Technology Fee Application 2008-07

Request for Tech Fee Funds

Please use this form for Tech Fee requests not related to new labs, existing labs, software or library database requests.

Department: Biology

Contact: Name of Primary Contact: Peter C. Chabora (or Mike Hickerson)

Email: [email protected], ([email protected])

Date: November 30, 2008

Title of Project:

Description of the Project

Colwin Hall 204 is dedicated to the laboratory classes for Biology 106, the second semester of the year-long introductory course in general biology for biology majors, science majors, pre-health professionals and those specializing in related areas. For decades, we have hoped to equip this introductory laboratory with an “AV” capability and in fact, TV monitor supports were installed in the 1970’s as part of a dream never fulfilled. We now request a laptop station facility, with monochrome printer access, for each of the 21 student stations, plus a Sympodium/projector for the instructor.

We are preparing our students to be scientists and health care professionals in the 21st Century. We cannot do that while working within the confines of an unfulfilled dream of “modern” lab of the 1970’s.

Justification

The Technology Fee should be used for spending on instructional technology and electronic resources that enhance student learning and information and technology literacy

Please provide a statement of the student learning outcomes the project is expected to produce and a plan to assess its effectiveness in meeting those outcomes.

Biology 106 constitutes one half of our year-long major level course. Laboratory exercises are integral to this course, but beyond that, they provide future scientists and health professionals with essential, foundational, hands on experiences in a laboratory setting - the opportunity to see how science is “done” outside of the realm of books. The incorporation of computer assisted labs provides supplemental visualization and greater depth of information, described in detail below, as well as access to course materials during out-of-class time and during study periods. We expect that such an enhanced learning experience during their first exposure to college biology will help the students to master the material, inspire them to go further, and assist them in their future studies. Technology Fee Application Page 2

Performance in the laboratory accounts for 40% of the student’s final course grade. Thus, the primary form of outcome assessment will be the students’ overall lab performance. The department has maintained a considerable data resource on this course as it has gone through various alterations in format over the years. The current curriculum and lab manual were developed and have evolved over the past decade and the performance of our students during that time is likewise well documented.

Which course(s) will use the project and how many students will the project serve?

This project refers specifically to Biology 106. Colwin Hall 204, a laboratory room, is used only for Biology 106, which constitutes one half of our year-long major level course. Lab sections are scheduled for each morning, afternoon, and evening, depending upon the lecture schedule, with a minimum of 10 and as many as 16, sections, including a Saturday morning section. The room has 21 student seats and work areas, and accommodates 200-300 students per semester.

What is the degree to which the project is integrated into the course curriculum?

To the extent possible, computer use is integrated into the laboratory curriculum. It is a required, not an optional, component. The course has made heavy use of Blackboard ever since BB was established at QC, and with the advent of computer access in the laboratory, computer use has expanded and will continue to do so.

Current computer use, when possible: Computers are used in two ways in the course: They are essential for computer-based laboratory exercises in which the entire process utilizes software and an associated, published, workbook. They are also extremely helpful as a supplement to the laboratory manual in hands-on laboratory activities, such as dissections. Students gain confidence and skill when they can observe online dissections done by professionals such as personnel at the American Museum of Natural History. The ability to view procedures beforehand, and to review them at the student’s pace as they perform their own dissections, has proven to be highly effective in clarifying dissection techniques. Thus, the students have a higher quality learning experience and we see a more efficient use of the expensive dissection specimens.

Projected use, with additional computers: Some labs use projected media and a sympodium would permit the instructors to project their recitation materials and permit the playing of DVDs. One lab is already based on a DVD viewing.

Certain labs could be rewritten and made much more current. For example, the first lab of the course is an exercise in data analysis and statistics. The students use hand-held scientific calculators, similar models of which have not even been manufactured in the past decade! With computer availability, this exercise could be rewritten to incorporate far more sophisticated and appropriate analyses and graphics.

Further, 9 of 13 lab exercises concern the study and survey of organismal diversity. Given more computers, students would be able to access many of the “Tree of Life-type” websites to supplement their observations and procedures. Each lab exercise is associated with a chapter in the lab manual written expressly for this course, and also includes a weekly checklist for the exercise. In the future, such checklists would be annotated with web-links to relevant supplemental materials and enhancements. Technology Fee Application Page 3

To provide an example of the type of exercises I have designed for this course, which we are implementing this semester, and to show the intensity of our computer use, I have attached a copy to the “Additional Commentary” section of this application.

Please provide an explanation of why this instructional need cannot be accommodated in existing department or OCT facilities, or what modifications would be necessary to existing lab(s).

Colwin Hall 204, the Bio 106 laboratory, accommodates as many as three, 3-hour lab sessions per day, five days a week (sometimes on Saturdays as well) with enrollments in excess of 200 students per semester. There in no central, or any other computer, facility in Colwin Hall. The Department has a computer facility in the Science Building to which we have minimal access, but only when it is not needed for other courses. This computer room is under increasingly heavy use by other courses, however, so use for Bio 106 is becoming increasingly restricted due to substantial scheduling conflicts.

Additionally, the Science Building facility is only appropriate for exercises that are total computer labs. Hands on exercises, dissections and wet labs cannot be performed there. We need laptop units which can be used on the laboratory benches, not fixed desktop units. We make do now by borrowing laptops from other labs in the Science Building and bringing them to Colwin.

Estimate Costs

Equipment: $57,755______

Furniture: ______

Software: ______

Recurring Costs: Maintenance______Software License______Other______

TOTAL $57,755______

Additional Commentary

What follows is the handout to accompany a Bio 106 lab exercise. The instructor delivers a recitation and then works with and guides the students as they work through and develop the ideas presented in the handout.

Bio 106, Lab Week 13, Fall 2008, Our Place in the World Dr. P C Chabora

Populations and consumption: How much of the world’s resources do we require? How much do we consume? What are the ecological consequences of providing for the things that we consume? What do we mean by our “ecological footprint.” How big is our “ecological footprint?” And how about all those other people with whom we share the Earth – what is their share? Technology Fee Application Page 4

Lets consider two simple cases of resource consumption:

Question: Being an average New Yorker, how much water do you use every day? Where does the water used by the NYC population come from? How can we visualize our daily and annual water consumption? How about the entire population of New York City and how do we estimate our daily use? How can we best visualize this? Where does the used water go? Again, visualize the amount of waste water – how much? What accounts for changes over time? Let’s explore:

Look up: www.nyc.gov then look at the left side of the home page where it has a scroll box of “City Agencies.” Scroll down and click on the agency Environmental DEP, then click on Drinking Water. Look at the map of reservoirs and supply lines (“Water Supply System Maps”) that supply NYC and then we’ll look at our reservoirs, their capacities and current levels (“Reservoir Levels”), then click on Drought and Water Consumption where we will examine our pattern of daily water consumption over the past 25 years. What accounts for the reduction in use?

So, what volume of water do you, the average New Yorker, use in a day? …In a year? How much water is that? To visualize, imaging filling the room you’re in with water.

Conversion calculators: use the unit conversion calculator in the “dashboard widgets” or http://www.onlineconversion.com/ or http://www.easyunitconverter.com/ or http://www.megaconverter.com/Mega2/

Based on the DEP water consumption data, calculate the volume (in cubic meters) of water you use in a day and in a year. Remember this is only water for used for domestic purposes.

Approximate volume of Colwin Hall 204: 350 cubic meters Approximate volume of SB-D-141: 125 cubic meters

Now, what happens to the water that we’ve used? What volume of waste do we produce in a year? The total land area of all of NYC is approximately 785 square kilometers (303 square miles); how deep in waste would it be after one year? (Note that there are 1,000,000 square meters (100 hectares) in a square kilometer.) Again refer to www.nyc.gov, then Environmental DEP, and check out wastewater treatment by the 14 NYC plants treats an average of 1.3 million gallons/day.) How deep would NYC be covered with wastewater in one year should we have to store it?

It is important to remember that the water consumption discussed above is only your domestic consumption and does not include the much greater usage of agriculture and manufacturing processes. We will consider these aspects later in this exercise.

Question: What are the ecological costs of your hamburger? How much beef does each of us eat per year? How about the “costs” of the rest of the filling of your burger? What are the overall “costs” of producing our food (land, water, chemicals, fuel, processing)?

Go to: http://www.ers.usda.gov/Data/FoodConsumption/FoodAvailQueriable.aspx

You can also reach this web page by going to www.ers.usda.gov, and then click on the top toolbar “Data Sets,” then click under “Most Requested”, “Food Availability (per capita) Data System.”

“Choose a commodity group” “Meat (individual)” then a list will open and select “Beef,” for “All years” then “Table” then “Submit.” You can do this with all types of foods in our diet. Try a few different meats (chicken, pork, fish, etc.) and other commodities (string beans, watermelon, potatoes, tomatoes, wheat, rice). Technology Fee Application Page 5

So, how many people does one steer or heifer (= cow) feed in a year? Actually, for our purposes, lets say the average “cow” weights 1150 pounds (590 Kg.) and after the “waste” is discarded, yields about 570 pounds of prepared beef for market sales. This is roughly 40-50% of the live weight. (See: http://www.askthemeatman.com/yield_on_beef_carcass.htm) What comprises this “waste?”

So, how many people can feed on this one “cow” for a year? How many “cows” does it take to satisfy the beef cravings for the population of New York City (population 8,300,000, roughly) (See: the NYC.gov site for population estimates: http://home2.nyc.gov/html/dcp/html/census/popdiv.shtml)?

What are the environmental costs of raising the stock to provide beef for NYC? How much feed and water are needed to raise a steer? How much water is required to produce 1 Kg. of beef? (Try Google.com or Ask.com that question! Keep in mind that there is a lot of controversy among the possible answers.) How much and what kind of waste does a steer produce?

(Reference for steer carcass values, Table 2): http://www.ars.usda.gov/SP2UserFiles/Place/54380530/2003020466.pdf)

Ecological footprints: You can also try this at home. Go to http://www.google.com/, or any search engine and search for “ecological footprint quiz,” or use the links below, and have your family or friends try a quiz.

Footprint quizzes: Do this “quiz” first, (Note that both sites have the same quiz) http://www.rprogress.org/ - click on this site, then click on “ecological footprint quiz” (left side of the page), or try http://www.myfootprint.org/

If everyone on Earth lived the way you do, how many “earths” would we require?

Then do this somewhat different quiz. (A number of questions and topics are the similar, but the format and commentary are different because it’s based on the British outlook.) http://www.ecologicalfootprint.com/ or http://www.bestfootforward.com/footprintlife.htm

How similar is this footprint estimation compared to the first quiz?

Human population data: Review the idea of the population pyramid – its interpretation and meaning.

The United States Census Bureau – an extraordinary resource for population data of the US and the world.

Population data and Pop Clocks: http://www.census.gov/ Under the category “People and Households,” click on “International” then click on “International Data Base” (IDB)

Once at the IDB page, click on “World Population Information” located on the left side of the page, then you can click on “Population Clocks” to get a “to the second” estimate of the US and World population sizes.

Click on “World Vital Events Per Time Unit” to get an understanding of the increasing human population in very understandable and frightening terms. Look at the net gain on the population per year. To accommodate that many new people in a lifestyle of a developed nation, is like adding a whole country with all its resource needs: space, agriculture, infrastructure, housing, roads, water supply, schools, hospitals, - everything – all that’s necessary in a developed country larger than Germany!

Go back to the “International Data Base” page and click on “Country Summary, ” select a country, then explore those data. Look at the “summary” and “dynamic” presentations of pyramids. Work together with Technology Fee Application Page 6

your instructor and examine Afghanistan, Angola, Italy, and U.S.. After that explore countries of your interest.

CIA Fact Book: http://www.cia.gov/cia/publications/factbook/index.html

Check out various countries (starting with the ones you examined above for comparison) – looking under the section on “People.” The data presented provide an interesting view of populations – such as numbers in different age categories, median ages (a really telling statistic), and sex ratios at birth and at later ages, birth and death data, longevity, infant mortality, education, etc.

Six-Billion Human Beings: a French site about populations derived from an exhibition from the Musee de’l Homme, Museum National d’Histoire Naturalle, Paris. They have produced an updated and more extensive website which we do not have the time to explore today. You may try it at your leisure: http://www.ined.fr/en/everything_about population/

http://www-popexpo.ined.fr/english.html takes you to the original website. For this class, play with this site to get some understanding of population issues from the French view.

Resources and Sustainability: Here are two sites with a global view

WWF’s Living Planet Report, 2008: Examine this report, paying particularly attention to the item enumerated below. http://assets.panda.org/downloads/living_planet_report_2008.pdf

Study the charts, in particular, Fig. 22 on p. 14-15 (Ecological Footprint of Nations); Fig. 25 on p. 15-16 (Biocapacity); Fig. 28 on p. 18-19 (The Water Footprint of Consumption) and Fig. 29 on p. 20-21 (Water Footprint of Production). Check the summary tables beginning on p. 35.

Note the total cubic meters of water used per individual for all purposes in the various countries, especially the USA. How does this value compare to our domestic use? Is there a wonder that clean water is one of the world’s most limiting resources?

World Resources Institute: http://www.wri.org/ - explore “Publications.” Check out “World Resources 2008: Roots on Resilience (Data Tables) (get there from page 2 of Publications “view all”)