One of the main goals of the lab this semester was to teach you about the nature of science. We have discussed the importance of aspects such as experimental design, data collection and analyses, and communication of findings. Now, we will learn about another very important aspect, the research proposal. A research proposal is a detailed description of a proposed study that is intended to convince others of the relevance and importance of the study. Moreover, a research proposal is intended to convince others that you have the expertise and ability to conduct this experiment. Oftentimes, but not always, a proposal will be used to solicit funding for a study. Typically, a research proposal will take the form of a written summary ranging from 4 - 7 pages; however, it may also take the form of a presentation, poster, infographic, or other means of communication. There are often many stages to writing a research proposal from brainstorming the initial study idea to designing (and redesigning) the study, to sharing the proposed study with colleagues, and soliciting feedback from others prior to submission for funding or stewardship.
For this assignment, you are going to create a proposal infographic. This assignment will require you to bring together what you learned this semester about the nature of science and propose your own experiment. Specifically, you will propose an experiment to continue investigating cellular processes of plants. You may propose any experiment investigating any cellular process of any plant species (or multiple species), EXCEPT the relationship between leaf surface area and photosynthetic and transpiration rates. There are many topics you can explore, here are a few examples of topics you may want to consider:
- Role of stomata in transpiration rate or gas exchange
- Impact of environmental conditions on photosynthetic rate
- Efficiency of different carbon fixation pathways (C3, C4, CAM)
- Production of chemical defenses
Your proposal infographic must include the following information: Title, Specific Aims, Background, Research Design and Methods, Expected Results, and References. Details for each criterion are outlined below.
Title
- Be clear and unambiguous
- Tell the focus of your proposal
- “Research Project UsingSpinacia oleracea” isNOTa descriptive title
- Oftentimes it is easiest to write this last
Specific Aims
- What do you expect to accomplish? State the broad, big picture objective of the work.You should have a clearly defined research question.
Background
- Set the context of your work including providing species information
- Include supporting background information – citeat least2 primary sources. What do we already know?
- Think about how your proposed project extends on what is known? What do we want/need to know?
Research Design and Methods
- How will you address your research question? Explain how the data will be collected, analyzed, and interpreted (be specific). USE PICTURES!
- Consider the independent, dependent, control variables.
- Consider control conditions.
- What statistics will you use to analyze your data (i.e., totals, mean, t-test, ANOVA, etc.)
- Review the basic statistical analyses presented in Module 2. Select the appropriate analyses for your data.
Expected Results
- Provide plot(s) that show your predicted outcomes for the control and experimental conditions. Make sure your plot(s) follow course formatting guidelines including descriptive captions.
References
Your submission should include citations for any references, artwork, or other images used in the creation of the infographic. You must includeat least2 primary sources.