The UW-Madison Biotechnology Center is currently open and following the university’s COVID-19 Response regarding campus operations.
BioTrek is currently offering the following virtual workshops for students (in addition to in-person workshops at the Biotech Center):
- An online tour of the Biotech Center’s core facilities, including DNA Sequencing, RNA Sequencing and Gene Expression, Mass Spectrometry, Transgenic Facility, CRISPR Lab, and the The University of Wisconsin Missing in Action Recovery and Identification Project (UW MIA RIP). We use recorded videos and photos, but we talk live with the students and are available for Q/A
- Hands-on “Kitchen Science Savvy” presentations where we coach kids through hands-on experiments they can do online with us in their kitchen using materials they provide
- “Doing DNA: The Code of Life” presentations where we coach kids through hands-on experiments using materials we send to the teachers.
- (New) The University of Wisconsin Missing in Action Recovery and Identification Project (UW MIA RIP) virtual workshop (sample recovery case)
Contact us to set up a virtual or in-person experience!
To request a BioTrek Field Trip, email Liz Jesse or Tom Zinnen – or call (608) 265-4457 or (608) 265-2420.
Or, request a field trip online to BioTrek or to any of a dozen other science venues at UW-Madison.
BioTrek welcomes you and your field-trip group to our outreach lab on the University of Wisconsin-Madison Campus. The address of our outreach lab is Room 1340 Genetics/Biotech Center, 425 Henry Mall, Madison, WI 53706.
We will also come to your community in Wisconsin! It is our mission to share science with all of Wisconsin.
BIOTREK WELCOMES VISITORS OF ALL TYPES.
- School groups preK-16
- Life-long learners of all ages
- 4-H groups and other youth groups
- Retiree groups
- Teachers and teacher in-services
- Service clubs
- and many more!
Fees: BioTrek does not charge a professional fee. Donations are appreciated to help cover the costs of our travel expenses and of materials used for your group.
Here are activities visitors to BioTrek can choose from. Feel free to mix and match to create the field trip that works best for you and your group. For specific requests, give us a call or email at least a week ahead of your trip so that we can have materials and equipment ready. Otherwise, we will choose from former visitor favorites.
If you would like to do these activities at home or in your classroom, email Tom Zinnen with any questions or requests for information. For handouts or more information on the activities listed below, please check out the Resources page.
We also host tours of the Service Facilities in the UW Biotechnology Center.
To schedule a workshop, email Liz Jesse or Tom Zinnen or call (608) 265-4457 or (608) 265-2420.
DEVELOPING SCIENCE SAVVY & INGENUITY THROUGH EXPERIMENTS & PUZZLES
- The Puzzle of the Color-Changing Pencils
- The Paradox of the DNA Tube
- Which Makes Better Bubbles: Skim Milk or Whole?
- Shaking Cream into Butter- Is Shaking Really necessary?
- Using Rennet to Make Milk Stiff
- Invent Your Own Squirt Gun and Micropipette
- How Well Do You Wash Your Hands: GlowGerm Challenge
ADVANCED BIOLOGY CONCEPTS
Note: Please contact Jordana Lenon to arrange a SCLL class or group visit. (Suitable for middle school and up. 22-person limit per group. More than that is very crowded and then we can’t guarantee hands-on time for everyone for all activities.)
TOURS
- Biotechnology Center Facilities
- Missing in Action Recovery and Identification Project Headquarters (in the Biotech Center)
- “X Marks the Spot” Tour of Sites of 4 Nobel Prizes Won for Work at UW-Madison: Ask Tom Zinnen!