Instructions: The ability to communicate research findings effectively is crucial for success in the biological
sciences. This assignment will require you to produce a short written summary that effectively
communicates your results from the Natural Selection: Bacterial Transformation module.
The report includes several parts: an introduction and statement of the hypothesis you
tested, a description of the experimental set-up, results, and an evaluation of the hypothesis based
on the data obtained in your group’s experiment. The evaluation of the hypothesis should include
direct implications and broad implications from the experiment. All text shall be 12 pt. font with 1.5
line spacing.
–Introduction and Hypothesis statement (20%)
The first paragraph(s) of this section must be over the importance of the experiment. The
background information supplied should allow the reader to understand the theoretical and
practical necessity of the experiment. You need to cite one or two primary sources that relate to
the topic at hand, in this section. After the introductory paragraphs, the null and alternative
hypotheses shall be clearly stated for the experiment they were designed to test. (1 -2 sentences per
hypothesis).
Experimental set-up (20%)
This section will be written in paragraph format and should explain where, when, what, and
how. (1 – 2 paragraphs). All necessary conditions under which the experiment was conducted must
be described explicitly and should allow the reader to replicate the experiment. Clearly describe the
treatments, indicating which treatment(s) is (are) the control(s). Describe materials used to create
the treatments. Explain how data were collected, what measurements were made and what kind of
instrument or equipment used.
Results (25%)
The first part of the results section must include a summary of the results in paragraph
format. The second part should include a graphical representation of the data. You can choose to use
a table or a graph, or both, to show your data. Do not include raw data calculations, here.
Graphs
Required for all graphs:
Label the x and y axes.
Write a descriptive legend for each graph.
o Be sure to state what statistic (mean, mode, standard deviation, range) the bars and
error bars represent and how many replicates were used to calculate the mean.
Example, if there were 10 replicates, the number of replicates would be given as n =
10.
o Define any abbreviations used on the graph.
– Hypothesis Evaluation (25%)
Write a paragraph to evaluate whether the results you obtained are consistent with or not
consistent with the hypothesis you tested. Were the observed results consistent with the expected
ones? The second paragraph will compare your experimental results to the results obtained in the
Technique Lab. This section evaluates the experiment based on the interpretation and meaning of
the results. The third paragraph should relate the results of the study to the broader field of the study.
This section may also include references to primary sources (other research papers).
End your document with a list of references cited. Your Technique Lab document includes a
list of references that you can use as an example for citing your own references.
Spelling and Grammar (10%)
Scientific results are mainly communicated through writing; therefore, your written
summary must be clearly and accurately presented. You should ensure there are no grammatical
errors that distract the reader from understanding the experiment or interpreting the data. Scientific
writing frequently uses the past tense, particularly when the main focus of the writing is to describe
experiments or observations that took place prior to the time of writing.
couple sources/articles to draw on and cite in introduction (example of citation is (author’s last name and year published):
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/17634571/
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/33656174/
The Experiment: Describe the problem, or, ask a question: Will more concentration affect absorption?
State the hypothesis: As the reaction occurs, the color and absorption will change.
State the null-hypothesis: As the reaction occurs, the color and absorption will
remain unaffected.
Describe your control: Enzymes that work at the optimal pH
Describe your experimental group
Independent variable(s): Enzyme being used
Dependent variable(s): Rate of reaction
Materials needed: Pipette, spectrometer, buffer, enzyme, cuvette
Write down the protocol steps:
1. Label two cuvettes, one as “blank” and the other one as “reaction”
2. Add 1.5 ml of reaction buffer to the blank cuvette.
3. Add 1.5 ml of 10 mM ONPG solution to the reaction cuvette.
4. Add 25 uL of β-galactosidase (1U) to the reaction cuvette, ONLY.
5. Cover the cuvettes with a piece of parafilm and mix the solutions by gently
inverting them.
6. Start a timer as soon as you have mixed your samples. Record the time it takes
for the color to develop (start of the reaction).
7. Watch closely over several minutes
8. Observe the rates of reaction in the spectrometer app
8. We’ll compare this data to technique lab data (data will be attached)
