ScientificAmerican.com recently ranked the University of Utah's genetic Web site as one of the Internet's top five biology Web sites and one of the top 50 science and technology Web sites for 2003.
Described as having "more than enough information to transform you into a budding Watson or Crick in no time," the Web site was deemed one of the most valuable science and technology resources available on the Internet.
"It was honestly a total surprise to us," said Jennifer Logan, co-director of the Genetic Science Learning Center. "They (Scientific American magazine online) just chose a bunch of sites, over 1,000, to review and evaluated them and we came up on top."
The Genetic Science Learning Center's Web site was established in 1996 through the department of human genetics, with funding from the R. Harold Burton Foundation and the Howard Hughes Medical Institute.
According to ScientificAmerican.com, the "crowning jewel" of the university's site is the flash technology-enhanced interactive tour on genetic basics.
The initial goal of the Web site, Logan said, was to simplify complex scientific information in a fun and playful manner.
More than 40,000 visitors from more than 100 nations connect to the site every week. It's online at gslc.genetics.utah.edu.