Current Topics
One role of a professional biologist is to pay attention to accuracy and potential biases in how science is reported in the popular press. For extra credit you may turn in up to 6 Current Topics reports--2 reports can be submitted anytime before each of the three midterm exams. Each report should (a) relate to material covered in that part of the course and (b) cover material that appeared in print during the semester. To complete a current topics report, do the following:
1) Find a longer news article printed this semester that is related to a topic covered in class. Short webpage-briefs, like those published on CNN, are not acceptable. The article must come from an in-depth source like Time magazine or the New York Times, in order to provide sufficient information and perspective. (Oftentimes a topic reported in a brief at CNN, for example, will refer to a longer report that you can track down elsewhere.) If you have any doubts check with me to make sure the source is appropriate.
2) Read the article thoroughly and critically. Pay special attention to how the source portrays the scientific concepts, and compare them to what you’ve learned in this course. Consider:
a) Does the evidence provided in the article support the reporter’s conclusions?
b) Does the reporter discuss shortcomings of the evidence or conclusions?
c) Does the reporter appear to be biased toward a particular point of view or interested in eliciting a particular kind of response?
d) Do you see flaws or gaps in how the science was carried out or reported about?
e) Is there enough information provided to evaluate the conclusions or opinions?
f) What additional information would help you, as a scientist, to judge the quality of the science being reported?
3) Write a three-paragraph response to the article (no more than one page single spaced!), covering the following information and considering the questions posed above:
Paragraph 1: Summarize and evaluate evidence for the critical conclusions drawn by the article.
Paragraph 2: Discuss how the article illustrates concepts from Biol 211. Be sure to identify specific concepts you’ve learned and how they relate to information in the article.
Paragraph 3: Critically evaluate how the reporter presented the science, especially any motivations or biases in why this topic was chosen and the viewpoint expressed or implied. Use the questions in part 2 as a guide for your evaluation.
4) Turn in one hard copy of your report(s) to me anytime before the exam (may be turned in at the exam but no later), along with a copy of the article stapled to the back of your report.
Biology 211
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