OVERVIEW OF THE BIOTECHNOLOGY PROJECT

Your project will include two major phases: researching and writing a paper in depth on a particular biotechnology and summarizing the other biotechnologies mentioned in the textbook including the gel electrophoresis lab completed in Biology.

Biotechnologies

1. Reproductive cloning of animals (415-417)

2. Stem cells (418, 881-882, 1038-1039)

3. RNAi and gene knockout (368-369, 400)

4. Gene cloning (386-388)

5. Genomic libraries (388-390)

6. PCR (391-392)

7. RFLPs and Southern Blotting (394-395)

8. Genome sequencing (394-398)

9. Genomics and proteomics: studying gene and protein function (398-402)

THE PAPER

1. Note cards and bibliography: (10 points)

  • Take your notes on 3x5 cards. I expect at least25 cards taken from at least7 sources. On one side, record one piece of information taken from the source. On the other side, record what the source was. (You may take notes from your Campbell text, but it cannot count toward this minimum of 7 sources.)
  • Five of your seven sources will be from books, periodicals or online sources that are at least equal to the level of our Campbell text book. Scientific American, Science News or Discover magazines are examples of sources at a good level for this part of your research. Read these sources first.Next, find 2 more sources. These sources must all be primary science sources; the journals that scientists use to publish their experiments.
  • From all of your sources, take careful notes about experiments that have been done in your field, who did them, when, and where. You will describe these experiments in your paper to support the points you make about your topic.
  • Include a complete bibliography written in correct bibliography form(Box 1)

2. Outline and most current bibliography: (5 points) Include a copy of your most recent bibliography. If you have changed it, attach the last one to be graded.

  • Type your outline.
  • Divide each main topic into sections and subsections. (If you divide a topic or
  • subtopic, you must have at least two subtopics. (See outline form below)
  • Each line should be only a few words, not sentences or paragraphs.

DRAFTS OF PAPER

3.First typed rough draft: (20 points) I will give feedback on parts of your paper, not the whole paper.

4. Second typed rough draft: (5 points) This will be given to your partner to proof read and give final feedback

8. Final draft (100 points) Turn in 2 copies to me. Please do not put paper in any special binding. Just staple each copy separately.

Guidelines and Rubric Boxes:

A. Parts of the paper:

  1. Title page includes the title of the paper, your name, the name of our class and the teacher. The title should be descriptive of the content of the paper.
  2. Introduction– Define the direction of your paper, briefly identify main points of topic. Discuss importance of the Biotechnology.
  3. Body -- Organize into sections and subsections according to the main points you are making. Sections and subsections should have boldface titles.
  1. Body should be 4 to 6 pages of text, double-spaced, using no larger than a 12 point ariel or times new roman font. This does not include items 1-4 above, and it does not include illustrations. (Do use illustrations, but they do not count as pages.)
  2. Conclusion - In a paragraph or two, summarize the main points you made in your paper. Explain the future direction of the researxch
  3. Endnotes - Identify on this page all of the sources you used according to theformat given below. Notice that this is a separate page from the bibliography, and it uses a different form. If you do not cite your sources, your paper will be returned with no score.
  4. Bibliography – See the format given in Box 1 of this document.

Citations and Endnotes (11%) Read "Using Internet Sources", p 7Cite in your paper the sources of any information, data or conclusions that are not your own or that are not common knowledge. Any information that you have found in your research sources must be cited. We expect you to cite most of your sources. A paper taken from only one or two sources is unacceptable. Do not use direct quotes unless the actual words of the person are in some way memorable. Otherwise, just state in your text where the information came from and paraphrase it. For example: Ex: In an article published in the journal Science, March of 2000, Dr. Fred Smith of the Neurology department at Stanford concluded that the structure of...... 1 In this case, you do not use quote marks as long as you have stated the information in your own words. Always cite direct quotations. If you do quote, include in your text information about who said it, and where s/he did the work. For example: Ex: According to Dr Joseph Jones professor of botany at the University of California, Irvine, “...……….....” 1

In both cases, include an endnote on the endnote page. The superscript number refers to an endnote that will be found on a separate page after the conclusion. The endnote gives the specific source, including page, where the information can be found. As a rule of thumb, each “chunk” of information taken from one of your note cards should be given an endnote. Number endnotes to correspond to citations in the paper. Use the following form:

1 Fred Smith, “The Structure of the Neuron”, Science, vol. 71, no 16, March 2000, 129. (the last number is the specific page)

If you later use the same source again, simply give:

5 Smith 225 (author and page number)

B. Writing level and Content: (This applies primarily to the Introduction, Body, and Conclusion. (See the rubric in Box 4 below. Also see pgs. 12-16, this section.)

I expect you to build on your in-class study of biology and to acquire and present a substantial knowledge of the information in your chosen field. Think of your reading audience as other AP Biology students in our class. You may assume your reader has the background knowledge that you and the other students have from Honors and AP biology so far, so your paper does not need to define terms and explain concepts we have studied. Wherever you can, however, you should make clear connections between your topic and related topics we have covered in class.

Discuss experimental evidence as much as possible. How have scientists arrived at our present state of knowledge? When you do describe an experiment, give the name of the scientist(s), the year and the location where their experiment was done.

Ex: “Working in the Freking lab at UCLA in 1999, graduate student Ed Geaney performed an experiment in which he…….”

Writing level and Content (will be 67% of the paper)

60-54Impressive, insightful, very well written

  • You demonstrate an exceptional understanding of the content.
  • You delve into the concept and present ample experimental evidence.
  • You clearly relate the new information to what we have studied in class.
  • You organize the information clearly and go to a conclusion without rambling.
  • Your language is powerful and you use appropriate examples and images.

53-48 Strong, clear, well-written

  • You demonstrate a good understanding of the content.
  • You sometimes delve into the concept and present a reasonable amount of experimental evidence.
  • You see most connections between new information and class content.
  • You organize information and go to a conclusion without rambling.
  • Your language is appropriate and you use reasonable examples and images.

47-42 Adequate, competent, ordinary

  • You demonstrate an adequate understanding of the content
  • You present a few examples of experiments done in the field.
  • You do not miss obvious and necessary connections.
  • You organize information fairly well, reaching a conclusion after some rambling
  • Your writing is competent, but lacks sophistication

41-33 Simplistic, repetitious, undeveloped

  • You respond to the prompt, but do not develop the concept.
  • You miss many connections and examples.
  • You present little or no experimental evidence.
  • You miss important aspects of the content. Writing lacks direction and is not well organized.
  • Serious language problems.

NM (No Mark) Very short, undeveloped -- rewrite and turn in again for 60%

  • You have addressed the concept only superficially.
  • Your work lacks organization or support for your points
  • You ramble and lack a sense of direction and organization
  • Your tone indicates that you do not care about your subject.

C. Writing mechanics: See the rubric in Box 5, below. We will be evaluating your paper for the basics of writing mechanics: grammar, spelling, punctuation, word choice, and organization of paragraphs. We expect you to have your paper in the best shape you can for every draft. There is never an excuse for poor writing.

Proof read your paper by reading it aloud – you will hear your errors. You should also take each draft of the paper to the tutorial center for proofreading, but remember that if you wait until the last minute they may not be able to do it for you in time. If you find errors, be sure to fix them before the next draft is due. Your first and second drafts will be read and evaluated in class by another student. That student will use a proof-reading guide which you can find on pages 12 & 13 of this section. It would help if you would go through that guide to see how your paper looks before you submit it for evaluation.

Writing Mechanics (17%)

15-14 No more than one or two errors in the paper

  • Your grammar, spelling, and punctuation are exceptional.
  • You organize ideas into well-constructed paragraphs, enhancing readability.
  • Your sentences are clear, direct, and simple.
  • You choose just the right words to express your meaning.
  • You use active voice consistently.

13-12 No more than one or two errors per major section, not enough to

detract from tone or meaning of paper

  • Your grammar, spelling, and punctuation are very good.
  • You usually start a new paragraph for each new idea.
  • Most sentences are clear and direct. Only a few places where you should simplify.
  • You usually choose the right words to express your meaning.
  • You usually use active voice.

11-10One or more errors per paragraph, detracting from tone and/or

meaning in a minor way

  • Your grammar, spelling, and punctuation contain several errors.
  • You could improve readability by better organizing ideas into paragraphs.
  • Some sentences need to be rewritten to improve clarity and simplicity.
  • You have chosen the wrong word to express your meaning in a few places.
  • You often use passive voice.

9-8 Errors in each paragraph, seriously detracting from tone and/or meaning

  • Your grammar, spelling, and punctuation contain serious errors.
  • Ideas are not organized into paragraphs.
  • Sentences are poorly constructed and unclear.
  • You often use the wrong word to express your meaning.
  • You often use passive voice.

NM (No Mark) You did not take enough care with this paper.

Please rewrite and turn in again for 60% of writing points

BOX 5

A discussion of plagiarism: Plagiarism is presenting the words of others as your own. It applies to using passages within a paper without citing the source as well as to using entire papers written by someone else. Plagiarism is cheating. A plagiarized paper will receive no score and there will be no opportunity to make up the loss.

We are aware that there are many internet sites at which students can find complete term papers for sale. We also know that it is easy to "cut and paste" from material found on the internet directly into a paper. Let us caution you against making the mistake of using these strategies for several reasons.

1. Cheating is immoral and unethical. It represents disrespect for your subject, your teacher, and ultimately yourself. This should be your strongest reason not to do it.

2. You will not learn the background information you need to do your experiment.

3. The requirements for this paper are extremely clear and specific. It is very unlikely that any paper or section of text you find from these sources will fulfill these requirements adequately.

4. Material "lifted" from another source will have a different tone than your own writing, and it usually stands out clearly.

5. The reader for whom you are writing (another student in our class) will not be the same as the reader for whom these papers were written. We know exactly the level and background to expect in your writing.

THE SUMMARIES AND MINI PRESENTATION

5. Biotechnology Summary Assignments (10 points)

For each Biotechnology listed in table 1(except the one your paper was about) briefly describe (a) what it is (b) how the procedure or method is done and (c) the applications to this procedure or method. You are ultimately responsible for the answers to these prompts in enough detail as explained in the textbook. This material will NOT be on the genetics unit exam, but WILL be on the final. During the last week before finals, your mini presentations (see 8) to the class will help them understand more clearly the procedure or method (part (b)).

6. Gel Electrophoresis Lab (30 points)

In Biology you performed a gel electrophoresis. This is actually an AP lab. Instead of redoing the lab in class, you will be required to

(a) Go through the entire lab bench and complete the quiz (5 points)

(b) Use the data from the lab bench to answer all questions on the lab (pgs. Xx of lab guide) and graph the data. This material will NOT be on the genetics unit exam, but WILL be on the final (25 points)

7. PowerPoint and mini presentation (20 points)

During the two class days before the genetics unit exam, your group of 2 or 3 will present the detailed procedure of your assigned biotechnology to the class. Your presentation should consist of slides produced on Microsoft PowerPoint and may include any relevant animations, videos, demonstrations. The entire presentation must not exceed 10 minutes though. Your audience will have already completed the summary assignment (just as you have done).

1. Note cards and first bibliography: (10 pts) SCORE: ______

___/2 Minimum of 5 reputable science sources and 2 higher level science sources

___/4 Take your notes on 3x5 cards. I expect at least 25 cards. On one side, record one piece of information taken from the source. On the other side, record what the source was. Include information about experiments that have been done in your field, who did them, when, and where.

___/4 Include a complete bibliography written in correct bibliography form

2. Outline and most current bibliography: (5 pts) SCORE: ______

___/1 Include a copy of your most recent bibliography. If you have changed it, attach the last one to be graded.

___/4 Type your outline. Divide each main topic into sections and subsections. (If you divide a topic or subtopic, you must have at least two subtopics. (See outline form below) Each line should be only a few words, not sentences or paragraphs.

3. 1st draft of paper: (20 pts) SCORE: ______

____/2 General organization

  • Paper is organized into sections ___
  • Correct formatting ___
  • Bibliography present ___

____/10 Graded section (marked on paper) (See Box 4)

  • You demonstrate understanding of content ___
  • You delve and present experimental evidence ___
  • You relate new information to content of class ___
  • You organize information without rambling ___
  • You use language appropriately and clearly ___

____/5 Writing mechanics (see box 5)

____/3 ENDNOTES -- See Box 3

Proper form and correct use

Comments:

4. 2nd draft of paper: (5 pts) SCORE: ______

Paper is turned in on time and you edit your partners paper diligently and one time

8. Final draft of paper: (90 pts) SCORE: ______

CONTENT-- See Box 4

___/10 Introduction (direction, importance of field) (5%)

___/40 Body (main content, organization) (50%)

___/10Conclusion (review of paper, future direction of research)

___/10 ENDNOTES See Guidelines,

___/5 BIBLIOGRAPHY See Box 1

___/15 WRITING MECHANICS See Box 5

Comments:

5. Biotechnology Summary Assignments (10 points) SCORE: ______

  • You accurately describe each biotechnology
  • You explain the procedure or method associated with each biotechnology
  • You describe applications of this biotechnology

6. Gel Electrophoresis Lab (30 points) SCORE: _____

___/5 LabBench quiz completed and attached

___/25 Score based on each individual analysis question and completed graph

7. PowerPoint and mini presentation (30 points) SCORE: ____

___/10 You demonstrate clear understanding of the procedure/method

___/10 You create visuals that help the class understand the procedure/method

___/10 The presentation is adequate in length and well organized

TOTAL PROJECT SCORE: _____/200