Environmental concern - Australia Assignments

Critical thinking writing assignment for BIO 124

Each student will choose an issue of environmental concern, such as one of the case studies listed below. You will do a literature search for information to find at least three scientific sources, including one primary research paper, relating to the environmental issue. In part 1, you will write a summary of a primary research article. For the final paper, you will add at least two more sources to inform how you would answer the questions in the case study. Sources must be cited in the text using APA-style citations. Papers should be 3-5 pages double-

spaced, 1” margins, 12

-point font.

Note that scientific writing does not use quotations or heavy paraphrasing – the paper must be written in your own words. You must cite the sources for two reasons: 1) to give credit to the authors for their work / information, and 2) to provide credibility to your arguments and conclusions. That is, you are using science- based information from research to discuss the case study / scenario.

Case study I

–

Alien Invaders (invasive species)

http://www.mhhe.com/Enviro- Sci/CaseStudyLibrary/Regional/Southwest/CaseStudy_AlienInvadersWhenWe.pdf

Questions to address: see the

“

Ethical Considerations

”

section of the case study

Case study II

–

organic vs sustainable farming

http://www.mhhe.com/Enviro-Sci/CaseStudyLibrary/Topic-Based/CaseStudy_OrganicFarmingInCuba.pdf

Questions to address: What is the difference between organic and sustainable agriculture? Are current U.S. organic standards capable of diversifying U.S. agriculture in a similar way as that reported in Cuba?
One article for reference:

Case study III

–

insecticides and prevention of mosquito-borne diseases

http://www.mhhe.com/Enviro-Sci/CaseStudyLibrary/Topic-Based/CaseStudy_DDTandFragileEggshells.pdf

Question to address: DDT was a very effective means of controlling mosquito populations. Modern insecticides are more expensive and may also have safety issues if not used carefully. How can we help developing countries reduce disease transmission of vector-borne pathogens? One newer approach is to use genetically modified mosquito that results in sterility

–

offspring are new viable. What are the advantages and concerns of this approach?

————————————–
Alternatively,

you can read through and choose one of the “Topic

–

Based Case Studies”

(in the right column only!) in this list on the McGraw-Hill website:

http://www.mhhe.com/Enviro-Sci/CaseStudyLibrary/

Note that you may need to generate questions to answer, if not given in the case study

–

please consult with your instructor if you decide to choose a topic other than the three case studies above to discuss questions to answer and approach to take.

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d through the file in Moodle entitled “Evaluating Sources of information.”

Do a literature search for scientific articles and resources by using the databases available through the GMC library e.g., GaLiLEO, Academic Search Complete, Medline. An additional recommended database is PubMed (

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/

) which has many full-text articles (you must access and read the full article, not just abstract!). Find a

primary research article (journal article)

and at least two other scientific sources (may be secondary sources, e.g., investigative newspaper sources, feature articles in scientific magazines, etc.).

A primary research article

is a report of original research published in a peer-reviewed scientific journal. Scientists must publish their research results

– one way to determine if it is a report of original research is to look for “Materials and Methods” (or procedures / protocols), “Results” and “Discussion” sections.

Prepare the article citations using APA or MLA style. Note: Both citation styles include the authors or publisher as the first entry!! See examples below

–

you will then use the author, year or publisher, year in text to cite the source.

Journal article format:

Author(s). Year. Title of article. Journal Vol:Page numbers. DOI = [Digital Object Identifier, iif available) OR

Online at:

[copy and paste url].

Website or secondary source:

Author(s) or publisher. Year. Title. Publisher [if not used for author]. Online at: [copy and paste full url].

Here’s a sample paragraph to show how to use author, year or publisher, year in the text to cite sources (both APA and MLA style):

Stevenson et al. (2008) describes ways that HIV can hide in different tissues of the body, remaining dormant for years. However, scientists are working on ways to prevent entry into cells (Markovic, 2006), so that cells cannot serve as reservoirs for the virus. Scientists are also investigating the potential of using a gene mutation via gene therapy to cure HIV/AIDS (McNeill, 2008; CDC, 2010).

The four citations would then be listed in alphabetical order at the end of the paper. Remember, we do not use quotes or close paraphrasing – you are discussing a case study, so summarize and describe your analysis!

Part 1 Citation Summary – Grading Rubric

–

20 points

Paper is a primary research article
Paper is cited correctly using APA style citations
Major research findings are summarized in student

’

s own words Importance of the research is tied to the case study

Final Paper Grading Rubric – 40

1) Critical thinking skills are used in discussing the case study 2) Citations are complete and used appropriately

Use author (yr) within the text to cite sources.

Use scientific information from the sources to draw conclusions 3) Writing style, grammar, spelling, etc.:

Written in your own words, no quotes, etc.

5 5 5 5

15 15