Life Sciences Commons^™

An Activity Aimed At Improving Student Explanations Of Biological Mechanisms, Caleb M. Trujillo, Trevor R. Anderson, Nancy J. Pelaez

PIBERG Instructional Innovation Materials

This document is intended for use by instructors and their students. The activity contains steps to introduce students to the MACH model involving analyzing and discussing explanations about biological mechanisms. Initially, students read modified articles about biological mechanisms during class, although instructors may prefer to assign readings outside of class before the activity. During the activity, students are required to analyze the readings for evidence of research methods, analogies, context, and mechanisms. In so doing, students learn how to integrate the information pertaining to each of the MACH model components into a coherent explanation about their biological mechanism. After performing …

A Tetrahedral Version Of The Mach Model For Explaining Biological Mechanisms, Caleb M. Trujillo, Trevor R. Anderson, Nancy J. Pelaez

PIBERG Instructional Innovation Materials

This document is intended for both instructors and students. Modified from the original MACH model this version, once cut and folded, creates a tetrahedral model that can conveniently be used as a teaching and learning tool to inform and guide students on how to write expert quality explanations of biological mechanisms. Each vertex of the tetrahedron represents a component of the model namely, Methods, Analogy, Context, and How. For a coherent and complete explanation about molecular mechanisms, it is important to integrate information pertaining to all four components of the model. The tetrahedral MACH model has been tested in both …

Misalignments: Challenges In Cultivating Science Faculty With Education Specialties In Your Department, Seth D. Bush, Nancy Pelaez, James A. Rudd Ii, Michael T. Stevens, Kimberly D. Tanner, Kathy S. Williams

PIBERG Publications

Science Faculty with Education Specialties (SFES) are increasingly being hired across the United States. However, little is known about the motivations for SFES hiring or the potential or actual impact of SFES. In the context of a recent national survey of US SFES, we investigated SFES perceptions about these issues. Strikingly, perceptions about reasons for hiring SFES were poorly aligned with perceptions about potential and actual contributions reported by SFES themselves, and the advice they extended to beginning SFES was varied. While preparation of future teachers and departmental teaching needs were common reasons offered for SFES hiring, the potential and …

Hexapod Herald - Vol. 26, No. 6, December 2014

Hexapod Herald and Other Entomology Department Newsletters

Contents: Welcome - Congratulations - Grants - Publications - Meeting an Off-Campus Students - Faculty News - Blasts from the Past - Calendar of Events

Improving The Efficacy Of Web-Based Educational Outreach In Ecology, Gregory R. Goldsmith, Andrew D. Fulton, Colin D. Witherill, Javier F. Espeleta

Biology, Chemistry, and Environmental Sciences Faculty Articles and Research

Scientists are increasingly engaging the web to provide formal and informal science education opportunities. Despite the prolific growth of web-based resources, systematic evaluation and assessment of their efficacy remains limited. We used clickstream analytics, a widely available method for tracking website visitors and their behavior, to evaluate 60,000 visits over three years to an educational website focused on ecology. Visits originating from search engine queries were a small proportion of the traffic, suggesting the need to actively promote websites to drive visitation. However, the number of visits referred to the website per social media post varied depending on the social …

Hexapod Herald - Vol. 26, No. 5, October 2014

Hexapod Herald and Other Entomology Department Newsletters

Content: Welcome - Publications - Faculty News - Meeting an Off-Campus Student - Grants and Other Funding - Bruner Club News - Student News - Travel - BUGFEST Success

Mother Convict Cichlids Inflict More Bites Upon An Intruder In Hot Temperatures, Jesse L. Heckendorf

STAR Program Research Presentations

Convict cichlids (Archocentrus nigrofasciatus) have developed to be extremely good parents by protecting their brood. Parental care leads to aggressive biting, chasing, and gill flaring to intimidate known predators. In this experiment, we show that environmental factors, such as the changing of temperature in this case, affect a female convict cichlid’s aggression toward caring for her offspring when an intruder is introduced. Females attack more in warmer water.

Hexapod Herald - Vol. 26, No. 4, August 2014

Hexapod Herald and Other Entomology Department Newsletters

Contents: Welcome - Congratulations - Faculty News - Publications - Grants - Travel - Meet an Off-Campus Student - Student News

Case Study: From Gummy Bears To Celery Stalks: Diffusion And Osmosis, Kevin M. Bonney

Publications and Research

The article describes a case study which interperses information on diffusion and osmosis with content review and knowledge application questions, as well as simple experiment that can be conducted without the use of a laboratory. Topics discussed include biological membranes, the use of gummy bears to demonstrate osmosis and osmosis in animal cells. Also mentioned is osmosis in plants. It notes that the case study was developed for use in an introductory undergraduate biology course.

Hexapod Herald - Vol. 26, No. 3, June 2014

Hexapod Herald and Other Entomology Department Newsletters

Content: Welcome - Congratulations - Faculty News - Grants - Publications - Meet an Off-Campus Student - Student News

To What Extent Is The Established Conceptual Framework Of Animal Behaviour Portrayed In Textbooks?, Andrea M. K. Bierema, Renee S. Schwartz

Research and Creative Activities Poster Day

In 1963, Tinbergen revolutionized the study of animal behaviour by revamping the conceptual framework of the discipline. His framework suggests an integration of four questions: causation, ontogeny, survival value, and evolution. The National Research Council Committee on Undergraduate Biology Education to Prepare Research Scientists for the 21st Century (2003) suggests alignment between current research and undergraduate education. The purpose of this study, therefore, is to determine if the conceptual framework used by animal behaviour scientists, as presented in current primary literature, aligns with what students are exposed to in undergraduate biology education. After determining the most commonly listed textbooks from …

Understanding The Neuronal Controls Behind Heart Rate And Respiration, Sowmya Anjur

Faculty Publications & Research

Students in the course Physiology and Disease at the Illinois Mathematics and Science Academy learn physiology by designing, executing and evaluating their own experiments based on evidence. This semester, students designed laboratory experiments that involved the use of the same type of exercise to increase both heart rate and respiration rate. Students will collect quantitative data from these experiments to make conclusions regarding the correlation of heart rate and respiration rate. This will be followed by student research into the neuronal controls in the brain that were responsible for these correlations.

Hexapod Herald - Vol. 26, No. 2, April 2014

Hexapod Herald and Other Entomology Department Newsletters

Contents: Welcome - Congratulations - Grants - Publications - Faculty News - Meet an Off-Campus Student - Student News - Bruner Club News - Meeting/Workshop News - Buzzing along - Calendar of Events

Graduate Research Innovation Awards Encourage Young Scientists To Ask Bold Questions, Gail Wells

Joint Fire Science Program Digests

The Joint Fire Science Program (JFSP), in partnership with the Association for Fire Ecology, offers Graduate Research Innovation (GRIN), awards yearly to a handful of top-quality graduate students conducting research in fire science. GRIN awards are intended to nurture the next generation of fire and fuels scientists and managers, enhance their professional development, help them become engaged with their community of peers, and equip them to tackle the fire and fuels management challenges of today and tomorrow. To earn a GRIN award, master’s and doctoral students are invited to submit succinct four-page proposals for original research in fire ecology, management, …

Systems Thinking With Biology Models, Joseph Dauer

DBER Speaker Series

The recent AAAS call to improve undergraduate biology education suggested university instruction should focus on teaching core concepts like matter and energy, evolution, and systems and core competences like quantitative reasoning, modeling and integrating disciplines. My research has focused on how undergraduate biology students organize their knowledge of biological systems and how they reason about the myriad interactions and potential outcomes inherent to these systems. I will report ongoing research into students’ model construction during an introductory biology course and during clinical interviews 2 years after the course. My colleagues and I have found students’ models change dramatically in both …

Hexapod Herald - Vol. 26, No. 1, February 2014

Hexapod Herald and Other Entomology Department Newsletters

Content: Welcome - Congratulations - Grants - Publications - Meet an Off-Campus Student - Faculty News - Bruner Club News - Blasts from the Past - Condolences (Dr. John (Jack) Campbell) - Retirement Receptions

Wrinkling In Buckling And A Thin Sheet, Narayanan Menon

Patterns Around Us

Module 1: Euler Buckling

Learning Objectives:

• What is an instability? A sudden change in behaviour in response to a small change in conditions.

• Instabilities usually involve a change in symmetry from a more symmetric situation to a less symmetric one

• The mechanism for an instability usually involves two competing forces (one force stabilizing the symmetric state, and the other one destabilizing it), with one suddenly winning the contest

• These competing forces in thin objects are often the forces of compression (destabilizing force - favors buckling or wrinkling) and of bending (stabilizing force).

Understanding by data collapse, the power of using …

Genetic Modification Of Plants, Alice Cheung, Hen-Ming Wu

Science and Engineering Saturday Seminars

No abstract provided.

A Course-Based Research Experience: How Benefits Change With Increased Investment In Instructional Time, Christopher D. Shaffer, Consuelo J. Alvarez, April E. Bednarski, David Dunbar, Anya L. Goodman, Catherine Reinke, Anne G. Rosenwald, Michael J. Wolyniak, Cheryl Bailey, Daron Barnard, Christopher Bazinet, Dale L. Beach, James E.J. Bedard, Satish Bhalla, John Braverman, Martin Burg, Vidya Chandrasekaran, Hui-Min Chung, Kari Clase, Randall J. Dejong, Justin R. Diangelo, Chunguang Du, Todd T. Eckdahl, Heather Eisler, Julia A. Emerson, Amy Frary, Donald Frohlich, Yuying Gosser, Shubha Govind, Adam Haberman, Amy T. Hark, Charles Hauser, Arlene Hoogewerf, Laura L.M. Hoopes, Carina E. Howell, Diana Johnson, Christopher J. Jones, Lisa Kadlec, Marian Kaehler, S. Catherine Silver Key, Adam Kleinschmit, Nighat P. Kokan, Olga Kopp, Gary Kuleck, Judith Leatherman, Jane Lopilato, Christy Mackinnon, Juan Carlos Martinez-Cruzado, Gerard Mcneil, Stephanie Mel, Hemlata Mistry, Alexis Nagengast, Paul Overvoorde, Don W. Paetkau, Susan Parrish, Celeste N. Peterson, Mary Preuss, Laura K. Reed, Dennis Revie, Srebrenka Robic, Jennifer Roecklein-Canfield, Michael R. Rubin, Kenneth Saville, Stephanie Schroeder, Karim Sharif, Mary Shaw, Gary Skuse, Christopher D. Smith, Mary A. Smith, Sheryl T. Smith, Eric Spana, Mary Spratt, Aparna Sreenivasan, Joyce Stamm, Paul Szauter, Jeffrey S. Thompson, Matthew Wawersik, James Youngblom, Leming Zhou, Elaine R. Mardis, Jeremy Buhler, Wilson Leung, David Lopatto, Sarah C.R. Elgin

Faculty Publications

There is widespread agreement that science, technology, engineering, and mathematics programs should provide undergraduates with research experience. Practical issues and limited resources, however, make this a challenge. We have developed a bioinformatics project that provides a course-based research experience for students at a diverse group of schools and offers the opportunity to tailor this experience to local curriculum and institution-specific student needs. We assessed both attitude and knowledge gains, looking for insights into how students respond given this wide range of curricular and institutional variables. While different approaches all appear to result in learning gains, we find that a significant …

Lack Of Quantitative Training Among Early-Career Ecologists: A Survey Of The Problem And Potential Solutions, F. Barraquand, T. G. Ezard, P. Søgaard Jørgensen, Naupaka B. Zimmerman, S. Chamberlain, R. Salguero-Gómez, T. J. Curran, T. Poisot

Biology Faculty Publications

Proficiency in mathematics and statistics is essential to modern ecological science, yet few studies have assessed the level of quantitative training received by ecologists. To do so, we conducted an online survey. The 937 respondents were mostly early-career scientists who studied biology as undergraduates. We found a clear self-perceived lack of quantitative training: 75% were not satisfied with their understanding of mathematical models; 75% felt that the level of mathematics was “too low” in their ecology classes; 90% wanted more mathematics classes for ecologists; and 95% more statistics classes. Respondents thought that 30% of classes in ecology-related degrees should be …

Examining Sea Level Rise Scenarios Through Mock Marsh Transects, Chesapeake Bay National Estuarine Research Reserve In Virginia

Reports

Grades: 9-12

Subjects: Earth Science | Environmental Science | Oceanography

Students will work in groups to survey a mock, locally relevant, marsh habitat that includes dominant plant community types. Students will use elevation data to construct and interpret a profile of the mock landscape. Students will understand local vegetative species found in each marsh zone, and how sea level rise may impact the marsh habitat. Students will be able to interpret elevation and elevation changes in a real world, hands-on example.

Assessing The County’S Readiness For A Climate Related Event, Chesapeake Bay National Estuarine Research Reserve In Virginia

Reports

Grade Level: 9-12

Subject Area: Earth Science, Environmental Science

Students will participate in a role playing scenario in which they represent different stakeholder groups, including emergency responders, land planners, and watermen. Using a variety of provided resources, students are given a task to present on, whether it be creating an evacuation route for their county and identifying shelters, establishing new areas for development, or locations for the best catch of crabs in the year 2050.

Lesson plan has 2 parts.

In Memoriam: Robert Lloyd Rausch—A Life In Nature And Field Biology, 1921–2012, Eric P. Hoberg

Harold W. Manter Laboratory of Parasitology: Faculty and Staff Publications

During his distinguished career, Robert Rausch, a man of great integrity and principles, served in his lifetime as a singular ambassador for parasitology in a broad international arena. Robert was a friend to many, was honored to be considered an equal among the nomadic bands of Nunamiut traversing the Brooks Range 60 years ago, and will be long remembered for the strength of his science and his perceptive views of the natural world.

Transfer Of The U.S. National Parasite Collection [Announcement], Eric P. Hoberg, Anna J.. Phillips

Harold W. Manter Laboratory of Parasitology: Faculty and Staff Publications

In 2013, an agreement was articulated between the United States Department of Agriculture/Agricultural Research Service (ARS) and the Smithsonian Institution to transfer the National Parasite Collection (NPC) in its entirety (fluid specimens, slide specimens, frozen tissues, and reprints) to the National Museum of Natural History (NMNH) in Washington, D.C. Current collections staff, including senior curator Dr. Eric P. Hoberg and support scientists/managers from the ARS, will be transferred with the collection and, with adjunct appointments in the NMNH, will provide continuity and assistance for curation and accessibility during and after the relocation. New curatorial controls will be established under NMNH …

Transfer Of The United States National Parasite Collection [Announcement], Eric P. Hoberg, Anna J. Phillips

Harold W. Manter Laboratory of Parasitology: Faculty and Staff Publications

In 2013, an agreement was articulated between the United States Department of Agriculture/Agricultural Research Service (ARS) and the Smithsonian Institution to transfer the United States National Parasite Collection in its entirety (fluid specimens, slide specimens, frozen tissues and reprints) to the National Museum of Natural History (NMNH) in Washington, D.C. Current collections staff, including senior curator Dr. Eric P. Hoberg and support scientists/managers from the ARS will be transferred with the collection and with adjunct appointments in the NMNH will provide continuity and assistance for curation and accessibility during and after the relocation. New curatorial controls will be established under …

Why American Higher Education Needs Parasitologists, John J. Janovy Jr.

John Janovy Publications

Addresses four topics that characterize the discipline of parasitology and are largely missing from our national conversation in the United States about education, especially at the college and university level. Those topics are the production of transferable skills; our perceptions of the world, especially the natural world; access to reasonably difficult problems in natural settings; and intellectual epidemiology, or the movement of ideas, innovations, and cultural items through populations. These topics have been a part of the author's discussions with fellow parasitologists for at least half a century, beginning with his choice to pursue a graduate degree under the supervision …