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Because students in middle school through high school demonstrate persistent alternative conceptions regarding atoms and cells and their functional relationships, it is important to investigate ways...

In this study, the quality of small group discussions stimulated by concept cartoons on the topic of cell division was examined in a class of sixteen high school agriculture biology students. Two...

Although many teachers consider dissection an important educational tool, it is mainly used to reinforce information previously gained by studying anatomy and physiology. Rarely is inquiry-based...

In this study, a design-based research approach was used in the creation of data-rich problem (DRP) tasks intended to support students constructing knowledge about food webs and ecosystem dynamics...

The Conceptual Inventory of Natural Selection (CINS) developed by Dianne Anderson and Kathleen Fisher is a valuable tool to measure how well college students understand natural selection. However...

The conceptual Inventory of Natural Selection was first published in 2002 (Anderson & Fisher, 2002). Recent research by Nehm & Schonfeld (2008) has raised concern as to whether or not the Conceptual...

The purpose of this study was to determine the existence of high school students’ alternative conceptions regarding stem cells, and explore the underlying themes and contexts of these conceptions...

Student Scholarship, Week of Scholarship, presented at Student Poster Session, April 6, 2017.

PowerPoint presentation, delivered at the MNU Week of Scholarship, Celebration of Student Research and Creativity, April 6, 2017.

This study investigated the use of biological concept cartoons in discussions as a strategy to actively engage low performing (LP) seventh grade students to stimulate the formation of more...

In this study a design-based research approach was applied in the creation of a data-rich problem (DRP) task intended to improve student achievement in cellular respiration at the ecosystem level; an...

Evolution, by means of natural selection, is a core concept central to understanding biology. A hurdle to effective natural selection instruction is the wide range of alternative conceptions held by...

Research reveals that developing a meaningful multileveled understanding of molecular genetics is challenging for students. An unexplored approach to fostering this scientific understanding is the use...

Concepts in evolution are introduced at the middle school level, but are taught in more depth at the high school level. Students come in with prior conceptions of evolution that influence student...

Higher education science researchers have postulated that understanding variation is a threshold concept in biology. Variation is evident in all living organisms yet is often overlooked as important...

Disciplines such as law, business, and medicine have used case studies for decades to teach students about their field through comprehension, application, analysis, synthesis, and evaluation skills...

Although the use of technology in biological career paths is increasing globally, studies indicate that United States undergraduate biology students are not prepared for this technologically advanced...

A swarm of the δ-proteobacterium Myxococcus xanthus is a distributed system; a population of superposable automata whose distribution is transparent so that it appears as one machine. These swarms...

Book review: The Language of God: A Scientist Presents Evidence for Belief , by Francis S. Collins, Free Press (a division of Simon and Schuster, New York), 2006, ISBN 978-1416542742. From the review...

Video, 2015 Week of Scholarship 7x7 Challenge presentation, Dr. Abby M. Hodges, "Creativity and Precision in Protein Folding."

Honors Program Student Scholarship Poster, 2013.

Macrophages are able to polarize from a basal, naïve state to an M1 or M2 phenotype. M1 pro-inflammatory macrophages are characterized by recognizing and eliminating abnormal cells, while M2 anti...

The human microbiota is a thriving ecosystem that has remained a great mystery, as we have yet to develop a complete understanding of its complex nature and capabilities. Nonetheless, numerous studies...

The purpose of the investigation was to compare the effects of 8 weeks of low-volume high-intensity interval training (HIIT) versus the effects of high-volume moderate-intensity continuous training...

Antibiotic resistance among Gram-positive bacteria is a serious global health threat. Vancomycin-resistant enterococci (VRE) are especially concerning since they are susceptible to few if any...