20.109(F13):Reflection assignments summary page

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Overview

Two points of your final grade are determined by these reflections. Each satisfactory reflection will be worth 0.5 points. After that, each additional reflection will count as an extra credit FNT. That is, 0.5 points will be added to the numerator but not the denominator of your homework grade. With a typical FNT denominator of 60-65 points, you could increase your FNT score by about a quarter of a letter grade if you do all three extra credit assignments.

If a reflection seems extremely "phoned in," half credit will be given (0.25 points). An extra credit assignment may be used to replace this score. However, no FNT bonus will be given in addition, and the maximum of three such assignments still holds.

S13 prompts below for reference

Mandatory reflections

You must complete all four of these assignments by the indicated due date. There is no word limit, per se, but you'll find that 200-300 words will be about right for conveying your thoughts here.

You may also complete up to 3 of the optional reflections for extra credit.

The hardest part of scientific writing for me is… (Due 10/14, 5pm)

You’ve just completed your first major science communication assignments in 20.109. The culminating writing assignments for Module 1 contained the major building blocks of a technical journal article: an abstract, a methods section, and the meat of the paper – the data and analysis. Although scientific writers usually end up at a similar endpoint, most people get there by following slightly different paths. For example, I find it particularly useful to write my Methods section first, as it refreshes my memory and reminds me how exciting it was do the work. Next, I take this ‘writers high’ to the data section, which I find the most difficult to write. What was the hardest element for you to complete within the major assignments of Module 1? How might you approach this differently while writing your full research report for Module 2?

Conquering stage fright. (Due 5pm M2D7 for M2D5 presenters, 5pm M3D1 for M2D8 presenters)

The old adage of “picturing your audience naked” to distract you from your nerves before public speaking engagements is really not very good advice. There are several less distracting and more practical ways to calm yourself before speaking. The first, and perhaps easiest, is a deep breath and a smile. Often, the journal club assignment in 20.109 is the first time students have formally presented research performed by someone else. What did you find to be the most surprising part of preparing and delivering your presentation? Were there elements that you feared, but found them to be easier than you thought or vice versa? How did you calm your nerves (if you felt any) before beginning your presentation?

This time around, things were easier. Or perhaps not? (Due 5pm M3D1 for all)

For many 20.109 students, the research article completed for module 2 is the first journal-like manuscript that they have ever prepared. Your 20.109 teaching staff try very hard to provide helpful and constructive feedback through FNT assignments, presentations by the WAC faculty, and one-on-one consultation. Additionally, BE has recently opened the BE Writing Lab to help students optimize their scientific writing process. While fresh in your mind, please reflect on what resources you utilized during the preparation of your first draft and which you found to be the most and least helpful --- why (please provide specifics)?

A module of a different color is still biological engineering. (Due 11am, 12/12/13)

Module 3 always makes me think of the old Seasame Street song (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FClGhto1vIg) “One of these things is not like the other”. In Module 1 and Module 2 we used pretty advanced molecular biology and protein engineering techniques to measure cell-level behaviors by a fluorescent readout. While we are most definitely still exploiting the protein structure and properties of phage virus in Module 3, it just feels different. But, all of the applications that we’ve explored in 20.109 fall under the guise of Biological Engineering. When you describe Biological Engineering to your friends and families, what examples do you use? What does the term ‘Biological Engineering’ mean to you?

Optional reflections

You must write a reflection in one of the following categories, at any time during the semester.

You may complete an additional three such assignments for extra credit, without repeating any category.

Meeting with a writing instructor or peer coach

Summarize what you learned from a specific meeting with your writing instructor or with a BE Writing Fellow. This reflection should contain, in part, a chronological narrative: when you met, for how long, and what assignment you worked on.

Meeting with a technical instructor or TA

Summarize what you learned from a meeting with one of the technical faculty. This reflection should contain, in part, a chronological narrative: when you met, for how long, and what assignment you worked on.

Working in a larger group to decipher data

This type of reflection gives me a behind-the-scenes look at how students really work together, which is helpful to me as an instructor and just plain enjoyable to read. For this category, summarize a meeting (formal/informal, in-person/googlechat, whatever) in which you worked with a group of your peers to understand some perplexing data. You can write about the culminating experiments in modules 1 or 2; for example, you might describe a meeting with a group(s) whose module 2 mutant behaved similarly to yours. Or you can write about any of the intermediate experiments in the three modules for which comparing with another group shed light on your own results. Writing about experimental error is fine, as long as there is some substance there. This reflection should contain, in part, a chronological narrative: when you met, with whom, and for how long.

Reading an outside paper loosely related to 20.109 work

Summarize a paper from the peer-reviewed scientific literature and tell how it relates to what you are learning in 20.109. Specifically, you might explain how it reinforced or extended your understanding of a particular topic we have covered. This reflection should contain, in part, some background: what prompted you to read the paper (another class, UROP, personal search)?

This category may not be fulfilled by writing about a paper that you read in preparation for your module 3 research proposal.