Science Research Module

1. Science Research Module Getting Started Writing proposal

2. Topics • Introduction to experimental research • Writing proposal • Choosing a research topic • Hypothesis, objectives • Proposal Assessment Rubrics • Plagiarism • SOP for science project safety

3. Experimental Research Category (Cat#1) • Involves • formulation of hypothesis & objectives • Designing experiments to collect data • testing and analyzing the data obtained • Drawing a conclusion

4. Getting started – Crafting ideas, hypothesis, objectives Ideas/choosing a topic: • Ask questions • do your reading up (literature search) • find out what has been done • identify area/topic of interest • think of a question you want to answer • identify a problem you want to solve • Sources of ideas: books, magazines, journals (scholarly papers), online sources, people, HCI Projects Competition website

5. Sources of ideas • Science buddies website - http://www.sciencebuddies.org/ • All Science Fair Projects -http://www.all-science-fair-projects.com/category0.html • Cyber Fair -http://www.isd77.k12.mn.us/resources/cf/welcome.html • The WWW Virtual Library:Science Fairs - http://physics.usc.edu/%7Egould/ScienceFairs/ • Pubmed (scholarly papers) -http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/PubMed/ • Scirus -http://www.scirus.com/ • National student research center -http://youth.net/nsrc/sci/sci.index.html • HCI Library online resources -http://www.hwachong.edu.sg/ContentPage.asp?SID=8

6. Feasibility of ideas • Evaluate ideas: • Interest • Availability of materials/equipment/expertise • Availability of funds • Level of difficulty • Duration • Results obtainable?

7. Getting started – Crafting ideas,hypothesis, objectives Hypothesis: • A hypothesis is a possible explanation for something you have observed. • Turn your research questions into hypothesis (statement) Question: Do fruit peels contain anti-cancer compounds? Hypothesis: Fruit peel extract contain anti-cancer compounds • One hypothesisper project

8. Getting started – Crafting ideas, hypothesis,objectives Objectives • list what you will set out to do/measure to test your hypothesis • E.g. Question: Do fruit peels contain anti-cancer compounds? Hypothesis: Fruit peels contain anti-cancer compounds Objectives: • To prepare extracts from fruit peels • To screen fruit peel extracts for anti-tumour compounds • To identify anti-tumour compounds in the fruit extracts

9. Exercise • Question: Does chitin from crab shells have a greater ability to bind to fats? • Hypothesis: Chitin from crab shells has a greater ability to bind to fats. • Objectives: • To extract chitin from crab and prawn shells for comparison. • To compare the abilities of crab and prawn shells to bind to fats

10. Writing a proposal • Refer to rubrics • Sample proposal • Plagiarism

11. Plagiarism • Plagiarism is using other people's work, words, ideas without acknowledging. Includes copying the exact words and citing the author. • Do not plagiarise. • Paraphrase your readings • Summarise what you read in your own words • Keep the key words

12. SOP for projects safety • Students to fill in parents consent for lab work (submit today) • Mentors to assess nature of project if it involves the following: • Biohazard materials/organisms • Chemical hazards • Potentially hazardous devices/equipment • Apply for approval by Science Research Council (SRC, SSEF) after prelim judging (i/c – Mrs Goh Cheng Wai)

13. Projects involving potentially hazardous biological agents, substances or devices Projects not involving potentially hazardous biological agents, substances or devices Seek approval from SRC and external experts*** Proceed with experimentation External experts vet through protocols to ensure all safety requirements are met Can the project be carried out using the school’s resources? No Are there any available external resources ? Consult relevant project coordinators and technicians regarding safety & availability of resources Continued next page Proceed with experimentation Approval of research plan by teacher-mentor. Obtain parental consent for laboratory work. S O P Yes *** submit after prelim round for SSEF projects

14. No Are there any available external resources? Redesign the research or reject proposal Yes Teacher mentors approach the organisation individually or through Research Coordinators Can the external organization accommodate the request? No Redesign the research or reject proposal Yes Approve research plan, obtain parental consent & proceed to conduct research in external organization S O P

15. Risk Assessment All groups are required to do a risk assessment Attach form (signed by mentor) to proposal for submission Deadline for submission of proposal + form: 31 Mar 2011 Forms to be signed by mentor and submitted to Mdm Lim Cheng Fui (Senior Lab Manager, Science Research Centre@HCI) if you want to start lab work before 31 Mar 2011

16. Questions?

17. References • Knisely Karin (2005) A student handbook for writing in Biology, 2nd Edition. W.H. Freeman and Company. [574 Kni] • Discovery school website (2006) Science Fair Studio. Available: http://school.discovery.com/sciencefaircentral/scifairstudio/handbook/scientificmethod.html [last accessed 30 Dec 06] • VanCleave, Janice (1997) Guide to the Best Science Fair Projects. John Wiley & Sons, Inc. • Wedgwood, Marilyn (1987) Tackling Biology Projects. Macmillian Education Limited.[570 Wed]