nicknamed “Norman”, change from grey to green as he emerged from his hiding place. From then on, whenever they heard a tree frog call, they all rushed out looking for Norman.

Of course, I still secretly believe that the herpetologist who provided the recordings we used in the program was playing a joke on us —the bullfrog sounds just like a cow!

To learn more about the frog calls and other information on the frogs and toads of North and South America available in The Digital Frog 2.5, read more about the program’s ecology section. Or preview it for yourself with a free demo of The Digital Frog 2.5.

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As part of the Year of the Frog, the Vancouver Aquarium has produced “Bullfrog Ballet”, a two-minute, high-speed video showing bullfrogs feeding on insects in slow motion, giving them a grace you might not normally associate with large (and seemingly ungainly) bullfrogs.

From the Vancouver Aquarium’s description:

Bullfrogs (Rana catesbeiana) are native to eastern North America, from Canada as far south as Florida, but they’re invading British Columbia, where the Vancouver Aquarium is located. They were introduced here in the early 1900s by people wanting to farm them for their legs.

As you can see, they’ll eat just about anything that will fit into their mouth. They can easily tip the delicate balance of nature in places where they are not naturally found.

Ironically this widely introduced species is disappearing in Ontario, Canada — part of its natural range.

The video is part of a wider exhibit running at the aquarium, “Frogs Forever?”, to raise awareness of the dangers facing the world’s frog populations and what we can do to help.

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As we mentioned in the last entry, 2008 has been declared as the Year of the Frog. And while the year officially kicked off on January 1, with this being a leap year, many zoos and aquariums around the world are using today, February 29, as the day to really start their educational and awareness activities to promote amphibian conservation.

At Digital Frog International, we’ve been supporters of frogs since we started over a decade ago. Our first educational software program was our virtual frog dissection, anatomy and ecology program, The Digital Frog. Since its release, the program has changed and evolved, but the core has always remained the same: to provide a viable alternative to real dissections and to emphasize ecology—the study of living frogs–alongside their dissected counterparts. Even our Digital Field Trip series of programs highlight frogs and toads, among other organisms, to show their place in ecosystems from wetlands to rainforests, and even deserts.

Experts believe that after more than 360 million years on the planet, between one-third and half of the world’s 6000 species of amphibian could become extinct within our lifetimes. Over the years, with The Digital Frog being used in thousands of schools across North America, we have helped save literally tens of thousands of frogs (not to mention thousands of dollars to schools who save on purchasing frogs for dissection).

Be among the first 29 to buy and save 29%

With this being the Year of the Frog, we want to help make it even easier and more affordable to bring the benefits of The Digital Frog 2.5 to your classroom or home. Starting today, February 29, 2008, we’re giving a 29% discount to the first 29 orders for The Digital Frog 2.5. That’s a savings of $24.65 off a home version CD, or more than $260 off the price of a building site license.

Act fast, though. We can’t promise how long this offer will last. (You can order directly from us here.)

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I have always had an interest in the natural world and its inhabitants, but have certainly grown fonder of frogs since coming to work at Digital Frog International.

This year, 2008 has been dedicated as the Year of The Frog not because of the Chinese Zodiac, but because of the dire situation for frogs and amphibians around the world.

After surviving for over 360 million years, frogs and other amphibians are dying the world over. We could lose as much as 1/3 to 1/2 of the known 6,000 species in our lifetime. Loss of habitat is a big threat, but Chytrid Fungi is quickly becoming the greatest threat to frogs and amphibians. A new strain of the fungi was discovered in 1999, Batrachochytrium dendrobatidis and it is believed this is responsible for the widespread demise or many amphibian species.

I have four children and that is not the legacy I want to leave them. They deserve a healthy world with diverse species in it.
We need to take responsibility for the destruction of habitat; frogs are like the canaries in the coal mine , they are indicators of environmental health. The destruction of this species will be a forerunner for many more to follow.

We can help through agencies like Amphibian Ark who are trying to improve public awareness of the frog’s and amphibian’s dire situation. The global conservation plan is to keep species that will go extinct in captivity until the time comes that they can be secured again in the wild.

I do feel that we are doing something at Digital Frog by offering an alternative to real frog dissection, by doing virtual dissection we are saving frogs.

I am spreading the word among my friends and family about the frog’s troubles and hope you can do the same. We all know how fast things can spread when I tell two friends, they tell two friends etc.
Locally we can help to clean up and maintain healthy ponds and wetlands for our North American frogs.

I have taught my children from a young age that looking after the whole environment, not just our small part is an important responsibility, and one that we all need to take seriously. We have enjoyed some great family times over the years helping with clean-ups in our community. I am sure your community does something similar and if not maybe that is something you and your family would like to take on in this all important Year of the Frog

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If you are a previous visitor to the Digital Frog International web site, you’ll undoubtedly have noticed we’ve been busy over the past while:

Updated digital frogs and field trips
Last year we released updated versions of our virtual frog dissection, anatomy and ecology program The Digital Frog 2.5, as well as all three of our Digital Field Trips: The Wetlands, The Rainforest and The Desert. We also introduced The Digital Field Trip Series DVD, with all three field trips on one disc for a savings of more than 20% off the price of the individual titles.

A new web site
Earlier this year, we launched our new web site—both with a new design and new content to make it easier to find out about our educational software and how to get the most out of it. But that was just the first step.

Introducing… The Digital Frog Blog
Right now, you are looking at the newest addition to the Digital Frog International web site: The Digital Frog Blog. Why a blog? We want to reach out to teachers, parents and homeschoolers to share interesting and useful facts related to the natural sciences, as well as tips and techniques for getting the most out of our educational science software, plus anything else you tell us you are interested in.

Coming soon: E-commerce and interactive forums
We’re currently hard at work on launching our online store to make it even easier to purchase Digital Frog International software, safely and securely without leaving home.

And to help our users connect and get the most out of their software, we will also be launching the Digital Frog forum shortly, allowing teachers, parents, homeschoolers and even students to connect with each other to discuss everything from integrating our programs into your curriculum to useful resources in education, science, nature, geography or whatever else you want to discuss. The sky is the limit.

Help us help you
We definitely don’t want this to be a one way street. Please tell us how you would like to see The Digital Frog Blog evolve. Leave your comments. We promise we’ll read every one. We are listening and are looking forward to this next step in opening the dialogue with you, the teachers, parents, homeschoolers, students and nature-lovers that have kept us doing what we’ve been doing for the past 12 years.

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