Science and Mathematics Education Commons^™

1. Types Of Alignment: Presentations & Demos Assignment, Sarah O'Leary-Driscoll

Sequence Alignments

Pairwise Alignment: DNA

Pairwise Alignment: Protein

Multiple Sequence Alignment: DNA

Multiple Sequence Alignment: Protein

Effects Of Soil Erosion Barriers On Percent Cover And Sediment Size, Michael Perez

STAR Program Research Presentations

Ranching began on Santa Rosa Island in the 1840’s, introducing nonnative megafauna that put selective grazing pressures on endemic species. Dense groves of island oak (Q. tomentella) are aid in sediment deposition and retention. A current restoration effort, involved installing soil erosion barriers, known as wattles, to prevent sediment from being lost upslope and recruit plant growth whose root systems could further stabilize the slope. This experiment was designed to compare percent cover of vegetation growth in areas with and without soil erosion barriers. This was done using the line intercept method (n=42) on three meter transects, measuring …

Evaluating College Biology Laboratory Accommodations For Students With Blindness And Visual Impairments, Barbara Rae Heard

All Theses And Dissertations

Studies show that active participation in science laboratory activities promotes student learning. However, students with blindness and visual impairments (BVI) often confront obstacles to active participation in the required activities of the college biology laboratory. Legislation requires institutions of higher education to provide accommodations for students with disabilities, yet the institutions must also maintain the academic integrity of their courses and programs. While college biology instructors provide specific accommodations, such as tactile models and audible devices, to enable active participation by students with BVI, they do so without research-supported guidelines for best practices. This mixed methods study sought to evaluate …

Assessing Student Comprehension In Introductory Biology: A Comparison Of Free-Response And Multiple-True/False Exam Formats, Macy A. Potts, Brian Couch, Joanna K. Hubbard

UCARE Research Products

Question format is an important consideration when designing instruments to gauge student comprehension. In many lecture-style courses, instructors must decide how to effectively test a large group of students. Two common types of question formats used for introductory biology exams are free-response (FR) and multiple-true/false (MTF). FR questions include a question prompt which students respond to with essay-style answers. Conversely, MTF questions include an opening question stem with accompanying statements to be marked as either true or false. The goal of this study was to determine the advantages and disadvantages of FR and MTF question formats for assessing student comprehension …

1. "Investigating The Impact Of Changes In Carbon Dioxide Concentration On Ecosystems", Sarah O'Leary-Driscoll, Crystal Randall

Ecosystem Disruption & Climate Change

Question: Does the concentration of carbon dioxide affect air temperature in a closed environment?

2a: "Illinois Carbon Dioxide Emissions Activity", Sarah O'Leary-Driscoll, Crystal Randall

Ecosystem Disruption & Climate Change

Your goal for this activity is to compare the different sources of carbon dioxide emissions, stemming from the consumption of fossil fuels, in Illinois. To do this you will be working with data spanning from 1980 to 2012.

3: "The Current Extinction: Defaunation & Ecosystem Disruption", Sarah O'Leary-Driscoll, Crystal Randall

Ecosystem Disruption & Climate Change

Information taken from: Dirzo, R. et al (2014). Defaunation in the Anthropocene. Science, 345(401).

Scientists estimate, conservatively, that there are 5 to 9 million different animal species on the planet. But that number is continually changing, and unfortunately, dropping, as we are likely losing 11,000- 58,000 species annually, and evidence suggests that on average, there has been a decline of about 28% in terms of numbers of individuals within a species over the last four decades. Both of these statistics are vitally important. The critical nature of the first is perhaps more obvious, as total loss of a species is …

The Greenhouse Effect: Does The Concentration Of Carbon Dioxide Affect The Air Temperature In A Closed Environment?, Climate Science Investigations - Nasa

Ecosystem Disruption & Climate Change

The purpose of this lesson is to investigate the effect of carbon dioxide (CO2) concentration on air temperature in a closed environment.