| Eastern Nazarene College Biology Department BI-104L: Introduction to Ecology and Diversity Lab Laboratory Syllabus: Lab Requirements and Procedures |
 |
Prepare for Lab Beginning of Lab During Lab End of Lab Text and Materials Attendance
Lab Procedures:
This lab is project based. You will be assigned to a team of 3-4 students that will design and complete two independent research projects during the course of the semester. Additional information will be provided to you on separate handouts. Over the course of the semester, the team will prepare proposals, carry out experiments, analyze data, prepare research reports, and present their research to the class using Powerpoint.
To Prepare For Lab:
1. I have compiled a list of the items that you should wear or bring with you to each field session. Click here to access that list, and make sure you have these items ready to go on the day of the lab. Do not show up to lab late because you needed to go back and get these materials. If need be, leave them in the lab or biology reading room during one of your class breaks.
2. The pages assigned in the laboratory manual and text are to be read prior to each session. Carefully reading the material and understanding what will be happening in lab will greatly increase your success on item #1 above and will also help you finish the lab more quickly.
3. MAKE SURE YOU BRING YOUR JOURNAL AND LAB MANUAL TO CLASS.
At The Beginning Of Lab:
1. The laboratory session begins promptly at the scheduled time. We will be taking several field trips during the course of the semester, and due to our limited lab time, we will need to leave in a timely manner to give you the most opportunity to complete the assigned work. If you can arrive to lab 10-15 minutes early on these days to help load up the van, it would be greatly appreciated.
2. Each team is responsible for obtaining the equipment they need to complete their assigned responsibilities or research. If there is something special that you need, let the lab instructors know before we leave the school.
3. When we are working on instructional labs, lab will begin with the administration of a quiz. All quizzes will be collected 15 minutes later, so that the actual lab can get underway and you can finish on time. Quizzes will cover material from the current week and the preceding week.
4. The quiz questions will be based upon the information covered in the lab worksheets. There may also be select questions from the pre-reading as noted in the lab manual or at the time of the lab session. If you thoroughly understand and can answer all of those questions, you should be able to ace all of the quizzes.
5. All assignments, experiments, and lab worksheets are due at the start of the following week’s lab unless otherwise instructed. Assignments handed in after the current week’s quiz has been distributed will be considered late (see below).
During Lab:
1. You will be recording notes for all lectures, trailside talks, lab activities, research, and team meetings in your lab journal/notebook. All journal entries should be in accordance with the protocol which is available here.
2. Teams should assign a data recorder for each lab session. It will be this person's responsibility to record all data on the required data sheets. The data recorder is responsible for making sure the data is recorded in the appropriate location with neatness and accuracy. This responsibility can be shared during the lab session, but at a minimum, the data recorder should be a different person for each lab so all share in this responsibility equally. The data recorder does not need to record the data in their journal in the field, but must transfer the data to their journal at some point during the week.
3. Make sure you have heard all instructions provided by Prof. Twining or the lab instructors before you begin your work.
4. Because we are working in natural habitats, each team member should recognize that he/she is walking through the homes of other creatures. Therefore, everyone should make sure that they are always thinking and acting in such a way that his/her impact on the environment is minimized. Stay on the trails, and do not go off trail until you reach the area in which your team is going to work. Try to minimize the trampling of understory vegetation. If you turn over logs or rocks looking for animals, make sure you put them back in the same position that you found them. If you find a salamander or other animal under a rock, remove it, put the rock or log back in place, and then place the animal next to it, allowing it to crawl back under the rock. This keeps them from being crushed when you roll the object back into position.
5. Leave the research sites cleaner than you find them. If you see any trash in the area where you are working, please pick it up and remove it from the site. Let's set an example for others to follow.
6. It may be necessary to share some equipment or instrumentation with other teams. Please work quickly and efficiently on what you need to do so you can share with others as needed.
7. When using soil or water test kits that use chemical reagents, please store all wastes in a jar labeled "WASTE" and give these to the lab instructors upon your return to the lab.
8. Stow away all of your equipment and supplies when finished and prepare to leave the site. Do not disturb other teams unless they ask for your help.
When Lab Is Over:
1. You are responsible for making sure that the equipment you used during the lab is cleaned properly and stowed away in its appropriate location. Address any waste materials left over from experiments you performed.
2. Make sure that any data sheets you completed during the day with your team are photocopied, with a copy given to Prof. Twining or the lab instructors (bin outside Prof. Twining's office is okay).
3. Save photographs taken for your team on your USB drive, or burn them onto a CD (see Prof. T. for CDs). They will be erased from the camera after lab is over.
4. If working on computers, turn them off and make sure laptops are returned to Prof. Twining's office.
5. Hand in any work that Prof. Twining has asked for.
6. If you need to check out any equipment to finish your experiment during the week, please make arrangements with Prof. T. or a lab instructor to obtain the equipment, and sign it out of the storage room on the signout sheet.
7. Check in with Prof. Twining or lab instructors before leaving.