February 1, 2008 (Vol. 28, No. 3)
URL:
http://phe.rockefeller.edu/barcode/blog
Rating:
Strong Points: Excellent articles
Weak Points: Nothing significant
Summary:
I’ve come a long way in my attitude toward blogs. Either I’m getting softer in my old age, or at least a few of them out there are getting better. This one gets my nod for its interesting offerings. Like other blogs, The Barcode of Life focuses on current events. The title of this one, while catchy, does little to describe the content of the site, which is reporting on short DNA sequences that can be used to identify organisms. This little niche is just about perfect for a site like this one, and the coverage is superb. Top articles at press time include a story on our lack of understanding of amphibian diversity, noninvasive methods of DNA extraction for tiny specimens, and a clever and interesting article entitled “Taxonomy Without Borders.” If you want a good read on an interesting topic, you really can’t go wrong with The Barcode of Life.