Undergraduate Research in Biology

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The award provides funds to the Natural Science Division at Pepperdine University to enhance an already active program of undergraduate research in biology by teaching students the common elements of the research process and increasing their appreciation for the diversity of biological subdisciplines. In addition, the program provides a mechanism whereby students from traditionally underrepresented groups in science will have the opportunity to experience biological research. The program will begin in the summer with a 6-day research orientation workshop at the Murchison Science Center during which students will be introduced to the uses and limitations of specific research tools and techniques and immersed in the research process (literature review, hypothesis formulation, and hypothesis testing). After the orientation workshop, students will pursue individual research projects under the direction of faculty in either ecology, cellular biochemistry, or neurobiology. All research projects will be designed to provide students with insight into how scientists formulate research questions, design experiments, collect and analyze data, and communicate their results to the scientific community. Over the course of the summer, visiting scientists will hold special research seminars in each research area, giving students an opportunity to discuss their own data with other scientists. Each research group will hold weekly literature seminars to discuss current journal articles pertaining to their research interests. The program will conclude with a student research symposium in early August.