COURSEWORK
ECEN 3070 – Edges of Science
Spring 2011
Class participation (20%)
Most of the course is discussion-based, and so
your participation is essential.
Reading the assigned material in advance is required.
Discussion Groups
In some of the class sessions at the beginning of
the semester students will be divided into thee groups: Advocates, Skeptics,
and Interrogators. Please regularly
check the course schedule to see which sessions are divided into these
groups.
Advocacy Arguments (30%)
Tight argument in favor of or against the
anomalous finding
á
Describe
main points that support your viewpoint (not a summary of the
experiment)
á
Include
specific arguments, not generalities
á
Be
quantitative where possible (p-value, effect size, number of studies,
etc.)
á
Be
concise; limit length to 1 page (1.5-line spaced typing) or less
á
Structure
argument in a coherent and effective way
á
Does
not have to reflect your own opinion
á
Should
leave the reader strongly convinced of your viewpoint
á
Note
the date of the reading
Based on assigned readings on days marked with a ¥, any additional material
you find and your own ideas
Forms the basis for the advocatesÕ in-class
arguments
At least five advocacy summaries due during
the semester
Final advocacy reports due on Apr 19. Please donÕt delay in turning in
reports.
Research Project
Please note that to carry out your research
project you may first complete the Human
Research Tutorial and receive certification. The you will need to submit a
description of your protocol and participant informed consent form
for review by the Institutional
Review Board (IRB). Templates for both are available here.
You will also want to fill out an expedited worksheet here.
The request can be short and to the point. Here is
an example (but the format is different) of the request and consent form. (Note
that our research is not considered Òclassroom research.Ó) Instructions
for submission are here,
and the documents should be submitted online here.
The type of review is most likely Òexpedited review.Ó Speak to me to determine
if this is required for your project.
There are several parts to this project:
1. Discussion in class about prjects (Jan 25), and your decision which project to
participate in (Feb 8).
2. Project proposal. Outline
or short description to be turned in (Feb 10). Only one needs to be
turned in per project group. Should include:
a. Title
b. Participants
c. Goal
d. Basic procedure (does not
require much detail at this point)
3. Carry out research. You
should start right after Feb 10, because you will encounter unexpected delays.
Research should be completed by Apr 21.
4. Project Analysis Paper.
One from each student – individual, not group, work (15%)
5. In-class update on
progress (Mar 31)
6. Class presentation.
Present the project results to the class during the last two weeks of the
semester.
7. Final report due May 3. (35%,
grade includes updates and class presentation)