BSC1005L Science—in—Action Report (up to 100 points) Assignment idea adapted from Dr. Ron Gray, Northern Arizona University
All written reports will be graded by Ryan Coker, a course coordinator for BSC1005L, and must be turned in
through Canvas by the due date and time stated in the syllabus. Please consult with Ryan Coker (rcc08e@my.fsu.edu) if you have any questions.
Rationale Abstract ideas, such as some of the ones we discuss in this course, can often be clarified through examples. For this optional assignment, you will read a book—length account of science in action real people engaging in the practices of science to generate new scientific knowledge. There are many books that are intended for a public audience and provide a window into the thoughts, emotions, and motivations of scientists. This optional assignment offers an additional challenge to synthesize supplemental reading and course objectives, while delving further into some of the big ideas of biology. This assignment is an analytical paper, not a book report. Your writing should clarify the readers understanding of what scientists do, how science is done, and how new scientific knowledge is generated. Assignment Analyze two specific examples of science—in—action from the book you chose in response to the guiding questions below and make explicit connections to what you have learned and experienced in BSC1005L. Choose examples to demonstrate that you read the book completely; these should be the BEST examples of science—in— action from the book and your analysis should provide evidence that these are appropriate examples. Paper Guidelines Include an introductory paragraph to orient the reader to the two examples of science—in—action you will analyze and, briefly, how these examples illustrate science—in—action. For each example of science-in-action, you must use specific evidence from both the book, and from the BSC1005L General Biology Laboratory Course (student experiences engaging in science/scientific reasoning during lab and information from the lab manual) to support your argument. Be sure that each of your two examples of science-in-action in your report, you address the guiding questions (see following page) as part of your analysis. Include a concluding paragraph summarizing how the book, as a whole and in the specific examples discussed, illustrated science—in—action and influenced your perspective on what scientists do and how new scientific knowledge is generated. The length of the report, not including references, MUST exceed 1700 words, depending on how concisely you write. Failure to meet this word count will result in a 0 on the assignment. If you do not write concisely, expect to have a much higher word count for a complete analysis. Your written report must be a cohesive analytic narrative with clear transitions between paragraphs, and an overall analytic argument you are making about how people engaged in, with, and around the processes of science to generate new knowledge. Students must earn at least a C grade (70 out of 100 points) on their paper to be awarded any credit. Papers that earn less than 70 points when graded by the rubric below will be awarded 0 points. This is an optional assignment, therefore the expectations are very high and it is rare that students earn an A. This paper cannot be written well in one sitting; plan to revise multiple drafts before submitting your final paper. NOTE: Students must adhere to the Florida State University Academic Honesty Policy and, if you must use a phrase directly from the text or lab manual, cite all quotations appropriately. Students must complete this assignment individually using their own words. Students should not collaborate with their peers or copy from online sources.
mailto:rcc08e@my.fsu.edu
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Guiding questions for your analysis of EACH of your two Science-in-Action examples: You will analyze FOUR (4) guiding questions for EACH of your examples of science-in-action. Answer the 2 required guiding questions and choose 2 additional guiding questions that make sense for each of your science-in-action examples. Besides the required questions, the other two guiding questions may be the same or different for each of your examples. Be sure to answer the questions for each example IN DEPTH, assuming your reader has not read the book or taken BSC1005L. Include sufficient detail that someone who has not read the watched or taken BSC1005L could follow the arguments in your paper. NOTE: If it is difficult to answer Guiding Question #1, your science-in-action example is likely inappropriate. Your example needs to include what the scientists did to generate new knowledge, not just summarize facts. REQUIRED Guiding Questions (must be answered for both examples): GQ.1 For this example of science in action, how was the investigation designed and carried out? What question(s) were the scientists trying to answer? What data did the investigator collect and how did they collect it? Did the investigators answer their question? What evidence did they use to support their
conclusion? Was this evidence sufficient? GQ.2 How is this example specifically related to the biology concepts or processes of science you engaged in
during investigations from BSC1005L? Cite specific evidence from the lab manual or lab experiences to support the connection.
CHOOSE AT LEAST 2 Additional Guiding Questions: GQ.3 What factors personal, technological, cultural, and/or scientific led this person to the
investigation? Cite specific evidence form the book to support your claims. GQ.4 How did the investigator try to persuade others that the results of the investigating were valid? Did
contemporaries accept the ideas? Are they accepted today?For this assignment, you will read a book-length account of science in action- real people engaging in the practices of science to generate new scientific knowledge ( the books you can use are listed in the file attatched). There are many books that are intended for a public audience and provide a window into the thoughts, emotions, and motivations of scientists. This assignment offers an additional challenge to synthesize supplemental reading and course objectives, while delving further into some of the big ideas of biology.
This an analytical paper, not a book report. Your writing should clarify the readers understanding of what scientists do, how science is done, and how new scientific knowledge is generated.
Analyze two specific examples of science-in-action from the book you chose in response to the guiding questions below and make explicit connections to what you have learned and experienced in BSC1005L. Choose examples to demonstrate that you read the book completely; these should be the BEST examples of science-in-action from the book and your analysis should provide evidence that these are appropriate examples.
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