Introduction

There are a great number of sources
of information on science and science topics. Many of those do not adequately
present current scientific research, or misrepresent research results. Some
sources give erroneous information. Scientists who conduct research write up
the results of their research, much as you write a lab report, and submit them
to journals that have a peer review process. The articles are
reviewed by experts in the field to determine the soundness of experimental
methods and results before the articles are published.

Task

You will find a recent research
article that has been published in a peer-reviewed journal and summarize the
article, identifying the steps in the scientific method that were followed.

Process

  1. Click on the link to the EBSCO ONLINE PERIODICAL DATABASE website.

  2. Log in using the following information:
    User ID: Jefferson Password: library

  3. Select EBSCOhost Web

  4. Scroll through the list and
    select Science Reference Center

  5. Under the Search
    box select Advanced Search

  6. Find the section of the page
    titled Limit your results. Check the boxes
    next to Full Text and Scholarly
    (Peer Reviewed) Journals.

  7. Enter your search keywords and
    click on Search. A list of articles will appear.
    You can sort the results by Relevance, Date, Source,
    or Author     (I suggest using Date, which will list most recent articles
    first).

TIPS ON ARTICLE SELECTION

  • Short articles are usually summaries
    or brief discussions of topics and may not be as useful for this assignment.

  • Articles available as PDF
    Full Text         will look exactly as they did in print, including all photos,
    tables, and figures.

  • Articles available as HTML
    full text         will be viewed in a web browser and may have hyperlinks
    to different sections of the article. However, tables and photos may be
    absent or difficult to read.

  • When you find a suitable article,
    read the abstract. This is a brief summary of the article and its contents
    and can tell you if the article is really what you are looking for (titles
    are often deceiving).

  • Save a copy of the article to
    your folder or flash drive before printing.

WRITING THE SUMMARY

When writing the summary, look for
the following parts of the scientific method and write a brief description of
each:

  • Statement of the Problem

  • Review of Prior Research

  • Hypothesis

  • Experimental design

  • Analysis of Results

  • Conclusions/Revisions of hypothesis

  • Suggestions for Action or Further
    Research

Your summary can be a bulleted list of the above categories with the pertinent information included. You must also include;

  •  The citation for the article you chose written in correct MLA format.

  • A permalink to the article. This is a link that will allow me to easily access the original article. It is usually NOT the URL in the address line of your browser.

UPLOAD YOUR SUMMARY TO MOODLE BY 11:55 PM ON THE ASSIGNED DATE.