Visit the Science Daily website to choose a natural science–related news story published within the past six months on a topic of interest to you. Ensure the article meets the criteria provided in the Module One Activity Guidelines and Rubric.
Answer the following questions about your chosen scientific news story. Replace the bracketed text below with your responses.
Provide the title and link to your chosen news story so your instructor may locate it.
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Summarize the main idea of the news story you selected. This should only take 1–2 sentences.
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Briefly explain any prior knowledge and what you’d like to know more about regarding your selected news story.
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Discuss the value of the scientific research presented in your selected news story for contemporary society.
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SCI 100 Module One Activity Template: Topic Exploration
Visit the website Science Daily and choose a natural science–related news story published within the past six months. You will use this news story throughout this course to complete activities and project work. You can find a news story by browsing the articles on the homepage, or you can enter a keyword (such as “earthquakes,” “cancer,” or “black holes”) into the search bar.
To ensure your article is appropriately focused on the natural sciences and suited for this project, review the questions below. Please note that these questions are not the graded portion of the assignment. They are simply to help you choose an appropriate news story.
- Was your news story published within the last six months?
- Is your news story related to living organisms or systems of the natural world? This may include the following topics:
- zoology (the study of animals)
- botany (the study of plants)
- cellular biology (the study of the cell)
- anatomy (the study of body structures)
- geology (the study of the earth)
- meteorology (the study of the atmosphere, weather, and climate)oceanography
- oceanography (the study of oceans)
- astronomy (the study of the universe)
- geophysics (the physics of the earth)
- astrophysics (the physics of the universe)
- atmospheric (a branch of meteorology)
- biochemistry (the chemistry of life)
- geochemistry (the chemistry of geological systems)
- Does your news story report on conducting scientific research, mentioning elements of the scientific method such as hypotheses, observation, field research, experiments, lab research, computer modeling, or data collection?
After you find a story that interests you and meets the criteria above, answer the questions in the Module One Activity Template Word Document. Before proceeding further with the project, your instructor must approve the news story you identify on the activity template.
Specifically, you must address the following rubric criteria:
- Summarize the main idea in your selected news story.
- What is the primary focus or thesis of the article? Briefly summarize the major points presented in the article.
- Explain any prior knowledge and what you’d like to learn more about regarding your selected news story.
- What, if anything, do you already know about the subject of your chosen news story? What would you like to research to learn more?
- Discuss the value of the scientific research presented in your selected news story for contemporary society.
- Why do you think this research might matter to society? How might it benefit individuals, communities, and/or the world?