Biology 100- Fall 2012
Experimental design project - 100 points
This quarter you will be conducting your own simple experiment. You must do this in at least groups of two but the max is four people. It is recommended that you do this in at least a group of three individuals (otherwise your presentation will be very short and you will probably not have time to adequately present your topic).
Your experiment may be anything that is of interest to you so long as it follows these three guidelines
1.
No test subjects may be harmed, embarrassed, or stressed in any way
2.
You must design a project that can be completed in 3-4 weeks and uses only materials that are inexpensive, easy to obtain, and are available to you.
3.
The study must be of interest to you
Your experiment may test anything biologically related. It does not need to be an experiment, it may be an observations study. The topic is entirely up to your choosing, but if you have trouble coming up with ideas, let me know. I have a few. I encourage you to develop several ideas and plan them out. Your first idea may not be possible in the given time frame or may not work for some other reason. Such topics can include, but are not limited to, animal behavior studies, simple experiments, product testing, etc.
For your experiment, you must develop a study question, hypothesis and prediction. You must also identify the experimental and control groups, if applicable, as well as the independent, dependent and control variables.
Once you have done your experiment you must compare your results with current literature to back up your conclusions.
The presentations will take place during LAB so please make sure that all members are in the
same lab.

You will hand in several assignments associated with this project.
This project will consist of several components including
 An instructor meeting

A hypothesis

A short introduction about the experiment, individually written

An outline of your presentation (you may do one per group so long as I know who is presenting which portions)
 An annotated bibliography of materials and references used, individually written

A presentation
In preparing your presentation, your group will do the following:
1.
On Wednesday, October 3rd, 2012, sign up for a time to meet with the instructor. The meetings will take place during normal class times and will last 5-7 minutes. ALL
MEMBERS MUST BE PRESENT.
2.
On October 9 and 11, 2012, instructor meetings will take place. When groups not taking part in a meeting are expected to use the time to research and discuss their project.
3.
On October 15nd, 2012, you will need to turn in your question and hypothesis. It must be well written enough that based on it and it alone, myself or ANOTHER BIOLOGY instructor can determine what you are studying, the independent and dependent variables.
4.
During Week 10 sign-ups for presentation times will take place.
5.
Presentations will be during normal lab time, the last week of class (December 4 th or
6th)

Instructor meeting- 10 points
You will have a short meeting with me (the instructor) towards the beginning of the project. This meeting will take place during class time and ALL MEMBERS of the group must be present. Please come prepared to brief me on the following items;

What your experiment is

Some brief background information (Just so I know you didn’t come up with it 5 minutes ago).
 How you intent to set up the experiment

How the research/presentation will be divided

How you intend to present the information
I do not expect you to have much research done at this point, but you should be starting to form ideas and have an idea of the direction you are taking the project. We will use this time to brainstorm additional ideas and for me to help with any issues or stumbling blocks that may have arisen.
Hypothesis- 5 points
You will need to turn in your question and hypothesis prior to your presentation. Either I or another instructor will look at them and determine what you are studying, and your independent/dependent variables.
Issue Introduction- 10 point
Individually, you will write a short introduction to the issue including some background information. The introduction should include

What your experiment is
 Your question, hypothesis, prediction, the experimental & control groups (if applicable), independent, dependent and control variables.

Basic background introductory information that the general reader may need

Briefly, how you carried out your experiment
 General conclusions that you reached
The introduction does not need to be exhaustive, just long enough so a general audience will know what the topic is and why it matters. The introduction should be between 1/2-2 pages in length.

Presentation Outline- 5 points
I will need an outline of what you intend to present. This will be turned in just before presenting so I know can follow along during the presentation. This can be as simple as a copy of your notes, an outline from power point or a script. You will be evaluated by how well you stick to your outline. You do not need to follow it word for word as the purpose of notes during a presentation is to guide you, but it does need to be obvious that the outline turned in was prepared by your group for the purposes of the presentation and that you used it to prepare.
Annotated bibliography- 10 points
Each person will submit a bibliographic list of at least 7 sources that they using for the presentation. This bibliography will be annotated, meaning that along with each reference, one must include a description of the information taken from the article and how it was used in the presentation. The description only needs to be 2-3 sentences in length, describing why they are using this source. Please site sources using MLA guidelines.
Your sources should provide background information on the experimental topic. If you are doing a behavior study, you will need background on how they are usually done.
Presentation- 60 points
The presentation can take the form of a standard presentation, debate, powerpoint, video, theater, educational campaign, or something else and will be limited to approximately 5 minutes per person. You may divide that time up however you wish so long as each person has an opportunity to present. You must introduce your topic, and then present your side of things.
Your grade is based on YOUR performance and how well it fits in with the rest of the group.
There are three factors to your grade; organization, content and delivery. The grading rubric is as follows:
Presentation Rubric
Organization: 20 points
The organization or you part of the presentation depends upon how much time you spent organizing it and how well and how often you practiced it.
15-20: Well organized, enjoyable, shows effort above and beyond the average, fits in the allotted time. It is obvious you spent a lot of time organizing and practiced often to make a smooth, fun presentation, that fits in well with the other parts.

10-15: Organized, fits in the allotted time. You made of plan of what you wanted to present and you obviously practiced your part, but not very much or not very well. Your part may be accurate, but does not fit in well with the other parts.
5-10: Not well organized, you exceed or were well under the allotted time. Information is presented and something can be learned, but it is obvious you did not organize your part or practice it. Consequently, the presentation was not enjoyable for the audience.
<5: Major lack of organization, you exceed or were under the allotted time such that it hinders your partner. Students obviously did not organize or practice the presentation and it lacks continuity
Content: 20 points
The content of your presentation depends upon how thoroughly you researched your topic, the number of sources you were able to find and how thoroughly you read each source.
15-20: Lots of interesting, accurate information that all fits well together to create a solid package that is enjoyable for the audience to watch. Your part fits well with the other parts and it makes logical connections with what has been or will be presented by your partner(s).
Shows effort above and beyond the average. It is obvious you spent a lot of time researching.
10-15: Adequate amount of information, though it may not be very interesting. The information is related to the rest of the presentation, but no logical connections are made. It is obvious you researched the topic, but not very extensively.
5-10: Could use more information. The information is not well related to the rest of the presentation. It is clear that you researched the topic, but probably only looked at one or two sources.
<5: Lacks any real information. The information does not make sense or you are simply reading from your bibliography. It is unclear if you used any sources or are simply making things up as you go along. Your presentation is very hard to follow or make sense of.
Delivery: 20 points
The delivery of your presentation is a function of your visual aids and how well you use them, how well you project your voice and whether you make eye contact with the audience.

15-20: Well-made visual aids that are very interesting and easy to read from the audience. You speak comfortably and clearly so that everyone in the room can hear you. You make lots of eye contact with the audience and don't stare at your notes the entire time.
10-15: Visual aids that can be read from the audience. Your speech is adequate, but you may be somewhat nervous or fluctuate the volume of your speech. You make some eye contact with the audience.
5-10: Visual aids need work and are hard to read. Your speech may be too nervous or you speak too quietly. You make some eye contact with the audience, but not enough.
<5: Visual aids are poor or lacking. Your speech makes it very hard for the audience to understand you. You do not make eye contact with the audience.