Signature Assignment

As part of a General Education course in Physical Science, a student is to demonstrate their knowledge and abilities in these learning outcomes:

Demonstrate understanding of science as a way of knowing about the physical world;
Demonstrate understanding of forces in the physical world;
Discuss the flow of matter and energy through systems (in large and small scales);
Develop evidence-based arguments regarding the effect of human activity on the Earth;
Describe how the Physical Sciences have been shaped by historical, ethical, and social events.

This assignment is designed to demonstrate your abilities in these areas.

Pick an area of physical science that interests you and relates science to something you interact with on a daily basis. Research this topic to the point that you can think of an experiment associated with it. Design and conduct a simple experiment associated with this topic. Create a 4-6 page report with the following sections:

1. Introduction of your topic and explanation of how it has impacted the world;

2. Explain the way in which this topic impacts the earth in regard to human activity;

3. Experimental section:

a. Explanation of your experiment,

b. Hypothesis before conducting the experiment,

c. Procedure (step by step explanation of what you did),

d. Results (include graphs and charts as needed),

e. Explanation of all forces that act in the system,

f. Explanation of how energy flows through the components of the system;

4. Conclusion including a description of how applying the principles scientific inquiry help us understand the physical world.

Please make sure that your report addresses the five GE outcomes above. Demonstrate your abilities! This should be an assignment that you'd like to keep (probably in an e-portfolio).

The text (not including title page, end notes, bibliography, diagrams, etc.) should be about 4–6 pages of 12 pt double-spaced type with 1” margins.

You should use at least two sources in addition to any encyclopedias. At least one of your sources must come from somewhere other than the internet/web, such as a paper journal or magazine. Your sources must be cited properly in the text and properly attributed in the bibliography (or Works Cited). Use a standard citation and bibliography format for your major. Links to an external site.

Begin your report with a title page (title, name, date, etc.). Include endnote references to your sources within your paper. List each endnote in the order that it first appears in the paper. Properly reference any data, information, or figure which comes from another work.

All drafts and submissions in this process should be typed, grammatically correct, spell-checked, and polished (i.e., the best you can do). The target audience is your classmates; therefore, don’t spend too much time covering background material PHYS 1010 students should already know.

There are various stages in this overall process; you will be graded on each piece. I’m available for consultation at each stage of the process.

1. Select your topic, tell my why it is appropriate and addresses the learning outcomes, and tell me why you chose that particular topic. This is due in Canvas on the date listed here.

2. Draft for peer review. You will have someone in our class review and critique your report. This draft should be polished–the best you can do on your own. This is due on paper in class on the date listed here.

3. Peer review of another’s paper. You will also be graded on your helpfulness to your classmate. Submit a page with the title and author of the paper you critique, as well as your own name. Address issues such as

What you like about the report,
Clarity, grammar, punctuation, spelling,
Is the topic too broad or too narrow, or too deep or too shallow?
Organization and flow
Is the science correct?
Are references and citations done completely and correctly?
Quality of the abstract, introduction, and conclusion

You may write directly on the draft of the paper as well (that is, mark it up). Be as helpful as you can. Turn your critique and the draft back in in class on for return to the author on the date listed here.

4. Final version. I will read and grade the final version. It should be the best paper you have ever written. Turn in the rough draft that was critiqued by your classmate and (including the critique from your classmate). The whole package is due in class on the date listed here.

Example: (THIS MAY NOT BE USED FOR YOUR ASSIGNMENT, CHOOSE A DIFFERENT TOPIC)

The effect of freezing water on erosion and breakup of structures is significant. One could examine historically the effects of freezing water. It has been found to break up sidewalks, crack huge granite rock formations, splinter trees, and so forth. After learning about the effects of water freezing, one could write a brief history in response to point number one above.

One could further explore how the effect of freezing water is altered or used by humans. This could include things such as the building or roads that erode due to ice in the winter or how building canals impacts the landscape. These interactions could then be formulated into an explanation for point two above.

A simple experiment could be designed associated with this. For instance, a person could place two objects such as two bricks in the freezer with a plastic bag of water between them. One could hypothesize that as the water freezes, it will expand and move the bricks. They could then devise an experiment with a number of variables such as pure water vs salt water or the amount of water in the baggies. After performing the experiments, they could create a graph illustrating the results. They would also explain the results in great detail in paragraph form.

Part e and f are critical to this assignment and could be addressed from the experiment. In this example, there are the forces associated with hydrogen bonding and the pushing of the bricks. If using salt water, there is also a conversation about the ion-dipole forces that could be explored. Finally, the exploration of energy flow is significant. Entergy would flow from the liquid water and be absorbed by the surroundings (the freezer) during the experiment. Other energy considerations include the cooling of the bricks and the slowing of molecular motion. All of this discussion would be part of point 3 above.

Finally, putting it all together in a conclusion is what science is all about. Blending the history, the human impact, the experiment, and one’s scientific knowledge, one could produce a conclusion the intertwines all of these areas.