Addition of Investigative Labs and Modern Data Acquisition to Physiology Labs at All Levels of the Curriculum

生物学专业的毕业生必须非常熟悉生物学调查的过程和内容。他们应该能够整合信息并使用多层次的分析。此外，他们应该熟悉使用各种数据采集工具。具有科学素养的非专业学生还必须了解科学调查的过程，以及基本概念。该项目正在加强各级生物课程的生理学调查实验室。此外，由于大多数生物实验室强调数据收集，而分析是由学生个人完成的，因此正在融入现代数据采集和分析技术，以促进课堂上的分析。学生是自己学习的积极参与者，并参与实验设计和执行的方方面面，包括假设生成、实验设计、使用现代设备收集和分析数据以及以各种形式呈现结果。在生物学导论、比较生理学和非主修人类生理学三门课程中，将增加或加强两个调查实验室。在高级神经生物学课程中，实验室正在进行彻底重组，包括三个半调查性实验室，其中包括神经生物学的基本概念，然后是一个更长的以探究为基础的项目。通过加强各级课程的课程，该部门正在帮助学生培养更好的批判性思维技能，以及理解科学的过程和每个级别的基本概念。此外，很大一部分选修生物的学生正在接触到更现实的科学，更多以发现为导向的实验室，以及更现代的科学设备。

Students graduating in biology must be intimately familiar with both the process and content of biological investigations. They should be able to integrate information and use multiple levels of analysis. In addition, they should be comfortable using a variety of data acquisition tools. Scientifically literate non-majors must also understand the process of scientific investigations, as well as fundamental concepts. This project is enhancing the investigative laboratories in physiology at all levels of the biology curriculum. Additionally, because most biology laboratories emphasize data collection while analysis is done individually by the students, modern data acquisition and analysis techniques are being incorporate that promote analysis in class. Students are active participants in their own learning, and are involved in all aspects of the experimental design and execution, including hypothesis generation, experimental design, data collection and analysis using modern equipment, and presentation of results in a variety of formats. In three courses, Introductory Biology, Comparative Physiology, and the Human Physiology course for non-majors, two investigative laboratories are being added or enhanced. In the upper-level neurobiology course, the laboratory is being entirely restructured to include three semi-investigative laboratories ion fundamental concepts in neurobiology, followed by a longer inquiry-based project. By enhancing courses at all levels of the curriculum, the department is helping develop students better critical-thinking skills as well as understanding the process of science and the fundamental concepts of each level. In addition, a large proportion of the students taking biology are being exposed to more realistic science, more discovery-oriented laboratories, and more modern scientific equipment.