Web Wizards!

Webmaster Dennis's Web Picks

Welcome, oh seeker of knowledge! I, Webmaster Dennis, have summoned you here to travel the vast expanses of the World Wide Web and beyond for the wonders that lie in my cyber realm. Seatbelts buckled? Hair brushed? Teeth combed? Here we go!

This is a listing of the websites Mark mentioned on the latest episodes of the Imagination Station, along with some bonus sites and the sites we explore in our new book "Web Wizards," coming in Spring, 2000!

First, you want to know how to find KidsArt. Kim Solga on the Imagination Station last season (she was a guest on a whopping four shows!). On the latest episodes, Kim selected 40 pieces of art for the Master's Gallery. You'll find lots of neat artwork by kids at her website, plus other great art ideas.

Show 401 "Gorilla Games"

Beyond Chess Tired of the same old game of chess? Beyond Chess has alternate rules and creative board configurations to give you new challenges. There are links to other sites that will help beginners to grand masters get more out of their chess game.

Useful Swahili WordsYou can learn the basics of speaking Swahili online!

There's also Moja, Swahili for "one," which has lots of links to dictionaries, lessons, and literature to help you learn Swahili.

Gorillas Online has everything you want to know about gorillas, and links to gorilla web sites around the world.

Show 402 "Giraffe Gym"

The Giraffe Project tells stories of people who are "sticking their necks out" to help their community. You'll find information about real heroes (not just celebrities) in the world and how to join the Giraffe Project yourself.

The WickedGiraffe. Wicked as in Way Cool. This is a great site by a true fan of the gentle giraffe.

Show 403 "Gingerbread George"

Ginger Kids is a group that encourages kids to learn about other cultures by baking cookies from different lands.

Show 404 "Guitar Ghost"

I don't have to tell you that Goosebumps is a very successful series of scary paperback books by R.L. Stine. But did you know it's also a very cool and very fun website? There are games and book samples, and very cool web animations.

Show 405 "Galileo's Grin"

Galileo discovered many of the moons of Jupiter. The Galileo space probe was launched in 1989. It was originally intended to study Jupiter and its moons from 1995-1997. However, it has continued to function well and so it is now in the middle of a second mission to study the moons Europa and Io. There are almost 2000 pages of data and pictures available at the Nasa Jet Propulsion Laboratory website.

Show 406 "Hilarious Harry"

A great website for quick laughs is the official Droodles Home Page. Droodles are those simple cartoons that you do with a few quick strokes. The name of the drawing usually takes longer to say than the drawing itself, like "A boat arriving too late to save a witch from drowning," which consists of two triangles.

Show 407 "Hercules' Helmet"

You can find anything you want to know about mythology on the web at the Perseus Project. This is a huge website all about ancient Greece and Rome, and it has links to all the best sites.

Show 408 "Hiccup Headquarters"

This is a Web Wizards day (ya-hoo!), featuring a website created by the Director of the Imagination Station television show and all-around nice guy Douglas DeVore (he's also Engineer Doug). Doug and his family are gold miners, and while he was growing up he spent a lot of time working in and around the tiny town of Chicken, Alaska.

Speaking of hiccups, if you have questions about what makes your body tick and what makes it sick, there's a great site called Kidshealth. It has lots of information about how to stay fit and easy to understand descriptions of common illnesses. This is where we found some of the information about the hiccups.

Show 409 "Hovering Hippo"

A fun website for information on animals is the Sea World/Busch Gardens online animal database. This site is overflowing with animal facts, games and puzzles.

Show 410 "Huge Hug"

While traversing the 'net I found Peace - a Poem at the Candlelight Stories website. This is a fun site that has stories, games, lists of organizations and ways kids can help the planet. You can also sign up for an international Pen Pal!

Show 411 "Icecream Icebergs"

This was a Web Wizards episode, featuring the Balloon HQ website with everything you ever wanted to know about twisting balloon animals.

Show 412 "Intellectual Insect"

Are you ready to get yucky? I mean really yucky? Check out The Yuckiest Site on the Internet. You can join Club Yucky and do all kinds of fun and occasionally gross science projects

Show 413 "Intergallactic Iguana"

This was a Web Wizards show (I is for Inflation!). You can find all kinds of cool information about everything having to do with twisting balloon animals or decorating with balloons at BalloonHQ.

You might also want to check out a live Iguana Cam, updated every 10 minutes during Pacific daytime hours, Monday through Friday. I don't know why you'd want to check this out. Just a hunch.

Show 414 "Ingenious Icon"

The outstanding science program Nova has a fabulous website with pages based on many of their shows. The program Einstein Revealed has a wealth of information about Albert Einstein the scientist and Albert Einstein the man.

Show 415 "Imagination Island"

If you're in the mood to fly off to Fiji, or walk in Waikiki, then surf on over to the Pacific Islands website. This is a central page that has links to hundreds of other websites about the islands. Use the Countries link to find out more about the beautiful islands in the Pacific.

Show 416 "Jazz on Jupiter"

We found a lot of the information for this show on a site called Fun Trivia. Trivia is information that's fun to know, but not necessarily useful. The facts are divided into categories such as animals, space and entertainment. Jokes and humor, too!

Show 417 "Jiggling Jellyfish"

Go to www.aqua.org to visit the very cool website for the National Aquarium in Baltimore, Maryland. You can read all about jellyfish and practically any other kind of underwater creature you can think of!

Show 418 "Jolly Tamales"

This was a Web Wizards episode (J is for Jukebox Jive-a-ditty Jamboree). Which is a sneaky way of getting MIDI Music in, since M is for Museum. Midi is the Musical Instrument Digital Interface, which means it's a special way of writing music for computers to play. You can download entire symphonies in one one-hundredth the time it would take to download a recording, because you're only downloading electronic "sheet music." Your web browser becomes the orchestra, and plays the song for you.

And not to slight our friends, the Jolly Tamales, you can check out the website for the Justborn candy company, makers of Hot Tamales, Jolly Joes, Mike and Ike, and Marshmallow Peeps! (I just like saying that...I'm going to say it again...Marshmallow Peeps!)

Show 419 "Jurassic Jogger"

If you love incredible 3D art, and you love dinosaurs, you can't find a better website than Dinotopia. This site is based on the phenomenal books by Graham Baese. You'll find games, stories and illustrations all in the wonderful land of Dinotopia.

Show 420 "Jetstream Jouneys"

The Weather Underground at the University of Michigan has a great website for finding out the current weather or learning all about it.

You can also find rotating science exhibits with cool weather experiments at the Franklin Institute website.

Nick Walker is the Musical Weather Dude.

Show 421 "Koala Kingdom"

Koalas come from Australia. For just about any country, you can try "www.country.com," and you'll probably find an interesting web site put together by the national tourist board to encourage people to come visit them. There's a great site at www.australia.com

You can also find just about any big company by entering "www.company.com." Sometimes it's just boring stuff, but catsup maker Del Monte, for example, has a great kids area on their website with games, recipes and more. The URL is (surprise, surprise) www.delmonte.com.

Show 422 "Kissing Killers"

Did you know that one of my heroes, the late Jacques Cousteau, and his Cousteau Society has a website just for kids? It's called the Dolphin Log, and it's full of information about the society's ongoing efforts to study and protect life under the sea.

Show 423 "Knocking Knuckles"

This was a Web Wizards day, but the website was the "You Are Here" page (K is for Kistler).

Knock knock! Who's there? Annie. Annie who? Annie good joke sites on the Internet? (Better than that last joke?) There are a lot of great joke sites out there. A good one for families is the Family Humor Archive. Lots of funny jokes, but nothing naughty or hurtful to others.

Show 424 "Kooky Keyhole

Two comic book authors, Josh Neufeld and Dean Haspiel, put up a website about their comic book called Keyhole. You can visit the site and see sample pages from their comics! This might inspire you to create your own Internet comic book website!

Show 425 "Kayak Kid"

If you want to know more about kayaking, check out American Canoe Association website. The website has information for canoers, kayakers, and rafters. You'll find water safety tips and get information about kayaking clubs in your area.

Show 426 "Lunar Labyrinth"

This is a Web Wizards day (L is for Laboratory). Check out the way out science stuff at the official website of the comic strip You Can with Beakman and Jax.

And for an amazing maze, check out the University of Michigan Maze Maker Home Page. You can make lots of different mazes in a variety of shapes and sizes. But print them out! Don't draw on the computer screen!

Show 427 "Ladybug Launch"

You'll find some interesting information about ladybugs from the Canadian Nature Federation. Use the Search button on the website to locate the ladybug page. Illustrations and descriptions help you to identify the different species of ladybug found in North America. You can even help in a scientific study by reporting sightings of ladybugs in your area!

Show 428 "Laughing Lasagna"

You name it, there's an organization for it, and they probably have a web page. Did you know that there's a National Pasta Association? Check out their recipes and kids' pages.

Show 429 "Laser Lightbulbs"

Physics is the study of forces, like gravity, and how they interact with things, like holding you on the Earth. You can learn about Light (including lasers) and other natural forces at Rader's Physics 4 Kids website. This site explains really cool stuff in plain English so that you don't have to be a rocket scientist to understand rockets or science!

Show 430 "Lunging Lizard"

Many of you have pet lizards, and some of you may be thinking of getting one. Before you choose any pet, it's a good idea to learn about them, how to care for them, what they like to do, and figure out whether they're the best pet for you and your family. The AcmePet website has a large library of fact cards that tells you about any type of pet you can own.

Show 431 "Magical Macaroni"

Two different pasta shows in one season! No problem, though. After you visit the National Pasta Association, try Aaron's Pasta Palazzo, where you'll find great recipes for handmade pasta and meals you can make with it.

Show 432 "Maniac Mouse"

If you love rollicking rodents, check out the Hamster Dance. This site is not educational. It is not scientific. There aren't any games or contests. It's just plain fun.

Show 433 "Maestro Manatee"

This was Web Wizards day (M is for Museum). Here are, well, a bunch to check out.

World Wide Arts Resources
This is an amazing list of all kinds of art museums, art schools, and art-you-name-it! It lists museums alphabetically and geographically (by country or city).

Birmingham Museum of Art
The Birmingham Museum of Art in Birmingham, Alabama contributed many of the images that appeared on Mark Kistler's Imagination Station.

The National Gallery of Art
This museum in Washington, DC also donated images for the Imagination Station. You can link from here to other museums in Washington D.C. This museum is just on part of an incredible online program provided by The Smithsonian Institution.

The Indianapolis Museum of Art
Lots of cool stuff!

Virtual Tour of Museums and Exhibits Index
Enjoy Over 200 Tour sites including Museums, Virtual Reality, RealTime Events, Multimedia Exhibits and Journeys.

Louvre Museum
The Louvre Museum in Paris is housed in the palace of King Louis XIV, and features some of the most beautiful art treasures in the world.

The Seven Wonders of the Ancient World
Most people know that there are Seven Wonders of the Ancient World, but can you name them? This cool website includes some ancient wonders that didn't make the top seven, some modern wonders and natural wonders of the world.

Show 434 "Migrating Martian"

Do you have a question about Mars? Why not ask the most knowledgeable people on our planet? The scientists working on the Mars exploration project will answer your questions on line! First, read through the archives of questions to be sure that your question hasn't been answered already. If it hasn't, send it in! The scientists will post the answer for everyone to read!

Show 435 "Moon Mobile"

You can learn all about the Lunar Rover and other specialized space-going equipment at the NASA Automation, Robotics and Simulation Division web site. You'll find pictures and descriptions of robots, vehicles and training simulators that are being used right now, both in space and for research and rescue operations on Earth.

Show 436 "Nasa Ned"

This was a show featuring the Web Wizards segment "N is for NASA." We've listed several National Aeronautics and Space Agency websites, but the central site is www.nasa.gov.

Show 437 "Neon Numbers"

If you want to learn about how neon lights work, or any other chemistry information, check out the Chemistry for Kids website. You'll find plain English explanations of cool and complex chemical reactions. You'll also find games and suggestions for science experiments you can try at home.

Show 438 "Nice Neanderthal"

Here's a site with another cool caveman, Alley Oop! This comic first appeared in 1933, and it's been making people laugh ever since.

Actually, this is kind of a sneaky way to tell you about the Comics.com website, provided by United Media, where you can read up to a month's worth of nearly one hundred of your favorite comics from newspapers across the country.

Show 439 "Noble Nose"

Websites often bring together different ideas, creating interesting combinations. When Webmaster Dennis searched for sites that concerned drawing and noses, he found a site called simply "The Nose." It's a terrific site devoted to the art of caricature - a caricature is a picture of someone where certain physical features are exaggerated to make a funny picture. The Nose website has links to sites featuring many different caricature artists, showing a number of different styles.

Show 440 "Noisy Nest"

You can learn all about birds, their habits and habitats by visiting the official web page of the Audubon Society. Founded in 1905 and named for James Audubon, the organization has been working for a century to preserve wildlife and natural environments. It maintains around 100 wildlife sanctuaries.

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Updated February 23, 2007