Lab 5: Pre-Lab

Your task in Lab 5  will be to present your research from the diabetes data set. This is not a fromal presentation but more of a class discussion. You'll be asked to evaluate the work we did as class and look for ways to improve one our future projects in Unit 2. 
  • Introduction
  • Do you know enough?
  • What will we do in lab?
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How does science work? What is the role of peer review?

In Lab 1, we learned a bout the iterative process of scientific exploration, relying on past knowledge as ​a "jumping off point" for new research questions. This type of deductive reasoning requires a large body of scientific work to be made public and available, and that the work is both valid and reliable.
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​Look over this document on the Peer Review process and how it helps make science work. 
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​Watch the Ted Talk from Naomi Oreskes: Why we should trust scientists

Do you know enough to evaluate the research done by your peers?

Now, not all types of scientific writing are peer-reviewed. Posters and presentations given at professional conferences are not. These types of scientific communication are often undertaken before the research is completely ready for peer review. Authors and researchers can display their work, and receive valuable feedback from colleagues, that greatly improves the chances of their research passing successfully through the peer review process once their ready for publication. 

​Technical reports are also rarely peer reviewed.  Often, reports like the one you've completed, are created for organizations (governmental or non-profit) and not the scientific community. Research represented in technical reports can be translated into peer review format assuming the methods are valid and reliable. In Lab 5, we will be applying the standards of critical peer review to your report. This will help you practice critical thinking, prepare you to dive into the scientific literature in Unit 2 and improve your overall ability to write in a scientific format. 
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Read over the Critique Guide. This will give you an overview of what to expect during our evaluations in lab. 

What will we do in lab and how will we do it?

Lab 5 will proceed in three parts. Go back and Review Lab 1 for a refresher on the process of science. 

​1) Oral summaries with questions
  • Each group will be asked to summarize their report (<5 min).
  • The summary should include: hypotheses, tests, results and conclusions.
  • The class will then have time to ask questions.
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Be certain this responsibility was delegated within your group.
2) Peer review
  • Every group must bring in 5 paper copies of their technical report.
  • You will trade your report with another group.
  • You will evaluate the other group's report based on the Critique Guide above and a scoring rubric. You will then trade back.
  • After receiving the peer evaluation of your report, you will review it and discuss it with your group.
  • You should take this into account along with questions that came up from our discussion.
  • You can make any changes you see fit before submission on Blackboard before Lab 6.
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Be certain you know who is responsible for making and bringing your report copies to lab.
3) Start research for Unit 2.
  • You will get a basic idea of the research questions we will pursue in Unit 2.
  • Unlike the work we did in Unit 1, you will be doing much of the preliminary research required for Unit 2. 
  • You will learn how tell if a paper has been peer-reviewed, how to find scientific journal articles and how to cite them correctly.
  • You will begin finding sources for your Unit projects.
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​Visit the KAS website. Review their mission and member benefits.
KAS (Kentucky Acamdeny of Science) is a membership-based scientific society with thousands of members across Kentucky. They publish peer-reviewed scientific articles, primarily from our state. Joining a scientific society gives you access to their journals and articles they have published. 
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Link to KAS. Become a member?
WKU is a KAS Enhanced Affiliate and faculty, staff, and students may join KAS for free.
  • visit www.kyscience.org
  • Membership >> Become a Member >> Join Online Now
  • On the form, select WKU as your institution.​
  • Use your Western Kentucky University e-mail address for registration
  • IF YOU ARE ASKED FOR CREDIT CARD OR PAYMENT INFO YOU ARE IN THE WRONG PLACE. STUDENT MEMBERSHIPS ARE FREE.

Lab 5: Protocol

In today's lab you will evaluate the research projects produced by peers and begin research for Unit 2 as time allows.

Exercise I. Oral presentations with questions and group discussion.
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Exercise II. Peer Review: Share reports and evaluate.

Exercise III. Start Research for Unit 2.
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Lab Objectives: Following today's lab, you should be able to...
  • Exercise I
  • Exercise II
  • Exercise III
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Exercise I. Oral Presentations & Questions

Procedure​: Each group with have 3 minutes to discuss their report. Following the short oral summary questions will be taken from the class. Each group must ask at least one question. General results will be recorded on the board. Following the mini-presentations, complete Exercise I in the notebook guide.
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Lab 5 Notebook Guide. Click to download.

Exercise II. Peer-Evaluation of Your Report

Procedure
  1. Share your report with another group.
  2. Use the Diabetes Report Peer Scoring Rubric (provided as a handout) and the Critique Guide to evaluate the report.
  3. Be sure to look over their citations (5 minimum). 
  4. Review Exercise II in your Lab 5 Notebook Guide.
  5. Now review your peer evaluation and think about the questions you received and our class discussion.
  6. Over the next week, make any changes you feel necessary before re-submission to blackboard.​
  7. Complete your lab notebook guide.
  8. Ensure all members have an electronic copy for reference and be ready to upload the your Lab 5 Notebook Entry in the LABridge before we meet again next week.​
  9. Complete the quick survey below.
Review the "citations" section in our library if you have questions. Ask your TA if you 'll be using APA or KAS format for this project.
STOP! This exercise can be done at home, virtually, over the next week. If your report needs lots of work before you turn it in for a final grade, take the rest of your time in lab to plan with your group and discuss questions with your TA.

Exercise III. Begin Research for Unit 2

In Unit 2, you will be constructing your own hypotheses and developing your own experimental designs to test the affect of different variables on metabolism, specifically on the rate of cellular respiration in crayfish and the rate of photosynthesis in active chloroplasts. Unlike in Unit 1, you will be conducting your own literature search for information of these topics. To get us started you will asked to list 5 relevant articles in your Lab 5 Notebook Entry. This is where we will pick up when we start Unit 2.
Procedure
  1. Review Exercise III in your lab notebook guide. You need to find 10 scientific articles.
  2. First we need to learn how to tell if an article is peer reviewed. We will be relying on peer reviewed articles for our research in Unit 2.
  3. Review these 5 Ways to Tell If an article Peer-reviewed … or Academic, from the Prairie State College Library
  4. View this informative video from the University of Alberta.
  5. Now, how do we find them? Most scientific articles are not free to the public, so large institutions, like universities, pay fees for access.
  6. If you are logged on to a campus computer or network, use Google Scholar for your searches. If the resource is available through WKU, you'll see the download option to the right of the article. 
  7. However, if you cannot find what you need through Google Scholar, OR, if you’re not on a campus computer you will need to sign-in to the WKU library for access to scientific journals. Go to  WKU Library and click “databases.”  There are 3 popular databases (EBSCOhost, Web of Science, Google Scholar). View them all. When you find an article of interest, click “Check for Full Text at WKU Libraries." Click on one of the links under “Full Text options." Download the paper as a PDF from the website and save in in your UNIT folder.​​
  8. Once you have your article, we need to ensure you cite your references correctly. Citation and style guidelines vary by journal but are usually some type of modified-APA format. We will be following formatting guidelines of the Kentucky Academy of Science. Review their guidelines and examples below.
  9. ​Complete Exercise III in your lab notebook guide.
  10. Ensure all members have an electronic copy for reference and be ready to upload the your Lab 5 Notebook Entry in the LABridge before we meet again.​
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Link to Article.
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Link to Video.
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Link to Library.
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Formatting Guidelines from KAS. Click to Enlarge.
IN-TEXT CITATION OF LITERATURE
  • Cite publications in the text  by author(s) and date – e.g., (Readley 1994)
  • Multiple citations should be  in chronological order and separated by semi-colons – e.g., (Foster 1976; Ashley et al. 1987; Brown 1994)
  • Multiple citations of works by one  author(s) should be in chronological order – e.g., (Jones 1978, 1983).
  • Publications by one author(s) in the same year should be distinguished by a, b, c, etc. – e.g., (Smith 1994a, 1994b).
  • For in-text references to works with one or two authors use names of both authors – e.g., (Jones and Williams 1991).
  • For works with three or more authors use name of the first  author followed by et al. – e.g., (Lee et al. 1985).
  • Do not include any reference  unless it has been published or accepted for publication (“in press”; see below).

​Examples of common types of references are given below:
  • JOURNAL ARTICLE: Lacki, M. J. 1994. Metal concentrations in guano from a gray bat summer roost. Transactions Kentucky Academy Science, 55:124-126.
  • BOOK: Ware, M., and R. W. Tare. 1991. Plains life and love. Pioneer Press, Crete, WY.
  • PART OF A BOOK: Kohn, J .R. 1993. Pinaceae, Pages 32-50 in J. F. Nadel (ed). Flora of the Black Mountains. University of Northwestern South Dakota Press, Utopia.WORK
  • IN PRESS: Groves, S. J., I. V. Woodland, and G. H. Tobosa.  In press, Deserts of Trans-Pecos Texas.
  • WEB PAGE:  Smith, A.W. 1999. Title of web site. Web site address. Date accessed (06/12/2005)


​Lab 5 BIOL 120 CONNECTIONS
Section 1.6: Doing Biology
Big Picture 1: How to Think Like a Scientist
​BioSkill 16: Reading and Citing the Primary Literature

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