科普活動：生物發光的原理及其在科學研究之應用（主題一）

Bioluminescence can be simply defined as the visible light produced and emitted by the organism itself which is a popular phenomenon in the biological world. Beside plants, more than a dozen animal phylum, bacteria, fungi and dinoflagellates can emit visible light. Using transgenic technology, scientists are able to generate bioluminescence plants in the laboratory. In Taiwan, peoples are impressed by the incredible scene of fireflies and dinoflagellate (so called “blue tears” in the Matsu and Kaohsiung districts); In addition, luminous mycena and luminous bacteria are also collected and cloned by high school teachers as a subject for teaching and science exhibition. In summary, bioluminescence has great potential on both tourism and science education. It is widely accept that bioluminescence may have the following functions including (a) Attraction. (b) Defense. (C) Warning. (d) Communication. (e) Mimicry. (f) Illumination. It is reasonable to believe the function of bioluminescence should be far more than that. Bioluminescence is widely used in both science research and appliance of ordinary living. For example, it combined with immunohistochemistry for observing the fine structures of individual cells. It is an essential component of the flow cytometry which is popular used in both diagnostic and clinical research for sorting and quantification of cells; It is also used for observing the development of embryos and organogenesis. In daily life, it can be used to identify pathogens and toxins, determine the freshness of foods, and identify genetic modified organisms (GMOs) which are definitely beneficial to the consumers. Innovative attempts have also been made such as genetic modifying sidewalk trees so that they provide luminescence in the evening for energy saving. Scientists also attempt to revamp the crops so they can luminescence when watering is needed, which can increase the efficiency of water using and saving the precious water resource. Even though bioluminescence has been widely used in our daily life, and related research was award by the Nobel Prize in 2008. The publics’ knowledge for bioluminescence is limited. People often confused it with other optical phenomena such as reflections, refractions, and diffraction. The proposed project is aimed for promoting the science popularization of bioluminescence. It focused on its definition, mechanisms, functions and applications. To achieve this goal, photos, films, sample demonstration and on site experiments will be provided to the participants. These new developed educational materials and activities have presented and hold in both primary and junior high schools in the Taipei City, New Taipei City, Ilan County, Kinmen County, Nantou County, Chiayi County, Kaohsiung City for promoting the popularity of bioluminescence (for details, please refer to the related session of the application form). The implementation of this project has additional fringe benefit, including the developed educational materials are accessible through internet, facilitating the use by school teachers and self-learners at home, and the participated graduate students and seed teachers have the opportunity to learn how to run a popular science promotion project.