In this paper, we describe a two-week learning module where students tested the role of the "fruitless" gene on aggression and courtship in "Drosophila melanogaster" via team-based learning (TBL) strategies. The purpose of this module was to determine if TBL could be used in the future as a platform to implement the course…

Lactone-size identification of [subscript D]-ribonolactone derivatives has been debated for four decades due to complex lactone-ring rearrangements and acetal migration. This laboratory experiment for an upper-division undergraduate organic chemistry laboratory course describes a fast and reliable assignment of lactone-size derivatives from…

The definition of the kilogram, the unit of mass in the International System of Units (SI), has not changed in more than 125 years. The kilogram is still defined by the mass of a Pt-Ir cylinder conserved at the International Bureau of Weights and Measures. Science and technology have progressed to the point where it is likely the kilogram will be…

To provide a research-like experience to upper-division undergraduate students in a biochemistry teaching laboratory, isothermal titration calorimetry (ITC) is employed to determine the binding constants of lysozyme and its inhibitors, N-acetyl glucosamine trimer (NAG[subscript 3]) and monomer (NAG). The extremely weak binding of lysozyme/NAG is…

Inquiry-based learning (IBL) activities are complementary to the processes of laboratory discovery, as both are focused on producing new findings through research and inquiry. Here, we describe the results of student surveys taken pre- and postpractical to an IBL undergraduate practical on PCR. Our analysis focuses primarily student perceptions of…

Conducting experiments in physics using modern measuring techniques, and particularly those utilizing computers, is often much more attractive to students than conducting experiments conventionally. However, the cost of professional kits in the Czech Republic is still very expensive for many schools. The basic equipment for one student workplace…

A laboratory experiment is described in which a simple characterization of a historical lime mortar is made by the determination of its approximate composition by a gravimetric method. Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy and X-ray diffraction (XRD) are also used for the qualitative characterization of the lime mortar components. These…

The aim of this simple, quick, and safe laboratory exercise is to provide undergraduate students an introduction to nanotechnology using nanoparticle (NP) synthesis. Students are provided two procedures that allow for the synthesis of different yet controlled sizes of silver NPs. After preparing the NPs, the students perform UV-visible…

This advanced undergraduate laboratory experiment involves the synthesis and characterization of a metal-organic framework with microporous channels that are held intact via hydrogen bonding of the coordinated water molecules. The hydrothermal synthesis of Co[subscript 3](BTC)[subscript 2]·12H[subscript 2]O (BTC = 1,3,5-benzene tricarboxylic acid)…

A rapid separation of three photosynthetic pigments (chlorophyll "a" and "b" and xanthophyll) from fern ("Polystichum acrostichoides") is described using microscale solvent extraction and traditional thin layer chromatography that minimizes use of harmful chemicals and lengthy procedures. The experiment introduces…

What trajectory in the laboratory frame does a marble follow if it is held inside a freely rotating pipe and then suddenly released so that it can slide frictionlessly outward along the pipe? A previously published solution is only valid for a pipe of small moment of inertia (so that it is either low in mass or short in length).

Administrative experiments are increasingly available for public programs with high-quality administrative data to identify what changes make programs and services more effective. Program administrators can run short-term experiments to test improvements in programs and have causally valid impact estimates within a year. Administrative experiments…

Recently the handsome little galvanometer (only 10 cm high) in Fig. 1 came into the Greenslade Collection. This is a design without a moving coil and, consequently, is very rugged. At the same time, John Daffron independently sent Tom Greenslade the picture of a similar galvanometer that he had made some years back and has been using for…

This research asks whether analogical processing ability is present in human infants, using the simplest and most basic relation--the "same-different" relation. Experiment 1 (N = 26) tested whether 7- and 9-month-olds spontaneously detect and generalize these relations from a single example, as previous research has suggested. The…

Over the last decade, there has been much excitement about the use of optogenetic tools to test whether specific cells, regions, and projection pathways are necessary or sufficient for initiating, sustaining, or altering behavior. However, the use of such tools can result in side effects that can complicate experimental design or interpretation.…