We have developed a course-based undergraduate research experience (CURE) that can be carried out in the context of an existing second-semester or upper-level organic laboratory course. In this three-week laboratory module, students synthesize a small library of molecules, test them in a robust biological assay, and design a new compound library…

The interest to connect results of neuroscientific research to educational contexts has increasingly grown in recent years. Actors from neuroscience and education show the explicit intention to approach each other. Still, issues and debates exist in the relation between them. This paper aims to bring to the fore one such specific issue that is not…

Although most instructors and institutions agree on its value, undergraduate research remains an underutilized pedagogical tool because it requires ample time, funding, and equipment. Various institutions feel these pressures differently, but for many small institutions, lack of laboratory equipment and financial support can hinder undergraduate…

This article presents some simple calculations related to the Future Circular Collider (FCC), which is being studied at CERN as a potential future replacement for the world's largest particle accelerator, the Large Hadron Collider (LHC). The aim of this article is to bring particle physics into secondary school classrooms using the physics of the…

At our small liberal arts college, we require undergraduates majoring in Biology and Biomedical Sciences to take a seminar in the spring of their senior year. Each year, the seminar focuses on a different topic in molecular biology and/or biochemistry. The course operates as a "journal club"--every week, a student presents a…

The origin of life is one of the most interesting and challenging questions in biology. This article discusses relevant contemporary theories and hypotheses about the origin of life, recent scientific evidence supporting them, and the main contributions of several scientists of different nationalities and specialties in different disciplines. Also…

Advancing equity and justice in undergraduate biology education requires research to address the experiences of disabled students. Scholars working in disability studies have developed models of disability that inform Discipline-Based Education Research (DBER). To date, DBER literature has been predominantly informed by the medical and social…

This article reports on a case study from a larger project exploring ways in which online citizen science projects can enhance students' learning in science and in digital technology. In this case, two teachers integrated the digital technology curriculum with the science capability "interpreting representations" using the engaging…

The Wright brothers, Wilbur and Orville, are often depicted as lone geniuses, secretly assembling the first successful powered aircraft far from civilization at Kitty Hawk on the Outer Banks of North Carolina. There is a germ of truth in the popular story, but only a germ. The brothers succeeded while so many other experimenters failed not because…

Scientific research provides a reliable means for developing and accumulating knowledge bases to guide policy and practice. However, evidence from meta-research and large-scale replication projects suggests that the published research base likely reflects bias, which threatens the validity and credibility of research-based recommendations.…

According to the Next Generation Science Standards, three-dimensional teaching challenges educators to adopt an inquiry approach through science and engineering practices aligned with disciplinary core ideas and crosscutting concepts. Few teachers today feel confident in their ability to orchestrate such lessons. Teaching inquiry science takes…

Teaching chemistry and biology students about biologics design remains challenging despite its increasing importance in pharmaceutical development. Monoclonal antibodies, commonly called mAbs, are the most popular biologics. They have been developed into drugs to treat various diseases in the past decades. Multiple challenges exist for designing…

This paper discusses adapting Churches' approach to large-scale teacher/researcher conceptual replications of major "science of learning" findings, to increase teachers' engagement with empirical research on, and building research networks for, gathering data on the science of learning. The project here demonstrated the feasibility of…

Research indicating many study results do not replicate has raised questions about the credibility of science and prompted concerns about a potential reproducibility crisis. Moreover, most published research is not freely accessible, which limits the potential impact of science. Open science, which aims to make the research process more open and…

With the global increase of infections caused by antibiotic-resistant bacterial strains, there is an urgent need for new methods of tackling the issue. Genomic analysis of bacterial strains can help to understand their virulence and antibiotic resistance profile. Bioinformatic skills are in great demand across the biological sciences. We designed…