Plenary Speakers

Chief Paul White Eagle, Grassy, MO

"The Origin of Life:  Looking from the inside and seeing its many spectrums as known and taught by Native Peoples."

Thursday evening public presentation  Ballroom.

       Chief Paul White Eagle (Paul Smith) is an artist, writer and storyteller who lives on AhNiYvWiYa Tribal Lands in Grassy Missouri and serves as leader of his people.  He has spoken to conferences throughout the United States, to Tribal organizations, schools, and community organizations.  He has taught  in public schools, community colleges, universities, and in private classes at his painting studio. He served as the only Native American President of the New Mexico Art League and is a current member of the Cat Ranch Art Guild in Marble Hill, MO.

        Paul was trained in the traditional ways, ancient dances, ceremonies and medicines of his People.  He has spent many years teaching, training , and passing on to his people the ancient ways which were lost to many when they acculturated into American Society.  He says that his small Tribe has never acculturated or changed any of their traditional ways, but has learned to keep them while living in the modern society.

Doris “Dori” Helms, Ph.D., Provost, Clemson University

"Revolution and Evolution in the Biology Classroom"

Friday luncheon program, Ballroom.

Dr. Helms is the Vice President and Provost at Clemson University since 2001.  Shejoined Clemson University in 1973 as an Assistant Professor of Zoology. She later served as Department Head and Professor of Biology, then Associate Dean of the College of Sciences. Under her direction, Clemson's biology program achieved recognition as a leader in preparation of science teachers. She is a recipient of the prestigious Charles R. Townes Award for support of mathematics and science education.

She has long been active in the College Board’s Advanced Placement Biology program and currently serves on the NSF funded panel to follow up an NRC task force’s recommendations that major changes be made in the College Board’s Advanced Placement program in Biology. To address the needs of current AP Bio students, the expectations of their parents, and growing changes in undergraduate education in biology that focus more on learning through investigative, collaborative, and analytical activities, this College Board panel is proposing major changes. The recommendations are not yet public, but Dr. Helms will share the preliminary results of this national initiative and its potential impact on undergraduate college and university education in biology.

Sherryl Broverman, Ph.D., Biology Department, Duke University

"How Much Can One Course Multi-task: Scientific, Multidisciplinary and International Education?"
 Friday dinner program.        

            Dr. Broverman will give an overview of the NSF-funded SENCER program (Science Education for New Civic Engagements and Responsibilities), as well as describing her own work which developed out of SENCER, developing linked classes with a university in Africa. 

Workshops (alphabetical order by first presenter)

 “Implementing Independent Research Projects for Undergraduates Using Adult and Embryonic Zebrafish”

Melissa Daggett, Missouri Western State University

 Friday 8:30  University Room

Zebrafish have become an accepted model organism for testing pharmaceuticals and potential environmental toxins. The advantages of using zebrafish include ease of culturing and maintenance, as well as the availability of protocols on the Internet for performing various scientific investigations. The zebrafish system also offers an opportunity to engage undergraduate students in the process of scientific inquiry. The goal of this workshop will be to highlight the basic materials and skills needed to guide students through a semester long research project in which students work independently to write a research proposal, design an experiment, collect and analyze data, and finally generate a poster that they can use to present their research. Participants in this workshop will have the opportunity to observe and collect data from living zebrafish ranging from approximately 48 hours to 1 week of age.

“Biological ESTEEM: Excel Simulations and Tools for Exploratory, Experiential Mathematical Biology:   Implementing NRC Bio 2010’s Recommendations for More Mathematics in Undergraduate Biology Education"

John Jungck and Anton Weisstein, Beloit College and Truman State University, MO

 Saturday 9:45 Missouriana Room

          In 2003 NRC made eight major recommendations for the improvement of undergraduate biology education in its publication: BIO2010: Transforming Undergraduate Education for Future Research Biologists < http://www.nap.edu/books/0309085357/html/> . The first two of these recommendations both emphasized the need for more attention to the inclusion of more mathematics:

“it is important that all students understand the growing relevance of quantitative science in addressing life-science questions. Thus, a better integration of quantitative applications in biology would not only enhance life science education for all students, but also decrease the chances that mathematically talented students would reject life sciences as too soft.” … “Most biology majors take no more than one year of calculus, although some also take an additional semester of statistics. Very few are exposed to discrete mathematics, linear algebra, probability, and modeling topics, which could greatly enhance their future research careers. These are often considered advanced courses; however, many aspects of discrete math or linear algebra that would be relevant to biology students do not require calculus as a prerequisite. While calculus remains an important topic for future biologists, the committee does not believe biology students should study calculus to the exclusion of other types of mathematics.”

Explicit strategies for implementing these recommendations were the subject of a follow-up conference entitled “Meeting the Challenges: Education Across the Biological, Mathematical and Computer Sciences”  < http://www.maa.org/mtc/ > and a book published by the Mathematics Association of America entitled: Math & Bio: Linking Undergraduate Disciplines (ISBN 0-88385-818-5).

       We, members of the BioQUEST Curriculum Consortium, were funded to develop modules to address these challenges through a new initiative:  Biological ESTEEM (Excel Simulations and Tools for Exploratory, Experiential Mathematics). The recommended areas: “discrete mathematics, linear algebra, probability, and modeling topics” will be illustrated through materials that we have developed in biochemistry, bioinformatics, biometrics, developmental biology, ecology, evolution, genetics, microbiology, and physiology. All materials are easily run on economical microcomputers (PCs and Macs) equipped with Microsoft Excel and a web browser. Biological ESTEEM modules will be freely downloadable from the “Digital Classroom Resources” site in the Mathematics NSDL (National Science Digital Library). Participants will have the opportunity to try several modules and will receive a CD copy of over twenty modules available for classroom and laboratory review. Discussion of strategies for the adoption, adaptation, and implementation of these curricular materials in general biology classes as well as in upper level undergraduate biology courses will be emphasized.

Support for this project was provided by three NSF grants: DUE-0232823 (National Dissemination BEDROCK), CFDA No. 47.076 (MAA NSDL), and EPIC (Engaging People in Cyberinfrastructure), the HHMI Digital Scholars program, matching funds from Beloit College, and generous contributions from members of the BioQUEST Curriculum Consortium.

"An Interdisciplinary Biology Course that Uses Tablet PC's in a New High Tech Classroom"

Dave Starrett, Southeast Missouri State University

Saturday 9:45  Kent Library 311 (Building next to UC, behind waterfall)

Tour the new high tech classroom at Kent Library (adjacent to the University Center) and see how tablet PC technology is being used to teach a University Studies (general education) biology course for majors and non-majors. Each participant will work with a tablet PC and use several interactive programs.   DyKnow software integrates all the tablets so students and teachers can share information, see screens, and keep a notebook.   The concepts we'll be looking at are related to testing theories of evolution and include a game about natural selection, a phylogenetic tree drawing program, and others.

Teaching Biology With NASA: A Trip Through a Cell  and "Biology Will Grow on You! Let the NASA ERC Show You How"

Jackie Wortmann, NASA Educator Resource Center, Southeast Missouri State University
Friday 8:30 Program Lounge (3^rd floor  of UC)

This is a two part workshop.
Using a unique indoor planetarium, the StarLab, the NASA Educator Resource Center will demonstrate a biological cell that will fill a room. This cell
can be used as a teaching device, an enhancement to your teaching, and as a testing feature. Included will be a quick trip through the stars observing
constellations based on Native American mythology. Can you find the home fire?  Note: the portion of the workshop that takes place inside the StarLab requires crawling through a short tunnel and sitting on the floor for 20 minutes.

In the second half of this workshop,  we'll explore NASA's special interest in biology. You can't send people to space without considering their health and what they eat. This session features what the NASA ERC has to offer biology educators including pre-service educators. Biology with a twist! 

“iWORX for Physiology Laboratory Teaching”

Ed Sachs, Iworx

Friday 8:30 Indian Room

Exhibitor Workshop demonstrating software for teaching physiology.

Papers (in alphabetical order by first author)

“Weaving Science into our Lives”

Christine Bezotte, Elmira College

Friday 1:45, Indian Room

Non-science majors often avoid science requirements until the “last -minute” before graduation…fear of information and dislike of the subject is often their reasons.  To overcome these common obstacles we developed a course that integrates the sciences with business and arts.  The Science and Art of Fiber. This course is unique in its survey of plant and animal fiber composition, production and management. The course is a merging of the fiber sciences [biology and chemistry] with artistic expression [processing, pattern design and implementation], integrated with small business practices [management and marketing] to create and market original pieces of fabric. Students also learn life skills [fiber processing, spinning, dyeing, and needle arts] not often taught in our modern world. This course involves extensive hands-on learning of an interesting life’s skill, natural fabric making. Students gain an understanding and appreciation of how Biology and Chemistry play intricate roles in the production of our clothing.  The interdisciplinary topics are; ­1) Investigating the composition and characteristics of natural and synthetic fibers, 2) Examining the chemistry of dyeing and soaps, 3) Learning the skills of processing, designing and creation of natural fabrics, and 4) Understanding the processes of developing, maintaining and marketing a cottage industry.  Students interact in laboratory and classroom activities through workshops, journals, fabric production, learning needle arts and marketing of product. The paper discusses how “Science and Art of Fiber”, is a non-threatening course for non-majors to fulfill Science requirements while affording the opportunity to learn important life skills.

“Integrating Service Learning Into General Biology”

Lisa Felzien and Laura Salem, Rockhurst University

Friday 10:30 University Room

Service learning in biology is designed to enhance the understanding of biology among undergraduate students.  In addition to increases in content knowledge, the goals for service learning also include improving interpersonal skills and attitudes about learning.  In the general biology course at Rockhurst University, students engage in creative application of course material by interacting with local high school students.  The three major components of effective service learning experiences are 1) developing clear learning objectives, 2) completing a meaningful project in the community, and 3) reflecting on what was learned from the project.  Students were required to develop learning objectives on a biological concept of their choice, teach concepts to their high school audience, and write reflection papers to assess their learning and development.  Student learning was assessed by analyzing performance on exam questions relating to the service learning project content.  Information from reflection papers and student surveys were used to assess changes in student attitudes and interpersonal skills.

"What's This History and Culture Stuff Doing in My Microbiology Class?"

Christina Frazier, Southeast Missouri State University

 Friday 10:30  Indian Room

            The concepts of disease and epidemiology are excellent ways to make microbiology more interdisciplinary while at the same time help put the content of microbiology into meaningful contexts.  We’ll explore some of the many connections that can be made.

 “Integrating Teaching, Research and Service at a Local Nature Center”

Lynn Gillie, Elmira College

Saturday 8:45  University Room 

Our job as faculty requires work divided among the areas of teaching, research, and service.  A more efficient approach for both faculty and students is to integrate these areas into one related enterprise.  Using the facilities of a local nature center, undergraduate students can experience the linkages among their education, a scientific research program and the broader community.  Students benefit from working in a diverse natural area for class work as well as long-term summer research.  The nature center and community benefit from donation of volunteer time and special programs from students and faculty.  For example, Tanglewood Nature Center has been instrumental in providing an outdoor classroom and research site for my students’ projects.  In return, I participate in the summer camp programs that the Tanglewood staff organizes for local elementary and middle-school students.  The benefits of interactions among teaching, research and service will be discussed.

"CleveLabs^™ Laboratory Course System "

Maria Grobelny, Cleveland Medical Devices, OH

Friday 1:45 University Room

The goal of CleveLabs is two-fold:  to expose students to real, state-of-the-art medical equipment and actual medical applications, while minimizing the lab instructor’s overall cost and preparation time.

CleveLabs was designed to integrate innovative technology with hands-on learning through interactive software that educates students on electrophysiology and bioinstrumentation.  Over 20 lab sessions are laid out in a concise, easy-to-follow format.  They include background information, setup movies, and data acquisition and analysis sections.  The labs utilize the BioRadio^® 150, a lightweight programmable wireless monitor, for viewing and recording physiological signals through a wide array of electrodes and transducers.  

 Exposing students to a wide range of physiology applications increases interest and prepares students to solve real-world problems.  Lab sessions include basic physiology, advanced physiology, and clinical applications.  Additionally, custom lab sets can be created.  Advanced laboratories allow students to expand their understanding of a particular physiological signal.  In addition, examples of abnormal clinical data for several disorders are available.

CleveLabs comes with pre-written lab procedures, coursework, and questions, reducing the class prep time for the instructor, yet because the software allows for the design of custom labs, flexibility for the instructor or for student-designed research is maintained.  The easy to use, all-in-one equipment minimizes the overhead time typically associated with hardware setup, equipment troubleshooting, and data management, while maximizing cost savings.  Overall, CleveLabs offers a sophisticated teaching tool while minimizing cost and setup efforts.

“Six Degrees of Separation:  An Exercise to Improve Student Appreciation of the Scientific Literature”

W.W.  Hoback and K.M.  Skinner, University of Nebraska, Kearney

 Friday 3:30 Indian Room

Science advances through cumulative additions to scientific knowledge and paradigm shifts that begin with seminal papers.  However, many students perceive older literature as unimportant and out-dated.  To show students why older papers are relevant, we developed an exercise using the new Google Scholar search engine ( http://www.scholar.google.com/ ).  Students chose “classic” ecology articles which were between 30 and 125 years since original publication.  Students then conducted Google Scholar searches for the number of times selected articles were cited and noted the types of journals in which the article was cited.  Students tabulated their data and composed an essay reporting their findings and discussing why classic papers are still cited.  From this exercise, students gained an appreciation of what types of papers become classics and the reasons that they are still cited today.  The exercise also reminded students of the difference between peer-reviewed publications and secondary literature.  Although we used this exercise in a graduate level ecology class, this exercise should be widely adaptable to any field of science and even other disciplines that use scholarly works.  This exercise can be extended as a class project by making a tree connecting modern papers to a classic reference.  This is accomplished by selecting modern papers and searching the literature cited to track backwards until a targeted classic paper is cited.  

“Experiences with an Interdisciplinary Biology-Mathematics Course - Follow-up Report”

John Koelzer and Chad Scholes, Rockhurst University

Friday 1:45 Riverboat Room

This presentation will describe the speakers’ experiences with teaching an interdisciplinary biology and mathematics course at Rockhurst University.  This course presented the students with a broad range of mathematical biology models and applications of these models to real world problems.  The course, entitled Mathematical Modeling in Biology, was described in a presentation given at the 2004 ACUBE Conference before it was initially taught in the spring semester of 2005.  The speakers, one a biology teacher and the other a mathematics teacher, will present an overview of the course and will highlight the successes and problems encountered in teaching the course for the first time.  Because Calculus I was the only mathematics prerequisite for the course there was a heavy reliance on technology to solve differential equations and to develop mathematical models.  Students used Mathematica and a simulation package called Populus as vehicles for exploring mathematical concepts in biology as well as tools for developing biological models.  The presenters will describe several of the topics covered in the course and will demonstrate how, using Mathematica and Populus, computer technology was used to develop the underlying concepts.

“Exploring Scientific Knowledge, Opinions, and Methods Through a Community Survey”

Kirt Moody, Columbia College

Friday 1:45 Missouriana Room

Biological science intersects deeply with the human condition through practices such as medicine, agriculture, and natural resource management.  As a result, many scientific concepts addressed in biology curricula are inextricably connected to social and cultural phenomena (politics, economics, legislation, tradition, etc.), and therefore, to public opinion.  This project required first-year Biology majors to plan, design, deliver and interpret a survey of community understanding.  The topic chosen was "Biodiversity" and the target audience was the campus population.  In addition to engaging in active learning about an important biological concept, students discussed and explored the following interdisciplinary issues:

     Impacts of emergent sociopolitical meaning on scientific research

     Sampling constraints (size, replication, randomization) in scientific methodology

     Experimental design, statistical analysis, and strong inference

     Geographic scaling (local, regional, national, global)

     Environmental prioritization and decision-making

This interactive presentation will explore the process and outcomes of this project, and examine possible applications across other topics and contexts.

“Learning how to learn: A study skills tutorial for the sciences”

Shawn E.  Nordell, St. Louis University

Saturday 8:45, Indian Room

Many college freshman find that the study skills that were sufficient for their high school studies are not adequate for college level courses.  This is particularly often observed in the sciences where the amount and depth of material covered is often much greater than what students previously covered in their high school science courses.  Many college students will ask their instructors how best to study for their exams.  And many college instructors are at a loss to explain how to best ‘learn’ the material.   Using examples from disciplines such as biology, art and literature, I will present a multidisciplinary, interactive approach to assisting students with a variety of learning styles to develop adequate study skills for the sciences.  These study skills allow students to gauge their level of understanding, and to further develop critical thinking skills working independently or in groups.

"ACUBE at its 50th"

Ethel Stanley, President-Elect, Beloit College

 Friday 5 Indian Room

“Cross-disciplinary projects between biology and psychology courses”

Glena G. Temple, Viterbo University

Friday 3:30  University Room

In a variety of classes over the last two years, Glena Temple (Biology Department) and Debra Murray (Psychology Department) have completed joint class projects between two courses from both disciplines.  Groups are assigned in these courses so that each group has students from both disciplines.  These groups must complete a multi-week activity investigating an issue at the interface of biology and psychology. At the end of the activity, the group must present their results to both classes (either in person, or through a joint class webpage).   Examples of these student projects include genetic basis of behavior disorders and cellular and molecular basis of drug addiction.  Long-term goals of this project include:  1)  Strengthening students understanding of the connections between the two disciplines, 2) Increasing the presentation and communication skills of both groups of students, 3) Strengthening ties between the two departments, 4) Increasing the number of minors in both disciplines.  Specific details of these projects, examples of student projects and data on student perceptions of the activity will be presented. 

 “Ecology of Infectious Disease:  A New Piece of the Ecosystem Puzzle”

 Margaret Waterman and Ethel Stanley, Southeast Missouri State University and Beloit College

Saturday 8:45 Riverboat Room

Join us for a discussion of Ecology of Infectious Disease in biology curricula, as well as of teaching  resources for this interdisciplinary topic.  Our health and the health of all organisms is inextricably linked to the changing social and ecological systems on Earth.  There is perhaps no more important interdisciplinary topic for biologists to teach.  Ecology of Infectious Disease (EID) is an important area for decision-making by citizens and is likely to be of great interest to students of all ages.

Ecology of Infectious Disease is an emerging body of knowledge.  EID is transdisciplinary, meaning that it is a synthesis of theory and methods from multiple fields relevant to EID.   Researchers studying disease work with scientists studying the evolution of disease as well as the ecology of pathogens and disease in normal ecosystems.  Methods of examining the impacts on humans are provided by historians, sociologists, economists and demographers. 

While few curricular materials currently support the teaching of Ecology of Infectious Disease, some texts include disease examples in the ecology chapters.  Usually these are limited to human impact on ecosystems or on emerging diseases.  We will present some examples of the ecology of infectious disease, e.g., the impacts of toxoplasmosis on California sea otters and the subsequent ecological impacts on kelp forests. See also our poster on Investigative Case Based Problem Spaces for Teaching Ecology of Infectious Disease.

  “The customer is always right….right?: Adoption of a new liberal education model and its impact on biology instruction at a small, liberal arts college.”

Peter White, Colby-Sawyer College

Friday 10:30 Riverboat Room

Colby-Sawyer College is a four-year, coeducational institution with a commitment to liberal education as the basis for lifelong learning.  Recent curricular changes at CSC reflect the interdisciplinary approach to college teaching and learning, as traditional core requirements have been replaced by a more flexible Pathway Program.  Influenced by Freshman Interest Groups (FIGs) and similar developments, the Pathway Program utilizes a central theme through which to view a number of pre-selected courses, known as Stepping Stones, from a range of disciplines.  Pathway themes taught by biology faculty have included such courses as “Light”, “Science, Technology and Culture”, “Science and Religion”, and “The Mind and the Brain”.  This paper session first summarizes the recent history in the development of such interdisciplinary models of education and examines the ‘freedom vs. force’ concept of course selection in a liberal education model.  More specifically, however, the session explores the changes in pedagogy and resources in the natural sciences department in response to the new liberal educational model.  Lower level (100) biology courses, such as Introduction to Cell Biology and Interactions in Biology, often serve as Stepping Stones for non-science based pathways.  The impact this has had on their instruction will be discussed.  Initial student feedback on the Pathway model has been quite positive.  Faculty feedback from the natural sciences department will be presented, although participants in this session are encouraged to share their own similar experiences. 

Posters – Friday 10 and 2:45, Party Room

 “An interdisciplinary exploration of global climate change”

Kerry M. Skinner, University of Nebraska at Kearney

Faculty from four departments in the College of Natural and Social Sciences at the University of Nebraska at Kearney developed an interdisciplinary course on the topic of global climate change.  The course was designed as a pilot effort to address the ideals of Science Education for New Civic Engagement and Responsibility (SENCER).  The goals of this one-credit course were for students to learn to (1) gather and use information and arguments from both the natural and social sciences, (2) better evaluate arguments and policies based on scientific and political ideas, (3) understand the capabilities and limitations of individual disciplines in resolving complex public issues, (4) foster effective communication across disciplinary lines, and (5) encourage participation in both public and personal decision-making regarding this problem.  The issues surrounding the topic of global warming were examined through the perspectives of the disciplines of Biology, Chemistry, Geography, and Political Science.   Major topics covered included the chemistry of greenhouse gases, the methods for investigating historical variation in global temperatures, the impacts of global climate change on ecosystems, how political policy comes about, the economic concerns of various nations, and the obstacles to ratifying the Kyoto Protocol.   Using this information to support their arguments, students worked in teams to develop a policy recommendation for the United States regarding the actions needed to address global climate change.

“Web Page Construction as an Alternative Form of Testing in Plant Biology”

Lucinda Swatzell, Southeast Missouri State University

Students who take lower level (100-200) biology courses often do so to satisfy requirements for a minor or for an interdisciplinary degree.  A variety of students in a course is an asset to an interactive learning environment, but true assessment can be difficult.  The best way to assess learning in one discipline may not apply or truly test learning in another.  For example, the art student with a botany minor is better prepared to express learned material visually, but the standard practice for testing in the sciences is through detailed factual recall and information integration toward application, such as problem-solving.  One challenge in teaching and assessing interdisciplinary students is fair and applicable assessment, which requires options for student expression of the same material, but in a variety of formats. One additional format is web page construction.  Because web pages, by nature, are informative and concise, web page construction requires a grasp of knowledge and concepts, and the ability to relate information meaningfully.  The method allows the student some freedom as to how information is presented, but the output can be readily assessed just as easily as an essay or short answer.  To demonstrate this, we present several types of web pages, constructed by students who were struggling to express their learned information in a standard format, but were able to do so much more readily in this formation.  A checkpoint for assessment is presented for comparison to a standard essay format.

“Are group quizzes useful in enhancing student learning?

Glena G. Temple and Jennifer A. Sadowski, Viterbo University, WI

In this poster, we will present data on the use of group quizzes in biology courses at Viterbo University.   As a means of creating a cooperative learning environment and enhancing small group discussions, students work together in teams to answer questions on frequent quizzes throughout the semester.  Over the last year, data was collected on the use of group quizzes in a variety of courses including majors, non-majors, upper level and introductory biology courses.  At the end of each semester, the students were surveyed on their perceptions of group quizzes in the course.  The majority of students in the courses surveyed agreed that they prefer group quizzes over individual quizzes.  In addition, the majority of students agree that they learned from their group members when discussing group quiz questions.  Students in upper-level courses for biology majors generally had a more positive experience with group quizzes than students in non-majors introductory courses.  A detailed analysis of these results will be presented. 

“Planting the seed:  Traveling with students in the Caribbean”

Conrad Toepfer, Brescia University, KY

Students at many small, liberal arts colleges in the Midwest come from areas relatively near campus and often have not traveled outside of their immediate region.  Courses with extensive travel may be the best way to open their eyes to the rest of the world.  While one trip is not likely to completely change their worldview, it can start the process.  The U.S. Virgin Islands offer an opportunity to expose students to a wide variety of historical, cultural, and scientific topics.  While USVI is a territory of the United States, it has had a rich history of pre-Columbian people and seven different owners in more modern times.    A week-long “immersion” course was developed in 1999 to demonstrate the link between biology and literature in an island environment.  Over three separate offerings, the course has evolved into an interdisciplinary course, Caribbean Culture, with additional coverage of historical and cultural topics.   This presentation will summarize topics presented in the course, point out some of the most interesting interdisciplinary moments, and share some stories of students in their first major travel experience.

“Interdisciplinary teaching approaches in Invertebrate Zoology. Stress analysis of dried sea urchin tests: a Geodesic Dome.”

Robert L. Wallace, Ripon College, WI

A central theme in biology is the analysis of form (structure) and function. While I focus on this concept throughout my Invertebrate Zoology course, I also promote studies that make the class a model for the liberal arts and sciences. To accomplish this I periodically assign brief (ca. 0.5–1.5 hr.) studies of selected problems that the class works on as a whole or in small groups. Each of these exercises is designed to promote both interdisciplinary studies and the development of the student’s analytical skills. In formulating these activities I also privilege exercises that lead to the consideration of other disciplines in the liberal arts. Here I present a simple laboratory problem that invites students to explore the architectural attributes of the dried sea urchin test—a natural form of R. Buckminster Fuller’s Geodesic Dome. This assignment requires that students use the 3P’s as outlined by BioQUEST^® (Problem-posing, Problem-solving, and Peer Persuasion). However, in a general discussion it also allows for an exploration of the Dome as an element in Art, Culture, and History. 

“Ecology of Infectious Disease:  A New Piece of the Ecosystem Puzzle”

 Margaret Waterman and Ethel Stanley, Southeast Missouri State University and Beloit College

This poster presents Investigative Case Based Learning (ICBL) methods, problem spaces and resources for Ecology of Infectious Diseases (EID) teaching.  Because the ecology of infectious disease is interdisciplinary, ICBL promises to be a valuable teaching strategy.

Our health and the health of all organisms is inextricably linked to the changing social and ecological systems on Earth.  There is perhaps no more important interdisciplinary topic for biologists to teach.  Ecology of Infectious Disease is an emerging body of knowledge, with earliest papers approximately 20 years old.  Few curricular materials currently exist to support the teaching of Ecology of Infectious Disease.  While some texts include some disease examples in the ecology chapters, they are often examples of human impacts on ecosystems.  EID is also sometimes treated as emerging diseases in the virology chapters.

 ICBL is a variant of the Problem Based Learning (PBL) methods used in medical schools which use brief cases to initiate collaborative learning.  Unlike PBL, ICBL provides a problem space with resources for research-like experiences, and the ICBL approach engages students in scientific investigations in the field, in labs, and on computers.  ICBL is student centered. As students analyze the case they generate their own questions for further learning.  They may then design their own investigations or carry out instructor-designed investigations.

The ICBL cases are usually designed or selected by the instructor and are realistically complex and multidisciplinary.  The recent loss of oak forests and the subsequent effects on ecosystems in California, for example, might be the subject of a case for EID.  The situation might be told from a lumber company’s point of view, from that of visitors to a park, from a plant pathologist’s perspective.  Whoever tells the story needs to know some ecology.  Cases about EID can be written from different perspectives:  the people affected, those seeking to control the disease, land use planners, developers, growers using techniques that affect biodiversity, etc.  

The ICBL problem spaces provide contexts for introducing methodologies relevant to EID, such as modeling, statistics, or GIS.  For example, a satellite image dataset on photosynthesis in the Chesapeake Bay might be used to investigate human health impacts of an algal bloom. Modeling the life cycle of Pfiesteria might follow.  Bioinformatics tools can be used to investigate Pfiesteria spread and evolution.

“Teaching microarrays, A case involving pathogenic Pasteurella multocida”

Mark Wissel and Marcia Cordts, Univ. of Kansas Medical Center and Univ. of Iowa
 

 Microarray technology integrates computer science, statistics and engineering with studies of diverse biological systems. With the increasing use of whole genome microarray technology to address key  questions in biology, it is imperative for undergraduates to understand this technology.  Yet, arguably, the development of available teaching materials to teach about microarrays in an engaging manner has not kept pace.  This poster provides a 2-day example lesson on a study involving microarray technology suitable for an undergraduate general microbiology or introductory biology course.   The teaching activity described in this poster will help students to understand, in general terms, what a whole genome microarrray is and  how microarrays can be produced.  Using this introduction to microarrays, students then are challenged  to work through a specific experimental question that could not previously be addressed using pre-array approaches.  Day 1 is an introduction to the study (Pasteurella multocida is harvested from lab media or infected chickens) ¹ and Day 2 gives a manageable amount of example microarray data from the study and asks the student to use the data to make conclusions about how Pasteurella multocida establishes infection.

In addition to teaching about this powerful new technology, this teaching activity allows students to practice application of concepts such as gene regulation, microbial growth, and pathogen virulence that are traditionally introduced in the undergraduate microbiology syllabus.¹ Infect Immun. 2002 Dec;70(12):6871-9