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    Mice, Acorns, and Lyme Disease: a Case Study to Teach the Ecology of Emerging Infectious Diseases.
    Ebola, Zika, the recall of contaminated lettuce - these are just a few recent outbreaks making headlines. Students should be able to connect what they learn in their biology courses to explain...

    Keywords: epidemiologyEcological changeInfectious disease ecologyReservoirsTransmission cycle

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    A flexible, multi-week approach to plant biology - How will plants respond to higher levels of CO2?
    To help introductory biology students understand how plants will respond to higher levels of CO2, we have created a multi-week module consisting of a series of four related laboratory lessons....

    Keywords: statisticsplantsphotosynthesiscarbon dioxidecommunicating sciencegroup workResource AllocationRespirationStomata

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    A new approach to course-based research using a hermit crab-hydrozoan symbiosis
    There are few feasible models for marine-focused inquiry laboratory activities, a notable shortcoming for instructors seeking to engage their students in meaningful, course-based research...

    Keywords: behaviorparasitismSymbiosismutualismcommensalism

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    A clicker-based case study that untangles student thinking about the processes in the central dogma
    The central dogma of biology is a foundational concept that provides a scaffold to understand how genetic information flows in biological systems. Despite its importance, undergraduate students...

    Keywords: mutationtranscriptionphenotypecentral dogmatranslationDNA replication

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    Using computational molecular modeling software to demonstrate how DNA mutations cause phenotypes
    Students require a deep understanding of the central dogma before they can understand complex topics such as evolution and biochemical disorders. However, getting undergraduate biology students to...

    Keywords: Protein Structurecomputational modelingcentral dogmaplant leaf structurePhenotype/Genotype

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    Your Tax Dollars at Work: A mock grant writing experience centered on scientific process skills
    A successful scientist combines skill, creativity, and the art of persuasion to excel in his or her field of study. Critically important for the professional scientist is the ability to not only...

    Keywords: researchexperimental designprocess of sciencePeer reviewgrant writingPecha Kuchaproposal

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    Coevolution or not? Crossbills, squirrels and pinecones
    This case reinforces the concept of coevolution as a reciprocal change in genetic structure between or among two or more populations, by having students analyze and interpret data, build a...

    Keywords: fitnessCoevolutionCo-adaptation

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    Dynamic Daphnia: An inquiry-based research experience in ecology that teaches the scientific process to first-year biologists
    This authentic research experience lesson teaches the core concept of systems and the competencies of quantitative reasoning, communication, and the ability to apply science. The research is...

    Keywords: statisticsecologyscientific methodexperimental designAbiotic and Biotic FactorsDependent and Independent Variables

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    Mock Drug Activity Enhances Student Learning About the Challenges of HIV/AIDS Therapy
    While traditional didactic coursework is important for learning about the scientific aspects of HIV/AIDS, it is difficult to convey social aspects of the epidemic. Due to effective drug therapies,...

    Keywords: drug resistanceRetrovirusViral replication

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    A CURE for Salmonella: A Laboratory Course in Pathogen Microbiology and Genomics
    Rapid advances in genomics and bioinformatics, the vast amount of data generated by next-generation sequencing, and the penetration of the ‘-omics’ into many areas of biology have created a need...

    Keywords: epidemiologyresearchbioinformaticsgenomicspublic healthAntibiotic Resistant BacteriaSalmonellaDNA sequencingpathogenic bacteria

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    Using a Primary Cell Culture Model to Study the Neural Extracellular Matrix
    The extracellular matrix (ECM) provides structural support to cells, but also has key roles in mediating cell adhesion, cell signaling, and differentiation. While this topic is discussed in the...

    Keywords: Neural extracellular matrixPerineuronal netPrimary neuronal culture

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    Using Gamification to Teach Undergraduate Students about Scientific Writing
    Despite its importance, scientific writing is often deprioritized in undergraduate biology classes. Reasons include assumed prior knowledge, lack of class time, tedious grading, and the complexity...

    Keywords: gamificationscientific writingE-LearningInstant FeedbackInteractive LearningReading Scientific PapersVIdeo/computer game

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    The Leaky Neuron: Understanding synaptic integration using an analogy involving leaky cups
    Students have difficulty understanding synaptic integration in neural circuits, and how spatial and temporal summation combine in a target neuron to reach threshold.  This Lesson uses small...

    Keywords: neuron physiologyspatial summationsynaptic integrationtemporal summationthreshold

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    Discovering Prokaryotic Gene Regulation with Simulations of the trp Operon
    The trp operon exemplifies important biological concepts, including the central dogma of molecular biology, feedback inhibition, and gene regulation. For this reason, regulation of the trp operon...

    Keywords: prokaryotesgene regulationattenuationfeedback inhibitionrepressible operontrp operon

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    Using Place-Based Economically Relevant Organisms to Improve Student Understanding of the Roles of Carbon Dioxide, Sunlight, and Nutrients in Photosynthetic Organisms
    Biology students require broad preparation for diverse careers including agriculture, natural resource management, and laboratory research. Concurrent with this need, employers are seeking...

    Keywords: energyphotosynthesisbiomass

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    Predicting and classifying effects of insertion and deletion mutations on protein coding regions
    Mutations in genes can affect the encoded proteins in multiple ways, and some of these effects are counterintuitive. As for any other knowledge, students must create their own deep understanding of...

    Keywords: mutationcentral dogmatranslationframeshift

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    A Kinesthetic Modeling Activity to Teach PCR Fundamentals
    Most molecular biology and biological sciences students understand that the polymerase chain reaction (PCR) is used to amplify DNA. However, we have found that some students experience conceptual...

    Keywords: PCR

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    The Power of Place: A Course-Based Undergraduate Research Experience Studying Urban Ecology, Local Apple Trees and Disease Susceptibility
    Course-based Undergraduate Research Experiences (CUREs) offered early in an undergraduate student’s career have the potential to include a greater number and diversity of students than...

    Keywords: Disease ecologyurban ecologyUrban food forestsUrban heat islandsGenetic resistance

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    What is Speciation, How Does It Occur, and Why Is It Important for Conservation?
    Speciation provides a framework for classifying biodiversity on Earth and is a central concept in evolutionary biology. To help undergraduate students learn about speciation, we designed a...

    Keywords: EvolutionconservationGenetic DriftSpeciationNatural SelectionBiological species conceptgene flowMorphological species conceptPhylogenetic species concept

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    Distances in the Universe: An Inquiry Lab Sequence Taught in West Africa and North America
    Astronomy evokes deep curiosity for many people, making it a beautiful topic for supporting students to learn scientific practices and develop as scientists. We present an inquiry-based lab...

    Keywords: InquiryAstronomy labParallaxInverse-square law for lightCosmic distance ladderAsking investigable questions

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