A Webibliography of Microbiology Blogs

There are many places on the web to read about microbiology and molecular biology. From science news breaks to commentary on research and everything in between, below are my favorite blogs and sites devoted to the field (other than my own, of course). This list is often referred to as a blogroll, although here I am calling it a webibliography (a condensed version of the phrase used by a friend and fellow blogger, Michael Goeller, at the Kenilworthian).

My Top 5 Greatest Hits (with a bullet!)

Microbe World: A terrific hub for everything microbiology. This site contains blogs and news feeds, as well as excellent podcasts such as TWiM (This Week in Microbiology). Sister podcasts include the more specific TWiV and TWiP (This Week in Virology and Parasites, respectively).

MicroBEnet: A great blog, which I have included in this greatest hits collection for the reason given in the note below. This blog focuses on various aspects of microbiology, with a particular focus on those microbes that share our dwellings (the microbiology of the built environment, as the author himself describes it.) This focus is connected with a program setup by the Sloan Foundation.

Of particular interest in the MicroBEnet blog is the Microbiology Blogroll post, which is similar to the very collection of websites you are currently reading. The blogroll post is much more comprehensive than my own list (although it lacks the CSHL blog), although it is unannotated. Instead, the most recent post for each blog is shown.

Small Things Considered: This blog, which seems to have a title that plays off of an NPR game show, is an excellent read. It is supported by the American Society for Microbiology (ASM). Here you can find microbiology news ranging from the TWiM press family, as well as reviews and commentary on primary literature (look for the research blogging icon) and everything in between. 

Research Blogging, Biology: A sort of biology blog aggregation site which lists posts from a variety of authors and topics with a common thread: they all are either review or commentary on primary research. You may have noticed the research blogging icon on other sites; all of these posts are also listed at this website. 

CSHL Lab Dish:  A news blog for Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory, a preeminent research organization (can be considered the birthplace of molecular biology). Although infrequently updated, the quality posts are worth the wait. My favorite are the SCIENCE SHORTS: brief and straightforward 5 minute talks on a particular topic, prepared for a general audience.

Select 'Read More' to see the rest of my annotated list of microbiology websites. Do you have a favorite site that I have missed? Please feel free to share it by leaving a comment below!

Microbiology, Molecular Biology, Biochemistry, and other Science News, Blogs, and Sites:

Twisted Bacteria: An interesting and fun to read microbiology blog that covers a wide variety of topics.

Like the Microbiology Blogroll at microBEnet blog (see above) and my own post, Twisted Bacteria has also gathered a list of great microbiology websites and blogs. This top 20 list is lightly annotated, and has the banner for each site shown (to give you an idea of the style of the site, I suppose.) Some of the sites featured in the list are in foreign tongues, such as French and Spanish. Of course, this is not a problem for the 'cultured' microbiologist (forgive the pun).

Bad Science: A blog by Dr. Ben Goldacre, author of a book by the same name. The theme hear is correcting mischaracterization of scientific results by the press (and scientists as well, I suppose), especially when it comes to clinical trials. Dr.

Lab Rat: A blog devoted to everything bacteria, hosted by Scientific American. Occasional forays into non microbial topics that are interesting nonetheless.

Biochemistry Blog: A self-described blog with multiple contributing authors, many of whom are also associated with the excellent site ScienceSeeker. Although the authors do not take advantage of the 'research blogging' icon (to integrate their posts with that site), this blog nonetheless has a lot of commentary on primary research, which is something I have attempted at this blog myself.

E. coli Blog: A blog detailing E. coli outbreaks and epidemiology of the diseases this microbe causes. More than just new breaks, each outbreak and product recall is covered in great detail.

BitesizeBio: A great well-written blog, geared more towards biologists and other scientists. Career advice for grad students, useful tips for laboratory technicians, and interesting stories for everyone.

Of Bacteria and Men: True to the title, this blog covers both the bacteria and the scientists that study them. Another nice feature at this blog are the book reviews, both science fiction books and nonfiction depictions of researchers themselves.

The Biology Blog: A wide ranging biology blog written by a graduate student. A heavy focus on molecular biology (close to my own heart) as well as tips for other scientists (including a creative use of Minecraft, perhaps)

Molecular Matter: With an interesting layout (I am fond of the twitter integration) and eye-popping visuals, this blog has commentary on primary research papers in well developed posts. 

The Artful Amoeba: Another good read from Scientific American, this blog does not have a strict focus on microbiology but does often have good article on the topic now and then.