Greatest Discoveries With Bill Nye: Medicine
Teacher’s Guide
Grade Level: 6-8
Curriculum Focus: Science
Lesson Duration: 3 class periods
Program Description
Early Discoveries in Anatomy—Examines early discoveries about human anatomy and our blood.
Innovations in Medical Technology—Explores some important innovations in medical technology.
Germs and Infectious Diseases—Describes the idea of germ theory and the start of modern medicine.
Understanding and Treating Disease— Examines diabetes, cancer and AIDS along with the therapies
used to combat these diseases.
Discussion Questions
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What is anatomy?
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How does blood flow through a human body?
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What are some important innovations in medicine?
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How have vaccines and inoculations changed the world?
Video Index
Segment 1. Early Discoveries in Anatomy (8 min.)
Description
See how early discoveries in human anatomy and blood circulation created giant advances in
medicine.
Pre-viewing question
Q: What do you know about blood?
A: Answers will vary.
Post-viewing question
Q: What was William Harvey’s discovery and how did it change medicine?
A: Harvey discovered that the human heart pumps blood into the arteries, where it then
circulates through the veins, coming full circle back into the heart to start the cycle over again.
This revolutionary 17th century discovery about blood circulation led to major advances in
anatomical research and surgery.
Greatest Discoveries With Bill Nye: Medicine
Teacher’s Guide
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Segment 2. Innovations in Medical Technology (8 min.)
Description
Before the innovation of anesthesia, surgery was an extremely painful last resort. Learn about
anesthesia and x-ray technology and their importance to modern science.
Pre-viewing question
Q: What do you think are some of the most important innovations in modern medicine?
A: Answers will vary.
Post-viewing question
Q: Why do you think x-ray technology was so readily accepted?
A: Answers will vary.
Segment 3. Germs and Infectious Diseases (15 min.)
Description
Examine the science behind germ theory and see how penicillin and antibiotics came to be
important remedies.
Pre-viewing question
Q: What are some diseases and illnesses that you know of and how can they be treated or
avoided?
A: Answers will vary.
Post-viewing question
Q: What is the germ theory?
A: The germ theory essentially marks the beginning of modern medicine. This theory states that
one microorganism causes one disease, in everybody. Although it now seems obvious, at the
time of discovery it was one of the most revolutionary concepts in modern medicine.
Segment 4. Understanding and Treating Disease (13 min.)
Description
Take a closer look at diabetes, cancer, and AIDS and the therapies used to combat these
diseases.
Pre-viewing question
Q: Where do you think cancer comes from?
A: Answers will vary.
Post-viewing question
Q: How does HIV differ from other viruses?
A: Human immunodeficiency virus, or HIV, causes AIDS. HIV is different from other viruses in
that it doesn’t give evidence of any disease for years. By the time a person presents with AIDS,
he or she has a myriad of other infections. In most cases, a conventional virus exists for one
purpose—to infect a host cell and reproduce. HIV is not a conventional virus; instead it belongs
to a family of viruses known as retroviruses. Retroviruses are unique because their genetic
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Greatest Discoveries With Bill Nye: Medicine
Teacher’s Guide
3
information in the form of RNA is converted into DNA. The DNA then gets incorporated into
our genes, becoming a part of the host person’s own DNA. Therefore, a retrovirus typically
creates a lifelong disease.
Lesson Plan
Student Objectives
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Understand the history of modern medicine.
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Describe important innovations in modern medicine and their origins.
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Examine how particular discoveries and innovations in medicine changed the future of
medicine.
Materials
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Greatest Discoveries With Bill Nye: Medicine program
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Science textbooks
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Paper and pencils
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Computer with Internet access (optional)
Procedures
1. Use Greatest Discoveries With Bill Nye: Medicine to explore some of the important discoveries and
innovations in medical history. After watching the program, discuss the innovations featured,
including blood transfusions, X rays, anesthesia, germ therapy, vitamin knowledge, and
inoculations. How did they change medicine? Why are they important? Ask students to share
other innovations they think revolutionized the field of medicine. Create a list of these and the
examples from the program on the board or on chart paper at the front of the room.
2. Tell students to choose one example from the list and write a research report on this particular
medical innovation or discovery. The reports should address the following:
• What is the innovation? How does it work?
• Who discovered or invented it?
• When did it come about? What was going on in the medical field at the time?
• What is the importance of this innovation?
• How did it change the practice of medicine?
3. Go over the steps involved in writing a research report.
• Step 1: Decide what you are writing about.
• Step 2: Choose your sources (books, Web sites, periodical articles, etc.)
• Step 3: Take notes from your sources.
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Greatest Discoveries With Bill Nye: Medicine
Teacher’s Guide
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Step 4: Review your notes and create an outline.
Step 5: Write a first draft of your paper.
Step 6: Exchange papers with a classmate for a peer review.
Step 7: Edit and revise; check spelling, punctuation and grammar.
Step 8: Turn it in.
4. Give students time in class to research their reports or assign as homework. They may use
science texts, Web sites, encyclopedias, and periodical articles to conduct their research. The
following Web sites provide some useful information:
• About Inventors
http://inventors.about.com/library/inventors/blmedical.htm
•
Blackmask Online: A History of Science
http://www.blackmask.com/books72c/4hscidex.htm
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Duke University: Medical Timeline
http://scriptorium.lib.duke.edu/mma/timeline.html
5. As students complete their first drafts, pair them up to conduct peer reviews. Monitor the peer
reviews to make sure the first drafts are read and correctly edited before allowing students to
begin their final drafts.
6. Ask volunteers to share some of the information they learned from their research. Discuss
which innovations the students believe are most important and why. How did they
revolutionize medicine?
Assessment
Use the following three-point rubric to evaluate students’ work during this lesson.
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3 points: Students were highly engaged in class discussions and peer review sessions; used
research materials wisely; followed the eight steps in writing their research reports; and
wrote informative, well-written reports that addressed all the established criteria and did
not contain spelling, punctuation or grammatical errors.
•
2 points: Students were engaged in class discussions and peer review sessions; used
research materials with little outside help; followed most of the eight steps in writing their
research reports; and wrote informative reports that addressed most of the established
criteria and did not contain many spelling, punctuation or grammatical errors.
•
1 point: Students participated minimally in class discussions and peer review sessions; were
unable to use research materials without teacher assistance; followed four or fewer of the
eight steps in writing their research reports; and wrote incomplete or incoherent reports that
addressed little to none of the established criteria and contained numerous spelling,
punctuation or grammatical errors.
Vocabulary
anatomy
Definition: The internal physical structure of an organism; the science of understanding the
structure of the body
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Greatest Discoveries With Bill Nye: Medicine
Teacher’s Guide
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Context: Scientists studying human anatomy often consider the individual systems that are
composed of groups of tissues and organs.
anesthesia
Definition: A loss of sensation or feeling; often used deliberately by doctors and dentists to block
pain during surgery
Context: Before anesthesia was widely used, patients suffered great pain during surgery.
disease
Definition: An impairment of health or a condition of abnormal functioning
Context: In ancient Greece, the treatment of disease was based on philosophy rather than a
genuine understanding of human anatomy.
germs
Definition: Microorganisms, especially those causing disease
Context: Germs cause wine to sour and people to experience infection and illness.
transfusion
Definition: The introduction of blood or blood plasma into a vein or artery
Context: A patient who loses a lot of blood will probably require a transfusion.
vaccination
Definition: Inoculating with a virus as a preventive measure against disease
Context: Vaccination for smallpox was revolutionary because it represented an attempt to
intervene in the disease process.
Academic Standards
National Academy of Sciences
The National Academy of Sciences provides guidelines for teaching science in grades K–12 to
promote scientific literacy. To view the standards, visit this Web site:
http://books.nap.edu/html/nses/html/overview.html#content.
This lesson plan addresses the following national standards:
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Science as Inquiry: Understanding about scientific inquiry
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Physical Science: Chemical reactions
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Science and Technology: Understanding about science and technology
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Science in Personal and Social Perspectives: Science and technology in local, national, and
global challenges; Personal and community health
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History and Nature of Science: History of science; Historical perspectives; Science as a
human endeavor
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Greatest Discoveries With Bill Nye: Medicine
Teacher’s Guide
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Mid-continent Research for Education and Learning (McREL)
McREL's Content Knowledge: A Compendium of Standards and Benchmarks for K-12
Education addresses 14 content areas. To view the standards and benchmarks, visit
http://www.mcrel.org/compendium/browse.asp.
This lesson plan addresses the following national standards:
• Science—Life Sciences: Understands relationships among organisms and
their physical environment.
• Language Arts—Viewing: Uses viewing skills and strategies to understand
and interpret visual media; Writing: Gathers and uses information for
research purposes
• Visual Arts—Understands the visual arts in relation to history and cultures
Support Materials
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offered on the Discoveryschool.com Web site. Create and print support materials, or save them to a
Custom Classroom account for future use. To learn more, visit
•
http://school.discovery.com/teachingtools/teachingtools.html
Published by Discovery Education. © 2005. All rights reserved.