Cell Division 

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Current Topic Paper- Biology

This is a one page paper assignment.  The goal of this paper is to:
1) Identify some current topic that deals with something that we have learned in class to that point.
2) Be able to describe a recent article related to that current topic (this can be a primary literature article or a newspaper/media article) in your own words and relate it back to what you learned in class
3) Give some sort of reflection or personal thoughts on that article
4) Be able to write in a clear, concise and grammatically correct fashion
You may choose one of these topics,
– Photosynthesis
-DNA ( ex : Replication, RNA)
– Genetic Inheritance
– Cell Division

Non-Hodgkin Lymphoma Cancer

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Poster Project On Burkitt Lymphoma – See Non-Hodgkin Lymphoma Cancer

The poster part of the project should include, at a minimum, the following information (5 points per section): • Introduction and general characteristics of the disease (take-home message). • Special susceptibility to suffer this cancer (i.e., white skin for melanoma, immunocompromised (HIV) for Kaposi sarcoma, etc.) Carcinogens involved? Chemical? Physical? Biological? Explain the mechanism in detail. Does this cancer have a hereditary component? If so, explain. • General characteristics of the tumor (where it originates, driver genes, subtypes, etc) • The signs and symptoms of the disease. Disease progression. Preferred sites of metastasis. What organ system(s) do metastasis affect? • Tests used to monitor the population as a preventive measure. Laboratory tests used to absolutely confirm the identity of the disease, i.e. biopsy with immunohistochemistry. Be specific for this cancer! • Methods used to reduce the incidence of the cancer (ie. Prevent second hand smoking, ban tobacco ads, etc.). • Treatment for the disease (talk about how it works and side effects). Life expectancy in 5 or 10 years after diagnosis with/without treatment. Is there a novel treatment available? If so, discuss the treatment, side effects etc. If no novel treatment is available, why not? Is work being done to develop one? • Current cases locally (San Diego/California/US when available) and globally (with incidence) B) Be VERY careful when referencing online sites. Each underscore, period, or capital letter must be exact, or we will not be able to find the site. Always check your references before reporting them by using the OPEN feature on your browser. If your reference will not open, it will not be counted toward your grade. It is important that the above information be complete, and that it be presented in a logical and orderly manner. If you don’t it will be obvious, and you will end up losing points (quality and effective communication: 10 of the 80 points). I do look at all of the posters in great detail. Your poster must be presented on a large, tri-fold, standing poster board.  When selecting online references remember that not all information on the Internet is reliable. Always try to use journal articles or governmental documents as the “authority,” and not rely on commercial sites (.com). Wikipedia, WebMD, Healthline, Mayo Clinic are NOT an acceptable references. Two references with the same URL except for the last part will be considered the same reference, like different pages in a book. Include all sources used; reference books and periodicals by a standard format. Be sure that you reference all photos/charts that you use on or below the item on the poster. A minimum of five reliable, scientific references (books, publications or Internet) plus any other references used. (10 of the 80 points) To report your sources, prepare a bibliography at the end of your poster presentation and number all references used. Then in the body of your poster, provide the number of the reference you used for information. This is called end notes, which you have probably used for other research papers. As with any report, be sure that you are not directly copying or simply paraphrasing material that you use. If you choose to use direct quotes from the article, you must use quotation marks. I will be checking the references, so be sure NOT to plagiarize! Any phrase longer than 5-6 words in length taken from the source, which is then copied and pasted in the presentation might be considered plagiarism. A one-page handout (brochure) that would be suitable to explain the critical aspects of the disease to the general public (15 points). Example of brochures are available at the bottom of this document. This brochure should include useful information starting with a brief introduction about the cancer and the organ affected, risk factors, information or aid for the identification of that tumor (need to know…), preventive tests you can take if you are at high risk, what if you are diagnosed with this cancer (tests to confirm diagnosis, treatment, …), etc. AIM: Try to think on a person that might have just discovered an abnormal growth on any site of his/her body. This person has zero knowledge about cancer or biology of cancer but he/she will need useful information about that cancer, diagnostics, what to do if the symptoms match with the description and what if he/she is finally diagnosed with cancer. THE POSTER PRESENTATION WILL TAKE PLACE AT THE END APRIL/ BEGINNING OF MAY (Please, get it done ASAP since you will be pretty busy at that point with other exams/finals). Specific dates will be announced after spring break. Late projects will not be accepted. You must be able to explain the poster in detail to other students (including non-Biol316 students, since posters will be displayed to the general public). There are five required parts of an Internet reference in order to receive full credit: • the author of the article, if available. • title of the article • the date written/updated • Internet address (URL). For example, https://www.cdc.gov/cancer/index.htm is the URL or reference for this page, which should show in your browser heading. An easy way to get this reference is to copy it from your browser and paste into your word processing program, so typos will not be made. • the date you visited the site. Guidelines for Poster Presentation Your presentation is an important means of exchanging information with your fellow students. We will be learning information from these presentations that they will be tested on at the end of the semester. Therefore, it is important that you do an effective presentation. Make an outline of the information you need to present, decide how you will arrange the poster for each point you need to make. Do not write in complete sentences; use short phrases as a memory jogger of the points you need to make. Use visual aids when possible *do not forget to explain at the bottom of each picture/chart your point and reference the original source. PRACTICE, PRACTICE, PRACTICE! Due to the time constraints, it is very important that you practice delivering your presentation (5 minutes) and time it to see how long it takes. Adjust the content accordingly during practice to fill the allotted time. Be prepared! Your aim is to attract the interest of the general public. Therefore, the poster needs to be well structured and appealing. There is an ideal balance between too little and too much information on a poster. The poster should require some explanation in order to hold the interest of the audience, but visual aids are pretty helpful in providing the most important information in a very effective manner. Use fonts that will be large enough to read; Differentiate main titles from the body on each section (use bold, underline, bigger fonts, etc.)

Cancer and The Cell Cycle

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Cancer and The Cell Cycle

Science in the News
Biology 101 Assignment
You will need to complete a paper on a recent magazine or newspaper article about biology. You may also use a TV or radio story if you can find a transcript of the story. The paper should be approximately 1000 words, however, I am more concerned with whether the paper contains all the content it needs than the actual word count. This assignment is due Friday, April 14 before midnight. Assignments must be turned in to the turn-it-in dropbox on Blackboard.
Assignment Requirements:
1. Include the title, authors, and source of the news story.
2. Summarize the story in your own words.
3. Discuss why this science study is important, and who it will impact.
4. Discuss how what you have read is related to what you learned in class.
5. Write about how you reacted to this story, and include what questions it raised for you.
6. Include a reference page for the article you are discussing and any other references (e.g., your textbook) that you might have used.
7. Attach a copy of the news story you used.
References should be in APA format. More information can be found here: https://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/resource/560/01/
Briefly, you should cite an article as shown below.
Author, A. A., Author, B. B., & Author, C. C. (Year). Title of article. Title of Periodical, volume
number(issue number), pages.
When you use ideas (not just quotes, but any ideas) from an author in the text, you should follow your information with the author and the year. For example, if you were citing your textbook, you might say “Previous studies on coffee’s effects on people have produced conflicting results (Bozzone and Green, 2014).” The words “et al.” are a Latin abbreviation for “and the others.” You use them when you don’t list all the authors (usually when there are more than two). Please do not use more than one quote in your paper.
Grading
1. All parts of the paper are present. ___ ___/10
2. The summary is complete, accurate, and not plagiarized. ___ ___/20
3. Clear connections between class and the article are made. ___ ___/20
4. A thoughtful reaction and relevant questions are included. ___ ___/20
5. The references are cited correctly. ___ ___/10
6. Spelling and grammar are correct. ___ ___/20

 Make observations and discriminate between scientific and pseudoscientific explanations

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Discussion
Make observations and discriminate between scientific and pseudoscientific explanations  weigh evidence and make decisions based on strengths and limitations of scientific knowledge and the scientific method  use knowledge of biological principles, the scientific method, and appropriate technologies to ask relevant questions, develop hypotheses, design and conduct experiments, interpret results, and draw conclusions Directions: 1. Select one of the following topics: A. Genetically modified food. Humans are now capable of manipulating the genetic codes of certain plants and animals in our own food chain. What are some of the foods in your supermarket that have been genetic altered? How have they been altered and why? What does sound science have to say about potential risks to the environment and human health, associated with GMOs (genetically modified organisms)? Be careful to search for the science in scientific journals rather than GMO industry’s own websites and reports! Based upon your research, do you think there is a clear answer as to how safe these foods might be to humans and the environment? Clearly explain your reasoning. Note that this should be a discussion of genetic alteration of organisms by laboratory methods (such as gene insertions, etc.) and not by selective breeding (breeding one animal or plant with another for desired traits).
Find 3 scholarly, scientific articles related to your topic and the questions described in 1. While you are definitely encouraged to use web sites, books, and other materials as resources to help you learn about your subject, note that the assignment is to find three published scholarly articles; This means articles in professional scientific journals. Encyclopedias, Q&A or “How-To” web sites may NOT be used as references in any collegiate research paper (you should also be critical of the information they supply as most of these sites are open-sourced – i.e., not verified). Assistance with evaluating web resources can be found at http://sites.umuc.edu/library/libhow/scholarlyjournals.cfm. For more on what constitutes “scholarly” see the UMUC library page on searching for scholarly articles at http://libguides.umuc.edu/science and my Guide to References and Citations under Course Resources > Profs Helpful Docs. Lastly, note that any resources I have given you in the above descriptions do not count toward the required three articles. 3. Write a paper of 1000-2000 words (not including your references), double spaced, in 12 point Times New Roman font. Note that I am happy to approve a larger word allowance if you feel you need it. Your paper’s format should be as follows: First, clearly summarize each of the three articles, making it very clear to me which is which. I strongly suggest you use headers or at least phrases like, “According to the article by so-andso”… so that I know when you are summarizing an article as directed. If I have to struggle to determine when and/or which article you are summaring you will lose points! Next, use what you’ve learned from your research to answer each of the questions asked in the topic description (any that have not already been answered in your article summaries). Be sure to give credit to your sources as you do this by using in-text citations, and strive to incorporate the concepts and principles of BIOL103 in your answers. Lastly, express your own ideas on your topic. For the best grade, you are strongly encouraged to use subject headers in your paper. Remember to limit your use of direct quotes when writing. Collegiate Writing Standards dictate that quotes should account for no more than 5% of the total text. If you do use quotes, you must include a specialized in-text citation including the page or paragraph number (Adams, 2014, para.12).