Homework: Science in the News- Your Turn

Hello Everyone,

Congrats on surviving your first week of college!!  Now it is time to get down to business.  Here is your first assignment.

1) Find an article or video that discusses some element of science dealing with the topics that we will be covering in this class (e.g., oceanography, geology, geography, atmospheric science, climate science, biology, ecology, environmental issues, etc.).

2) Post a link to the article/video as a comment at the end of this post.

3) Add  (1) a short (1 paragraph) summary of the information you learned from the article and (2)  a short (1 paragraph) discussion of the reliability of the information in the article.


DUE DATE:  Must Be Posted by 5 PM on Friday September 7th.

Note:  As a motivation to get you to turn your work in early, there are no duplicate articles allowed.  Thus, if someone posts your article before you do you must find a new article!!

The Atmosphere- A Brief Intro

Readings

http://www.windows2universe.org/earth/Atmosphere/layers.html

http://science.nationalgeographic.com/science/earth/earths-atmosphere/

Earth's Atmosphere- http://www.eoearth.org/article/Earth's_tmosphere?topic=49479

The Atmosphere- http://www.eoearth.org/article/AP_Environmental_Science_Chapter_4-_The_Atmosphere

Wind- http://www.eoearth.org/article/Wind

Ocean Circulation- http://www.eoearth.org/article/Ocean_circulation

Powerpoint Presentation

http://www.slideshare.net/MarkMcGinley/earths-atmosphere-a-basic-intro

Expected Learning Outcomes

By the end of this class a fully engaged student should be able to

- define "atmosphere"
- discuss some of the important gasses found in Earth's atmosphere
- define "wind" and discuss the causes of wind
- diagram the global wind pattern and explain the causes of this pattern
- diagram the ocean circulation pattern and explain the causes of this pattern

Oceans- A Brief Intro

Further Reading

Ocean- http://www.eoearth.org/article/Ocean

Oceans- http://www.eoearth.org/topics/view/54325/

Water Properties: The Facts and Figures About Water- http://ga.water.usgs.gov/edu/waterproperties.html


Powerpoint Presentation

http://www.slideshare.net/MarkMcGinley/oceans-a-brief-introduction


Expected Learning Outcomes

At the end of this course a fully engaged student should be able to

- locate the major oceans and seas on a map/globe
- discuss the chemical structure of water and discuss how that structure leads to important properties of water
- discuss other important properties of water
- describe the continental shelf
- discuss how light penetration and temperature depend on depth
- briefly discuss some important marine ecosystems

Science in the News- Measles Outbreak

Measles
http://www.cdc.gov/measles/

Measles Outbreak Tied To Texas Megachurch Sickens 21
http://www.nbcnews.com/health/measles-outbreak-tied-texas-megachurch-sickens-21-8C11009315

Measles Outbreak Linked to Texas Megachurch Whose Pastor Has Spread Myths About Vaccines
http://thinkprogress.org/health/2013/08/27/2532651/measles-outbreak-texas-megachurch/

The Earth- Basic Info

Further Reading

The Solar System

Solar System Exploration- http://solarsystem.nasa.gov/planets/profile.cfm?Object=SolarSys

The Earth

Earth- http://nineplanets.org/earth.html

Earth- http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Earth

What is Earth? http://www.nasa.gov/audience/forstudents/k-4/stories/what-is-earth-k4.html

Earth Overview- http://solarsystem.nasa.gov/planets/profile.cfm?Object=Earth

The Seasons and Axis Tilt- http://www.enchantedlearning.com/subjects/astronomy/planets/earth/Seasons.shtml

Powerpoint Presentation

http://www.slideshare.net/MarkMcGinley/the-earth-a-very-basic-intro

Expected Learning Outcomes

At the end of this course a fully engaged student should be able to

- discuss the three forms of matter and discuss the reason matter changes from one for to another
- explain why there is night and day
- explain why a day is approximately 24 long
- explain why day length is not the same everywhere on the planet
- explain why it is warmer at the equator than at the poles
- explain why we have seasons
- discuss the factors that influence the temperature on the Earth

What is Science?

“The whole of science is nothing more than a refinement of everyday thinking.” Albert Einstein

What is Science?

Science is a way of learning about the world. Other ways of learning about the world include philosophy and religion.

Science is differentiated from alternative ways of learning about the world by
1) what it studies
2) how it studies it

(a) Science deals with the natural world and assumes that the world is governed by “natural laws” (I don’t spend too much time worrying about where these laws came from, I just accept that they exist)and (b) science only studies things that can be observed

Religion, on the other hand, deals with the supernatural, so science simply can’t study it.

Scientists learn about the world using the scientific method. Scientists use observations and experiments to test predictions of hypotheses. Thus, data determines “truth” in science. Religious truth often relies on “revelations” not data.

Thus, science and religion differ on what they can study and how they study it. Here is the critical question- which way of learning about the world is best? Any particular method is not the best, they are complementary ways of learning about the world and each works best within its intended boundaries. For example, science has nothing to say about religion, faith, or God.

My suggestion is that if you want to study observable phenomena that take place in the natural world then science is the best approach. We spend our lives surrounded by the applied knowledge that comes from using the process of science.

Think about a couple of examples

1) you come out in the morning and you can’t start your car.

Possible hypotheses
- you left your lights on and the battery has gone dead
- something is wrong with the starter

Where do these hypotheses come from? The knowledge that engines run according the laws of physics and chemistry helps us to understand how they work.

Alternative hypotheses
- you ran over a fairy on the way home last night and they are punishing you
- your neighbor is a witch and has put a hex on your car because your dog barks too much

We are likely to laugh at these alternative hypotheses because we understand the mechanical basis of car problems. Who do you take your car to for repairs- (i) Gus the mechanic (who whether he knows it or not uses his knowledge of physics and chemistry to diagnose what is wrong and repair your car) or (ii) Princess Fatima the Gypsy around the corner? Obviously, we choose Gus.

2) What do you do if you get sick?

The most obvious answer is that you go to the Doctor and do what they tell you. Certainly you might ask people to pray for you or pray for yourself. Some religions (e.g., Christian Scientists) rely on spiritual healing alone and will not take their children to the doctor when they are sick. I doubt that most people around here would support that position.

Readings

What is science? from Understanding Science: How Science Really Works. UC Berkeley
http://undsci.berkeley.edu/article/whatisscience_01

For an interesting discussion of the difference between "belief knowledge" and "research knowledge" check out "What is science?" by Bruce Tiffney from the University of California Museum of Paleontology
http://www.ucmp.berkeley.edu/education/events/tiffney3a.html

Expected Learning Outcomes

By the end of this course a fully engaged student should be able to

- define science

- distinguish science from other ways of learning about the world

- articulate their personal view of how science relates to their everyday life

The Mark McGinley Story

Here is the perfect cure for insomnia!

The Formative Years
I was born in Corpus Christi, TX and after a couple of moves we ended up in Rosenberg, (near Houston) where I attended grade school. I was interested in biology from an early age; I watched Marlin Perkins and Jacque Cousteau (your parents should know who they are) and I spent a lot of time outdoors on family camping and fishing trips. Even though I grew up near Houston during the Apollo years, I always thought that it would be much cooler to be a biologist than an astronaut.

When I was in the sixth grade my family moved to Australia for four years. This was an amazing life change for a kid who thought that the annual trip to my grandparents’ house in Oklahoma was a big deal. I had the incomparable experience of living in another country and experiencing a whole new way of life. Probably the biggest difference between Australia and the U.S. was the schools. I went to an all-boys English-style, private school where we had to wear uniforms (suits and ties) and straw boater hats to class everyday (this probably explains my preferred style of dress today).

The move also provided me with the opportunity to travel the world. During trips through Europe and Asia we saw many places of historical and cultural interest. Among my favorites were the Coliseum in Rome, the Tower of London, and Mt. Fuji in Japan. More importantly, my travels exposed me to many new biological experiences including seeing hippos, gazelles, elephants, and a cheetah in South Africa, snorkeling and beachcombing in Hawaii, Tahiti, Fiji, and the Great Barrier Reef, chasing emus through the Australian outback, watching a male lyrebird do his mating dance, watching fairy penguins come ashore for the night off of the coast of southern Australia, and many sightings of other Australian wildlife including kangaroos and koalas (how many people do you know that have ever seen a koala running along the ground?).

During the summer before my sophomore year in high school we moved to Thousand Oaks, CA (old-timers will remember TO as the former summer home of the Dallas Cowboys before they were ruined by Jerry Jones) where I graduated from high school. During my senior year I spent a week studying ecology and philosophy in Yosemite National Park and this trip confirmed by desire to be a biologist.

Education

I enrolled at the University of California, Santa Barbara to study biology. UCSB is an incredible place to go to school (I could see the ocean from my bedroom window three out of the four years that I was there) and it also happened to have one of the best ecology programs in the world. Joe Connell (one of the most influential ecologist of our era) taught the ecology section of my intro biology course and also taught my first ecology course, so it is probably his fault that I am here today because after finishing his course I knew that I wanted to be an ecologist. Later, after taking courses from Steve Rothstein and Bob Warner, I became interested in behavioral and evolutionary ecology and I decided to go to grad school to study behavioral ecology. I went to Kansas State University in Manhattan, KS which was a pretty big change from UCSB. I enjoyed K-State (I learned to bleed purple for Wildcat basketball) and I was lucky to be able to spend summers working for my advisor Chris Smith at the Mountain Research Station in Colorado studying pollination in lodgepole pine. My Masters Thesis extended optimal foraging models to examine woodrats foraging for non-food items (sticks that they use to build their houses). I also did a theoretical study examining how food stress should affect sex ratios. I earned a Ph. D. at the University in Salt Lake City. For my Ph. D. thesis with Jon Seger, I developed models and conducted experiments to understand the causes of seed size variation in plants. During my little free time, I played volleyball with the U of U Volleyball Club team and I was probably the only person in the whole city who did not ski (I still don’t see the point of intentionally getting cold). I spent two years working as a post-doctoral researcher with Dave Tilman at the University of Minnesota. Our research focused on succession in old fields at Cedar Creek Natural History Area just north of Minneapolis.

Life at Texas Tech
I started as an Assistant Professor in the Department of Biological Sciences at Texas Tech University in 1991. I am currently an Associate Professor with a joint position in the Honors College and the Department of Biological Sciences. In the Honors College I work closely with the Environment and the Humanities degree. (http://www.depts.ttu.edu/honors/evhm/)

Teaching

I teach a wide variety of classes at Tech. Two of my favorite courses are Tropical Marine Biology (taught in Jamaica and Belize) and the Rio Grande Class (we take a week-long canoe trip through Big Bend over Spring Break). For the past 6 summers I have worked as a scuba instructor and marine biologist with Odyssey Expeditions leading sailing and scuba trips through the Caribbean (British Virgin Islands, Martinique, St. Lucia, and St. Vincent & the Grenadines).

Scholarship
For several years I conducted ecological research in the sand shinnery oak community in West Texas. My current interests are in science curriculum development, environmental education, and informatl science education. I serve as a member of the Stewardship Committee of the Environmental Information Coalition and as an Associate Editor for the Encyclopedia of the Earth (http://www.eoearth.org/). In the Malaysian Bat Education Adventure we are using the ecology of Malaysian Bats as the focus of an integrated science curriculum for students in Kindergarten through 8th grade.

Fulbright in Malaysia

I spent the 2010-2011 academic year as a Fulbright Visiting Scholar at the University of Malaya in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. In addition to teaching a class at the UM, I was able to travel throughout the Malaysia and other parts of SE Asia (Thailand and Cambodia). In enjoyed exploring the rainforests and islands of Malaysia.  Some of the coolest things I saw were a sea turtle laying eggs, Orangutans, and a Borneo Pygmy Elephant. To learn more about my adventures in Malaysia you can check out my blog. http://markinmalaysia.blogspot.com/

Traveling

I enjoy traveling and I have been able to explore my passion for scuba diving on dive trips in Texas (San Solomon Springs in Balmorhea and the Flower Garden Banks) throughout the Caribbean as well as Yap, Palau, Solomon Islands, Fiji, Malaysia, Indonesia, and Galapagos Islands. My favorite marine critters include hammerhead sharks, pygmy sea horses, and “the pea”. On Friday I returned from a trip to Malaysia where I went scuba diving in Redang and Perhentian Islands and visited the capital city, Kuala Lumpur.

Course Syllabus

Honors Integrated Science- FYE  Fall 2013

HONS 2406-H01 & 2406-H51

MWF 10:00 – 10:50. English & Philosphy 300 (lecture)

Th 2 – 4:50. English & Philosophy 300 (lab)

Instructor

Dr. Mark McGinley

Room 215 McClellan Hall

mark.mcginley@ttu.edu

Office Hours:

T-Th- 10-11 or by appointment

I encourage you to make an appointment to meet with me if you need to see me. The easiest ways to do this are (1) to talk to me either before or after class or (2) to send me an email listing times when you are available to meet with me and then I will let you know which works best for me.

Course Outline

This course offers an integrated introduction to oceanography, earth science, atmospheric science, and life science.  In particular, this course will examine how the physical environment influences the biotic environment.  The course will consist of a combination of lectures, group discussions, writing workshops, and laboratory work. This course will be writing intensive.

THIS COURSE FULFILLS THE CORE CURRICULUM NATURAL SCIENCES REQUIREMENT

The objective of the study of natural science component of a core curriculum is to enable the student to understand, construct, and evaluate relationships in natural sciences, and to enable the student to understand the bases for building and testing theories.  The natural sciences investigate the phenomena of the physical world.

Students graduating from Texas Tech University should be able to explain some of the major concepts in the natural sciences and demonstrate an understanding of scientific approaches to problem solving, including ethics.

Student Absence for Observation of Religious Holy Days

A student who is absent from classes for the observation of a religious holy day shall be allowed to take an examination or complete an assignment scheduled for that day within a reasonable time after the absence if, not later than the fifteenth day after the first day of the semester, the student had notified the instructor of each scheduled class that the student would be absent for a religious holy day.

Academic Integrity.

Texas Tech University faculty strive to foster a spirit of complete honesty and high standards of integrity. Any attempt by students to present as their own work any work not honestly performed is regarded by faculty and administration as a most serious offence and renders offenders liable to serious consequences, possibly suspension from the university. “Scholastic dishonesty” includes, but is not limited to, cheating, plagiarism, collusion, falsifying academic records, misrepresenting facts, and any act designed to give an unfair academic advantage to a student. A detailed list of offenses is available in the Code of Student Conduct, found in Part IX, pp. 20-21 in the current Student Handbook, available on line at:

http://www.studentaffairs.ttu.edu?publications/SA_handbook_2005-2006.pdf.

Any student who, because of a disability, may require special arrangements in order to meet the course requirements should contact the instructor as soon as possible to make any necessary arrangements. Students should present appropriate verification from Student Disability Services during the instructor’s office hours. Please note instructors are not allowed to provide classroom accommodations to a student until

appropriate verification from Student Disability Services has been provided. For additional information, you may contact the Student Disability Services office at 335 West Hall or 806-742-2405.

Expected Learning Outcomes

Upon completion of this course, a fully-engaged student will be able to:

1. Discuss important theories in ocean, earth, and life sciences. assessed by performance in class discussions, exams, presentation, and written papers

2. “Think critically” about environmental issues. assessed by performance in class discussions, exams, presentation, and written papers

3. Write about scientific issues. assessed by performance on written papers and exams

4. Demostrate their understanding of the scientific method by designing, conducting, analyzing, evaluating, and reporting on the results of an independent scientific investigation.

Grading

Your grade in this course will include your performance in both the lecture and the lab section of the course.  The lecture portion of the course will count for 75% of your grade and the lab portion will count for the remaining 25%.

Lecture Grade

Midterm exam 15%

Final exam 15%

Participation in workshops, online, and discussion 10%

Writing assignments 30%

Term paper 15%

Presentation 15%

Lab Grade

Homework, quizzes and participation 25%

Statistics Midterm 25%

Research Project and written research report 50%

Midterm and Final Exam

The written midterm and final exams will cover material discussed in lectures and discussions.

Writing Assignments

These papers will be two pages maximum double spaced.

You will turn in a draft of this paper that will be critiqued by your classmates and me during a “Workshop” class period.

You can revise your paper and turn in a final copy of paper to be graded!

Presentation and Term Paper

Each student will choose a topic and write a 5 page term paper and give a presentation to the class on that topic (more details to follow).

It is extremely important that all assignments be turned in on time!!!

Course Blog

I have created a blog for this course. This blog will be an important means of communication between us so I encourage you to check the blog early and often. The blog is located at http://fyehis2013.blogspot.com/. Hopefully, most of your questions about the details of the class will be answered somewhere on the blog.

Blog posts will include your reading assignments and occasionally practice questions to check your learning. In addition, I will list specific “expected learning outcomes” for each lesson to help you focus your study efforts.

Required Reading

There is no required textbook for this course. I will assign readings throughout the semester on the course blog.

Books About Writing

Writing well is important for effective communication. Thus, improving your writing skills is an important component of this course. Here are a couple of references that would be useful for you to have on your shelf (and use) throughout your college career. (these books are not required).

The Elements of Style by William Strunk Jr. and E.B. White.

Eats, Shoots & Leaves. The Zero Tolerance Approach to Punctuation. By Lynne Truss.

Very (Extremely) Tentative Course Schedule

Week 1. (August 26 - 30)

Introduction

Critical Thinking

Planet Earth

Week 2. (September 5 - 7)

Monday- Labor Day Holiday

Oceans

Online Assignment #1- Due September 7

Week 3. (September 9 - 13)

Oceans

First Writing Assignment- Due September 13

Week 4. (September 16 - 20)

Monday- workshop papers

Geology

First Writing Assignment- Final Draft Due September 20

Week 5. (September 23 - 27)

Geology

Second Writing Assignment- Due September 30th

Week 6. (September 30 - October 4)

Wednesday- workshop papers

Atmospheric Science

Second Writing Assignment- Due October 7

Week 7. (October 7 - 11)

The Importance of the Physical Environment

Midterm Exam- Friday October 11th

Week 8. (October 14 - 18)

Evolutionary Ecology

Third Writing Assignment- Due October 21st

Week 9. (October 21 - 25)

Monday- workshop papers

Population Ecology

Week 10. (October 28 – November 1)
Third Writing Assignment- Final Draft Due October 28th

Population Ecology/Community Ecology

Week 11. (November 4 - 8)

Community Ecology

Week 12. (November 11 - 15)

Ecosystem Ecology

Student led discussions

Week 13. (November 18 - 22)

Student led discussions

Week 14. (November 25)

Student led discussions

Week 15. (December 2 - 4)

Student led discussions

Final Papers Dues December 4th

Final Exam- Saturday December 7th- 4:30 to 7:00 PM.

LAB

Required Book

The Process of Science. By Mark McGinley (get them from me, not the bookstore)

Expected Learning Outcomes

By the end of this course a fully engaged student should be able to:

1. Define science and describe the process of science. Assessed by performance in quizzes and class discussion.

2. Discuss how scientists generate hypotheses. Assessed by performance on quizzes and class discussion.

3. Discuss when and why scientists need to use statistics and apply the appropriate statistical tests. Assessed by performance on quizzes and research project.

4. Develop a testable hypothesis and collect data to tests these hypotheses. Assessed by performance on research project.

5. Analyze the data and draw appropriate conclusions. Assessed by performance on research project.

6. Report your findings to a wider audience. Assessed by performance on research project final report

Course Schedule

August 9- Introduction

September 5- Chapters 1 and 2

September 12- Chapters 3 and 4, Appendix 1 (t-test)

September 19- Chapter 4 revisited and Chapters 5

September 26- Chapter 6 and 7

October 3- Practice with statistics

October 10- Statistics Midterm Exam

October 17- work on projects

October 24- work on projects

October 31- work on projects

November 7- work on projects

November 14- work on projects

November 22- complete projects

November 29- Eat Turkety

Final Paper Due by 5:00 PM Friday December 6th