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…

Undergraduate research experiences are valuable, yet can be difficult for students to obtain. Working on open-ended research questions enables students to develop problem-solving skills, increase communication skills, enhance critical thinking, and help define career goals. Unfortunately, some students are unable to find positions in research…

Learning to read and understand research articles (primary literature) is an important step in the enculturation of higher education students into the scientific community. We presume, based on ideas from the field of genre analysis, that it is important for the development of reading skills to become conscious of the rhetorical structures in…

Reviews the pros and cons of using animals or alternatives in scientific research. Such alternatives (as indicated in congressional bill HR 556) include mathematical models, isolated organs, tissue and cell cultures, computer simulations, mechanical models, and "lower" organisms among others. (SK)

The National Academy of Sciences suggests models for biomedical research which include a biology-wide information system with computerized database accessible from a multitude of dimensions. Links could help discover whether toxic chemicals have effects similar to hormones. Commonalities from molecules to ecosystems might restructure available…

Describes an undergraduate research program in biomedical engineering at the State University of New York at Buffalo. Includes goals and faculty comments on the program. Indicates that 58 percent of projects conducted between 1976 and 1980 have been presented at meetings or published. (SK)

Describes an undergraduate research program for minority students. The program and eight objectives of the first course of the program, "Introduction to Research," are presented. Some strengths and weaknesses of the course are considered. (YP)