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Global Climate Change: What Does it Look Like?

Co Authors:	Brahmadeo Dewprashad Department of Science Borough of Manhattan Community College / City University of New York bdewprashad@bmcc.cuny.edu Teresa M. Schulz Science Department Lansing Community College schulzt@lcc.edu William H. Cliff Department of Biology Niagara University bcliff@niagara.edu Ann W. Wright Department of Biology Canisius College wrighta@canisius.edu Mary Allen Department of Biology Hartwick College allenm1@hartwick.edu Mark L. Kuhlmann Department of Biology Hartwick College kuhlmannm@hartwick.edu Robert H. Grant Editorial Department The Scientist info@the-scientist.com Teresa M. Schulz Science Department Lansing Community College schulzt@lcc.edu Kathy Gallucci Biology Department Elon University gallucci@elon.edu Preeti Dhar Chemistry Department SUNY New Paltz dharp@newpaltz.edu Herbert House Biology Department Elon University househ@elon.edu Susan Holt Life Sciences Learning Center University of Rochester sholtbmn@aol.com Eric Ribbens Department of Biological Sciences Western Illinois University E-Ribbens@wiu.edu Erik Zavrel Department of Biomedical Engineering Cornell University eaz29@cornell.edu Eric Ribbens Department of Biological Sciences Western Illinois University E-Ribbens@wiu.edu Barbra Burdett Biology, Anthropology Lincoln College bburdett@lincolncollege.edu Angela Green Department of Biological Sciences Western Illinois University Merri Lynn Casem Department of Biological Science California State University Fullerton mcasem@fullerton.edu Dan Johnson Biology Department Wake Forest University johnsoad@wfu.edu Clyde Freeman Herreid Department of Biological Sciences University at Buffalo herreid@buffalo.edu Christopher Hollister University Libraries University at Buffalo cvh2@buffalo.edu Eric Ribbens Department of Biological Sciences Western Illinois University E-Ribbens@wiu.edu Deborah Engelen-Eigles Department of Sociology / Women and Gender Studies Century College debbie.engelen@century.edu Jamie G. McMinn Psychology Department Westminster College mcminnjg@westminster.edu Jamie G. McMinn Psychology Department Westminster College mcminnjg@westminster.edu Sheila O’Brien Quinn Department of Psychology Salve Regina University sheila.quinn@salve.edu Kathleen A. Cornely Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry Providence College kcornely@providence.edu Frank J. Dinan Department of Chemistry & Biochemistry Canisius College dinan@canisius.edu Melinda Box Department of Natural Sciences Wake Technical Community College mcbox@waketech.edu Michael Tessmer Chemistry Department Southwestern College mtessmer@sckans.edu Michael S. Hudecki Department of Biological Sciences University at Buffalo hudecki@buffalo.edu David L. Ozsvath Department of Geography/Geology University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point dozsvath@uwsp.edu Angela Wisniewski Department of Family Medicine and Pharmacy Practice University at Buffalo amw25@buffalo.edu Thuy N. Nguyen Clinical Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Economics & Policy University of Southern California t.nguyen@usc.edu David Newberger Department of Family Medicine University at Buffalo dsn@buffalo.edu Erica F. Kosal Department of Biology North Carolina Wesleyan College ekosal@ncwc.edu Pauline A. Lizotte Mathematics, Science and Health Careers Manchester Community College plizotte@mcc.commnet.edu Gretchen E. Knapp Biology Department Illinois State University geknapp@ilstu.edu Brent J.F. Hill Biology Department University of Central Arkansas bhill@uca.edu Allison Russo Department of Biology Villanova University Morgan Falk Department of Biology Villanova University Philip J. Stephens Department of Biology Villanova University phil.stephens@villanova.edu Merle Heidemann Department of Geological Sciences and Center for Integrative Studies - General Science Michigan State University heidema2@msu.edu Gerald Urquhart Lyman Briggs School of Science Michigan State University urquhar5@msu.edu M. Elizabeth Strasser Department of Anthropology Sacramento State strasser@saclink.csus.edu Thomas Horvath Biology Department SUNY College at Oneonta horvattg@oneonta.edu Stephanie L. Brooke Psychology Department University of Phoenix stephanielbrooke@aol.com Janet Morahan-Martin Department of Applied Psychology Bryant University jmorahan@bryant.edu Elizabeth R. McCain Biology Department Muhlenberg College mccain@muhlenberg.edu Karin A. Grimnes Biology Department Alma College grimnes@alma.edu Cindy Trussell Natural Sciences Kodiak College / University of Alaska Anchorage ctrussell@kodiak.alaska.edu Celeste A. Leander Department of Biology & Zoology The University of British Columbia cleander@interchange.ubc.ca Robert J. Huskey Biology Department University of Virginia Teresa M. Schulz Science Department Lansing Community College schulzt@lcc.edu Wilma V. Colon Parrilla Biological Sciences University of Puerto Rico wvcolon@uprrp.edu Antoinette Miller Psychology Department Clayton State University antoinettemiller@clayton.edu Philip J. Stephens Department of Biology Villanova University phil.stephens@villanova.edu Karen E. Bledsoe Biology Department Western Oregon University bledsoek@wou.edu Brahmadeo Dewprashad Department of Science Borough of Manhattan Community College / City University of New York bdewprashad@bmcc.cuny.edu Kathleen Archer Biology Department Trinity College EKathleen.Archer@trincoll.edu Lauren Sahl Corning School of Ocean Studies Maine Maritime Academy lauren.sahl@mma.edu Sheri L. Boyce Department of Biological Sciences Messiah College sboyce@messiah.edu Melanie K. Rathburn Department of General Education Mount Royal University mrathburn@mtroyal.ca Karina J. Baum Division of Natural Science / College of General Studies Boston University karibaum@bu.edu David W. Kelley Department of Geography University of St. Thomas dwkelley@stthomas.edu Rebecca Helgesen Minnesota Pollution Control Agency Debra A. Meuler Biology Department Cardinal Stritch University dameuler@stritch.edu Elaine S. Chapman Department of Biology Illinois College chapman@ic.edu Phoebe R. Stubblefield Department of Anthropology University of North Dakota phoebe.stubblefield@und.edu Elizabeth Scharf Department of Anthropology University of North Dakota elizabeth.scharf@und.nodak.edu Ling Chen Science Department Borough of Manhattan Community College / City University of New York lchen@bmcc.cuny.edu Jennifer Y. Anderson Health Science / Nursing Brookdale Community College jyanderson1@mail.brookdalecc.edu Diane R. Wang Biology, Plant Breeding and Genetics Cornell University drw44@cornell.edu Keely Roen Department of Wildlife Technology Penn State DuBois kat175@psu.edu Karen T. Lee Department of Biology Univeristy at Pittsburgh at Johnstown ktlee@pitt.edu Rosemary Martin School of Medicine / Biochemistry & Molecular Biology The Australian National Univerity rosemary.martin@anu.edu.au Philip J. Stephens Department of Biology Villanova University phil.stephens@villanova.edu Sarah G. Stonefoot Department of Art & Art History Beloit College stonefos@beloit.edu Clyde Freeman Herreid Department of Biological Sciences University at Buffalo herreid@buffalo.edu Lisa D. Hager Psychology Department Spring Hill College lhager@shc.edu Lisa Marie Rubin Formulary Management VA Western New York Healthcare System Lexpress1982@yahoo.com; Lisa.Rubin@va.gov Clyde Freeman Herreid Department of Biological Sciences University at Buffalo herreid@buffalo.edu Bill Rhodes Department of Horticulture Clemson University brhodes@clemson.edu Maha M. Alkhazindar Biotechnology Cairo University Nancy A. Schiller University Libraries / National Center for Case Study Teaching in Science University at Buffalo schiller@buffalo.edu Ye Chen-Izu Departments of Pharmacology, Biomedical Engineering, and Medicine University of California Davis ychenizu@ucdavis.edu Frank J. Dinan Department of Chemistry & Biochemistry Canisius College dinan@canisius.edu Anne Galbraith Department of Biology University of Wisconsin-La Crosse galbrait.anne@uwlax.edu David R. Howard Department of Biology University of Wisconsin-La Crosse howard.davi@uwlax.edu Christopher T. Bailey Division of Natural and Mathematical Sciences Wells College cbailey@wells.edu Mohammad Mahroof-Tahir Department of Chemistry St. Cloud State University mmahroof@stcloudstate.edu J. Phil Gibson Departments of Zoology, Botany, and Microbiology University of Oklahoma jpgibson@ou.edu Erik Zavrel Department of Biomedical Engineering Cornell University eaz29@cornell.edu Clyde Freeman Herreid Department of Biological Sciences University at Buffalo herreid@buffalo.edu Laura Y. Lorentzen Department of Science & Technology Education Kean University llorentz@kean.edu Youssef Kousa Department of Biochemstry & Molecular Biology Michigan State University kousayou@msu.edu Erica F. Kosal Department of Biology North Carolina Wesleyan College ekosal@ncwc.edu Jacqueline Washington Department of Biology and Chemistry Nyack College jacqueline.washington@nyack.edu Anne Zayaitz Department of Biology Kutztown University zayaitz@kutztown.edu Herbert House Biology Department Elon University househ@elon.edu Li-hsuan Yang Department of Education University of Michigan—Flint lihsuan@umflint.edu Benjamin F. Timson Department of Biomedical Sciences Missouri State University bentimson@missouristate.edu Scott D. Zimmerman Department of Biomedical Sciences Missouri State University scottzimmerman@missouristate.edu Elizabeth Scharf Department of Anthropology University of North Dakota elizabeth.scharf@und.nodak.edu Jennifer Y. Anderson Health Science / Nursing Brookdale Community College jyanderson1@mail.brookdalecc.edu Diane R. Wang Biology, Plant Breeding and Genetics Cornell University drw44@cornell.edu Ling Chen Science Department Borough of Manhattan Community College / City University of New York lchen@bmcc.cuny.edu Jeanne Ting Chowning Education Division Northwest Association for Biomedical Research jchowning@nwabr.org Richard C. Stewart Department of Cell Biology & Molecular Genetics University of Maryland alec@umd.edu Ann C. Smith Department of Cell Biology & Molecular Genetics University of Maryland asmith@umd.edu Patricia A. Shields Department of Cell Biology & Molecular Genetics University of Maryland pshields@umd.edu Frank J. Dinan Department of Chemistry & Biochemistry Canisius College dinan@canisius.edu Thomas R. Stabler Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry Canisius College stabler@canisius.edu Renee Larson Biology Department Canisius College Sherry Ginn Program in Social Sciences Rowan-Cabarrus Community College sherry.ginn@rccc.edu Elizabeth J. Meinz Department of Psychology Southern Illinois University Edwardsville emeinz@siue.edu David F. Dean Department of Biology Spring Hill College ddean@shc.edu David F. Dean Department of Biology Spring Hill College ddean@shc.edu Lisa Marie Rubin Formulary Management VA Western New York Healthcare System Lexpress1982@yahoo.com; Lisa.Rubin@va.gov Claudia Bode Center for Environmentally Beneficial Catalysis University of Kansas bode@ku.edu Allison Jablonski Biology Department Lynchburg College jablonski@lynchburg.edu Frank Bowman Department of Chemical Engineering University of North Dakota frank.bowman@und.edu Brian Tande Department of Chemical Engineering University of North Dakota briantande@mail.und.edu Stephanie E. August Department of Electrical Engineering & Computer Science Loyola Marymount University saugust@lmu.edu Susan Behrens Department of Communication Sciences & Disorders Marymount Manhattan College sbehrens@mmm.edu Cindy Mercer Academic Achievement Marymount Manhattan College cmercer@mmm.edu Susan Bandoni Muench Biology Department SUNY Geneseo bandoni@geneseo.edu Susan B. Chaplin Department of Biology University of St. Thomas sbchaplin@stthomas.edu Laura J. Baumgartner Department of Biology University of St. Thomas Christine M. Fleet Biology Department Emory & Henry College cfleet@ehc.edu Lynn Diener Biology Department Mount Mary College dienerl@mtmary.edu Patrick S. Market Department of Soil, Environment, and Atmospheric Sciences University of Missouri–Columbia marketp@missouri.edu Laurie LeBlanc Chemistry Department Cuyamaca College laurie.leblanc@gcccd.edu Robert Mazalewski Department of Plant Sciences University of California at Davis rlmazalewski@ucdavis.edu Jonathan Cook Chemistry Department Cuyamaca College Jasmine King Chemistry Department Cuyamaca College Bryan Hains Department of Community and Leadership Development University of Kentucky bryan.hains@uky.edu Dawn Hains Independent Educational Consultant Mark Balschweid Department of Agricultural Leadership, Education & Communication University of Nebraska-Lincoln mbalschweid2@unl.edu Joy M. Branlund Department of Physical Science Southwestern Illinois College Joy.Branlund@swic.edu Anne M. Casper Department of Biology Eastern Michigan University anne.casper@emich.edu Stephen R. Cronin Department of Biology and Chemistry Ave Maria University stephen.cronin@avemaria.edu Frank J. Dinan Department of Chemistry & Biochemistry Canisius College dinan@canisius.edu Gordon T. Yee Department of Chemistry Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University gyee@vt.edu Clyde Freeman Herreid Department of Biological Sciences University at Buffalo herreid@buffalo.edu Brian Rybarczyk Graduate School University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill brybar@unc.edu Michèle I. Shuster Department of Biology New Mexico State University mshuster@nmsu.edu Karen Peterson Human Biology Division Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center kpeterso@fhcrc.org Susan Evarts Department of Biology University of St. Thomas sievarts@stthomas.edu Alison Krufka Department of Biological Sciences Rowan University krufka@rowan.edu Chester Wilson Department of Biology University of St. Thomas c9wilson@stthomas.edu Linda Niedziela Biology Department Elon University lniedziela@elon.edu Kari A. Mergenhagen Infectious Disease James J. Peters Veterans Affairs Medical Center kari.mergenhagen2@va.gov Brahmadeo Dewprashad Department of Science Borough of Manhattan Community College / City University of New York bdewprashad@bmcc.cuny.edu Karen M. Aguirre Department of Biology Coastal Carolina University kmaguirr@coastal.edu Lynne H. Gildensoph Biology Department St. Catherine University lhgildensoph@stkate.edu Alice M. Stanford Division of Science and Mathematics University of the Virgin Islands astanfo@uvi.edu Deborah D. Wygal Biology Department St. Catherine University ddwygal@stkate.edu Elizabeth R. McCain Biology Department Muhlenberg College mccain@muhlenberg.edu Annie Prud’homme Genereux Life Sciences Quest University Canada apg@questu.ca Ann Henninger Biology Department Wartburg College ann.henninger@wartburg.edu Karen A. Pinco Department of Biology Westfield State College kpinco@wsc.ma.edu Wayne Shew Department of Biology Birmingham-Southern College wshew@bsc.edu Troy R. Nash Department of Biology Presbyterian College tnash@presby.edu Philip J. Stephens Department of Biology Villanova University phil.stephens@villanova.edu David K. Spierer School of Health Professions Long Island University–Brooklyn Campus david.spierer@liu.edu Sandra Williams College of Nursing University of South Alabama–Springhill Campus Jim Lyttle School of Business, Public Administration and Information Sciences Long Island University–Brooklyn Campus jim.lyttle@liu.edu Susan Fredstrom Department of Family Consumer Science Minnesota State University susan.fredstrom@mnsu.edu Eric Ribbens Department of Biological Sciences Western Illinois University E-Ribbens@wiu.edu Sohum Sohoni Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering Oklahoma State University sohum.sohoni@okstate.edu Matt Reiten Technical Staff GMA Industries mtreiten@gmail.com Clyde Freeman Herreid Department of Biological Sciences University at Buffalo herreid@buffalo.edu Kristie DuRei Political Science Department University at Buffalo Wayne Shew Department of Biology Birmingham-Southern College wshew@bsc.edu Mary Celeste Reese Department of Biological Sciences Mississippi State University mcr4@biology.msstate.edu Barry Chess Natural Sciences Division Pasadena City College bxchess@pasadena.edu Jessica Hutchison Biological Sciences Alfred State University HutchiJM@alfredstate.edu Ingolf Gruen Department of Food Science University of Missouri GruenI@missouri.edu Kim R. Finer Department of Biological Sciences Kent State University at Stark kfiner@stark.kent.edu David F. Dean Department of Biology Spring Hill College ddean@shc.edu Clyde Freeman Herreid Department of Biological Sciences University at Buffalo herreid@buffalo.edu Eric Ribbens Department of Biological Sciences Western Illinois University E-Ribbens@wiu.edu Ed Acheson Department of Chemistry Millikin University eacheson@millikin.edu Troy D. Wood Department of Chemistry University at Buffalo twood@buffalo.edu Julia Omarzu Department of Psychology Loras College julia.omarzu@loras.edu Stephanie Vail School of Medicine & Biomedical Sciences University at Buffalo Clyde Freeman Herreid Department of Biological Sciences University at Buffalo herreid@buffalo.edu Frank Monteleone Anthropology and Sociology Houston Community College Southwest frank.monteleone@hccs.edu Lisa Marie Rubin Formulary Management VA Western New York Healthcare System Lexpress1982@yahoo.com; Lisa.Rubin@va.gov Clyde Freeman Herreid Department of Biological Sciences University at Buffalo herreid@buffalo.edu Stephen J. Shawl Department of Physics and Astronomy University of Kansas shawl@ku.edu Lisa Marie Rubin Formulary Management VA Western New York Healthcare System Lexpress1982@yahoo.com; Lisa.Rubin@va.gov Clyde Freeman Herreid Department of Biological Sciences University at Buffalo herreid@buffalo.edu Dennis Kingery Biology Department Metropolitan Community College dkingery@mccneb.edu Susan Nava-Whitehead Sciences and Education Department Becker College susan.whitehead@becker.edu Joan-Beth Gow Biology Department Anna Maria College jgow@annamaria.edu Janis Hammer Animal Science Animal Behavior Institute support@animaledu.com Patrick R. Field Department of Biological Sciences Kean University pfield@cougar.kean.edu Thomas A. Cappaert Department of Physical Education and Sport Central Michigan University cappa1ta@cmich.edu Charlotte R. Zales Education Department Moravian College crzales@moravian.edu Joseph C. Colosi Biology Department DeSales University jcc0@desales.edu Cathy R. Santanello Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences Southern Illinois University csantan@siue.edu James A. Hewlett Science and Technology Department Finger Lakes Community College hewletja@flcc.edu Gerald F. Combs, Jr Division of Nutritional Sciences Cornell University gfc2@cornell.edu Kate Rittenhouse-Olson Department of Biotechnical and Clinical Laboratory Sciences University at Buffalo krolson@buffalo.edu Robert W. Grossman Psychology Department Kalamazoo College grossman@kzoo.edu Amy Pettigrew College of Nursing University of Cincinnati amy.pettigrew@uc.edu Linda Walsh Psychology Department University of Northern Iowa walsh@uni.edu Kathleen Boje Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences University at Buffalo boje@buffalo.edu Susannah Gal Department of Biological Sciences Binghamton University sgal@binghamton.edu Jessie W. Klein Department of Mathematics and Science Middlesex Community College kleinj@middlesex.mass.edu Ashley Coffelt Department of Chemistry Missouri State University Mark M. Richter Department of Chemistry Missouri State University markrichter@missouristate.edu Philip Camill Department of Biology Bowdoin College pcamill@bowdoin.edu Wendy Heck-Grillo Department of Biology North Carolina Central University wheck@nccu.edu Andrea Novicki Center for Instructional Technology Duke University andrea.novicki@duke.edu Brian Rybarczyk Graduate School University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill brybar@unc.edu Cathy R. Santanello Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences Southern Illinois University csantan@siue.edu Jennifer Rehg Deparrtment of Anthropology Southern Illinois University at Edwardsville jrehg@siue.edu David F. Dean Department of Biology Spring Hill College ddean@shc.edu Susan Behrens Department of Communication Sciences & Disorders Marymount Manhattan College sbehrens@mmm.edu Linda Carozza Communication Science and Disorders St. John's University carozzal@stjohns.edu Philip J. Stephens Department of Biology Villanova University phil.stephens@villanova.edu Caren D. Shapiro Department of Mathematics & Natural Sciences D’Youville College shapiroc@dyc.edu Jennifer Bolognese Department of Biology Villanova University Misti Coronel Department of Biology Villanova University Anita Intorre Department of Biology Villanova University Philip J. Stephens Department of Biology Villanova University phil.stephens@villanova.edu John S. Bennett Patient Communication Advocates, LLC jsbennett22@gmail.com Swamy Anantheswaran Department of Food Science Pennsylvania State Unviersity rca3@psu.edu Martin Kelly Department of Mathematics & Natural Sciences D'Youville College martink@dyc.edu Stephen C. Nold Biology Department University of Wisconsin-Stout nolds@uwstout.edu Clyde Freeman Herreid Department of Biological Sciences University at Buffalo herreid@buffalo.edu Clyde Freeman Herreid Department of Biological Sciences University at Buffalo herreid@buffalo.edu David F. Dean Department of Biology Spring Hill College ddean@shc.edu Anthony C. Steyermark Department of Biology University of St. Thomas acsteyermark@stthomas.edu Junaid Ahmed Zubairi Department of Math and Computer Science SUNY Fredonia zubairi@cs.fredonia.edu David F. Dean Department of Biology Spring Hill College ddean@shc.edu Debby Walser-Kuntz Department of Biology Carleton College dwalser@carleton.edu Sarah Deel Department of Biology Carleton College sdeel@carleton.edu Susan R. Singer Department of Biology Carleton College ssinger@carleton.edu Gary M. Fortier Department of Animal Biotechnology and Conservation Delaware Valley College gary.fortier@delval.edu Philip J. Stephens Department of Biology Villanova University phil.stephens@villanova.edu David F. Dean Department of Biology Spring Hill College ddean@shc.edu David F. Dean Department of Biology Spring Hill College ddean@shc.edu Brent J.F. Hill Biology Department University of Central Arkansas bhill@uca.edu Eric Ribbens Department of Biological Sciences Western Illinois University E-Ribbens@wiu.edu David F. Dean Department of Biology Spring Hill College ddean@shc.edu Alan Cheville Department of Electrical Engineering Bucknell University alan.cheville@bucknell.edu Misa Scepanovic Department of Electrical Engineering Oklahoma State University Robert W. Grossman Psychology Department Kalamazoo College grossman@kzoo.edu Thomas E. Ford Psychology Department Western Carolina University tford@email.wcu.edu Julia Omarzu Department of Psychology Loras College julia.omarzu@loras.edu Paula P. Lemons Division of Biological Sciences University of Georgia plemons@uga.edu Sarah K. Huber Department of Fisheries Science The College of William & Mary skhuber@wm.edu David F. Dean Department of Biology Spring Hill College ddean@shc.edu Stephanie DeMarco Department of Biology Villanova University Caitlyn Woods Department of Biology Villanova University Philip J. Stephens Department of Biology Villanova University phil.stephens@villanova.edu Jeffrey C. Reist College of Pharmacy University of Iowa jeffrey-reist@uiowa.edu Christine M. Catney College of Pharmacy University of Iowa christine-catney@uiowa.edu Karen Altendorf Sociology Department Oklahoma State University Alan Cheville Department of Electrical Engineering Bucknell University alan.cheville@bucknell.edu Mary Rose Grant School for Professional Services Saint Louis University grantmr@slu.edu Robin Pals-Rylaarsdam Department of Biological Science Benedictine University rrylaarsdam@ben.edu Tangi Mitchell Biological Sciences Central Connecticut State University Cheryl L. Watson Biological Sciences Central Connecticut State University watsonc@ccsu.edu Kristin B. Vessey Department of Biological Sciences Bowling Green State University Karen Chambers Department of Psychology & Communicative Disorders Saint Mary’s College kchambers@saintmarys.edu Lindsey May Biology Department University of Wisconsin-Stout Jessica Kotke Biology Department University of Wisconsin-Stout Charles R. Bomar Biology Department University of Wisconsin-Stout bomarc@uwstout.edu Linda Markowitz Sociology Department Southern Illinois University lmarkow@siue.edu Cathy R. Santanello Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences Southern Illinois University csantan@siue.edu Laurie A. Parendes Department of Geosciences Edinboro University of Pennsylvania lparendes@edinboro.edu Scott H. Burris Department of Agricultural Education and Communications Texas Tech University scott.burris@ttu.edu Susan M. Galatowitsch Water Resources Program University of Minnesota galat001@umn.edu Barbara A. Peichel Water Resources Program University of Minnesota Dayton J. Ford Pharmaceutical Sciences St. Louis College of Pharmacy dford@stlcop.edu Kari A. Mergenhagen Infectious Disease James J. Peters Veterans Affairs Medical Center kari.mergenhagen2@va.gov Doug Knutson Family Medicine The Ohio State University College of Medicine knutson.1@osu.edu Doug M. Post Family Medicine The Ohio State University College of Medicine Doug.post@osumc.edu Kari A. Mergenhagen Infectious Disease James J. Peters Veterans Affairs Medical Center kari.mergenhagen2@va.gov Nathan Strong Biological Sciences / Chemistry Department New Hampshire Technical Institute nstrong@ccsnh.edu Doug Knutson Family Medicine The Ohio State University College of Medicine knutson.1@osu.edu Doug M. Post Family Medicine The Ohio State University College of Medicine Doug.post@osumc.edu Philip J. Stephens Department of Biology Villanova University phil.stephens@villanova.edu Jessica Dudek University Honors College University at Buffalo jdudek@buffalo.edu Nigel Marriner Office of the Registrar University at Buffalo nmarrine@buffalo.edu Clyde Freeman Herreid Department of Biological Sciences University at Buffalo herreid@buffalo.edu Sarah G. Stonefoot Department of Art & Art History Beloit College stonefos@beloit.edu Clyde Freeman Herreid Department of Biological Sciences University at Buffalo herreid@buffalo.edu Ann W. Fourtner Charles R. Fourtner Department of Biological Sciences University at Buffalo fourtner@buffalo.edu Clyde Freeman Herreid Department of Biological Sciences University at Buffalo herreid@buffalo.edu Nancy A. Schiller University Libraries / National Center for Case Study Teaching in Science University at Buffalo schiller@buffalo.edu Clyde Freeman Herreid Department of Biological Sciences University at Buffalo herreid@buffalo.edu Christine M. Catney College of Pharmacy University of Iowa christine-catney@uiowa.edu Thomas R. Stabler Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry Canisius College stabler@canisius.edu Frank J. Dinan Department of Chemistry & Biochemistry Canisius College dinan@canisius.edu Peggy Brickman Department of Plant Biology University of Georgia brickman@uga.edu Ann W. Fourtner Charles R. Fourtner Department of Biological Sciences University at Buffalo fourtner@buffalo.edu Clyde Freeman Herreid Department of Biological Sciences University at Buffalo herreid@buffalo.edu Michael S. Hudecki Department of Biological Sciences University at Buffalo hudecki@buffalo.edu Kari A. Mergenhagen Infectious Disease James J. Peters Veterans Affairs Medical Center kari.mergenhagen2@va.gov Dayton J. Ford Pharmaceutical Sciences St. Louis College of Pharmacy dford@stlcop.edu Lauren E. Yaich Division of Biological and Health Sciences University of Pittsburgh at Bradford yaich@pitt.edu David R. Luginbuhl Mathematics, Information & Life Sciences Directorate Air Force Office of Scientific Research david.luginbuhl@afosr.mil Theresa Hornstein Biology Department Lake Superior College t.hornstein@lsc.mnscu.edu Grace A. Wang Department of Environmental Studies Huxley College of the Environment Bellingham, Washington 98225 David L. Ozsvath Department of Geography/Geology University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point dozsvath@uwsp.edu Christa Colyer Department of Chemistry Wake Forest University colyercl@wfu.edu Alan Cheville Department of Electrical Engineering Bucknell University alan.cheville@bucknell.edu Sheri L. Boyce Department of Biological Sciences Messiah College sboyce@messiah.edu Claudia Bode Center for Environmentally Beneficial Catalysis University of Kansas bode@ku.edu Alan Gleue Science (Physics) Lawrence High School agleue@usd497.org Carolyn Pearson Science Department (Physics) Bonner Springs High School pearsonc@usd204.k12.ks.us Thomas A. Cappaert Department of Physical Education and Sport Central Michigan University cappa1ta@cmich.edu Clyde Freeman Herreid Department of Biological Sciences University at Buffalo herreid@buffalo.edu Karol P. Rejman School of Nursing University at Buffalo rejman@buffalo.edu Annie Prud’homme Genereux Life Sciences Quest University Canada apg@questu.ca Melissa B. Riley Plant Pathology Clemson University mbriley@clemson.edu Paul Welsh Science Department Singapore American School pwelsh@sas.edu.sg Malati M. Patil Department of Electrical Engineering University at Buffalo Linda L. Tichenor Biology Department University of Arkansas at Fort Smith lticheno@uafortsmith.edu Christopher T. Bailey Division of Natural and Mathematical Sciences Wells College cbailey@wells.edu Clyde Freeman Herreid Department of Biological Sciences University at Buffalo herreid@buffalo.edu Eric Przykuta Science Department Lancaster Middle School eprzykuta@lancaster.wnyric.org Clyde Freeman Herreid Department of Biological Sciences University at Buffalo herreid@buffalo.edu Sarah G. Stonefoot Department of Art & Art History Beloit College stonefos@beloit.edu Bruce C. Allen Physics Department University at Buffalo Clyde Freeman Herreid Department of Biological Sciences University at Buffalo herreid@buffalo.edu Jennifer Hayes-Klosteridis Student Success Program University of Maryland School of Nursing klosteridis@son.umaryland.edu Alease S. Bruce Department of Clinical Laboratory & Nutritional Sciences University of Massachusetts Lowell Alease_Bruce@uml.edu Frank J. Dinan Department of Chemistry & Biochemistry Canisius College dinan@canisius.edu Joseph Bieron Department of Chemistry & Biochemistry Canisius College bieron@canisius.edu Elizabeth Harper Program in Oriental Medicine School of Health Sciences Touro College eh403@nyu.edu Jacinth Maynard Division of Physical and Computational Sciences University of Pittsburgh at Bradford jmaynard@lhup.edu Mary Puterbaugh Mulcahy Division of Biological and Health Sciences University of Pittsburgh at Bradford mnp1@exchange.upb.pitt.edu Daniel Kermick Division of Biological and Health Sciences University at Pittsburgh at Bradford Lynn Austin Allied Health Western Kentucky University lynn.austin@wku.edu Clyde Freeman Herreid Department of Biological Sciences University at Buffalo herreid@buffalo.edu Clyde Freeman Herreid Department of Biological Sciences University at Buffalo herreid@buffalo.edu Albert Titus Department of Electrical Engineering University at Buffalo ahtitus@buffalo.edu Elizabeth Clark Department of Biology Washington University in St. Louis Lok C. Lew Yan Voon Department of Physics Wright State University lok.lewyanvoon@wright.edu Graham F. Peaslee Chemistry Department Hope College peaslee@hope.edu Juliette Lantz Chemistry Department Drew University jlantz@drew.edu Mary Walczak Chemistry Department St. Olaf College walczak@stolaf.edu Kathryn L. Rowberg Department of Chemistry and Physics Purdue University - Calumet rowberg@calumet.purdue.edu Jennifer Nelson School of Medicine University at Buffalo Clyde Freeman Herreid Department of Biological Sciences University at Buffalo herreid@buffalo.edu Jessie W. Klein Department of Mathematics and Science Middlesex Community College kleinj@middlesex.mass.edu Kristen L.W. Walton Department of Biology Missouri Western State University kwalton1@missouriwestern.edu Robin Pals-Rylaarsdam Department of Biological Science Benedictine University rrylaarsdam@ben.edu Kelley W. Grorud Biological Sciences Department Edgewood College kgrorud@edgewood.edu Valerie Nieman Department of English North Carolina A&T State University vgnieman@ncat.edu Zhi-Jun Liu Department of Geography University of North Carolina—Greensboro z_liu@uncg.edu Christa Colyer Department of Chemistry Wake Forest University colyercl@wfu.edu Ann Bisantz Department of Industrial & Systems Engineering University at Buffalo bisantz@buffalo.edu Amjad Aref Department of Civil, Structural & Environmental Engineering University at Buffalo aaref@buffalo.edu Alexander Cartwright Department of Electrical Engineering University at Buffalo Michaela A. Gazdik Biology Department Ferrum College mgazdik@ferrum.edu Patrick R. Field Department of Biological Sciences Kean University pfield@cougar.kean.edu Pamela Davis Martha Jane Goleman Pediatrics The Ohio State University College of Medicine jane.goleman@nationwidechildrens.org Doug M. Post Family Medicine The Ohio State University College of Medicine Doug.post@osumc.edu Michael S. Langan General Internal Medicine The Ohio State University College of Medicine Michael.langan@osumc.edu Allison A. Macerollo Family Medicine The Ohio State University College of Medicine Allison.macerollo@osumc.edu Bruce C. Allen Physics Department University at Buffalo Clyde Freeman Herreid Department of Biological Sciences University at Buffalo herreid@buffalo.edu Doug M. Post Family Medicine The Ohio State University College of Medicine Doug.post@osumc.edu Doug Knutson Family Medicine The Ohio State University College of Medicine knutson.1@osu.edu Matthew S. Kaufman Department of Biology Washington University in St. Louis Margaret A. Carroll Department of Biology Framingham State College mcarroll@framingham.edu Jeffrey Scott Coker Department of Biology Elon University jcoker@elon.edu Jimmie D. Agnew Science Education Elon University agnewj@elon.edu Clyde Freeman Herreid Department of Biological Sciences University at Buffalo herreid@buffalo.edu Arne Tarnvik Department of Infectious Diseases Umea University arne.tarnvik@infdis.umu.se Charles R. Bomar Biology Department University of Wisconsin-Stout bomarc@uwstout.edu Lisa Carloye Biology Department Elon University carloye@elon.edu Andrea C. Wade Health Sciences Division / Distance Learning Broome Community College wade_a@sunybroome.edu Lauren E. Yaich Division of Biological and Health Sciences University of Pittsburgh at Bradford yaich@pitt.edu Joseph Bieron Department of Chemistry & Biochemistry Canisius College bieron@canisius.edu Frank J. Dinan Department of Chemistry & Biochemistry Canisius College dinan@canisius.edu Michael A. Jeannot Department of Chemistry St. Cloud State University mjeannot@stcloudstate.edu Jennifer Miskowski Department of Biology University of Wisconsin-LaCrosse miskowsk.jenn@uwlax.edu Anne Galbraith Department of Biology University of Wisconsin-La Crosse galbrait.anne@uwlax.edu Sarah K. Huber Department of Fisheries Science The College of William & Mary skhuber@wm.edu Paula P. Lemons Division of Biological Sciences University of Georgia plemons@uga.edu David L. Evans Biology Department Pennsylvania College of Technology devans@pct.edu Eric Ribbens Department of Biological Sciences Western Illinois University E-Ribbens@wiu.edu Jennifer Lundmark Department of Biological Sciences California State University Sacramento lundmark@csus.edu Gary M. Fortier Department of Animal Biotechnology and Conservation Delaware Valley College gary.fortier@delval.edu Patricia Schneider Biological Sciences and Geology Queensborough Community College / City University of New York pschneider@qcc.cuny.edu Nancy A. Schiller University Libraries / National Center for Case Study Teaching in Science University at Buffalo schiller@buffalo.edu Clyde Freeman Herreid Department of Biological Sciences University at Buffalo herreid@buffalo.edu Adam M. Boyd Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry St. Mary’s College of Maryland Randolph K. Larsen, III Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry St. Mary’s College of Maryland rklarsen@smcm.edu Jane Marantz Connor Psychology Department Binghamton University jconnor@binghamton.edu Doug M. Post Family Medicine The Ohio State University College of Medicine Doug.post@osumc.edu Brahmadeo Dewprashad Department of Science Borough of Manhattan Community College / City University of New York bdewprashad@bmcc.cuny.edu Geraldine S. Vaz Ambulatory Care Department Jamaica Hospital Medical Center Janna R. McLean College of Arts & Sciences Olivert Nazarene University jmclean@olivet.edu Thomas A. Davis Biology Program Loras College tom.davis@loras.edu Thomas A. Davis Biology Program Loras College tom.davis@loras.edu John Petersen Environmental Studies Oberlin College john.petersen@oberlin.edu Nancy London Environmental Studies Program Oberlin College Juanita Constible Coastal Louisiana Program National Wildlife Federation bufohemiophrys@hotmail.com Luke Sandro Science (Biology) Springboro High School lsandro@springboro.org Richard E. Lee, Jr. Department of Zoology Miami University leere@muohio.edu Eleonora Del Federico Department of Mathematics and Science Pratt Institute edelfede@pratt.edu Steven T. Diver Chemistry Department University at Buffalo diver@buffalo.edu Monika I. Konaklieva Department of Chemistry American University mkonak@american.edu Richard Ludescher Department of Food Science Rutgers University ludescher@aesop.rutgers.edu William D. Rogers Department of Biology Ball State University wrogers@bsu.edu Shoshana Tobias Department of Biological Sciences University at Buffalo Clyde Freeman Herreid Department of Biological Sciences University at Buffalo herreid@buffalo.edu Scott D. Zimmerman Department of Biomedical Sciences Missouri State University scottzimmerman@missouristate.edu Mark L. Kuhlmann Department of Biology Hartwick College kuhlmannm@hartwick.edu Maureen Knabb Department of Biology West Chester University of Pennsylvania mknabb@wcupa.edu Joan Sharp Department of Biological Sciences Simon Fraser University jsharp@sfu.ca Norris Armstrong Biology Department University of Georgia narmstro@uga.edu Monika I. Konaklieva Department of Chemistry American University mkonak@american.edu William D. Rogers Department of Biology Ball State University wrogers@bsu.edu Peggy Brickman Department of Plant Biology University of Georgia brickman@uga.edu Traci E. Morris Department of Biological Sciences Binghamton University Susannah Gal Department of Biological Sciences Binghamton University sgal@binghamton.edu Thomas Horvath Biology Department SUNY College at Oneonta horvattg@oneonta.edu Maureen Knabb Department of Biology West Chester University of Pennsylvania mknabb@wcupa.edu Timothy M. Lutz Department of Geology and Astronomy West Chester University of Pennsylvania tlutz@wcupa.edu G. Winfield Fairchild Department of Biology West Chester University of Pennsylvania wfairchild@wcupa.edu Maureen Knabb Department of Biology West Chester University of Pennsylvania mknabb@wcupa.edu Timothy M. Lutz Department of Geology and Astronomy West Chester University of Pennsylvania tlutz@wcupa.edu Nancy A. Rice Department of Biology Western Kentucky University nancy.rice@wku.edu Nancy A. Rice Department of Biology Western Kentucky University nancy.rice@wku.edu Bruno Borsari Biology Department Winona State University bborsari@winona.edu Maureen Knabb Department of Biology West Chester University of Pennsylvania mknabb@wcupa.edu Kristina Hannam Department of Biology SUNY Geneseo hannam@geneseo.edu Rodney Hagley Department of Biology and Marine Biology University of North Carolina-Wilmington hagleyr@uncw.edu Debra L. Stamper Harvard Medical School Brigham & Women’s Hospital dstamper@partners.org Norris Armstrong Biology Department University of Georgia narmstro@uga.edu Kristina Hannam Department of Biology SUNY Geneseo hannam@geneseo.edu Cheryl A. Heinz Department of Biology Benedictine University cheinz@ben.edu Erin Barley Department of Biological Sciences Simon Fraser University ebarley@sfu.ca Joan Sharp Department of Biological Sciences Simon Fraser University jsharp@sfu.ca Jeffrey C. Brunskill Department of Geography and Geosciences Bloomsburg University of Pennsylvania jbrunski@bloomu.edu Christopher A. Badurek Department of Geography and Planning Appalachian State University badurekca@appstate.edu David W. Kelley Department of Geography University of St. Thomas dwkelley@stthomas.edu Doug M. Post Family Medicine The Ohio State University College of Medicine Doug.post@osumc.edu Doug Knutson Family Medicine The Ohio State University College of Medicine knutson.1@osu.edu Peggy Brickman Department of Plant Biology University of Georgia brickman@uga.edu Norris Armstrong Biology Department University of Georgia narmstro@uga.edu Terry Platt Department of Biology University of Rochester terry.platt@rochester.edu Peggy Brickman Department of Plant Biology University of Georgia brickman@uga.edu Alan Paul Price Department of Geography & Geology University of Wisconsin—Washington County paul.price@uwc.edu Elaine M. Schamber Agronomy Department Purdue University Paul A. Hammond Horticulture Department Purdue University James A. Hewlett Science and Technology Department Finger Lakes Community College hewletja@flcc.edu Antoinette Miller Psychology Department Clayton State University antoinettemiller@clayton.edu Terry Platt Department of Biology University of Rochester terry.platt@rochester.edu Antoinette Miller Psychology Department Clayton State University antoinettemiller@clayton.edu Peggy Brickman Department of Plant Biology University of Georgia brickman@uga.edu Eric Ribbens Department of Biological Sciences Western Illinois University E-Ribbens@wiu.edu Kristina Hannam Department of Biology SUNY Geneseo hannam@geneseo.edu Eric Ribbens Department of Biological Sciences Western Illinois University E-Ribbens@wiu.edu Nancy M. Boury Department of Animal Science Iowa State University nan1@iastate.edu Clyde Freeman Herreid Department of Biological Sciences University at Buffalo herreid@buffalo.edu Cheryl D. Davis Department of Biology Western Kentucky University cheryl.davis@wku.edu Nancy A. Rice Department of Biology Western Kentucky University nancy.rice@wku.edu James A. Hewlett Science and Technology Department Finger Lakes Community College hewletja@flcc.edu James A. Hewlett Science and Technology Department Finger Lakes Community College hewletja@flcc.edu James A. Hewlett Science and Technology Department Finger Lakes Community College hewletja@flcc.edu Lorri M. Carris Department of Plant Pathology Washington State University carris@wsu.edu Nancy L. Jacobson Biology Department Ithaca College jacobson@ithaca.edu Kristina Hannam Department of Biology SUNY Geneseo hannam@geneseo.edu Bruno Borsari Biology Department Winona State University bborsari@winona.edu Thomas Horvath Biology Department SUNY College at Oneonta horvattg@oneonta.edu Eric Ribbens Department of Biological Sciences Western Illinois University E-Ribbens@wiu.edu Robert H. Grant Editorial Department The Scientist info@the-scientist.com Erin Barley Department of Biological Sciences Simon Fraser University ebarley@sfu.ca Joan Sharp Department of Biological Sciences Simon Fraser University jsharp@sfu.ca Caralyn B. Zehnder Department of Biological & Environmental Sciences Georgia College & State University caralyn.zehnder@gcsu.edu Cheryl A. Heinz Department of Biology Benedictine University cheinz@ben.edu Eric Ribbens Department of Biological Sciences Western Illinois University E-Ribbens@wiu.edu Joan Sharp Department of Biological Sciences Simon Fraser University jsharp@sfu.ca Courtney E. Quinn Department of Agricultural Leadership, Education and Communication University of Nebraska-Lincoln courtney_quinn@yahoo.com John E. Quinn School of Natural Resources University of Nebraska-Lincoln jquinn2@unl.edu Otto Sanchez Faculty of Health Sciences University of Ontario Institute of Technology otto.sanchez@uoit.ca Wayne Seames Chemical Engineering University of North Dakota wayneseames@mail.und.edu MeghanMarie Fowler-Finn Division of Student Transportation Office of the State Superintendent of Education meghanmarie.fowler-finn@dc.gov Kari E. Benson School of Sciences Lynchburg College benson@lynchburg.edu Lisa Marie Rubin Formulary Management VA Western New York Healthcare System Lexpress1982@yahoo.com; Lisa.Rubin@va.gov Susan B. Chaplin Department of Biology University of St. Thomas sbchaplin@stthomas.edu LeLeng To Issacs Biological Sciences Goucher College leto@goucher.edu Brahmadeo Dewprashad Department of Science Borough of Manhattan Community College / City University of New York bdewprashad@bmcc.cuny.edu Geraldine S. Vaz Ambulatory Care Department Jamaica Hospital Medical Center Sharon A. Vaz Department of Health State of Oklahoma sharonav@health.ok.gov Annie Prud’homme Genereux Life Sciences Quest University Canada apg@questu.ca Susan M. DeSimone Biology Department Middlebury College sdesimon@middlebury.edu Annie Prud’homme Genereux Life Sciences Quest University Canada apg@questu.ca William Morgan Department of Biology The College of Wooster wmorgan@wooster.edu Dean Fraga Department of Biology The College of Wooster dfraga@wooster.edu Bruno Borsari Biology Department Winona State University bborsari@winona.edu William D. Rogers Department of Biology Ball State University wrogers@bsu.edu Thomas Horvath Biology Department SUNY College at Oneonta horvattg@oneonta.edu Jeffri C. Bohlscheid Food Group Technical Center J. R. Simplot jeff.bohlscheid@simplot.com Frank J. Dinan Department of Chemistry & Biochemistry Canisius College dinan@canisius.edu Bruno Borsari Biology Department Winona State University bborsari@winona.edu Debra A. Meuler Biology Department Cardinal Stritch University dameuler@stritch.edu Peggy Brickman Department of Plant Biology University of Georgia brickman@uga.edu Kristine N. Hopfensperger Department of Biological Sciences Northern Kentucky University hopfenspek1@nku.edu David J. Grise Life Sciences Texas A&M University - Corpus Christi david.grise@tamucc.edu Katayoun Chamany Natural Sciences & Mathematics Eugene Lang College/ New School University chamanyk@newschool.edu Matthew P. Rowe Department of Biological Sciences Sam Houston State University rowe@shsu.edu Monica E. Hartmann Economics Department University of St. Thomas mehartmann@stthomas.edu Robert J. Werner Geography Department University of St. Thomas rjwerner@stthomas.edu Jennifer Feenstra Department of Psychology Northwestern College jfeenstr@nwciowa.edu Rosemary H. Ford Biology Department Washington College rford2@washcoll.edu Ling Chen Science Department Borough of Manhattan Community College / City University of New York lchen@bmcc.cuny.edu Richard Hendrix Science Department Borough of Manhattan Community College / City University of New York rhendrix@bmcc.cuny.edu Sheri L. Boyce Department of Biological Sciences Messiah College sboyce@messiah.edu Md Rumi Shammin Environmental Studies Oberlin College rumi.shammin@oberlin.edu John Petersen Environmental Studies Oberlin College john.petersen@oberlin.edu Jordan F. Suter Economics & Environmental Studies Oberlin College jordan.suter@oberlin.edu Ling Chen Science Department Borough of Manhattan Community College / City University of New York lchen@bmcc.cuny.edu Diane R. Wang Biology, Plant Breeding and Genetics Cornell University drw44@cornell.edu Jennifer Y. Anderson Health Science / Nursing Brookdale Community College jyanderson1@mail.brookdalecc.edu Annie Prud’homme Genereux Life Sciences Quest University Canada apg@questu.ca Kathleen G. Brown Nursing/Massage Therapy CUNY Queensborough Community College kcapogrosso36@tigermail.qcc.cuny.edu Sharon S. Ellerton Biological Sciences and Geology CUNY Queensborough Community College sellerton@qcc.cuny.edu Andrea Bixler Biology Department Clarke University andrea.bixler@clarke.edu Kristen N. Hausmann Department of Biology Coastal Carolina University knwhitin@coastal.edu Karen M. Aguirre Department of Biology Coastal Carolina University kmaguirr@coastal.edu Annie Prud’homme Genereux Life Sciences Quest University Canada apg@questu.ca Ling Chen Science Department Borough of Manhattan Community College / City University of New York lchen@bmcc.cuny.edu Lalitha S. Jayant Science Department Borough of Manhattan Community College / City University of New York ljayant@bmcc.cuny.edu Debby Walser-Kuntz Department of Biology Carleton College dwalser@carleton.edu Troy R. Nash Department of Biology Presbyterian College tnash@presby.edu Nancy A. Rice Department of Biology Western Kentucky University nancy.rice@wku.edu Joan-Beth Gow Biology Department Anna Maria College jgow@annamaria.edu Susan Nava-Whitehead Sciences and Education Department Becker College susan.whitehead@becker.edu Kerri W. Augusto Teacher Education and Family Studies Becker College kerri.augusto@becker.edu Kristy J. Wilson Department of Biology Morehouse College dr.wilson27@gmail.com R. Deborah Overath Department of Life Sciences Texas A&M University – Corpus Christi deborah.overath@tamucc.edu Hannah L. Rusch Fisheries, Wildlife and Conservation Biology University of Minnesota rusch051@umn.edu Jim Perry Fisheries, Wildlife and Conservation Biology University of Minnesota Jperry@umn.edu Norris Armstrong Biology Department University of Georgia narmstro@uga.edu Jianli Zhou Department of Plant Biology University of Georgia zhjianli@uga.edu Peggy Brickman Department of Plant Biology University of Georgia brickman@uga.edu Eric Ribbens Department of Biological Sciences Western Illinois University E-Ribbens@wiu.edu Deborah Engelen-Eigles Department of Sociology / Women and Gender Studies Century College debbie.engelen@century.edu Steven L. Telleen Biology Department San Joaquin Delta College stelleen@deltacollege.edu Tamar L. Goulet Department of Biology University of Mississippi tlgoulet@olemiss.edu Jeffrey A. Steinmetz Department of Biology Francis Marion University jsteinmetz@fmarion.edu Reed M. Perkins Department of Environmental Science Queens University of Charlotte perkinsr@queens.edu Darlene A. Mitrano Molecular Biology Christopher Newport University darlene.mitrano@cnu.edu William D. Rogers Department of Biology Ball State University wrogers@bsu.edu Karin A. Grimnes Biology Department Alma College grimnes@alma.edu Susan Bandoni Muench Biology Department SUNY Geneseo bandoni@geneseo.edu Dustin J. Eno Life Sciences Quest University Canada Annie Prud’homme Genereux Life Sciences Quest University Canada apg@questu.ca Kathrin F. Stanger-Hall Department of Plant Biology University of Georgia ksh@uga.edu Jennifer Merriam Biology Department SUNY Orange jennifer.merriam@sunyorange.edu Ruth Ann Greuling Office of the Provost Northern New Mexico College Ann T.S. Taylor Department of Chemistry Wabash College taylora@wabash.edu Ann T.S. Taylor Department of Chemistry Wabash College taylora@wabash.edu Keith K. Schillo Biology Department SUNY College at Oneonta schillkk@oneonta.edu Patrick R. Field Department of Biological Sciences Kean University pfield@cougar.kean.edu Paula Cobos School of Natural Sciences / Biological Sciences Kean University Cheylena Williams School of Natural Sciences / Biological Sciences Kean University David L. Evans Biology Department Pennsylvania College of Technology devans@pct.edu Jeffrey J. Byrd Biology Department St. Mary’s College of Maryland jjbyrd@smcm.edu Samantha L. Elliott Biology Department St. Mary’s College of Maryland slelliott@smcm.edu Luanna B. Prevost Department of Plant Biology University of Georgia lprevost@plantbio.uga.edu Paula P. Lemons Division of Biological Sciences University of Georgia plemons@uga.edu Joann B. Powell Department of Biological Sciences Clark Atlanta University jpowell@cau.edu Elethia W. Tillman Department of Biology Spelman College etillman@spelman.edu Lynn Diener Biology Department Mount Mary College dienerl@mtmary.edu Dianne W. York Biology Department Lincoln University of Pennsylvania dyork@lincoln.edu Jamie G. McMinn Psychology Department Westminster College mcminnjg@westminster.edu Dana S. Dunn Psychology Department Moravian College dunn@moravian.edu Keith K. Schillo Biology Department SUNY College at Oneonta schillkk@oneonta.edu David F. Dean Department of Biology Spring Hill College ddean@shc.edu Ashley L. Madern Department of Biology Villanova University Michael D. Hood Department of Biology Villanova University Jeffrey C. Paul, Jr. Department of Biology Villanova University Philip J. Stephens Department of Biology Villanova University phil.stephens@villanova.edu Ronald L. Carnell Interdisciplinary Arts and Sciences University of Washington Bothell Rebecca M. Price Interdisciplinary Arts and Sciences University of Washington Bothell becca.price@uwb.edu Jennifer Bolognese Department of Biology Villanova University Misti Coronel Department of Biology Villanova University Anita Intorre Department of Biology Villanova University Philip J. Stephens Department of Biology Villanova University phil.stephens@villanova.edu Giselle A. McCallum Life Sciences Quest University Canada Annie Prud’homme Genereux Life Sciences Quest University Canada apg@questu.ca Robert W. Grossman Psychology Department Kalamazoo College grossman@kzoo.edu Selena Kim Psychology Department Kalamazoo College Siu-Lu Tan Psychology Department Kalamazoo College Thomas E. Ford Psychology Department Western Carolina University tford@email.wcu.edu Miriam Segura-Totten Department of Biology North Georgia College & State University mstotten@northgeorgia.edu Robert W. Grossman Psychology Department Kalamazoo College grossman@kzoo.edu Richard Cowlishaw Biology Department Southwestern College Richard.Cowlishaw@sckans.edu Charles Hunter Biology Department Southwestern College Charles.Hunter@sckans.edu Jason Coy History Department College of Charleston coyj@cofc.edu Michael Tessmer Chemistry Department Southwestern College mtessmer@sckans.edu Leslie G. Wooten-Blanks Biology Department Claflin University lwooten-blanks@claflin.edu Leslie G. Wooten-Blanks Biology Department Claflin University lwooten-blanks@claflin.edu Christopher Rump Department of Applied Statistics and Operations Research Bowling Green State University cmrump@bgsu.edu Yelena Aronova-Tiuntseva Department of Biological Sciences University at Buffalo Clyde Freeman Herreid Department of Biological Sciences University at Buffalo herreid@buffalo.edu Christopher Rump Department of Applied Statistics and Operations Research Bowling Green State University cmrump@bgsu.edu Annie Prud’homme Genereux Life Sciences Quest University Canada apg@questu.ca Carmen A. Petrick Life Sciences Quest University Canada cap08@questu.ca Leslie G. Wooten-Blanks Biology Department Claflin University lwooten-blanks@claflin.edu Jeffrey J. Byrd Biology Department St. Mary’s College of Maryland jjbyrd@smcm.edu Samantha L. Elliott Biology Department St. Mary’s College of Maryland slelliott@smcm.edu Jeffrey J. Byrd Biology Department St. Mary’s College of Maryland jjbyrd@smcm.edu Samantha L. Elliott Biology Department St. Mary’s College of Maryland slelliott@smcm.edu Tonya Laakko Train Biology Department Elon University ttrain@elon.edu Robin Pals-Rylaarsdam Department of Biological Science Benedictine University rrylaarsdam@ben.edu Jeffri C. Bohlscheid Food Group Technical Center J. R. Simplot jeff.bohlscheid@simplot.com Annie Prud’homme Genereux Life Sciences Quest University Canada apg@questu.ca Rosalind H. Groenewoud Life Sciences Quest University Canada Annie Prud’homme Genereux Life Sciences Quest University Canada apg@questu.ca Rosalind H. Groenewoud Life Sciences Quest University Canada Terry Platt Department of Biology University of Rochester terry.platt@rochester.edu Eric Ribbens Department of Biological Sciences Western Illinois University E-Ribbens@wiu.edu Anthony J. Creaco Department of Science Borough of Manhattan Community College / City University of New York acreaco@bmcc.cuny.edu Owen A. Meyers Department of Science Borough of Manhattan Community College / City University of New York omeyers@bmcc.cuny.edu David A. Krauss Department of Science Borough of Manhattan Community College / City University of New York dkrauss@bmcc.cuny.edu Joyce A. Shaw School of Arts and Sciences Endicott College jshaw@endicott.edu Kevin M. Bonney Department of Biological Sciences Kingsborough Community College Kevin.Bonney@kbcc.cuny.edu John C. Withey Department of Biological Sciences Florida International University jwithey@fiu.edu Christina M. Kennedy Development by Design Program The Nature Conservancy ckennedy@tnc.org Robert Leaf Fisheries and Wildlife Sciences Department Virginia Tech rleaf@vt.edu Brian R. Murphy Fisheries and Wildlife Sciences Virginia Tech murphybr@vt.edu Kevin Pyatt Department of Education Eastern Washington University kpyatt@ewu.edu Jacqueline Coomes Department of Mathematics Eastern Washington University jcoomes@ewu.edu Clyde Freeman Herreid Department of Biological Sciences University at Buffalo herreid@buffalo.edu Paula P. Lemons Division of Biological Sciences University of Georgia plemons@uga.edu Edwin H. Price Department of Physical and Life Sciences Nevada State College Edwin.price@nsc.nevada.edu Kyla Flanagan Department of Biological Sciences University of Calgary kmflanag@ucalgary.ca Lynn Diener Biology Department Mount Mary College dienerl@mtmary.edu Sarah A. Wojiski School of Arts and Sciences Massachusetts College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences sarah.wojiski@mcphs.edu Brian Rybarczyk Graduate School University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill brybar@unc.edu Robin Pals-Rylaarsdam Department of Biological Science Benedictine University rrylaarsdam@ben.edu Monica L. Tischler Department of Biological Science Bendectine University mtischler@ben.edu J. Phil Gibson Departments of Zoology, Botany, and Microbiology University of Oklahoma jpgibson@ou.edu Joyce A. Shaw School of Arts and Sciences Endicott College jshaw@endicott.edu Dylan P. Macuk Department of Biology Bradley University William J. Moser, Jr. Department of Biology Bradley University Kaleigh A. Tockes Department of Biology Bradley University Keith A. Johnson Department of Biology Bradley University kajohnso@bradley.edu Nancy M. Boury Department of Animal Science Iowa State University nan1@iastate.edu Nancy M. Boury Department of Animal Science Iowa State University nan1@iastate.edu Loren B. Byrne Department of Biology, Marine Biology, and Environmental Science Roger Williams University lbyrne@rwu.edu Allison Black Life Sciences Quest University Canada Annie Prud’homme Genereux Life Sciences Quest University Canada apg@questu.ca Maureen Leonard Sciences Department Mount Mary College leonardm@mtmary.edu Jack F. Eichler Department of Chemistry University of California, Riverside jack.eichler@ucr.edu Betty Jo Chitester Chemistry Department Gannon University chitester@gannon.edu Weslene T. Tallmadge Chemistry Department Gannon University tallmadge@gannon.edu Karen M. Aguirre Department of Biology Coastal Carolina University kmaguirr@coastal.edu Peggy Brickman Department of Plant Biology University of Georgia brickman@uga.edu Michèle I. Shuster Department of Biology New Mexico State University mshuster@nmsu.edu Naowarat (Ann) Cheeptham Department of Biological Sciences Thompson Rivers University ncheeptham@tru.ca Laura B. Regassa Department of Biology Georgia Southern University lregassa@georgiasouthern.edu Laura B. Regassa Department of Biology Georgia Southern University lregassa@georgiasouthern.edu Naowarat (Ann) Cheeptham Department of Biological Sciences Thompson Rivers University ncheeptham@tru.ca Michèle I. Shuster Department of Biology New Mexico State University mshuster@nmsu.edu Naowarat (Ann) Cheeptham Department of Biological Sciences Thompson Rivers University ncheeptham@tru.ca Laura B. Regassa Department of Biology Georgia Southern University lregassa@georgiasouthern.edu Michèle I. Shuster Department of Biology New Mexico State University mshuster@nmsu.edu David L. Boose Biology Department Gonzaga University boose@gonzaga.edu Kyla Flanagan Department of Biological Sciences University of Calgary kmflanag@ucalgary.ca Jalene M. LaMontagne Department of Biological Science DePaul University jlamont1@depaul.edu Anastasia P. Maines Ecology and Evolutionary Biology University of Colorado at Boulder anastasia.maines@colorado.edu Janet A. De Souza-Hart School of Arts & Sciences Massachusetts College of Pharmacy & Health Sciences janet.hart@mcphs.edu Janet A. De Souza-Hart School of Arts & Sciences Massachusetts College of Pharmacy & Health Sciences janet.hart@mcphs.edu Kevin M. Bonney Department of Biological Sciences Kingsborough Community College Kevin.Bonney@kbcc.cuny.edu Maureen Knabb Department of Biology West Chester University of Pennsylvania mknabb@wcupa.edu Kuei-Chiu Chen Senior Lecturer, Premedical Program Weill Cornell Medical College in Qatar kuc2005@qatar-med.cornell.edu Debra A. Meuler Biology Department Cardinal Stritch University dameuler@stritch.edu Robyn R. Oster National Student Exchange Program University of Maine at Presque Isle Bonnie S. Wood Department of Math and Science University of Maine at Presque Isle bonnie.s.wood@umpi.edu
Abstract:	In this interrupted case study, Ph.D.-paleoclimatologist-turned-TV-meteorologist Sara Fahrenheit finds herself projected into a future climate that reminds her of the Early Eocene: it's hot, it's humid, and seems tropical. The story is a vehicle for teaching students how to distinguish between climate and weather by exploring the difference between average conditions and one-time anomalies. Students explore how to minimize the impact of their own carbon footprint and how small changes can scale up to make a large reduction in greenhouse gas emissions. As part of the case, students find, graph, and interpret data about global climate change. They also learn why a shift in just one degree Celsius can impact the Earth's climate dramatically. The case is appropriate for college classes and advanced high school classes in general science, history of life, climatology, environmental science, and ecology.
Objectives:	Use the concept of average to distinguish between weather events, such as El Niño and La Niña, and climate. Describe some of the data and methods that paleoclimatologists use to reconstruct ancient climates. Practice finding, graphing, and interpreting data about global climate change. Construct scientifically based predictions about climate change.
Keywords:	Global climate change; weather; El Nino; La Nina; graphing; Eocene; paleoclimatology; carbon dioxide; greenhouse gas; carbon footprint
Topical Area:	Policy issues, Science and the media
Educational Level:	High school, Undergraduate lower division
Formats:	PDF
Type/Method:	Analysis (Issues), Interrupted, Jig-Saw
Language:	English
Subject Headings:	Agriculture Agriculture Analytical Chemistry Civil Engineering Climatology Bioinformatics Biology (General) Anthropology Atmospheric Science Biology (General) Anthropology Atmospheric Science Anthropology Paleontology Bioinformatics Aquaculture Aerospace Engineering Computer Science Veterinary Science Agriculture Sociology Anthropology Astronomy Analytical Chemistry Analytical Chemistry Bioinformatics Microbiology Forestry Biochemistry test test2 test2 test 999 test 777 Ecology Atmospheric Science Aquaculture Biotechnology Aerospace Engineering Aerospace Engineering Aerospace Engineering Aquaculture Anthropology Industrial Engineering GIS Biology (General) Inorganic Chemistry Botany / Plant Science Chemistry (General) Earth Science Engineering (General) Business / Management Science Aerospace Engineering Aerospace Engineering Cell Biology Climatology Communication Science Civil Engineering Biology (General) Climatology Environmental Engineering Earth Science Biochemistry Atmospheric Science Biomedical Engineering Botany / Plant Science Bioinformatics Atmospheric Science Aerospace Engineering Aerospace Engineering Aerospace Engineering Aerospace Engineering Aerospace Engineering web20 web20 web20 web20 Earth Science Earth Science Aerospace Engineering Chemical Engineering Computer Science Biology (General) Communication Science Civil Engineering Civil Engineering Biomedical Engineering Dentistry Civil Engineering Evolutionary Biology Aquaculture Economics Ecology Earth Science Earth Science Economics web20 web20 web20 Bioinformatics Earth Science Anthropology Anthropology Biochemistry Medicine (General) Veterinary Science Pharmacology Biology (General) Ecology Astronomy Biology (General) Physiology Ecology Evolutionary Biology Economics Ecology Economics Dentistry Ecology Oceanography web20 web20 web20 web20 web20 web20 Earth Science Aerospace Engineering Analytical Chemistry web20 web20 web20 web20 Aerospace Engineering Aerospace 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Date Posted:	1/6/2012
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Teaching Notes

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Answer Key

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I am a veterinarian and a toxicologist. My comments are based on the nine toxicology books (seven veterinary) I have in my office tonight, ranging from 1984 through 2008 publication dates.

There is a widespread unwillingness to go over the mechanism of formation of the toxic metabolite NAPBQI, the subject of your problem. Only one of them ventures a description (Osweiler, 1996), and his is an outline. He favors your reaction scheme, which he describes as an N-hydroxylation followed by a spontaneous rearrangement to NAPBQI. It makes sense, and I can draw the bond flow, but this is a 1996 text, and the 2000, 2006 texts on small animal toxicology don’t describe it at this level. I’m guessing because it is not known, and other aspects are more central to curing the cat. Your case got this right. It is hard to look it up, at least in my nine texts!

I have lectured on this toxicity in cats, and have 105–115 students that are 3rd-year professionals each fall. In the 5–6 times I’ve given this to 500+ students (total), I have never been asked to diagram or describe the reaction. This is fortunate, because it is described as an oxidation in the other texts. Only Osweiler is willing to guess (in print) of all our toxicologists. The rest of us are willing to say this is probably the reaction, or at least that we can’t really argue against it coherently.

I’m guessing that hepatotoxicity was emphasized because humans and almost all other species except cats get it.

Different from your case is that cats get methemoglobinemia, which is an oxidation of hemoglobin so that it can’t carry oxygen. Most cats don’t show liver toxicity, unless they are resistant to methemoglobinemia. Cat hemoglobin is more sensitive than dogs or humans because it has more available sulfhydryls to oxidize, and cats are much more sensitive than dogs to Tylenol toxicity. One-half of a tablet and extra strength Tylenol would have been more than enough. Your case was correct in that. The reaction of the mom is typical, because this toxicity and its extent are not well known.

When about one-third of the hemoglobin is oxidized cats show clinical signs, which are cyanosis, apathy, and muddy mucous membranes. Blood is usually chocolate brown, so the veterinarian was wise to draw it in your case. Explaining it to the client is a nice touch, but it doesn’t happen in all cases.

Cats often present with some thrashing about (not mentioned in your case, or most texts), methemoglobinemia, apathy or depression, and muddy mucous membranes (chocolate brown) that are hard to see unless you know where to look. Thus, your presentation was typical, not really all that mild. If they’ve had Tylenol and have clinical signs, treatment is needed, and that was well done in this case.

The prognosis is fair to good with optimal treatment and the antidote, n-acetyl cysteine, which replaces glutathione in NPPBQI detoxification and favors synthesis of more glutathione, which does the same. Again, explaining that the antidote restarts what the cat would have done if it didn’t run out of glutathione is useful (any teachable moment is cool to capitalize on), but it doesn’t occur in all cases.

We do treat with charcoal to tie up remaining Tylenol, but your case was not about this, and didn’t have it as a learning objective.

John A. Pickrell DVM, PhD, DABT
Comparative Toxicology Laboratories / College of Veterinary Medicine
Kansas State University
Manhattan, KS
pickrell@vet.k-state.edu
7/8/2008

I used this case in two sections of my non-major university course titled "Biology for Living." This was my first attempt at using or incorporating a case study into my courses. The students seemed very receptive to the idea. After I gave them part one of the study, they asked lots of questions about the fish. It got them very interested. Most (if not all) had never heard of the coelacanth. I added to the pictures by pulling up photos of coelacanths on the computer and projecting them for the students to see during each part. I followed up the case with a homework assignment. They had to report on recent research or happenings with regard to the coelacanth fish.

Shannon McNew
Department of Biology
Southeast Missouri State University
Cape Girardeau, MO
smcnew@semo.edu
6/21/2010

This case reminded me of the "case" of a child here in Houston having his arm swatted off by a tiger. I rewrote the case using excerpts from newspaper articles published about the accident and the recovery of the child. These included interviews with the physicians involved in the implantation. I renamed the case "The Tiger and the Tot" and wrote it as an interrupted case. The students worked in groups for 15 minutes, then we discussed the case as a group.

I used some of the questions from the original case, but since I offer this earlier in the Anatomy and Physiology course than did the original author, some of the questions did not apply. Some of my students remembered this event and I think that helped stir interest.

Jane Johnson-Murray
Biology/Nutrition
Houston Community College System
Houston, TX
jane.johnsonmurray@hccs.edu
10/24/2005

I am teaching an introductory biology course to 17 freshman students and we are doing eight cases as part of the class. We just completed the case study entitled "A Can of Bull? Do Energy Drinks Really Provide a Source of Energy?" (which we thoroughly enjoyed), and I have a few comments about it. First, my students would have liked the authors of the case to add Gatorade®. Second, some estimate of costs might be interesting. Third, it would be good to discuss the role of unproven herbal remedies like Echinaceae or ginseng or ginkgo, many of which are found in the energy drink Citrus Blast® at least.

I had the class split into five groups, one for each drink. Each group had to analyze their drink, turn in a short paper about it, and then tell the class about their drink. We filled out a chart (energy / amino acids / vitamins and stimulants / other) on the board for each drink. Next time I will probably split vitamins and stimulants, and maybe add a column for herbals. We didn’t examine ingredients like l-taurine in depth, although I would discuss them further in a more advanced course.

One student pointed out that if there really was a sugar high, then untreated diabetics should be really active. Another student commented that he would have liked to have known how much caffeine was in each drink.

Eric Ribbens
Department of Biology
Western Illinois University
Macomb, IL
E-Ribbens@wiu.edu
9/26/2005

I’ve used this case with my Rhetoric and Science students to illustrate the differences between the persuasive power of advertising and the kinds of arguments made with scientific data. These students had been drilled about appropriate uses of data, although not all of them had taken college level courses in chemistry.

This evening, I noticed the following article about lawsuits against the Coca-Cola Corporation over its marketing of VitaminWater as a “healthy alternative” to sodas; thought you might find it an interesting addition to the case: http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/135816.php.

Lili Fox Vélez, Ph.D.
Biomedical Writing Track / Professional Writing Program
Towson University
Towson, MD
rhetrx@verizon.net
1/17/2009

I found this case to be a very effective way to teach the Scientific Method to a group of non-major biology students. This is the first case I have taught since attending a Chautauqua Short Course this past summer with Kipp Herreid, and it worked extremely well. I asked the 23 students to self-select themselves into groups of 3 or 4 and then worked through the case with class discussion following each of Parts I–III. We did not have enough time to complete part IV in the 50 minute time frame.

I found that the case questions yielded some interesting and creative solutions. In many cases it offered up a springboard for discussion of local migration and PCB contamination issues. Students also asked about PCB contamination in Great Lakes Fish and other pertinent topics. This is one of the many topics that will be addressed throughout the semester. Rather than use the last few minutes of class on Part IV (though it seems a valuable thing to do), we discussed the advantages and shortfalls of the Scientific Method. Learning the Scientific Method through case participation will likely help the students complete future labs, for which they will need to construct hypotheses, design experiments, etc.

I found the referenced Nature (2003) article to be helpful and did not use any additional resources in class given the time constraint.

Margit Brazda Poirier
Department of Biology
Monroe Community College
Rochester, NY
mpoirier@monroecc.edu
9/22/2005

I recently used the case study "Memory Loss in Mice" for one of my courses and thought that you might be interested in some evaluation and feedback on how I used the case.

I am currently teaching an upper level undergraduate biology course entitled "Molecular Basis of Disease." The course is being taught over simultaneous videoteleconferencing between Shaw University in Raleigh, NC and UNC—Chapel Hill in Chapel Hill, NC. The distance education studios are equipped with VTC equipment and SMARTBoards connected through Netmeeting. We have 4 students at Shaw and 18 students at UNC enrolled in the course. I am the instructor at Shaw University and my collegue Dr. Jory Weintraub is the instructor at UNC. We each lead discussions on various topics looking at the molecular mechanisms of disease and we have included one session on Research Methods and Animal Models. To introduce this topic, I used your case to get students thinking about how to interpret scientific data, draw conclusions, and describe how animals are used in biomedical research. This simple case provided much discussion and interaction between students at both sites. Although I happened to use it in an upper level undergraduate course, it certainly could be used in either undergrad or grad level courses. Thank you for providing a great case for our course!

I am currently implementing other cases from the Buffalo Case Study site as well as writing my own that I can hopefully share with others at the Buffalo site.

Brian J. Rybarczyk, Ph.D.
SPIRE Postdoctoral Fellow/Assistant Professor
University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill/Shaw University
Chapel Hill, NC
brian_rybarczyk@med.unc.edu
1/27/2008

We used this case on the first day of class as an introduction to the role of ethics in environmental science. It worked well because students were able to be active right away and to identify ethical issues that we could then discuss more in class. We followed the teaching notes reasonably well, and I think that worked out. Thank you!

Nadine Lehrer
Forest Resources
University of Minnesota
St. Paul, MN
lehr0037@umn.edu
2/3/2005

I used this case in a cooperative experience with a middle school science teacher and a Chatham colleague. We broke the case into smaller “chunks” that would fit in a 40-minute class period. At the end of each chunk we raised questions for the students to consider, and they wrote responses in a science journal. We created charts to help the students organize information and their answers. We also located and designed activities that corresponded to sections of the case. For example, when the case mentioned dissolved oxygen, we had the students do a hands-on activity to explore the concept of dissolved oxygen. We also used the 5E Model of Inquiry paying particular attention to 2 of the 5 essential features of application and extension. [Editor‘s Note: see http://www1.mcps.k12.md.us/curriculum/science/instr/teaching5Es.htm for a brief description of this model.] Through the process of exploring the case, students refined their initial hypothesis and cited the evidence for their decisions (again, all of this was recorded in their journals). At the end of the case study, the students had a field trip to an area called Nine Mile Run which empties into the Monongahela River. It was, in the past, a source of contamination and a ”fish kill“ location. It has since been cleaned up and no longer serves as a pollution source.

By taking this case in smaller chunks and exploring vocabulary when necessary, we felt the case was an excellent way to engage middle school students in the process of inquiry.

There is an excellent book, And the Waters Turned to Blood: The Ultimate Biological Threat by K. Baker (Simon and Shuster, 1997), that gives more context to the case and some interesting information about the health effects of this study on the scientists who conducted the research. Another book that might be of interest is one we used by Jean Craighead George, Who Really Killed Cock Robin? An Ecological Mystery published by Harper Collins Children’s Books in 1991.

Barbara Biglan
Education
Chatham University
Pittsburgh, PA
biglan@chatham.edu
6/26/2007

I have used this case with my Organic Chemistry II class. Many of my students are pre-pharmacy, so having a medical tie-in increases the students’ interest in the case. The case also forces the students to recall material previously learned (E/Z designations) while learning new concepts (such as lactam/lactim). I allow the students to form groups and work together outside of class. They submit their answers to the questions which count toward part of their grade on their first exam.

Susan Choi
Department of Chemistry
Camden County College
Blackwood, NJ
schoi@camdencc.edu
10/1/2006

I adapted the case study, “The Chemistry of Cooley’s Anemia,” for my Basic Biochemistry course consisting of juniors and seniors. The students, in groups of 3–6, were given bits of information allowing them to solve for the disease and related questions using the internet and their biochemistry book. The class reconvened the last 15 minutes of class and chatted about the ethical issues pertinent to the case. I also introduced the concept of collaborative efforts in science as a precursor to drug discovery. It was a hit! I plan on using three additional case studies throughout the semester.

Jody M. Modarelli
Departments of Biology and Chemistry
Hiram College
Hiram, OH
ModarelliJM@hiram.edu
9/19/2008

This is an interesting case. Typical cases of crocidolite (very small amphibole; deposited in deep lung) were seen in daughters whose fathers worked with ship insulation of crocidolite asbestos from South Africa (it is called “Cape Blue” crocidolite). The fathers came home and whacked their shirts on the porch as their daughters were waiting to hug them. Twenty-five to 40 years later, the girls, now mothers, developed mesothelioma and often died.

Until recently, crocidolite was the only asbestos with direct cause from the asbestos alone. Recently, erionite asbestos (not mentioned in your research) was found to be the source of additional lung cancers. Chrysotile is the source of more than 80% of all asbestos in the U.S. It is serpentine and therefore too curvy to deposit in sufficient quantity to work its way into the thoracic mesothelium. Amosite asbestos is the right shape, but not small enough for maximum deposition, as is tremolite. Grunerite is too large for maximum deposition and not as durable as amosite, chrysotile or crocidolite asbestos.

To answer your questions, if I were an expert witness, or jury member, I’d like to know what kind of asbestos. Chrysotile asbestos for this chain of toxicity would be a hard sell, it’s hard to inhale enough. Only crocidolite and erionite have been traced directly to human lung cancer.

To establish liability, one would need to examine possible release scenarios. Usually chrysotile makes it much harder to convince anyone of this type of exposure, because it is hard to see the potential threat. It’s not small enough or durable enough (it is more rapidly broken down in water (days and weeks, as opposed to more than years).

Asbestos with cement is less toxic than say that which comes from brake linings. Brake linings grind and make asbestos have smaller cross sectional area, depositing in deeper lung. Thus, cement companies with the wrong asbestos are relatively hard to pin down and collect on.

I know of two real cases where there was almost no doubt. One was described in the first paragraph and involved chrysotile asbestos. The second one was in Turkey. Only husbands, not wives or children, got mesothelioma. Eech day the males that got this had eaten lunch on a rock next to a cool waterfall pool and went swimming there time permitting. The wives and kids lived some distance away and weren’t exposed. More than half of the men got mesotheliomas and it took a long time to track it down (>5–10 years). It was finally identified as erionite asbestos, an amphibole asbestos, which has quite a small odiameter. It was more durable than grunerite (from Minnesota mines). The exposure was high, over very long time periods.

In my opinion, this chrysotile is an interesting case because the exposure scenario was right and had happened, but with an entirely different asbestos, usually not found in the U.S. Secondly, it was an asbestos containing cement with a complicated composition, less likely to cause mesithelioma. Finally, it was a serpentine asbestos, not an amphibole.

They could probably find out which asbestos, because it usually does not cause mesothelioma and the company knows this. Also, unless one had documentation a high percentage of U.S. asbestos is chrysotile, the most curved and least durable of the asbestos.

The questions asked in this case were relevant to those which would be asked in real life and the scenario is realistic.

John A. Pickrell DVM, PhD, DABT
Comparative Toxicology Laboratories / College of Veterinary Medicine
Kansas State University
Manhattan, KS 66506-5606
pickrell@vet.k-state.edu
7/30/2008

This case has students prepare to simulate a hearing on possible treatment of Eric for his ALS using stem cells. Since he is Catholic, there is a religious dimension to consider. It includes good witnesses such as James Thompson, John Gearhart, and Leon Kass. I find it very helpful for non-majors classes in stem cells and human cloning. It isn’t quite up to date, though, having been prepared in 2005.

Suggestions

I have added some characters:

Shinyu Yamanaka, who in 2007 was able to reprogram skin cells to pluripotency.
Elizabeth Blackburn, the scientist Bush fired from his ethics committee.
Jonathan Moreno, Obama’s organizer of his Bioethics Committee.

New References

I like to have the students do this case while they are reading Christopher Scott’s book Stem Cells Now: From the Experiment That Shook the World to the New Politics of Life (Pi Press, 2006) and papers updating it.

I also like to use Potent Biology, the videos produced by HHMI on stem cells, which are available for free from the HHMI web site.

Also the following articles:

The Yamanaka paper: Takahashi, K., Tanabe, K., Ohnuki, M., Narita, M., Ichisaka, T., Tomoda, K., and Yamanaka, S. 2007. Induction of pluripotent stem cells from adult human fibroblasts by defined factors. Cell 131(5):861–72. doi:10.1016/j.cell.2007.11.019
Ethical issues re iPS cells: Insoo, Hyun. 2008. Stem cells from skin cells: the ethical questions. Hastings Center Report 38, no. 1:20–22.

Laura Hoopes
Department of Biology
Pomona College
Claremont, CA 91711
lhoopes@pomona.edu
11/19/2009

I teach at a highly selective secondary school. In our ninth grade science course, we are teaching critical thinking skills through the use of medical case studies. While teaching the human physiology systems, we have students work their way through medical cases. In each case the students must take information provided to them and make a reasonable inference (several hypotheses/diagnoses) based on that information. Then they must request further information (lab tests, physical tests, interview questions) and they must give good reasoning for why they are requesting that information. At the end of the case, students must present either in writing or verbally an explanation of their thinking process from start to finish.

Thanks for making these cases available.

Jim Jordan
Science
The Lawrenceville School
Lawrenceville, NJ
jjordan@lawrenceville.org
6/7/2006

This case was a big success in my course "Disease and the Environment." I was searching for a way to engage the students in talking about the choice of research population, formulation of research questions, data gathering and interpretation, presentation of research findings, and the reporting of scientific results in the popular press. All this was to prepare them for their own case studies. The class was also an unusually quiet one, given the subject matter, so I was also trying to liven things up a bit. This case was the perfect vehicle for all of the above.

I followed the questions and teaching notes very carefully. The students were given the case five days in advance of the discussion and they submitted their assigned critiques as scheduled. Then we turned to the question of who wrote the story. Things heated up very quickly and there was a great deal of discussion surrounding each of the suggested questions. I remained the silent recorder of comments most of the time. I found it very useful to list responses on the blackboard so that the class could see the twists and turns that ensued. We arrived at the predicted "wide range of answers to the question about validity" of conclusions. The class agreed that taking a statistics course, as one-third of the group had, would help in this type of analysis. Together they formulated a long list of questions involving confounding variables, researcher bias, and missing information. They agreed that they would like to see the original papers on which the news release was based.

The class lasted a very short 85 minutes. The students were engaged and active the entire time. I agree with the author that this case encourages independent thinking in students and reduces their fear of attacking statistical statements. The group work on this case was both liberating and empowering for the class as a whole.

This is a very well conceived and useful case study. My personal field test was a rousing success. I'll use it again the next time this course is offered and I plan to use it in my introductory statistics class and have passed it on to two colleagues who also teach statistics who are very excited about using a case like this.

Una Bray
Mathematics Department
Skidmore College
Saratoga Springs, NY 12866
ubray@skidmore.edu
4/18/2001

I used this case at the end of a semester-long non-majors course on Heredity, Evolution, and Society. We spent about two hours on this case. Students were split into groups of four or five with each group having at least one strong student. I also let each group know that it was important for everybody in the group to understand the problems and answers since I could call on anybody to give the consensus answer.

My students loved this case study since it really helped to tie in concepts that we had gone over all semester and that they had trouble with. In particular, the idea of X-linked versus recessive, writing genotypes, and identifying carriers. This was a great way to have them construct pedigrees and go over the basic concepts of genetics in time for the final.

Thanks for writing this well-designed case.

Chaya Nanavati
Department of Biology
Ohlone College
Fremont, CA
cnanavati@ohlone.edu
5/15/2006

I modified one of your cases titled, “The Case of the Dividing Cell: Mitosis and Meiosis in the Cellular Court” by Clyde Freeman Herreid and used it while discussing mitosis and meiosis with first year students of medical school. The total number of students was 90. The students found the case interesting and enjoyed the teaching session. At the end of the session, I collected a “feedback proforma,” the results of which I wish to publish in a medical journal along with a discussion of the use of case methods for teaching anatomy.

Huma Musarrat Khan, Associate Professor
Department of Anatomy
Foundation University Medical College
Rawalpindi-Pakistan
huma.anat@gmail.com
2/14/2010

I loved this! I used this in class, and had the students who had a dramatic flair read for each of the characters. I then assigned the questions for homework. I think it really helped my 10th grade biology kids understand the concepts better. Thank you, Dr. Herreid, for writing this and letting me use it!

Katherine Griffith, Teacher
Science
Christian Heritage Academy
Rocky Mount, VA
kagriff@swva.net
1/11/2006

I used this case as an introduction to mitosis and meiosis. The only alteration I made was to place the names of the characters next to their speaking parts. My students seemed to like it. I had my principal in observing me and he also liked it and thought it was a good intro. I had the jury members act like real jury members and take notes so that if they had to render a decision they had notes to work from.

Over all it was well received and I will use it in the future!

Carrie Griffith, Teacher
Department of Science
Red Creek High School
Red Creek, NY
cgriffith2@rccsd.org
4/7/2004

With this case students were grouped and mocked an interdisciplinary team. The team captain and students read the case together. Each team member was given a question to research in order to arrive at a logical conclusion. Students were permitted five weeks to complete the assignment.

Use of the case presented the opportunity to work together as a team and helped develop research skills. Students were able to chart data. Students were also able to assemble mock charts.

We cannot thank you enough for the use of the case studies.

Eva M. Brown, Instructor
Anatomy & Physiology
American Commercial College
San Angelo, TX
educarefortexas@aol.com
1/11/2006

Excellent case study! The dialogue format engages the reader and makes learning more interesting. I followed the notes to the teacher and inserted mini review lessons on the anatomy of the heart and circulatory system, which enhanced the students' understanding of the case. I used unlabelled diagrams, which we labelled together as a class. I involved the students throughout by having them go up to the white board and write definitions/answers to questions. I really liked how it shed light on the differences between men and women with respect to their symptoms of heart disease.

Teresa Anziano
Healthcare Support Program
Hamilton-Wentworth School District
Hamilton, Ontario L8N 3L1 Canada
teresa.anziano@hwdsb.on.ca
9/22/2009

I used this case study in my A&P class after we finished reviewing cardiology. The students enjoyed it. I assigned them the task of creating an information brochure as suggested in the assignment section of the case study. I received some very creative and professional-looking pamphlets.

Donna Brunelli
Biological Sciences
Allegany College of Maryland
Somerset, PA
dbrunelli@allegany.edu
4/17/2006

I used the case, "Wake-Up Call," in a class called "Topics in Women’s Health" and it was a real shocker for the students, who all pretty much decided the main character was having panic attacks, an anxiety disorder, or menopause symptoms. Heart "problems" was one of their hypotheses, but not a strong one until near the end. I adapted the case to fit the format I use in class, so I didn’t use it exactly the same way, with the heart as a character. I liked that idea, but it didn’t fit the way we’d been working. It was a terrific case and the students were very challenged and learned a lot. They asked me if this was based on a real person or if it was constructed to make particular points. I didn’t know the answer to that. I found (as I find with any case I use) that I had to make up some family history and life style answers to respond to students’ questions. It’s a little like writing a soap opera, but kind of fun. Thanks to the case authors and the Center for this case, as it formed a big part of my class this spring.

Merle S. Bruno
Professor of Biology
Hampshire College
Amherst, MA
mbruno@hampshire.edu
5/28/2003

Despite the fact that we are in the UK, the group of ecology students entered into this case study wholeheartedly.

The progressive disclosure of the Historical Updates enabled them to build towards the learning outcomes of their “Understanding Ecology and Conservation” unit.

As our sessions are 90 minutes, we introduced the case study in the latter part of the first session (after a previous topic had been debriefed) and covered the Historical Updates in the whole of session 2, because the groups got VERY involved!

David Funge
Department of Biology
Bedford College
Bedford, UK
dfunge@bedford.ac.uk
3/9/2006

I’m a biology teacher in Argentina, South America. I was able to use this case by translating it into Spanish (our language here) and introducing some changes about hormones and personalizations for my students to feel the situation as closer to their lives. My intention was to work with high school students about sex determination, secondary effects of hormones, and social aspects of sex in young people. I think it’s a very interesting case and also a very interesting way to teach, using case studies. Thank you very much.

Luciana Garrido, High School Teacher
Biology Department
Secondary School Number 21
Morón, Buenos Aires, Argentina
lugarrid@yahoo.com
12/12/2007

I modified this case slightly for use in my conservation biology class (emphasizing the conservation, downplaying the other issues). I have used it twice, and it was a big hit with the 12-15 students each time. In 2001, it was the very first case I ever used, and I simply asked students to read the case, and decide what they needed to do as conservation professionals (in small groups), including:

the problem to be solved,
how to solve it,
what other information is needed, and
the approximate cost.

The remarkably good response, and my impression that in this one class session they satisfied me that they knew enough basic biology in week 2 to allow us to move on to the non-biology parts of conservation, sold me on cases in general. This year (2003), I first had them think about the issue alone for 10 minutes, writing down some general ideas. Then they did the assignment from the previous year. It was even better this year—several students came up afterward and told me it was one of their best sessions in college.

Randy Mitchell
Biology Department
University of Akron
Akron, OH
rjm2@uakron.edu
1/16/2003

Here in Dutchess County, NY (prime Lyme Disease territory), this provided a very useful and relevant first case in a "Contemporary Issues in Biology" course. I did the case pretty much as offered, with each group presenting the topic as a skit, video, or PowerPoint presentation with accompanying handout and bibliography. It was very well received.

I changed the scenario a bit to get more of a bioethics spin on it: "You are a parent who wishes to send a child to a summer camp. The summer camp requires proof of Lyme immunization. Will you have your child immunized or not?"

After all of the group presentations (each group gave a recommendation), I asked the students to make their decisions and give a reason. We then had an open discussion, after which they are asked to again make a decision and give the reason for it. I then changed the scenario slightly:

the camp is a music/sports camp and participation almost guarantees the attendees a full scholarship to a prestigious music/sports college program;
the camp is a computer camp, which will donate $5K worth of computer equipment to the sponsoring school district; or
you want to get rid of your kid for the summer so you and the spouse can go away and work on saving a failing marriage.

This tests to see how many students change their minds when they see other factors and values coming into play.

Some saw no ethical dilemma here until I explained that I know another public school biology teacher in upstate New York who had her children home-schooled rather than submit them to vaccinations on the basis of problems with animal testing, putting foreign substances into the body, etc. I also referred to a "Law and Order" episode on television where parents are charged with failure to get medical attention for their child on religious grounds. It didn't specifically relate to vaccinations, but the principle is the same. Upon hearing these, the students saw how some people could have an ethical problem with this.

William Siebert
Science Department
Arlington High School
LaGrangeville, NY
wsiebert@hs.acsd.dcboces.org
10/11/2002

Showed the Werner Herzog Film Encounters at the End of The World. Excellent film created tremendous interest in the problems of human influence in a “pristine” setting. Student worksheets were easy to follow and adapt. Loved it.

James Gilham
Science
Design & Achitecture Sr. High
Miami, FL
gillie@dadeschools.net
2/23/2010

I used the case in a majors general biology course to introduce our study of bacteria. Our next lab will be bacterial morphology, culture, and water quality testing for coliform. I thought this lab was a great way to introduce the concepts and application in a realistic context. I used it as written and students responded to it very well. They enjoyed the analysis and discussion but felt that they would have liked more time (our class periods are 55 minutes). I too felt like we could have used more time—there is no reason we can’t discuss this further next class. I also think with more experience I will get better at facilitating the discussion.

Monica LeClerc
Lab Science
Jefferson Community College
Watertown, NY
mleclerc@sunyjefferson.edu
2/11/2004

I stumbled on the website and case quite by fortuitous accident while looking for a good “hook” or “grabber” for the study of the endocrine system in my junior/senior anatomy and physiology classes at Wilmington High School. Years ago, I had the idea that medical case reports could play a valuable teaching role in teaching A&P to high school students and have modified several published medical case reports (making them into comprehensible abstracts) for that purpose. I think this one is great and can’t wait to try it out with my students.

Richard W. Fardy
Science Department
Wilmington High School
Wilmington, MA 01887
rfardy@wilmington.k12.ma.us
3/14/2009

I used this case in a non-majors class on Microbiology and Infectious Diseases. We went over this case a week after they had covered antibiotics and antibiotic resistance. One of the things that puzzled my students was the fact that Kayla died in spite of the fact that the S. aureus that caused her infection was susceptible to vancomycin. In fact, at the end of the case, Collins’ friend, Kurt, suggests a combination treatment of vancomycin/cefazolin, although he cautions her about the possibility of vancomycin-resistance. I would love to get some feedback/clarification/thoughts on this.

Overall, my students love the case studies since they help to tie things together and help them see the relevance of the material presented in lectures. Thanks very much.

Chaya Nanavati
Department of Biology
Ohlone College
Fremont, CA
cnanavati@ohlone.edu
5/15/2006

I used this case in an introductory microbiology class consisting primarily of medical assistants in July of 2004. This actually brought together many of the concepts we had discussed. Overall the students really enjoyed this case; however, they were upset when they discovered the patient died. They also wanted some information as to how her hip joint became infected — was it due to an injury to the joint or another infection somewhere else?

I presented this case over a period of four class periods and they seemed to like that. I enjoyed using it and will probably use it again as a project the next time I teach this class.

I may also use this as a basis for homework — such as doing a one-page paper on the different antibiotics mentioned or for further research by the student on MRSA.

Thank you so much for this website.

Susan Reynolds

Robert Morris College
Springfield, IL
sreynolds@robertmorris.edu
12/16/2004

It was my intention to give my students the opportunity to experience "real-time" issues in environmental science. This case study piqued their interest to the point that they actually wanted to "act out" each person’s position in the case, including the narrator’s part.

I plan to have my students present this case as a short "play" to be performed at our neighboring campus middle school. Prior to the performance, the narrators will explain the profiles for each member in the play. At the conclusion, other students will form stations within the classroom and ask the middle school audience the questions that are included in the case study. The purpose of this is to develop a discussion session rather than just an informal assessment. This is planned as a culminating activity after my students have completed their discussions on the case. They all need to be well versed on the issue so they can monitor and adjust at their individual middle school discussion stations.

Patrick Alarcon
Science Department
Academy of Information Technology and Engineering
Stamford, CT 06905
palarcon@ait.echalk.com
4/21/2008

This case was used as an assessment instrument in a year 12 biology class. It was a very successful way to gauge a deep understanding in students.

Sara Morgans
Faculty of Science
The Canberra College
Woden, Australia
sara.morgans@canberrac.act.edu.au
3/31/2005

The "story" of the case-study was given to the students as part of their last semester exam in a Human Physiology course often taken by our pre-med/vet/dental school students. Students had been told that there would be one question that would integrate concepts over the entire semester (this was greeted with moans and groans). Of the numerous questions that Dr. Strong had listed with the case study, I used seven for the exam. Each question was worth between 1 and 4 points, depending on difficulty and length of answer expected.

Student responses were mixed. I had two Varsity rowers in the class of 35, and also Varsity swimmers. The athletes and their close friends were enthusiastic about the question (very relevant to their lives). Those students who like to memorize instead of learn and apply material were not happy with the question. The entire exam was 1 1/2 hours and included 35 other short answer/matching/multiple choice questions.

Since I return exams to students, future semesters of Human Physiology will have had access to the exam and will have had access to this case study. Next year I plan on using this as a "review" question in the form of a group project. I have not yet decided how to exactly assign this, but will involve setting aside a day of lecture for students to present their answers to two to three of the questions/group. The remainder of the class is expected to agree/disagree with a group. I may ask one group to answer one question completely incorrectly to "test" the remainder of the class to make sure that they are awake/paying attention.

Eva Oberdoerster
Department of Biology
Southern Methodist University
Dallas, TX
eoberdor@mail.smu.edu
4/19/2002

First, I want to thank you all tremendously for the use of this excellent site and material. I have no doubt that this is one of the best ways for students to learn to actually understand and remember the material and be able to apply it to real life situations.

Regarding this case — mine is a high school anatomy class consisting of 11th & 12th grade students. They were excited to receive the case and related to the individual in the case and his circumstance. As we started they were full of ideas. As they completed each part I questioned the group members and asked for explanations/clarifications, etc., before they received the next part. The students started to get frustrated at the process when they weren’t "told" the answers and needed to do more research. But then they were quite proud when they finally got the answers and could explain why. So, in all, they seemed to go through the cycle of excitement, frustration, excitement, frustration, excitement.... Sort of like real life.

They did have particular problems with the CT scan. This wasn’t because they had never read one - they actually did a very nice job figuring that part out. (In fact, I gave most of them the CT scan before the blood work so they weren’t quite as sure of the answer yet.) Their difficulty rather resulted from the fact that the upper GI image seems to be flipped backwards from the Chest image. In other words, the right and left side of the body are reversed in the images.

Outside of patient history I’m not sure there is any reasonable way for them to know it is the patient’s “left” lung. And even with the patient history it could actually be that he damaged his "right" lung when he was smashed against the boards even though he was hit with the stick on his left side. So, as a suggestion, I would like to see that image flipped. I also believe, although I am not certain, that these CT scan images are typically viewed as if you are looking up from the patients feet, thus putting the patient’s left on the viewing right. If that is in fact the case both images should reflect that. [Editor’s Note: The relevant portion of the case has been revised as a result of this comment.]

As a fun follow-up activity I had the students write an “Ode to Rick” where they wrote a poem summarizing the story, the test results and their meaning, the treatment and prognosis. They really enjoyed it and it helped me see what they understood and still needed some help with. If you would like to see these "poems" for a little chuckle they can be found on my website at http://www.docfleetwood.net/anatomy/odetorick.htm

Again, this case was done beautifully and I highly appreciate the time and effort put into it.

Thomas Fleetwood
Science Department
Charter School of Wilmington
Wilmington, DE
tfleetwood@charterschool.org
11/11/2005

I used this case in my A&P class made up of 11th and 12th graders. I loved it since it really made them think. They analyzed it to death, trying to figure out the diagnosis. It was great! Thanks!

Darlene McLeish, Teacher
Health Science
Wilson Central High
Lebanon, TN
mcleishd@wcschools.com
12/4/2004

I adapted the Benign Hamburger case for a microbiology course I teach and used it as a case study in epidemiology. Students thoroughly enjoyed it, and felt that it covered several aspects of epidemiology that they hadn't previously considered.

Marie Panec
Biology Department
Moorpark College
city/state
ay757@lafn.org
10/20/2010

The students enjoyed this case. I think it was well done, and it is a fun way to learn.

I made only minimal modifications:

I asked my students to read relevant passages from their textbook (Kuby’s Immunology) rather than consulting the online resources.
I used the info you provided online to create a PowerPoint presentation, and I added a few images that I got from a Google image search for a normal baby boy, a child getting an ear exam, a photo of David Vettle, etc.
I have a small class, so we worked on the case as a whole, and the class split into smaller groups just to read and study the possible causes of SCID.

My students posed an excellent question about the bone marrow transplant treatment: If the patient has SCID, why does the bone marrow donor have to be a tissue match? How can a person with SCID reject foreign transplants?

Kathy Zanin, Assistant Professor
Department of Biology
The Citadel
Charleston, SC
kathy.zanin@citadel.edu
2/23/2006

On two occasions I have used this case within the first class of a large introductory biology course for non-majors. I use a somewhat abbreviated version (I project the narrative and questions from Part I, then II, and then III), and it takes about 25 minutes to complete. As intended, the case serves as an introduction to the scientific process, as well as one of the first group activities that students do. It is very effective. Turning students loose in small groups (consisting of their immediate neighbors) on the study questions of Part I results in instantaneous “buzz,” and the hypotheses generated are typically thoughtful and reasonable. I suspect my enthusiasm for this case is shared by many others—kudos to the author.

Bruce A. Fall
Biology Program
University of Minnesota
Minneaplois, MN
bafall@umn.edu
1/23/2008

I used this case study the first day of class for my sections of non-science majors (20 students per section). The case study was very popular and the students enjoyed being "detectives" along with Semmelweis. It was a great way to introduce the scientific method. The study generated a lively discussion and great student participation. It also set the tone for the semester: encouraging class participation, fostering critical thinking, and promoting group discussion. The level of the material was appropriate for an introductory course. The case study/discussion proceeded very smoothly. The time estimates in the teaching notes were accurate.

In each of my classes, one or two students immediately suggested that washing hands might be important or that germs were being spread. This can be handled by asking what evidence makes that seem important (early in the case study there is none), or by pointing out that Semmelweis and the other doctors did not know about germs.

Susan Choi
Department of Chemistry
Camden County College
Blackwood, NJ
schoi@mail.camdencc.edu
10/13/2003

I used this case in my Physics class. I found out about these cases from my college professor. My high school students really enjoyed it and learned a lot. I can't wait to use other studies that I find on your site.

Clayton Faivor
Science Teacher
Ellsworth Community School
Ellsworth, MI
cfaivor@ellsworth.k12.mi.us
11/4/2010

The case was used in a small class of second semester chemistry for non-majors. Polymer chemistry was covered briefly before the assignment.

The student references were handed out in class. The class was split into groups of four with one group of five. Each person was assigned to a role: mother, consumer reports scientist, plastics industry rep., judge (moderator for the discussion), and in the group of five an outside scientist. Each student was to read the references and think about points which they would like to ask the other experts (in the form of five questions). In addition they were to prepare answers from their assigned perspective which they felt might be addressed. The judge was given the task of coming up with the method to present the case with the group.

On the next class period, the groups discussed the case. Occasionally, groups needed assistance in discovering what might be valid arguments in the consumer report. Once the discussions died down I presented highlights of the main points that one might want to consider. Then a vote was cast about who would use polycarbonate bottles. Surprisingly, only a small portion of the students would continue using the bottles even though they believed that the consumer report case was not supported by facts. The students then recieved a copy of the summary of the RTI report given in 2001 confirming the safety of polycarbonate bottles.

The case was well received and very engaging.

Kerry Breno
Chemistry Department
University of Puget Sound
Tacoma, WA
kbreno@ups.edu
4/16/2003

I plan to use this case study with my first-year high school students during their polymer unit. Not only will it be a great timely connection but it also involves another important concept in my course - levels of detection and risk factors. I read about your site in C&E News. What wonderful resources. I will share the knowledge of this site and this particular case study with my high school colleagues at our first educators' discussion group of my local ACS. My polymer unit looks at some physical/chemical properties which distinguish the six major plastics. I then have the students study modifications to the slime recipe to produce products of greater viscosity or bouncibility. They design their own testing methods and measurement protocols. We will then end with this case study. This part of the course happens during the second quarter.

Linda Hall
Science Department
Seven Hills School
Cincinnati, Ohio
linda.ford@7hills.org
8/23/2000

I’m a sales manager for (among other glass products) baby bottles made of special glass (borosilicate glass with expansion factor 3.3). Although many Americans may not be aware of this, such bottles have been in use for generations (since the 1920s), especially in Germany. The company I work for still produces such bottles, as do certain other factories in France, the Czech Republic, Italy, China, etc. In fact, consumption of these bottles is still in the double digit range of millions. In my opinion, bottles made out of borosilicate glass are preferable to those made out of ordinary soda lime glass due to the bad thermal shock resistance of the latter which does not allow for optimal hygenic cleaning.

The case study highlights six points which, to my understanding, are related to chemistry. But the "development of critical thinking skills..." should also address political, commercial and general environmental aspects, too. Historically, these factors frequently have triggered more profound research. After Our Stolen Future was translated into Japanese, health authorities in Japan stopped use of PC (polycarbonate) dishes in schools. The baby bottle market in Japan, which formerly manufactured according to the ratio of 25% glass - 75% plastic, subsequently changed to 80% glass - 20% plastic. In Europe, however, the effect has not been the same; here the market is still 25% glass - 75% plastic.

Basic worries, as well as proved and unproved statements, are often juxtaposed with the power and persuasion of industry representatives. Such basic worries apparently linger even after evidence is examined, as witnessed by the final vote of students at the end of the case (see Comment 1: "Surprisingly, only a small portion of the students would continue using the bottles even though they believed that the consumer report case was not supported by facts").

The American Plastics Council, although encouraging inquiries into "the truth," continues to defend the image of the plastic industry. However, this is not an area for blind trust since there is a long list of industry "trust me’s" that have been heard before: nuclear power, agent orange, car exhaust, tobacco smoke.... In the end, who evaluates (and who should evaluate) what is most important for a given population? Administrators representing the public health? Members of the relevant business community? I think that the case discussion should be broadened to include such a range of issues, on both the "pro" and "con” sides" when analyzing health issues.

Dietrich Leutelt
Sales Manager

Mainz/Germany
leutelt-mainz@t-online.de
1/6/2004

I used “Lost in the Desert” in my A&P class of 11th & 12th graders. I was impressed by how they responded to it. I did not adapt the case, but used it as suggested in the teaching notes for a discussion on homeostasis. Anyway, it went well! Thanks!

Judy
Health Science
Wilson Central High School
Lebanon, TN
mcleishd@wcschools.com
8/15/2003

I am not a teacher, but rather a research analyst at Friends of the Earth. I recently presented Saxena and Stotzky's paper at a National Academy of Sciences forum on potential unintended health effects of genetically engineered foods. I have a few comments on points you raised.

First, I find it interesting that hybrids derived from two distinct transformation events (MON810 and Bt11) exhibit the same unintended effect—increased lignin levels. These plants were both transformed by gene gun, maximizing variability in chromosomal insert location. One would think different insertion sites would yield different unintended effects (if the inserted promoter is somehow driving the increase in lignin, that is). I suppose Cry1Ab protein could disrupt cellular metabolism somehow, producing the same effect in MON810 and Bt11. This would require looking closely at the lignin biosynthetic pathway, which involves shikimic acid, an intermediate in the synthesis of aromatic amino acids. This seems unlikely, though.

An interesting observation, perhaps unrelated, is that I have seen reports that Roundup Ready soybeans have increased lignin levels in some circumstances, and reduced levels of aromatic amino acids in others. Could a non-specific effect of the engineering process be at play? The problem here is that RR soybeans, I believe, are transformed via Agrobacterium.

I find your mechanical explanation unconvincing. I don't think the paper says anything about corn borer infestation or damage; therefore why would the Bt varieties grow larger, especially when grown indoors where presumably there are no pests?

I would be interested to hear your comments. I spoke with Stotzky, and he didn't have answers to the questions raised above.

Bill Freese
Senior Policy Analyst
Friends of the Earth
Washington, DC
billfreese@prodigy.net
2/13/2003

Case Author's Reply:

Thank you for your interesting comments on the Saxena and Stotzky paper. I agree that it is interesting that two of the three hybrid transformations do indeed seem to increase lignin concentration. The evidence for the third transformation is incomplete, and it is interesting that the "Maximizer" hybrid with Bt actually has lignin levels comparable to the non-Bt hybrids. I also think you are right that a strictly mechanical explanation is unlikely, particularly since the growth room levels also were increased. Clearly there is a genetic component to lignin production, which was increased by the Bt transformation. Equally clear is that there is an environmental component, as indicated by the lower lignin levels in the growth room (where plants probably received less mechanical stress / damage).

My main point in writing the Saxena and Stotzky case was not to examine Bt or lignin per se, but rather to examine an interesting recent paper with a flawed experimental design and a weak statistical analysis. The authors probably overstate their results, given the very small sample sizes and limited samples (only from one node, only from one date). Their use of t-tests is probably inappropriate, and in particular enables them to completely overlook potential interactions between site and transformation. They also have no statistical analysis of different transformations overall, which could have been done. Finally, their use of SEM as a measure of variability, particularly given that they did not report sample sizes, is in my opinion a mistake, because SEM is so highly dependent on sample size and carries little or no intrinsic information about variability around a mean.

By the way, my stats class just did this case last week. My students were particularly interested in how this paper really does have some interesting stuff, but the potential punch is reduced by the mistakes. We ended up concluding that part of the blame should be placed on the reviewers' shoulders.

Eric Ribbens
Department of Biological Sciences
Western Illinois University
Macomb, Illinois 61455
E-Ribbens@wiu.edu
3/8/2003

I used this case study for an introductory, non-lab biology course called Human Biology. Needless to say, my students are typical "science-phobes" and generally have a minimal background in biology. I used this case after completing the respiratory and circulatory systems. They did not understand all of the terminology that was used; however, they did their best using what they did know to apply their knowledge to a real-life situation. I feel that this helps them to prepare for my tests because I use a great deal of critical thinking type questions. They find these challenging, but it is great exercise and it also makes for a much more alert class!

Colleen Parsons
Science/Math
Hagerstown Community College
Hagerstown, Maryland
mdpcms@erols.com
8/8/2000

This is a question, not a comment, and would influence the answer to CQ6; I just want to be sure I get things right. I will be using this case in about 10 days on a class for non-science students. I just wondered if I missed something about the H1N1 so-called swine flu. Is there any evidence at all that it came from pigs? As I understand, it contains RNA segments from avian, porcine and human sources, and I have never seen anything about it being transmitted directly from pigs to humans although apparently a Canadian pig got it from a human. There was a big pig facility in the Mexican town where the first cases were found, but I have seen nothing about those pigs clearly transmitting it to humans. I used to do surveillance of avian flu viruses in Hong Kong before anyone was interested (the 80s)and we thought that the next pandemic would originate where pigs and ducks lived together on farms in SE Asia, but it didn’t happen (at least not yet).

Susan Cure
Associate Professor of Biology
American University of Paris
75007 Paris, France
scure@aup.fr
2/15/2010

We used the case as an example of the scientific process with our freshmen Middle Years Programme International Baccalaureate (MYP/IB) biology students. It worked very well and the students enjoyed the step-by-step process. We used sections A, B, C. We also showed a DNA video that had a discussion of sickle cell disease. It was very effective. The case provides an excellent transition from the study of DNA and biotechnology to the study of genetics.

Carol Bach, M.D.
Science Department
Palmer High School
Colorado Springs, CO
bachce@d11.org
4/22/2008

As a former high school environmental science teacher and college professor (biochemist), I found your case history very relevant to the dangers of mercury pollution. There is a very urgent need to get this information into the hands of the next generation of citizens.

You might include the politics and economics of controlling mercury pollution as another component to your case history. It could be used as an extra credit project to further understand how science and politics interact with each other in the real world.

Additional information you might find useful:

The CDC has estimated that as many as 600,000 newborns are at risk from methyl mercury from the fish consumed.
The California gold rush over one hundred years ago used mercury to mine for gold and today mercury is still contaminating rivers and lakes in those mining areas.
The ongoing National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey indicate that people living in coastal areas have higher levels of mercury in their blood than individuals living elsewhere.
Check out the www.cleanair.org, www.GotMercury.org, www.who.int/ceh, and www.zeromercury.org as well as Dr. Hightower's book "Diagnosis: Mercury, Money, Politics & Poison" (2009).

I hope you will find these comments useful.

Mervyn H. Kline
Mercury Pollution Specialist
Clean Air Council

mkline@cleanair.org
12/20/2010

I have finished the course of WBCs and immunity to my students and I will try this activity in my lectures. Thank you.

Noha Abdelaziz Nassef
Physiology
Faculty of Medicine, Ainshams University
Cairo, Egypt
nohanasif@yahoo.com
1/12/2011

Excellent! I will use this in next week's tutorial. An imaginative way to convey an often dry subject. Thanks!

Terence Morris
Basic Health Sciences
BTIC
Ottawa
Terence_Morris@bcit.ca
1/19/2011

I used this case study for an A&P class. The students got a lot out of the case study and enjoyed competing in teams. One of the best lessons that came out of this case was the importance of listening to the information that the patients communicated to their health professionals! Pretty important lesson for future health care professionals.

Kathy Eubanks
Cardiovascular Sonography
Sanford Brown College
Dearborn, Michigan
keubanks@sbdearborn.com
1/22/2011

Nice study. This encompasses many of the concepts in my AP Environmental Science course and I see this opening up discussion on many of the concepts we discussed throughout the year. I am going to use this in my unit on politics and economics. Thank you.

Diane Herr
Science
Waterford High School
Waterford, CT
dherr@waterfordschools.org
2/12/2011

Wonderful case - Use it every term and students love it and, I think, come away with a better understanding of genetics. Thanks!

Beth Strasser
Anthropology
Cal State Univ Sacramento
Sacramento, CA
strasser@csus.edu
2/15/2011

My students LOVE this case study! I like the original animation for how the MDMA works, but this one is put together pretty well. I find that my students may not get all of the vocabulary, but whenever I reference this case study they can figure out what I am talking about and relate back to cell transport and how it works. FYI, I teach this to my regular biology students, so the relevance this has to them is high and makes talking about the cell much more interesting and real to them.

Erin Poppert
Science
Apopka High School
Apopka, FL
erin.poppert@ocps.net
2/15/2011

My Human Anatomy students thought it was "disturbing" for the woman to have her brother as the OB-GYN. I honestly didn't catch that before I handed the case study out.

Cindy Davis
Science
Chugiak High
Chugiak, Arkansas
davis_cindy@asdk12.org
3/1/2011

Great case study!

Linda Nobles
Science
Forest Hill High School
Jackson, MS
lnobles@jackson.k12.ms.us
3/10/2011

I just wanted to say what a great idea for teaching cellular respiration. Thank you for putting it on the Web.

Kara Marshall
Science Department
Westmoor High School
Daly City, California

3/10/2011

Excellent case.

Marianne Kot
Science
University of Phoenix
Las Vegas Nevada
mariannekot@gmail.com
3/10/2011

I have searched for case study information of this nature for some time and all I can say is thank you. This will be the type of challenge needed in my class. Great ideas and information.

Jackie Rogers
English/Science
Aberdeen High School
Aberdeen MS 39759
jrogers@aberdeen.k12.ms.us
3/15/2011

I found your lesson last night while researching the TPMT test that is being run on our son. You do a great job! We are waiting for his results. He is 11 and has ALL. I have no scientific background but anything I can learn is appreciated. Thank you for the info!

Ashland Brown

5browns@charter.net
3/16/2011

The case works well with students who have access to the Internet outside of class. I adapted the study by working with the students in the computer lab while reviewing the video clips from PBS. You may want to check out the New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene. This site allows access to three datasets which can be searched by several variables, specifically with tuberculosis. This will allow students to check out the rates of tuberculosis by borough, SES, gender, etc. The website is: https://a816-health3ssl.nyc.gov/

Heide Hlawaty
CORE and Urban Studies
Metropolitan College of New York
New York, New York
hhlawaty@mcny.edu
10/21/2006

Author's Response to Jan Machart's Comment of 4/19/2011

The PO2 would be below normal initially as less O2 is carried by the hemoglobin (as indicated in the case). The peripheral chemoreceptors detect variation in O2 concentration in arterial blood. Presumably they send a signal to the brainstem that is translated to increased ventilation rate. This can result in the O2 level increasing to normal or near to normal level. However, the SPO2 level does not increase (as there is not sufficient Hb) until after the patient is treated with methylene blue.

Brahmadeo Dewprashad
Department of Science
Borough of Manhattan Community College / City University of New York
New York, NY
BDewprashad@bmcc.cuny.edu
4/25/2011

Editor’s Reply

Viruses regularly create new combinations of their DNA, exchanging pieces of DNA with other viruses. The swine flu is actually a strain of influenza with genes from flu that infected pigs, flu that infected birds, and flu that infected people. So the name is not due to the source of infection, but to the fact that this is a new type of flu that we are not able to respond well immunologically to because we have not previously encountered the swine component of this flu’s genetics.

It sounds like the questioner already understands this, and is wondering how this flu moved into people. And that piece we don’t know. We do know that there is the pig flu, which doesn’t (normally) infect humans, and the human flu (which we have been able to resist enough that it can't develop an epidemic outbreak). Presumably an animal (either pig or human) was infected by both versions of the influenza, and while infected the two strains swapped DNA. So the virus we call H1N1 has the genes to invade human cells and manage human-to-human transmission, and also has genes from the pig variety that we don't have defenses against. Researchers have been hunting through Veracruz trying to find this answer. See http://www.cnn.com/2009/HEALTH/05/06/swine.flu.origins/index.html.

Eric Ribbens
Department of Biological Sciences
Western Illinois University
Macomb, IL 61455
E-Ribbens@wiu.edu
2/15/2010

Author’s Reply

Eric’s comments are on-target. Conclusively documenting viral transmission on a specific case basis can be exceedingly difficult. The links below provide the experts’ views on the subject.

Here are my references for question CQ6 (and related slides):

http://www.cdc.gov/H1N1flu/qa.htm
http://www.nature.com/nature/journal/v459/n7250/full/nature08182.html
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/06/090613063849.htm (This third link is essentially a summary of the article in Nature — the second link)
http://www.cdc.gov/flu/swineflu/key_facts.htm

William D. Rogers
Biology Department
Ball State University
Muncie, IN 47306
wrogers@bsu.edu
2/15/2010

1. Regarding the use of CA-125, it should be strongly emphasized that this “marker” measures inflammation, not cancer per se. There is no specific blood test for ovarian cancer like the PSA test for prostate cancer. This is important because students need to understand that many lives could be saved (perhaps 15,000/year) if there were a way to screen women for ovarian cancer. This would mean diagnosis at stages I or II when the cure rates are much higher than for stages III or IV when cure rates are dismal. Students could be asked to look up survival for these stages.

Students should be asked to explain why we don’t have a specific test. Are there biological reasons? There are also political/economic questions that students should consider since they may well affect their lives. What issues are involved with insurance companies having to pay for screening mammograms? What is the reason for the new idea that the PSA need not be done on men over the age of 70? Why is the CA-125 not used for screening, even if there are some false positives?

2. Why do we use the term "remission"? Who invented that word? Was it oncologists? Certainly they use it and so does every one else! What does it mean? To me it means that there’s no sign of that cancer, BUT we’re waiting for it to return, for the other shoe to drop, so to speak. If a person has a heart attack or a stroke, and they’ve recovered, there’s a reasonable probability of a repeat. Have students look these numbers up. BUT we don’t say that these patients are "in remission."

How does the term "remission" affect the patient? Does it instill a bit of unnecessary fear? (The doctor must think it’s coming back!) Does this term remove hope that the patient might be cured?

Victoria Finnerty, Ph.D.
Department of Biology
Emory University
Atlanta, GA 30322
victoria.finnerty@emory.edu
8/21/2008

Your cases are excellent in their depth and teaching quality. I had the good fortune to meet both Drs. Pauling and Castle. They did indeed have the famous conversation while traveling by train from a meeting. The other interesting historical item I recently learned came from Vernon Ingram. He did not come to the MRC with the intent of working on sickle hemoglobin. Another researcher had failed in some crystallography work on sickle hemoglobin because of the low resolution at the time. Ingram helped Max Perutz with putting mercury residues on hemoglobin A to improve the crystallographic resolution. Francis Crick then suggested that he look into the question of the difference between normal and sickle hemoglobin, since there was a left-over sample from the failed experiment. Science proceeds in the strangest ways!

Kenneth R. Bridges, M.D.
Joint Center for Sickle Cell and Thalassemic Disorders / Department of Hematology
Brigham and Women's Hospital
Boston, MA 02115
kbridges@rics.bwh.harvard.edu
1/22/2001

This is awesome and timely! I’m doing human evolution in my general biology class this week and I’ve been looking for just such a case. I have one concern that I would like to past back to the authors.

I know that there are disagreements among paleoanthropologists, but I’m finding that most of my sources include Pan (chimps) in the Hominini Tribe. This case appears to exclude chimps from the Hominini (commonly refered to as Hominins).

Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Mammalia
Order: Primates
Superfamily: Hominoidea
Family: Hominidae
Subfamily: Homininae
Tribe: Hominini
Subtribe Panina: Genus Pan (chimp-like) Subtribe Hominina: Genus Homo (human-like) + Extinct Genera:
- Paranthropus
- Australopithecus
- Sahelanthropus
- Orrorin
- Ardipithecus
- Kenyanthropus

Caryn Self-Sullivan, PhD
Department of Biology
Georgia Southern University
Statesboro, Georgia 30458
cselfsullivan@georgiasouthern.edu
10/29/2009

Authors’ Reply

Thanks for your comments on our case.

There is still a dispute among paleoanthropologists about the use of the term hominin. The term is used for the taxonomic level of tribe and the dispute addresses how closely related chimps and humans are. The most common usage is that used in our case, based on the assumption that chimp and human lineages are different tribes and using hominin for the human lineage. There are two competing usages. The one you use assumes that chimp and human lineages belong to one tribe, the hominin. Finally, a third group of paleoanthropologists argues strongly that chimps and humans belong to the same genus and refers to chimps as Homo troglodytes. We have added a note about this controversy to the case teaching notes.

Erin Barley and Joan Sharp
Department of Biological Sciences
Simon Fraser University
Burnaby, British Columbia Canada
ebarley@sfu.ca jsharp@sfu.ca
11/5/2009

I used this case twice in an upper level undergraduate immunology course when teaching at Bates College. I presented it after we had covered the mechanisms of immune reactions and transplants but gave the student no clue what might be happening. I grouped the students into groups of 4, each group from a different institution.

The students loved this activity. It would often take them about between 30–45 minutes to begin to make sense of the information, and most arrived at the proper conclusion by 90 minutes. On occasion some groups would set up “collaborations” with other institutions/groups and pool their resources (with no encouragement from me, making for a great teaching moment on the power of collaboration and the difficulties).

I would use this activity again in a heartbeat, as it makes the students really think about data and dig deep into what they know about.

The students generally didn’t have time to come up with an experimental approach to confirm their hypothesis while in class. This might be a good exam question to follow the exercise.

Stephanie Richards
Biology Department
Bowdoin College
Brunswick, Maine 04011
srichard@bowdoin.edu
9/7/2006

The case was very well-received. Students appreciated being able to learn more about what is and isn’t science by working with a concrete example. I modified the flow chart that helps students distinguish science vs. pseudoscience, junk science and antiscience (e.g., it seemed that “anecdote” should not be listed as part of the methods of science).

Editor’s Note: You can access the modified version in either PDF or editable XLS format.

Alexis Grosofsky
Associate Professor
Department of Psychology
Beloit College
Beloit, WI
grosofsk@beloit.edu
1/24/2005

Comment and Author's Response

In principle, this case looks like a good way to talk about cell structure in an introductory course. However, I was VERY disappointed by this case, for several reasons:

(1) In this case, the researchers examine a blood sample microscopically and identify Gram-negative bacteria by their size, presence of DNA and outer membranes! It’s not made clear until later that they used an electron microscope, which is likely to lead to the misconception that a light microscope could be used to perform this analysis. More importantly, it leads to the misconception that electron microscopy would be used to identify an infectious agent. Instead, why not teach methods of identifying prokaryotic and eukaryotic pathogens that might actually be used, such as Gram staining to identify a Gram-negative pathogen?

Author’s Reply: The gram staining method is briefly mentioned in the case as well as in the case teaching notes. In the interest of keeping the slides to a minimum of text and the length to 75 minutes, details about the gram stain as well as microscopy were not written out in detail, but faculty can easily elaborate at length if they so desire.

(2) Why would the researchers look at a blood sample? If this individual has bacteria in her blood, she’s septicemic and will be dead long before the electron microscopy is done. The idea that blood remains sterile except in an extremely serious and widespread infection is valuable for students to learn—instead, this case will again create mis-perceptions. Why not talk about taking appropriate samples for the symptoms and organism under consideration?

Author’s Reply: This case is not designed to cover details of microbiology sampling and is designed for introductory biology courses which never have details on sampling techniques in the textbook. This would make an excellent extension of the case in a microbiology course, though.

(3) The DNA analysis component is clearly intended to teach the importance of molecular genetics in identifying species today, but it’s unrealistic in terms of how molecular analysis might be used. PCR would be much more realistic here! Antibody-based tests could also be mentioned.

Author’s Reply:< Again, students at this stage of an introductory biology case have not learned about PCR or antibody tests, so it would be unnecessarily confusing to mention them here.

(4) The case has one of the students’ mothers sending all manner of antibiotics, antivirals and other chemotherapeutics, which the students administer rather indiscriminately based on the results of their analysis, and also take prophylactically. Obviously, this aspect of the case is meant to be somewhat facetious, but rather than seizing an opportunity to educate about proper use of antibiotics, it does the opposite.

Author’s Reply: Absolutely, and the case specifically highlights how useless it was to use antibiotics without knowing what the disease organism is. The more serious issues of antibiotic resistance would make an excellent follow-up discussion in later lectures in the course.

Rather than showing how biological knowledge might be used in an actual case, this study exaggerates the case so much that is seems entirely artificial. Further, it may create more misconceptions than it cures. This case does not seem to be of the quality typical of NCCSTS. I suggest it be greatly revised or removed from the site.

Jonathan Visick
Department of Biology
North Central College
Naperville, Illinois 60540
jevisick@noctrl.edu
11/4/2008

Comment

I anxiously opened this case expecting to find how the amount of caffeine and other ingredients affect one’s health. But, I only found a discussion on sugar. I looked up the Wikipedia article on one of the drinks, Red Bull, and found that the high content of caffeine in it acts on the inner surface of blood vessels, the endothelial lining, and also interferes with normal blood coagulation. Small amounts of cocaine have been found in it. These seem more significant than calories. The caffeine makes you feel energized and more awake and the cocaine, if enough to have an effect, may reduce normal pain sensations. So, how about revising this case to show the potential detrimental effects of the ingredients other than sugars. I noticed in the Wikipedia article the recomendations for athletes to keep hydration and such power drinks are not recommended.

Authors’ Reply

The purpose of the case is really to get students to realize the difference between what serves as energy-producing compounds and what are stimulants. The role of trace amounts of cocaine is not within the scope of this case study.

Robert Skinner, PhD
Professor of Neurobiology and Developmental Sciences
University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences
Little Rock, AR 72205
SkinnerRobertD@uams.edu
1/30/2010

The link to the video in this case doesn't seem to work. Thanks.

Editor's Note:
Thank you for letting us know. While we work to resolve this problem, the movie clip can be accessed directly from this URL:
http://www.sciencecases.org/patrick_paralyzed/patrick_paralyzed.mov

Hamida Hirani-Merchant
Biology
Parkway Academy of Technology & Health - Boston Public School
Roxbury, MA 02132
hhiranimerchant2@boston.k12.ma.us
12/6/2010

The NASA link was blocked. I had students review the links in advance as research without really knowing what the content of the case was going to be.

We also spent quite a bit of time talking about crashed and elevated glucose levels and how that presents, since some of the symptoms mirrored those of either high or low glucose levels, including diabetic shock.

Deborah Evans
Natural and Physical Sciences
Olivet College
Olivet, Michigan
devans@olivetcollege.edu
10/28/2010

We recommend in place of the resource no longer available from NASA the following from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC): "Extreme Heat: A Prevention Guide to Promote Your Personal Health and Safety" at http://www.bt.cdc.gov/disasters/extremeheat/heat_guide.asp

Instructors are encouraged to review all of the website resources listed in a case before they teach the case and to update them, as needed, for their students.

Editor
National Center for Case Study Teaching in Science
University at Buffalo
Buffalo, NY
nccsts@buffalo.edu
10/29/2010

I think this is a wonderful case study to utilize with my associate degree nursing students in a mental health nursing course.

Elizabeth Davidson
Nursing
Univeristy of Arkansas at Little Rock
Little Rock, AR
esdavidson@ualr.edu
3/26/2011

Wonderful case study. I incorporate an intro to the nitrogen cycle and a review of cellular respiration/metabolic poisons and genetics. The white clover project lab activity from Washington University goes well with the activity as well: http://biology4.wustl.edu/cloverproject/

Beth Adler
Science
Oak Ridge High Shcool
Oak Ridge, TN
badler@ortn.edu
3/28/2011

Slide 18 shows the hydrolysis reaction of ATP, stating it provides energy to do work...but the number given has a positive value, suggesting the reaction is either endothermic or endogonic (it's not indicated if the value represents delta H or delta G).

Ann Taylor
Chemistry
Wabash College
Crawfordsville, IN
taylora@wabash.edu
3/28/2011

Funny this should appear as a case study. I had debated using the same story for a case development...with a different twist.

What prompted my interest in it was an interview with Dr. Andrew Wakefield on CBC Radio (http://www.cbc.ca/video/news/audioplayer.html?clipid=1769231338 from 1:37 to 14:05) and further reading of the original Lancet article.

My plan was to use this case as a modern-day example of the resistance to change that happens in the world of science. We had discussed in class the topic of paradigm shifts and the type of attacks that scientists in history have been subject to because they presented a view of the world that was different from what was commonly accepted. I do not claim to be an expert on the topic of Dr. Andrew Wakefield or on the autism/MMR link, but as a scientist I often feel that the medical community is far less than objective and hides behind the mask of science to further their interests. After hearing this interview (above link) and reading the original article, I cannot help but feel this story is another example of just that. In short, that Dr. Wakefield was attacked and his image tainted to ensure immunization rates would remain high, and without addressing the potential that there may be something to his findings, and as he suggests, the topic "requires further study".

Perhaps the CBC interview can be added to the list of resources and/or integrated as another exercise in the case?

Thanks for sharing your hard work with us, it is much appreciated.

Mariane Ferencevic
Geography
Brock University
St Catharines, ON, Canada
mferencevic@brocku.ca
4/8/2011

I can see my student's eyes glaze over when we start talking about cell signaling. The chorus of "ugh" fills my room. However, my kids LOVE this case study because of the humor in the problem. They are interested in understanding exactly how "male enhancement drugs" work, but are afraid to ask. This is a way for my students to giggle about cell signaling rather than groan about it.

Amy Muzzarelli
Science
Elk Rapids High School
Elk Rapids, MI
amuzzarelli@elkrapids.k12.mi.us
4/14/2011

Hi, I am reading the answer key to the Respiratory Distress case study, and have a question about the answer to 8d--how would the body likely compensate for decreased Hb? By the answer, do you intend to imply that decreased HbO2 (in the presence of normal plasma PO2) triggers chemoreceptor-mediated ventilation?

Jan Machart
Biological Sciences
University of Texas
Austin, TX
janmachart@mail.utexas.edu
4/19/2011

I truly enjoyed this case, and found it highly successful in my course. I want to call one problem to your attention, and that has to do with your answer key. In your answer to #5 of the case ([H3O+] deficit), you can not use the change in pH to directly calculate the change in [H3O+] – the true concentration of H3O+ is about 4x10^-8 at a normal pH, and the deficits calculated should be in the 1x10^-8 range, and not .71. This also throws off your calculation in the next problem.

Colleen Fried
Chemistry
Hiram College
Hiram, OH
friedca@hiram.edu
4/22/2011

I retired from public high school and I'm teaching in a diocesan middle school. I have used the case studies extensively in high school but I've modified some of them for middle school. As always, I and my students appreciate what your program at Buffalo has done for our understanding of difficult concepts. Science is fun and this could not be more true than when my environmental science class put on a school-wide performance about the content in The Fish Kill Mystery. I have video about segments if you'd like to enjoy them with us. Thank you for allowing me to make the content "real" for my students.

Patrick Alarcon
Middle School Science
St. Mary School
Ridgefield, Ct 06877
alarconp@smsridgefield.org
5/3/2011

I recently did a mini case on cloning and so was very excited to read this case. The references for the instructor were wonderful and very well organized. I have some additional references to suggest.

Recently, Cibelli of Advanced Cell technology published a paper on making clones through parthogenesis. This is a major issue for those opposed to "full human clones." Since a clone made by this method would never live past the blastocyst stage and therefore would die of its own accord, there would never be a fully human adult clone by this method. For a brief overview, see the paper published online by Scientific American (Feb. 1, 2002): Scientists coax stem cells from unfertilized primate embryos" http://www.scientificamerican.com/article.cfm?id=scientists-coax-stem-cell.

More detailed information can be found in the following paper: Cibelli, J.B., A.A Kiessling, C. Kerrianne, C. Richards, R.P. Lanza, and M.D. West. 2001. Somatic cell nuclear transfer in humans: Pronuclear and early embryonic development. e-biomed: The Journal of Regenerative Medicine 2: 25-31. http://www.bedfordresearch.org/articles/cibelli_jregenmed.pdf

There are currently two bills out there that deal with stem cells and cloning and they are interesting, especially given the social slant of this case. Providing links to these bills would allow students to see the Senate is divided in this regard. There is a nice front page story in the February 2002 issue of Science and Technology in Congress (a publication of the Center for Science, Technology and Congress at American Association for the Advancement of Science) titled "Senate Braces for Cloning Debate." The Center also maintains an excellent resource page on cloning at http://www.aaas.org/spp/cstc/issues/cloning.htm.

Finally, the NCHLA (National Committee for a Human Life Amendment) maintains links to legislative reports and Senate briefings and statements via its "Campaign to Ban Human Cloning" site at http://www.nchla.org/docdisplay.asp?ID=115 - click on the "Related Information" button.

Katayoun Chamany
Science, Technology and Society Program
Euegen Lang College, New School University
New York, NY
chamanyk@newschool.edu
5/7/2002

I enjoyed the case presentation on ovarian cancer from the National Center for Case Study Teaching in Science. However I would like to make a correction to a comment that was submitted by a reader on 08/21/2008 in response to this case.

The commenter wrote: “Regarding the use of CA-125, it should be strongly emphasized that this ‘marker’ measures inflammation, not cancer per se. There is no specific blood test for ovarian cancer like the PSA test for prostate cancer.”

I disagree. Inflammation can also elevate PSA levels in serum, such as prostatitis (inflammation of the prostate) and benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH) (enlargement of the prostate). (Ref - NCI website - http://www.cancer.gov/cancertopics/factsheet/detection/PSA).

I think these cases are very instructive and well-done. My correction is only meant to preserve the great value they already contain.

Jose A Hernandez, MD
Pathology
Mercy Hospital
Miami, FL
elcubano@aol.com
6/6/2011

Good case study. A minor thing I noticed was the titles on the graphs were backwards - they should always be in a y vs. x format.

Gary Buckley
Physical Sciences
Cameron University
Lawton, OK
gbuckley@cameron.edu
6/15/2011

AUTHOR UPDATE: I just got off the phone with the Wesselman Woods Nature Preserve naturalist. He tells me that they harvested no deer in 2008, six deer in 2009, and again only six deer in 2010 (due to problems filing the necessary permits). The deer have apparently learned to avoid the corn bait piles during the daytime, and they don't do the herd reduction at night. The current estimate is 28 deer, and the heavy browse line I remember seeing is reportedly gone.

Eric Ribbens
Biology
Western Illinois University
Macomb, IL
E-Ribbens@wiu.edu
6/22/2011

Being intrigued by the title of this newly-released case study, I read through it and was surprised to find several typos within the case as well as in the references. The accurate name for this gene is NDM-1 standing for New Delhi metallo-beta-lactamase-1 gene. This gene gives the microorganism antibiotic resistance to many currently-used antibiotics. The case study lists both NDM-1 (correct)and NMD-1 (incorrect) in a chart, text, and references. Students may have issues finding correct resources if they search for NMD because this name is associated with nonsense mRNA decay, human melanoma and neuromuscular disease to name a few. Please be sure to update the gene name to NDM-1. The following may serve as an overview for resistance and NDM-1 from the New England Journal of Medicine (Perspective) http://www.nejm.org/doi/pdf/10.1056/NEJMp1011715

Kim Risley
Biology
University of Mount Union
Alliance, OH
risleykm@mountunion.edu
7/19/2011

Our thanks to Kim Risley for pointing out this error. We have corrected it in all of the files, including the answer key, for the case.

Editor
National Center for Case Study Teaching in Science
University at Buffalo
Buffalo, NY
nccsts@buffalo.edu
7/21/2011

Thanks, I've just been teaching the menstrual cycle to my International Baccalaureate Biology students, this matches perfectly.

Liam
Science
Global Jaya International School
Tangerang 15224 Indonesia
liam@globaljaya.com
8/29/2011

Thanks for this, we also have a lot of dengue in Jakarta so it is rather relevant. I wonder if we could add some detail for a collaboration?

Liam
Science
Global Jaya International School
Tangerang 15224 Indonesia
Liam@globaljaya.com
8/29/2011

Great stuff, thanks. I'll be able to use this with my International Baccalaureate students when they study their neurobiology option.

Liam
Science
Global Jaya International School
Tangerang 15224 Indonesia
liam@globaljaya.com
9/4/2011

This case study was perfect for my lesson on homeostasis. While my junior/senior introduction to anatomy and physiology students needed a little guidance with the calculations, they were able to relate a concept of homeostasis to a the body's response to a natural disaster.

Amanda Ryan
Science
Walton High School
Marietta GA
Amanda.Ryan@cobbk12.org
9/5/2011

This is a great activity for students in AP Biology. It is a great introduction to A&P. My only complaint is the first link (www.peakrun.com/articles/66_1.html). With AP Biology students it wasn't a big deal...they were able to figure it out on their own. But it would be easier and take less time if the links were updated and active.

Brooke Davis
Science
Asheboro High School
Asheboro, NC
bhdavis@asheboro.k12.nc.us
9/6/2011

I was able to find the Peltola article, but the other article was only available through the Journal or $86.00! Resource sources are critical for these cases.....

Vicki Kyarsgaard
Nursing
Crown College
St. Bonifacius, MN
kyarsgaardv@crown.edu
9/6/2011

We know it can be very frustrating when the articles a case is based on are not openly accessible. Publishers own copyright and set subscription or pay-per-view fees to recover their investments. Although library support for teaching and research can vary widely from school to school, we always encourage people to investigate their academic or public library's Interlibrary Loan service to see if they can get a copy of an article for you. At our institution, this is free to faculty, students, and staff. Other places pass on a nominal fee to the person placing the request, although sometimes they must recover the entire costs.

Editor
National Center for Case Study Teaching in Science
University at Buffalo
Buffalo, NY
nccsts@buffalo.edu
9/7/2011

I would love to use this case with my honors anatomy students, however, we cannot afford the skulls other than the few modern human ones. Do you have a website or document that would match as closely as possible the luxury of having all those skulls. I was hoping if I had multiple views of the skulls, I might be able to replicate the activity with our modern human skulls and the pictures of the other skulls. Thanks!

Christine Lesh
Science
Winters Mill High School
Westminster, MD
cllesh@carrollk12.org
9/7/2011

This is an excellent question. We are hoping that other instructors who have used this case and have suggestions will comment here.

In the meantime, we have compiled a list below of websites with 3D fossils and artifacts related to human evolution that may be useful, but bringing them into the classroom and relating them to this specific case may require creative solutions:

The Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History's Human Evolution Evidence Collection
http://humanorigins.si.edu/evidence/3d-collection
3D Hominid Skulls Interactive, Natural History Museum, London
http://www.nhm.ac.uk/nature-online/life/human-origins/hominid-skulls/
Human Evolution: The Fossil Evidence in 3D
http://www.anth.ucsb.edu/projects/human/

Editor
National Center for Case Study Teaching in Science
University at Buffalo
Buffalo, NY
nccsts@buffalo.edu
9/9/2011

We have the same problem. I have one plastic model in my classroom. I did find a nearby university with a medical department that allows other institutions to check out human skeletons. I used one of these when we were studying skulls and differences between males and females. I used the skeleton for a month, but I am sure that if you need more than one skull you would have to turn it in earlier. Hope that helps.

Angela Dixon
Science
St. Luke's Episcopal School
Mobile, AL
adixon@stlukesmobile.com
9/9/2011

There is an excellent web site out of Indiana University that has lessons with pictures of skulls. The one titled "Hominid Skulls Lab" provides drawings, photos, and a place to order skulls. I am sending the URL for web site rather than the lesson because it is much more comprehensive: http://www.indiana.edu/~ensiweb/evol.fs.html Also, if you have a natural history museum nearby, they may skulls you can borrow. Ours does.

Kathleen Baka
education
Kent State University-Geauga Campus
Burton, Ohio
kbaka@kent.edu
9/9/2011

Although I know it isn't as interesting as working with real skulls, I used an activity developed by Nova with my AP students last year that I think accomplished many of the same goals as the case study described here. It involved the analysis of data regarding a number of different fossils and allowed the students to experience some of the same frustrations that scientists face in trying to work with partial skeletons. It would definitely be an appropriate level for honors anatomy. The activity is called "Bones of Contention." http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/teachers/evolution/bones-contention.html

Justine Mcloughlin
Science Department
Sandwich High School
Sandwich, Massachusetts
jmcloughlin@sandwich.k12.ma.us
9/9/2011

I really like this case study, but keep in mind that influenza is an RNA virus. The gene sequence is given as DNA, which might confuse people (like it did me). Genbank flu sequence is given as cDNA, which might be what they used here.

Jennifer Leavey
School of Biology
Georgia Institute of Technology
Atlanta, GA
jennifer.leavey@biology.gatech.edu
9/14/2011

I used this case in an upper level environmental science class to review the scientific process. The students came up with some great pieces of evidence for Part I and named physical evidence that they could repeatedly test for authentication. For Part II they made great observations, but then for Part III they seemed to totally forget the evidence that they came up with for Part I and were swayed by the video as sufficient evidence. The students also had problems applying their discussion for this case to other types of environmental problems/policy (Part III, Question 5).

I think it would be helpful to have students also examine another environmental issue like global warming, and go through what evidence they would need, what evidence we have, and how to interpret the data.

Diane Herr
Science Department
Waterford High School
Waterford, CT 06385
dherr@waterfordschools.org
9/8/2009

Tragic Choices: Autism, Measles, and the MMR Vaccine
Author’s response to case comment

I appreciate the time and thoughtfulness Mariane Ferencevic put into her comment regarding "Tragic Choices: Autism, Measles, and the MMR Vaccine," in no small part because her suggestion permits us to continue discussing the question, "How can we do a better job of helping our students distinguish good science from bad science from pseudoscience?" This question lies at the heart of the case itself and, I would argue, provides an operational definition of what constitutes scientific literacy.

Mariane suggests there is a second side to the Andrew Wakefield saga, namely that Dr. Wakefield's hypothesis (that the MMR vaccine causes bowel inflammation. which leads to autism) is actually correct. Moreover, Big Pharma and an entrenched medical establishment have conspired to suppress Dr. Wakefield's research results, smear his reputation, and avoid conducting the studies necessary to address whether "there may be something to his findings" (Ferencevic 2011).

In support of this alternative perspective, Marianne provides a link (http://www.cbc.ca/video/news/audioplayer.html?clipid=1769231338, from 1:37 to 16:10, not 14:05 as listed in Marianne's original comment) to an interview with Dr. Andrew Wakefield conducted by Anna Maria Tremonti on the CBC radio program The Current, which aired on 27 January 2011. Ms. Tremonti's interview with Dr. Wakefield was itself a response, requested by listeners, to her interview with Seth Mnookin, which aired on 11 January 2011 (see http://www.cbc.ca/video/news/audioplayer.html?clipid=1736455338, from 0:33 to 21:43). Mr. Mnookin’s new book (2011), The Panic Virus*, is highly critical of Dr. Wakefield and the vaccine fears he fomented, to which Dr. Wakefield directly responds in his interview with Ms. Tremonti.

As Marianne suggests, good scientists can be persecuted, even prosecuted — remember Galileo. The question we must be able to help our students (and the lay public, if we care about scientific literacy) answer is whether Andrew Wakefield is a modern-day Robin Warren or Barry Marshall, medical researchers whose hypothesis that a bacterium caused ulcers was initially ridiculed by the medical establishment (Atwood 2004) but who eventually were awarded the Nobel Prize in Medicine (2005) for their pioneering, anti-dogmatic work. Or might Wakefield be a more recent version of Stanley Pons and Martin Fleischmann, two physicists who prematurely (and in the press rather than in substantive peer-reviewed publications) announced they had discovered evidence of cold fusion, results that subsequently failed to be replicated in numerous labs at a diversity of institutions (Cold Fusion 2011), rendering cold fusion a laughable example of "pathological science" (Pathological Science 2011)? Or might Dr. Wakefield actually be as deceitful and dishonest as Hwang Woo-suk, the molecular biologist whose research results on human embryonic stem cells were, by his own admission, faked (Hwang Woo-suk 2011)? Where on the continuum from liar to inept scientist to victimized genius can we place Dr. Wakefield? And why? And can we teach our students how to make these critically important judgments?

We can start by helping our students understand how bad science and pseudoscience are typically marketed to (see, for example, Pratkanis 1995; Coker 2001; Barrett & Jarvis 2005) and maintained in the popular culture (Goertzel 2011). Dr. Wakefield employs many of the tactics associated with charlatans and quacks attempting to peddle their pseudoscientific beliefs as, for example: claiming that his research findings are being suppressed by the established medical community (there is no evidence this is true); using ad hominem attacks against his critics (as, for example, his rejoinder in the interview with Anna Tremonti that Seth Mnookin isn't a scientist); taking his story to the media rather than publishing scholarly articles in peer-reviewed journals; and by relying on anecdotes rather than the results of controlled, repeatable, scientific analyses (exemplified by Wakefield's statement during the interview that "parents trust their instincts, they know this problem [of vaccines causing autism] is real"). It cannot help Andrew Wakefield's trustworthiness that he is so easily caught in his own falsehoods as, for example, when Ms. Tremonti explicitly asks whether or not he was in the process of developing an alternative measles vaccine at the time he was challenging the MMR vaccine's safety; Wakefield responded flatly, "No, absolutely not." An electronic copy of the patent application filed by Wakefield can be found at http://briandeer.com/mmr/1998-vaccine-patent.pdf. Identifying "how" to investigate the credibility of sources is certainly a skill we must help our students develop.

Most importantly, purveyors of pseudoscientific beliefs typically ignore conflicting evidence (Coker 2011; Goertzel 2011). The anti-vaccine movement certainly does. When asked by Ms. Tremonti what he plans to do next, Andrew Wakefield concludes with the statement that "I will continue to try....to answer the question do vaccines cause autism. So far, it [the necessary research] has not been done." As the numerous citations I included in the original case study should demonstrate, Wakefield's press conference in 1998 generated a tremendous interest among medical researchers, resulting in literally dozens of studies, none of which has found an association between vaccines (MMR or otherwise) and autism. Paul Offit (2011, pgs. 92-93, and see sources cited therein) sums up the consensus among scientists: "The worldwide panic following Wakefield's paper caused researchers to take a closer look. Investigators found that children with autism were not more likely to have measles vaccine virus in their intestines; and they were not more likely to have intestinal inflammation. Further, no one identified brain-damaging proteins in the bloodstream of children who had received MMR. Finally, twelve separate groups of researchers working in several different countries examined hundreds of thousands of children who had or hadn’t received MMR. The risk of autism was the same in both groups. For scientists, these studies ended the concern that MMR caused autism." Even if Andrew Wakefield was not guilty of egregious misconduct, as Seth Mnookin brings out in his BBC radio interview, Wakefield's suggestion that the MMR vaccine might cause autism was based on a sample of 12 and only 12 children. I am not trying to be insulting when I suggest that Mariane Ferencevic appears not to have digested the main point of my case when she states that "I cannot help but feel" (italics mine) that Andrew Wakefield is correct. Might vaccines cause autism in some tiny subset of children with as yet unidentified medical conditions? Possibly. Could failure to receive one or more vaccines also lead to autism in a different subset of children with a different set of medical pre-conditions? Perhaps. Have researchers looked for such connections? Absolutely. Does the current evidence hint at such linkages? No. Should the public continue to fund investigations studying the purported but scientifically unsupported link between vaccines and autism? Or should we instead fund studies more likely to lead to breakthroughs in understanding the causes of and treatments for autism (e.g., Baylor College of Medicine 2011)? How many more studies and how many tens of thousands more children are needed before rational individuals conclude that our funds can be better spent elsewhere? "Feelings" are insufficient for deciding what projects to fund, whether or not a given study is adequate, or even whether a given scientist is guilty of fraud. What matters is the preponderance and sufficiency of evidence. Currently, there is no credible evidence that vaccines cause autism, and overwhelming evidence that they don't. I apologize for failing to make this point clearly in my case study.

The "Tragic Choices" case was developed specifically for a new course we teach targeted at helping the science-phobic undergraduate student overcome their fear of critical thinking, in general, and of science, in particular. A question we frequently pose to the students is whether there is any harm in believing something that is not true. Choosing not to vaccinate one's child under the mistaken belief that vaccines cause autism can prove deadly (for a sobering estimate of the number of children harmed, see http://www.jennymccarthybodycount.com/Jenny_McCarthy_Body_Count/Home.html). My responsibility, as a science educator, is to help my students distinguish good science from bad science from snake oil. Believing in things that "just ain’t so" can lead to very tragic consequences. Helping our students sharpen their critical thinking skills is not only something we can do, it is something we must do.

*Paul Offit's new book Deadly Choices (2011) was published coincident with Mnookin's (2011). Both books cover similar ground, providing excellent summaries of, among other topics, the history of the anti-vaccine movement and the recent federal court rulings that vaccines do not cause autism. I highly recommend both books for readers interested in the ongoing vaccine wars.

References

Atwood, K. C. 2004. Bacteria, ulcers, and ostracism? H. pylori and the making of a myth. Skeptical Inquirer 28(6). Available online at: http://www.csicop.org/si/show/bacteria_ulcers_and_ostracism_h._pylori_and_the_making_of_a_myth/.
Barrett, S., and W. T. Jarvis. 2005 (20 January). How quackery sells. Quackwatch. Retrieved (23 June 2011) from http://www.quackwatch.com/01QuackeryRelatedTopics/quacksell.html
Baylor College of Medicine. 2011 (9 June). Genes provide landmarks on the roadmap of autism. ScienceDaily. Retrieved (24 June 2011) from http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/06/110608141522.htm
Coker, R. 2001 (30 May). Distinguishing science and pseudoscience. Quackwatch. Retrieved (23 June 2011) from: http://www.quackwatch.com/01QuackeryRelatedTopics/pseudo.html
"Cold Fusion." 2011 (22 June). In Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. Retrieved (24 June 2011) from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cold_fusion.
Ferencevic, M. 2011 (28 April). Comments/Replies. Retrieved (24 June 2011) from: http://sciencecases.lib.buffalo.edu/cs/collection/detail.asp?case_id=576&id=576
Goertzel, T. 2011. The conspiracy meme: why conspiracy theories appeal and persist. Skeptical Inquirer 35: 28-37. Available online at http://www.csicop.org/si/show/the_conspiracy_meme/.
"Hwang Woo-suk." 2011 (19 May). In Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. Retrieved (24 June 2011) from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hwang_Woo-suk
Mnookin, S. 2011. The Panic Virus: A True Story of Medicine, Science, and Fear. Simon & Schuster, New York.
Offit, P. A. 2011. Deadly Choices: How the Anti-vaccine Movement Threatens Us All. Basic Books, New York.
"Pathological Science." 2011 (12 June). In Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. Retrieved (24 June 2011) from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pathological_science
Pratkanis, A.R. 1995. How to sell a pseudoscience. Skeptical Inquirer 19: 19-25. Available online at http://www.positiveatheism.org/writ/pratkanis.htm.

Matthew P. Rowe
Department of Biological Sciences
Sam Houston State University
Huntsville, Texas 77341
rowe@shsu.edu
6/27/2011

We used this case with great success in my Sophomore Biology and Junior Honors Biology classes; the discussions were fantastic. I paired it with the "checks" activity from Indiana University's website for our third day of class discussion. Together, they provided an interesting view of how science works. Here's the link to the activity: http://www.indiana.edu/~ensiweb/natsc.fs.html

Thanks for the great work!

Bethany Dixon
Biology
Western Sierra Collegiate Academy
Rocklin, CA
bdixon@rocklinacademy.org
9/9/2011

Response to Comment

We consulted with the author of the case study and have made changes to the case. Slide 25 in the PowerPoint presentation has been changed to include a footnote and the description in the teaching notes for this slide has also been changed to include the following two sentences:

You may want to point out that influenza virus uses RNA for its genome. However, researchers often work with DNA copies (cDNA) of the virus’s genes and generally store information for genes as DNA sequences.

Editor
National Center for Case Study Teaching in Science
University at Buffalo
Buffalo, NY 14260
nccsts@buffalo.edu
9/25/2011

This case is excellent practice for applying knowledge of the genetic code, but I think I will use it next time as a recap rather than a way to introduce the content. Also, I will include slides on flu next time instead of just giving them in the handout. There is a small error in the slide of the tRNA with the amino acid on the wrong end of the tRNA.

Rachelle Spell
Biology
Emory
Atlanta, GA
rspell@emory.edu
9/26/2011

This is FANTASTIC. I'm going to have some fun with my A&P classes this coming semester. Thank you.

Gary Christopher
Physical Education
William Penn University
Oskaloosa, IA
christopherg@wmpenn.edu
12/28/2011

What great timing!! I teach high school 9th grade Biology Honors and we're just finishing up the cell membrane when we return after break on January 3rd. My students will love this. Thanks and Happy New Year!!

Elisa Whitman
Science
Stonington High School
Pawcatuck, CT
ewhitman@stoningtonschools.org
12/29/2011

Response to Comment

Thanks, Rachelle! We have corrected this slide and reloaded the PPT on our site.

Editor
National Center for Case Study Teaching in Science
University at Buffalo
Buffalo, NY 14260
nccsts@buffalo.edu
10/4/2011

I have developed a related activity for one of my classes that others may be interested in:

PHC 250 Apothecarial Adventures 2009
Medical Marijauna - A Mythbusters Approach

Based upon the popular Discovery channel show Mythbusters, the class will examine a number of "myths" surrounding the use of marijuana as a medicine. Mythbusters takes myths from various sources, subjects them to the scientific method and, based upon their results, determines if the myth is "Busted," "Plausible" or "Confirmed."

Since the class does not have the time to conduct hands-on research with marijuana (nor the legal authority to do so), we are going to use scientific data to test our myths.

In teams of 2, the class will research literature on a selected myth. The teams will present their data in a brief presentation (approx. 5 minutes) during class time. Teams should include at least 3 references. References should be identified and evaluated for bias. Teams should approach each myth in an unbiased manner.

The remaining members of the class and the faculty facilitator will ask questions of each group to help clarify the data presented. The class will then vote on each myth whether it's busted, plausible or confirmed.

Understand that medical marijuana is typically intended for certain patients that fall into the following groups:

Terminally ill
Life-threatening
Debilitating chronic illness
Otherwise healthy, but refractory to standard therapy

In preparation of your data presentation, be cognizant of the fact that to be considered as a useful medication, the following areas should be addressed; we will also use these criteria when voting in class:

Appropriate/Indicated
Effective
Safe
Convenient to administer

Finally, the myths:

Marijuana is useful in appetite stimulation.
Marijuana is useful in nausea and vomiting following anti-cancer therapy.
Marijuana is useful in neurological and movement disorders (epilepsy, multiple sclerosis).
Marijuana is a useful analgesic (chronic pain from osteoarthritis, migraine, cancer pain).
Marijuana is useful in glaucoma.
Marijuana is useful in pruritis.
Marijuana is useful in premenstrual syndrome, menstrual cramps.
Marijuana is useful in depression.
Marijuana is addictive.
Marijuana smoking is just as harmful as tobacco smoking.
Marijuana causes brain damage.
Marijuana causes fatal overdoses.
Marijuana causes reduced immune response.
Marijuana side effects are "pleasurable," tolerated well.
Marijuana causes infertility in males.
Marijuana causes long term memory impairment.

Robert Wahler, PharmD
Department of Pharmacy Practice
University at Buffalo
Buffalo, NY 14260
rgwahler@buffalo.edu
10/25/2011

My Bio I students really enjoyed working through this lab activity. We ended by watching a YouTube video about the Tylenol murders, which they were all really interested in. I think that this really helped them to understand respiration and the electron transport chain better. Thanks! :)

Kim Pause Tucker
Biology
College of Coastal Georgia
Brunswick, GA
ktucker@ccga.edu
10/25/2011

Thanks so much for the case. I've presented this scenario in an ethics arena, but this is perfect for an Intro to Neuroscience class addressing Sexuality & the Brain.

Darlene M.
Neuroscience
Georgia State
Atlanta, GA
dmitrano@gsu.edu
11/17/2011

I first adapted this case for PPT/clickers two years ago, and reused it this semester. The students love it, and of the 6-8 NCCSTS case studies that I have used, I think this is the best one. I haven't tried the newer clicker version that is posted on NCCSTS, but look forward to comparing it to the one I created.

Linda Green
Biology
Georgia Tech
Atlanta, GA
linda.green@biology.gatech.edu
11/22/2011

I've used this case for several years as an "Art Mystery" case with non-science undergraduates in a rhetoric course to show how different types of "experts" accept different kinds of evidence when they are making arguments. Even when the students struggle with the scientific concepts, they make great progress in understanding why it is that experts could come to conflicting conclusions. And, to make things more interesting, every few years there are real cases in the news that I can use to demonstrate these concepts - the latest is this article in the New York Times: "Possible Forging of Modern Art Is Investigated," by Patricia Cohen, December 2, 2011, at http://www.nytimes.com/2011/12/03/arts/design/federal-inquiry-into-possible-forging-of-modernist-art.html

Lili Velez
Independent Scholar
lfvelez.phd@gmail.com

12/3/2011

This case study reads very similar to Steel Magnolias. This is a misrepresentation of type 1 diabetes in this day and age. Yes, the complications mentioned in this study were a reality many years ago, and still are if the diabetic in question does not care for his or herself. In this day and age, modern insulins, continuous glucose monitoring, insulin pumps, and blood sugar testing have made the management of diabetes much better. Women with diabetes can have perfectly healthy children with a planned pregnancy. Diabetics who take care of themselves do not go blind, loose limbs, and have kidney failure. The newer technology for eye repair means that even severe retinopathy can be combated. This evidence has been out since the mid 90's when the DCCT was published. This case needs to be updated or amended to reflect this.

Laura
Science
Montgomery Academy
Montgomery, AL
laura_woerner@montgomeryacademy.org
12/7/2011

We appreciate Laura's comments, and instructors reviewing this case study will benefit from reading them. This case is based on actual events and conditions at the time that the author's sister suffered and died from diabetes. As Laura has noted, many things have changed. Users of our cases should always feel free to adapt, amend, and update any of the cases in our collection. They do not need to be used "as-is." But for some of our users, the case, in its entirety or excerpted, may serve an instructional purpose in an historical context (in fact, the case itself sets the storyline within an historical context: "I had a sister who had diabetes. She died when she was 39. If she had lived a century ago, she would have been dead by the age of 14, shortly after we discovered she had the disease. Had she been born today, she probably would have lived a full life because gene therapy would soon be able to replace her defective genes....").

Editor
National Center for Case Study Teaching in Science
University at Buffalo
Buffalo, NY
nccsts@buffalo.edu
12/7/2011

This case is excellent for teaching students how to read and understand data in primary research articles. The approach of the progressive disclosure format emphasizes the epistemology of science and encourages students to consider different hypotheses and to make predictions concerning data that would be consistent with each hypothesis. The worksheet approach of asking students to predict the results in the graphs with respect to amount of virus produced is stellar. No passive learning here! Though the case is designed for non-majors, the biology is rather sophisticated, requiring a fair amount of immunology background to address the different hypotheses for HIV resistance in this context.

Katayoun Chamany
Natural Sciences and Math
Eugene Lang College, The New School for Liberal Arts
New York, NY
chamanyk@newschool.edu
1/7/2012

The residents of this small Ohio town have different beliefs about the justifications for the war in Iraq and the continuation of the war, as well. Some of the residents maintain a positive attitude while others disagree with the motives behind the war itself. Those who support Bush but have lost someone close in the war have a conflict of personal interest. Cognitive dissonance would predict that someone would have to lose faith in the legitimacy of the war in order to cope with the grief of losing a son/daughter to the war they have supported. Some residents disagree with the war but believe we should see it through. This is a conflict of ideals as well. You would have to maintain the idea that we must pull out of the war to stay consistent with the idea that you were opposed to it. Some residents made public claims to support their ideals concerning the war. One resident lost a son but claimed that we must move forward with the war. His patriotism added an element to help balance his ideals; although he lost a son he added an element to support his belief that the war is necessary/justifiable. This is an interesting theory but I do not believe it always stands true. People generally will have a conflict of interest in some form when concerning such a complex issue as the war in Iraq.

Nathaniel Hagner

Embry Riddle Areonautical University World Wide
Dyess AFB TX
jhbravo25@yahoo.com
1/9/2012

Comment: How would you reference this book?

Editor's Reply: We would cite the case study you asked about like this: Miller, A. 2008. "I Can See Clearly Now: Mini Cases in Perception." Buffalo, NY: National Center for Case Study Teaching in Science, University at Buffalo. http://sciencecases.lib.buffalo.edu/cs/files/mini_perception.pdf Accessed online: January 25, 2012.

Catherine Friend
Psychology
Institute of Art, Design and Technology
Dublin
catherinefriend09@gmail.com
1/25/2012

Dear Giselle and Annie,

I used your case study in class to explain the different types of chemical reaction; these are dissolution, precipitation, redox, and gas-evolution; only neutralization was missing but that is ok, because that is an extensive topic by itself. The students volunteered to do the demonstration in the classroom (on a small scale so not much chlorine gas was produced) using stainless steel spoons, a battery and a bath of water with salt. We had a lot of fun. What I like about your case study is that, different from others case studies I have seen, this is the only one that had allowed me to cover a large body of material, which I think is one of the limitations of using case studies in science.

Thanks you so much for making this case available to us.

Maryuri Roca
Chemistry Department
Lawrence University
Appleton, WI
maryuri.roca@lawrence.edu
2/3/2012

Over the past two years, I have used this case with 10 eighth grade classes as the last activity in a reproduction/genetics unit. We need three 40-minute class periods to complete the case. Each day we read one part of the case as a whole class, students work in small groups to answer the questions in the section we just read, and the students then come back together as a whole class to discuss the answers and share their thoughts. The students love it! Thank you for a clear and interesting case.

Janice Carpenter
Science - Middle School
McGee Middle School
Berlin, CT
jcarpenter@berlinschools.org
2/5/2012

I do like this case study. I am now introducing case studies in my Human Biology class for non-science majors, Among the activities of the class, students write a number of reports during the semester. One of them is entitled "What is stem cell research?" In it, students describe the characteristics of stem cells, the various kinds of stem cells, and the various degrees of potency of stem cells. I provide them with several Internet addresses for material. I ask them to stay away from their opinion on the ethics of stem cell research. My interest is to provide the students with sufficient information about stem cells so that they can address the ethics of stem cell research in their philosophy courses. We discuss this report in class.

Francis Sullivan
Biology
Metropolitan State College of Denver
Denver, CO
Frank.Sullivan@q.com
2/7/2012

AUTHOR'S NOTE AND UPDATE

The case study "Resistance is Futile" explores the discovery that some people have an apparent resistance to HIV infection. Students are given information about HIV replication and asked to hypothesize about potential mechanisms that could lead to a cell's protection against HIV infection. The mechanism that is explored in the case is a mutation in the protein CCR5, which is used by HIV-1 strains to gain entry into human cells. Without this protein, HIV-1 is unable to attach to cells, thereby protecting the host.

There are, of course, many other mutations that could afford the host some protection. The case alludes to the discovery that some people with repeated low dose exposure to HIV appear to develop immunity, perhaps because they have particularly efficient killer T cells or B cells.

An article published in February 2012 provides yet another possible mechanism of intrinsic HIV-1 resistance. It has been found that the protein SAMHD1 protects macrophages and dendritic cells from HIV-1 infection. The way in which this is achieved is by this protein’s hydrolysis and depletion of the cell's dNTP pool. Without nucleotides, the HIV's reverse transcriptase cannot convert the virus's RNA into DNA, resulting in a failed infection. The concentration of dNTPs in activated CD4 T cells is much higher than in macrophages and dendritic cells, and HIV-1 is therefore not limited for dNTPs in these cells. This is therefore a mechanism of protection that works only in macrophages and dendritic cells. What these findings suggest is a strategy in the development of treatments for HIV-1. Note that HIV-2 strains express a protein which counteracts the activity of SAMHD1 and allows the virus to proliferate in macrophages and dendritic cells.

Instructors using this case might wish to incorporate this recent discovery into the discussion during this case study. It would be a notable addition in Part 1, Question 4, which asks students to hypothesize about the mechanisms that could be used by the cell to resist HIV infection.

A summary of this recent finding is available at the following links:

How a Protein Protects Cells from HIV Infection (http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/02/120212192555.htm) Starve a Virus, Feed a Cure? (http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/02/120212192737.htm)

The original article is: Lahouassa H, Daddacha W, Hofmann H, Ayinde D, Logue EC, Dragin L, et al (2012). SAMHD1 restricts the replication of human immunodeficiency virus type 1 by depleting the intracellular pool of deoxynucleoside triphosphates. Nature Immunology [Epub ahead of print] DOI: 10.1038/ni.2236 PMID: 22327569

Annie

Annie Prud'homme Généreux
Life Sciences
Quest University Canada
Squamish, BC V8B 0N8 Canada
apg@questu.ca
2/17/2012

Thank you for this very informative case study. It was a great activity to explain the activity of enzymes and cellular respiration. Many of my students are inspired when they can relate the activity to themselves or another human.

Vera Verga
Sciences
Edison State College
Naples, FL
vverga@edison.edu
2/28/2012

Hi there, Regarding this question 4. If Carrie had continued to breast feed, how would that have affected Hayden’s problem? Do the TSHR-Ab's make it into breast milk and if they do, are they actually adsorbed from the GI tract - is that how they worsen the condition in the baby? More antibodies would have entered Hayden and made her thyroid problem even worse.

Thanks so much, Donnell

Donnell Wolff
Medical Laboratory Technology
Southern Alberta Institute of Technology
Calgary, Alberta, Canada, T2M 0L4
donnell.wolff@sait.ca
3/8/2012

I used this case with 100 students in 5 sections of an 8th grade science class. I rewrote this case study to use as a clicker case. When rewriting, I defined words typically unfamiliar to eighth grade in parenthesis, included language art integration (per school wide initiative) questions, and included pictures, maps, diagrams and a video clip to help eighth grade students’ understanding. The case was a big hit and helped to review the scientific method. Thank you to the authors for producing a thoughtful case that created much discussion.

Janice Carpenter
Science
McGee Middle School
Berlin, CT
jcarpenter@berlinschools.org
3/11/2012

Thank you for this amazing case study. My students are very inspired to learn and solve the problem. I was wondering why Patrick did not begin to show symptoms until he was 16. If this was a genetic disorder why were the onset of symptoms so delayed? Thank you.

Laura Wodlinger
Science
Westmount Collegiate Institute
Toronto, ON
laura.wodlinger@yrdsb.edu.on.ca
3/20/2012

In the table of blood work, I think you should have microliters, not milliliters. The original paper has microliters.

Sue Hutchins
Biology Department
Itasca Community College
Grand Rapids, MN
sue.hutchins@itascacc.edu
3/30/2012

I found your site while redesigning a graduate level nursing course entitled Psychological Issues for Advanced Practice Nursing. Thanks so very much for sharing these beautiful cases and guidance for how to use them. As a relatively new faculty member in a topic area I love but experience challenges for helping students who may be more diagnostic and procedure oriented to learn about the impact of psychosocial issues on health and health outcomes, I am most grateful!

Jo Robins
Nursing
Virginia Commonwealth University
Richmond, VA
jwrobins@vcu.edu
3/29/2012

I have adapted the PowerPoint to follow each step of Slide 18 so that it is a little clearer. If you'd like to see it, please contact me. Thank you and thanks for your great work.

Elisa Whitman
AP Biology
Stonington High School
Pawcatuck, CT
ewhitman@stoningtonschools.org
4/19/2012

Author's Response to Donnell Wolff's Comment

The major antibody found in breast milk is the IgA secreted from the breast tissue. There is evidence for IgG and IgM antibodies present in breast milk as well. These additional antibodies can be taken up by the baby through the digestive system and contribute to immunological defense in a minor way. I have not found specific evidence that the IgG antibodies in Grave's disease behave differently from other antibodies, hence this minor contribution is the foundation for question #4. Discussing the relative magnitude of the placental vs. breast milk contribution to Hayden's problem could be an extension of the question. I did not address this in the case.

Kay Grimnes
Professor of Biology
Alma College
Alma, Michigan 48801
grimnes@alma.edu
4/26/2012

Great case! Just a couple things. On page 4 of the pdf, the vertical axis is "hearing loss in dB"; dB should have some type of reference, HL of SPL....I'm assuming in this case you mean HL. And the horizontal axis should be Hertz (Hz)

Chris Sanford
Communication Sciences and Disorders
Idaho State University
Pocatello ID
sanfchri@isu.edu
4/26/2012

I wonder if the case would be pedagogically more effective if the term "centrifugal force" were avoided. The term (although not the misconception) is foreign to many students, and I find that introducing the term is counterproductive because it gives emphasis to and reinforces the misconception I seek to eliminate.

Craig Buszka
Science
Montgomery HS
Skillman, NJ
cbuszka@mtsd.us
6/14/2012

Author's Response

Many instructors have different opinions on whether the concept of Centrifugal Force should be discussed because of the few cases it applies to in solving physics problems. I do teach this concept in my classes because it does reduce the confusion when the few cases such as the principles covered in this case study need to be explained. However, one can apply this case study without using the term "Centrifugal Force" and just replace it with the "Reaction force of the Centripetal Force" as per Newton's Third Law of Motion.

Anthony J. Creaco
Science
Borough of Manhattan Community College
New York, NY
acreaco@bmcc.cuny.edu
6/19/2012

I have just received this case study and it is like an early Christmas gift - perfectly timed for my Advanced Level Biology students (17-18 year-olds) who sit an exam in early January and TB is a key topic that they have to study. We will use the case study immediately - it is pitched at exactly the right level for my students. It is well-written and ticks all the right boxes. Many thanks.

Dr. Steve Rogers

St. Edmund Campion Catholic School
Birmingham, United Kingdom
rogerss@stedcamp.bham.sch.uk
12/18/2012

Your wolf cull exercise worked great. I had a lecture the day before on the tar sands, and then today we did your case study. Class size was about 100 students, so the switch for the jig-saw exercise was a bit tricky, but it worked. Students had great answers and solutions at the end. They loved your animation. Thanks again for letting me know about this, and you guys need to write more of these!

Bill Nelson
Department of Biology
Queen's University
Kingston, Ontario, Canada. K7L 3N6
nelsonw@queensu.ca
4/4/2013

I attended the workshop with you guys last year. I am very happy to see your case available for use. I was very impressed with it during the workshop. Hope you guys are doing well!

Bruce Metz

Rock Springs High School
Rock Springs, WY 82901
metzb@sw1.k12.wy.us
4/8/2013

Where is the article from the NY Times for this case, "You Poured it Where?"

Tom Savage
Science

Flat Rock, North Carolina
tsavage@henderson.k12.nc.us
4/23/2013

Response to T. Savage's Question: The URL has changed for accessing this article from the New York Times website. We searched it in Google and found its new location. It is now online at: http://www.nytimes.com/1997/08/16/world/a-delicate-pacific-seaweed-is-now-a-monster-of-the-deep.html Hopefully it won't change again any time soon, but it is usually possible by searching the title of a news story like this one in Google to find its new location.

Editor, National Center for Case Study Teaching in Science

4/23/2013

Love this case. It worked like a charm. I introduced it with this YouTube video on silver foxes that connects seamlessly with the story: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EoB0pdhxfZs

Jesus A. Rivas
Biology
New Mexico Highlands University
Las Vegas, NM
rivas@nmhu.edu
4/29/2013

I used this for my non-majors bio course and this case generated a lot of discussion. I added a bit of material to read ahead that I think helped the students understand both sides. The website at http://www.abcbirds.org is a good resource on cat colonies and catch and release programs and research articles on cat killing. The movie "Secret Lives of Cats" is available for free at http://snagfilms.com, and I made sure to show cute videos of plover running about on YouTube. Thank you for this excellent case. I will be using it again.

Heather Rushforth
Biology
University of North Carolina at Greensboro
Greensboro, NC
hmrushfo@uncg.edu
5/9/2013

The link to the dinosaur anatomy dictionary is invalid.

Kathy Hallett

Carmel High School
Carmel, IN
khallett@ccs.k12.in.us
5/14/2013

In response to Kathy's comment, above, unfortunately, Internet sites come and go. Jeff Poling no longer maintains his Dinosauria On-line site or the Anatomical Dictionary that was part of that site. This dictionary was mentioned in the teaching notes to this case by the case authors as a helpful resource for students and teachers. When this happens - when an Internet site that is cited in one of our cases is no longer available - we suggest that teachers look for alternate resources. We did a quick Google search and found a few possible sites that could be used instead, with the first one listed below our top pick:

http://skeletaldrawing.com/psgallery/gallery.htm
http://www.skeletaldrawing.com/shdguide/shdgmain.htm
http://www.enchantedlearning.com/subjects/dinosaurs/anatomy/
http://planetdi.startlogic.com/dinosaur_anatomy.htm

Editor, National Center for Case Study Teaching in Science

5/14/2013

I have used the "Two Peas in a Pod" as a case study activity for both a Living Environment Course as well as my Clinical Lab Assisting course. I have had great success using this module and the students really get into it.

Holly Michels
Health Careers
Wilson Tech
Dix Hills, NY 11746

5/16/2013

Have been unable to get the CBC video Caribou Conundrum to play [http://www.cbc.ca/player/Shows/ID/2200604521/]. Perhaps it is a country issue. I have tried on multiple networks, with no luck. Any ideas would be appreciated.

Kathleen Douma
Science
Lakenheath High School
Suffolk, England
kathy.douma@eu.dodea.edu
5/20/2013

Thanks, Kathleen, for your comment above. Kathleen has written in to say she is unable to view the CBC video that is used in this case study. We looked into this and found that there is a section on the CBC site that offers help with viewing video. That page, at http://www.cbc.ca/player/help.html, includes information on what kind of software you need to have, etc.

Kathleen, who lives in England, wondered if this is a "country problem" and the information on the CBC video help page towards the bottom indicates that this indeed may be the case. There it says:

Question:

The player says I'm outside of Canada.

Answer:

Our [CBC's] distribution license for some content is restricted to certain regions. If you reside outside of Canada and are seeing this message it means that we are unfortunately prevented from distributing it to you. Very occasionally, however, our video system will mistake a geographic location and block valid users from watching video. Usually these outages only last a few minutes, so it's suggested that you try again after a short wait. If you're still being blocked from viewing content you may want to check your IP address to make sure that it's being recognized as a Canadian address. You can get your IP address here and test it here. If your IP address checks out and you're still being prevented from viewing content, please contact us.

Editor, National Center for Case Study Teaching in Science

5/20/2013

I have used this lesson with biology 2 students as a way to make connections with the real world.

Kathryn Cross
science
Broadmoor High School
Baton Rouge, Louisiana
kathryncross@ebrschools.org
9/24/2012

Good morning-

I presented this case to my honors anatomy classes. Can you please tell me if this a real case, and if so, what was the result of Judy's biopsy? My students are curious!

Erin Morse

Clearwater, Florida
morsee@pcsb.org
9/25/2012

Alan's point of view is not to use the Atkins' diet. He has heard lots of debate over it and doesn’t believe in it. He believes his sister should exercise and stop eating junk food. He goes on to say Native Americans never used to eat junk like pizza, candy, and fatty foods. Eating meals that are nutritionally balanced, high in fiber, and low in refined sugars and saturated fats are best. He tells her to start running and not sit around the house.

Mackeba
Undergraduate Student
Bay Path College
Burlington, Ma.
MGustave@BayPath.edu
9/26/2012

This is an excellent case study! Have you (or any other teachers) created a marking guide/rubric for the final assessment? It would be great to have that included with the case as well. Thanks for sharing such a great educational resource!

Jennifer Osmond
Science-Biology
Northeast Kings Education Centre
Canning, Nova Scotia, Canada
jhealy@staff.ednet.ns.ca
10/1/2012

Is there any way I can access the referenced articles without having to pay for them?

Brenda From
Science
Manhattan HS for Girls
New York, NY 10021
bfrom@manhattanhigh.org
10/5/2012

Editor's Reply

Most often articles cited in the references to our cases are under copyright to the publishers of the journals they appear in. They own the rights to them, we do not. We do not have the right to reproduce them or to supply them. When we do reproduce a chart or table from a published article that is not from an open access source we enter into strict arrangements with the copyright holder (the publisher) to use that material as they have directed.

This is true for this case's cited references except for the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, which is an open access journal. You can go to its website to retrieve the article cited in that journal at: http://www.pnas.org/ Or connect directly to the article via: http://www.pnas.org/content/102/30/10604.full

Similarly, the Schizophrenia Bulletin is also available as an open access journal, for a certain span of years (from 2006 to 1 year ago) in PubMed Central; go to: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/journals/356/ Or connect directly to the article via: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2762629/

You can try checking with your school or public library to see if they have the other journals. If they do not (and we realize that many will not have very specialized, scholarly, scientific journals), then you should ask your library if it offers an inter-library loan service through which you can request copies of articles from journals they don't own. Libraries are often part of larger consortia, which operate at a local, regional, and even national level, that allow libraries to lend to and to borrow from each other.

Editor, National Center for Case Study Teaching in Science

10/5/2012

I used this case study in my AP Environmental Science class today - it worked great! My students really valued the information in the case and wanted to be able to view it again for referencing how to calculate runoff.

Stefanie Stainton
Science Department
Pulaski High School
Pulaski, WI
skstainton@pulaskischools.org
10/8/2012

I just used “Atkins or Fadkins” for the first time and thought it went pretty well. My husband the physiologist, however, had two quibbles. He says: (1) calories measure heat, not energy, and (2) some energy drinks do their thing with a jolt of caffeine, not sugar, so they may have no calories.

Barbara J. Abraham
Biological Sciences
Hampton University
Hampton, Va
barbara.abraham@hamptonu.edu
10/24/2012

A great case, that is both locally relevant for our students and well crafted to include knowledge and skills from different sections of the curriculum. This will definitely become a useful educational tool. Thanks!

Brendan Watts
Science
Murray Bridge High School
Australia
brendan.watts152@schools.sa.edu.au
10/30/2012

GREAT case study to introduce the population equations to my AP bio students! We also were fortunate that we did it on Halloween :) Great way to get them thinking about the equations without actually working problems and how all the variables work together. Thanks for this one! - Jennifer

Jennifer Forsyth
Science
Woodstock HS
Woodstock, GA
jennifer.forsyth@cherokee.k12.ga.us
11/2/2012

I used this activity in AP Biology as an extra credit challenge prior to our test on cell respiration. I had the students work in teams. They had to write their answers to the multiple choice questions and provide a one/two sentence rationale. I made copies of the PPT slides and removed some of the comments that say to "refer to homework." I must say they were very engaged and liked the scenario. They all said it "made them think," which really made me happy. This activity took exactly 45 minutes, and I gave them the longer version (with Leo dying at the end). Thank you! thank you! for posting something that piqued their interest on such a difficult topic.

Roya Nabi
Science
Eastern Regional High School
Voorhees, NJ
rnabi@eccrsd.us
11/5/2012

Teachers using this case may be interested in incorporating the video clip based on the case study that was made by the University of Ontario Institute of Technology.

The video clip, titled "Parking: A Behavioural Study," is available at:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fzyL7zKCBS4

Editor, National Center for Case Study Teaching in Science

11/15/2012

I just used the Chemical Eric again with my anatomy class. It really helped them understand the relationship between the pituitary gland and other glands and hormonal release in the body. They particularly liked that the story was a true one.

Christine Lesh
Science
Winters Mill High School
Westminster, MD
cllesh@carrollk12.org
11/26/2012

Author's Reply: This case was not based on a real person, but I am glad that it got your students excited. :)

Anne Galbraith
Biology
U of WI - La Crosse
La Crosse, WI
agalbraith@uwlax.edu
12/3/2012

I used the case study "Ecotourism: Who Benefits?" in my non-majors biology course on the Natural History of Costa Rica. The first week I handed out the first part of the case and assigned students characters which they were told to research over the next week or two. I also told them that the week after Thanksgiving we were going to enact the round table discussion. The students were excited when I told them we would be role-playing and when I assigned them their roles.

The roundtable went great. I had hoped the students would extend the discussion to 30 minutes, but they went longer and I had to cut off discussion at around 45 minutes so we could more on to other topics. The students said they really enjoyed the format, and taking on a character made them understand that view point in a more visceral way. Even though they were just acting, several said that they still felt bad when they couldn't get the goals they wanted across to the other participants. And they also felt like they were giving up something when they compromised. I think it helped them to see why sometimes it is hard to get different stakeholders in a situation to come up with a compromise. I mostly stayed out of the discussion and let the students manage it. In the end, they decided to ask the government to return half the seized land to the original Tico owners in order to start a co-op which the Ticos could use to grow crops or do ecotourism, or to sell to a multinational corporation. The other half of the land was added to the reserve and would be tightly protected, including limits on numbers of visitors. Everyone except the banana company representative was happy with this solution.

Laurie Kauffman, PhD
Assistant Professor of Biology
Oklahoma City University
Oklahoma City, OK 73106
http://ocu-stars.okcu.edu/lkauffman/
12/3/2012

THANK YOU for posting this case! I hope lots of high school chemistry teachers download and use it as they teach atomic structure! Although I will not be able to use it all at one setting, it will greatly enhance my current unit. I love the questions!

Sharla Dowding
Science Department
Newcastle High School
Newcastle, WY
dowdings@weston1.k12.wy.us
12/15/2012

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