PrinciplePractice in Biology

3 Credits · Level: Undergraduate

This is a hands-on, research-intensive course in which students undertake an authentic research project as part of a scientific team. The project focuses on the study of microbial communities (e.g., fungi and bacteria), specifically those living on or around grapes at a local vineyard. We begin by discussing the typical sorts of questions that are asked in this line of research and teaching students how to access and evaluate the relevant scientific literature. The students in the course function as a research team, defining their research questions and working collaboratively in conducting, analyzing, and sharing their research. Basic principles of ecology, molecular biology, and microbiology are taught alongside the analyses and experiments the students do in the pursuit of answers to their questions. We tour these various disciplines not only to provide a broad introduction to the life sciences but also because it is necessary to meet the challenge of these sorts of studies—namely, that to understand a community of organisms requires numerous approaches, and, further, that there is not just a single way to understand a community.