First Day Introduction to Biology Lab 1

Are you in the right class?

1. This is bio 1081L – 1^st semester, biology (science) majors lab.
2. There are prereqs: HS Bio, Chem, Math and you should have taken or be currently taking the corresponding 1081 lecture.
3. Again, this class is for science majors, including biology, pre-pharmacy, pre-medical, pre-veterinary medicine, secondary education planning to teach biology, etc.
4. We offer other entry-level, freshman biology courses for people who are elementary education, nursing, and non-science secondary education majors, etc. If in doubt, contact your advisor

Who is your instructor and how can you make contact?

1. My name is Janet Stein Carter.
2. I have an M.S. in Entomology. I do not have a Ph.D.
3. I have been teaching here at Clermont since 1988.
4. I am currently an emeritus faculty member, and am only teaching one or two course(s) per semester.
5. Because of that, I am not here at school a lot. Thus, your best chance of talking with me in person will be before (or after?) our lab time.
6. If you are looking for me, and don’t see me in the lab area, try the McD office area, #215-L.
7. You may also contact me via e-mail at Janet.Carter@uc.edu.

The first things on the schedule:

The first thing we will do is to take attendance and assign seat numbers.
1. Our microscopes, balances, some glassware, etc. are numbered to correspond to seat numbers.
2. I keep track of grades (notebooks, tests, etc.) by seat number.
3. Please make sure I have your e-mail address.
If you don’t already have them out, please get out your graph-ruled comp book and waterproof pen so you can take notes. All notes taken in this class must be taken in that comp book, as that is now your lab notebook. For now, turn to page 4 in your lab notebook, and start taking notes there.

Almost all course materials are online.

Here’s how to find them.
1. Go to the Clermont Biology Web Site at http://biologyclermont.info/
2. Click on the link that says, “Courses.”
3. Click on the link for the desired course (in this case, “Lab 1”), and that should open a new window with links to the course materials for that course.
4. If you are using any browser except Internet Explorer, those links will show up as a “navigation bar” – a row of “buttons” at the top of the page. If you are using IE, you will, instead, see a long list of links at the top of each page, and you must scroll down, below that list, to view the body of each page.
5. The protocol book for the course must be printed out from the course Web site, as explained on that Web page. Also, you will need to print the Maple Tapping protocol and Safety Agreement listed under that button.
Other things you will need to obtain include
1. A 10 × 7⅞ graph-ruled (make sure it’s graph ruled, and not just lines) comp book (available in the bookstore, but may be cheaper at one of the local office supply stores) This will be needed for the very first class. If you choose to purchase a comp book at one of the local stores rather than the bookstore, please be aware that the “NorCom” brand sold at Walmart is NOT suitable because the ink they use to print the blue lines on the pages is not waterproof and will run if the page gets wet.
2. A black, waterproof, solvent-proof pen (again, from bookstore or local office supply store) — will also be needed for the very first class. When in the lab room, you may test for suitablity by scribbling on a scrap of paper, then squirting some 95% ethanol on it.
3. Due to new safety regulations, you will need to purchase a pair of goggles by the next class period (if you do not already have a pair that you had to purchase for chemistry lab) and bring those with you to every class. We may not need to wear them for every lab or for all of a particular lab, but the new safety regulations say you must have them with you.
4. It is highly recommended that you bring a calculator with you, in case that is needed. Many of the labs require that calculations be done based on the data you have gathered. Note that some students choose to use the calculator on their cell phones, and while that might be OK for “regular” labs, use of cell phones during a test is not acceptable.

Setting up your lab notebook:

The main activity for today is to get your lab notebook set up for use.
1. Get out your graph-ruled comp book and waterproof pen.
2. There is a “slide show” on the course Web site. We will be following that (right now) to set up your lab notebooks. For those of you who do not, yet, have your notebook, get one as soon as possible, then visit this Web page on your own as you set up your book. That will help you to get it all done the right way.
3. Once your book is set up, go to page 4 to start taking notes, today.
Other things you will, then, need to do on your own include
1. Please read through the further instructions on lab notebook illustrations and instructions on graph construction.
2. Print a copy of the protocol book, and have it bound (as explained in the slide show). This is an Adobe Acrobat .pdf file. Note in the course schedule, the due date (1½ weeks from now) by which this must be done. Please include the Maple and Safety protocols which you’ll need to print, separately. Some students have found it easier to print all the pages at home, cut them, then take them to be bound, while other students have preferred to just go to a local office supply store and have them print and cut the pages, as well as bind them. From what past students who have chosen to do it that way have told me, having the store print the pages does not drastically increase the price vs. just having it bound — it sounds like it’s in the vicinity of $5 to 7-ish either way.
3. Explore the rest of the course materials available on the course Web site, and become familiar with what’s there and how to find it, again, when needed.

Some comments on the syllabus and schedule:

Both the syllabus and the schedule are available online in HTML format and as part of the protocol book. For printing as a reference, use the copies in the protocol book. The HTML versions are designed for online viewing only, and won’t print out as well, but do include a lot of information and photographs than it is practical to put into the protocol book. You will need to read through both of them prior to coming to class.
1. Syllabus
   1. Other, optional course materials which are listed include
      1. Various field guides – especially those for trees and wildflowers – a variety of these are available in the bookstore, so choose those of most interest/use to you.
      2. Related to that, there is an online checklist of organisms seen on campus and a wildflower game available from the course Web site.
      3. The book listed there on writing about Biology and/or one of the wordstem books to look up English translations of the various wordstems used.
   2. Grades
      1. You may have had professors (or high-school teachers) in other classes who gave everyone except a few people As and maybe a couple Bs, but that’s not the case in majors’ biology lab. Here, if you want a good grade, you will have to work hard for it.
      2. Probably, back in high school, all of you were at the top of your biology classes, and all the non-science majors who didn’t care about the grades they got in biology were “bringing up the rear.” Here, all “those people” have dropped out of the picture, and you’re in a class with other science majors like you, not non-majors, so it’s not going to be an “easy A.”
      3. Refer to the online explanation of how I calculate grades.
      4. Because I do grade on a curve, please be aware that the curve will change, slightly, if someone hands something in late, and their points are figured in. That person will have 10% per lab period deducted, but the score (s)he would have received will be entered into the calculation of the curve. I base the curve on a statistical analysis of the class mean and standard deviation, so if everyone gets close to the same score on one particular assignment, that’s where the average will be, even if it is a “good” score. However, by the end of the semester when people’s scores are spread out, this curve has always been to students’ benefits.
      5. Please do not cheat. Earn your grades honestly by studying hard. The point of this course and the grades you get here is not so you can “get into” to pharmacy school or wherever, but so you’ll learn and have the knowledge to survive if you do get in. (Would you trust and want to use the services of a pharmacist or doctor if you knew (s)he cheated his/her way through college rather than learning what (s)he needs to know to help you?)
      6. If you feel like you’re struggling (or even if you aren’t), I’m here to help, so ask questions. (One of my first questions to you will probably be something like, “How much time are you spending on this class?”) Also, check out the Learning Center. They have free tutoring, study sessions, and all sorts of other assistance to help you to succeed in your classes. According to statistics I’ve seen, even good students (especially the good students) seek help from TLC so they can be even better students.
      7. Despite everyone’s dreams and good intentions, real life doesn’t always go the way you’ve planned. College of Pharmacy only accepts a couple students from Clermont each year, and there are often a number of very disappointed students who didn’t get in. Thus, each and every one of you should start thinking now about, “What’s ‘Plan B’?”
   3. Tests and quizzes
      1. Refer to the online examples of test format.
      2. There may possibly be pop quizzes at the beginning of lab to make sure you have read the protocol and corresponding Web page before coming to class, and to make sure you know what you're doing.
      3. There is also the possibility of end-of-lab pop quizzes, especially if a lot of people start rushing through labs, are not focused on what they’re doing, and are leaving early.
      4. As stated in the syllabus, pop-quizzes and field-hike quizzes cannot be made up if you miss one of them.
      5. Larger, midterm tests and the final will cover material from all lab exercises in the time period under consideration. “I missed class that day,” is not a valid excuse for adjusting points missed on questions that cover that lab.
      6. If you do need to miss a lab, you should ask a classmate for a copy of his/her notes. HOWEVER, if you are using someone else’s work, give credit to that person, and do not plagiarize his/her work!!! Similarly, if there is some assignment where you work together with a classmate to complete that assignment (in most cases, that is NOT encouraged), you must state that in your notebook or, again, that would be plagiarism, and an appropriate number of points will be deducted.
2. Schedule and Dress Code
   1. While every effort will be made to stick to the published schedule, that is weather-dependent. Thus if, for example, it is raining on a day a hike is scheduled, that hike may be swapped with the next indoor lab activity. Thus, the actual schedule may end up varying, somewhat, from the published schedule. That is especially true during winter semester when snow days often necessitate changes to the schedule. Also, a few of the labs we have scheduled may still be a bit “up in the air” due to the new safety regulations, so there is a slight possibility that some adjustments may need to be made due to those new regulations.
   2. To avoid confusion, tests, quizzes, and other due dates will remain on the published dates unless an announcement of a change is specifically made ahead of time.
   3. Please remember to wear (or bring and change into) clothing that is suitable and appropriate for the scheduled lab activity for that day. The new safety regulations are emphatic that your legs, ankles and feet must be covered. Shoes must have a solid covering over/around your toes and tops of your feet, and must have a back on them to hold your foot in and protect your heel from injuries. Long pants should be accompanied by socks to cover your ankles. Long skirts are OK if accompanied by tights or socks (knee-highs) to cover your lower legs and ankles, but make sure your skirt is not so long that it becomes a trip hazard. Ladies, especially, but gentlemen, too, take note that the safety regulations also require that your chest/bosom, your midriff, and (it should be obvious) your buttocks must be covered by clothing. “Plumber’s butt” is not allowed. These regulations apply to each and every lab class, no matter what activity is scheduled, and if you are dressed inappropriately, you will be asked to leave class (and thus, will miss valuable information you need to know for the next test).
   4. Note on the schedule that for a number of the labs, you are invited to bring certain, specified items to test. Learning some of the lab procedures on which we will focus is more “fun” if applied to items/substances in which you are particularly interested.

Preparing for class:

You are expected to be prepared for class and know what’s going on and what you will be doing BEFORE you arrive. To that end, it is expected that when you arrive,
1. You will have read and will be familiar with the material presented in the written protocol for that lab exercise.
2. You will have read and will be familiar with the contents of the corresponding introductory Web page for each lab. Note that, to aid you in understanding what we will be doing, a few of these Web pages contain QuickTime movies, and you are encouraged to also view these movies.
3. Again, to help stimulate your interest in being prepared for class, there is the possibility of a surprise, pre-lab, pop quiz based on the material presented in the protocol and Web page.
4. For some of the lab exercises, after you perform the lab, you will need to enter your personal data online (or if working in a group, one person from the group will need to enter the group’s data), so that all of the class data can be collected. Then, after allowing a reasonable time for everyone to enter their data, you should go back to the Web site to print out a copy of the class data, then put that into your lab notebook.

Here’s what you can expect:

For many of you, this is the first lab course you will be taking in your college career. Here’s what you can expect to do in this course:
1. Lab courses are designed to provide you with a series of hands-on investigations that will enable you, on your own, to discover the scientific principles involved.
2. As mentioned, above, there will still be some reading, involved, but labs are doing courses, and the reading, etc. will only be the prelude to YOU doing things and/or YOU documenting things afterwards. The central focus will be on you doing things.
1. In order to perform the experiment safely, correctly, and efficiently, as mentioned above, PRIOR TO EACH LAB you will need to read and be familiar with the protocol and Web page for that lab. One suggestion from a former student was to, whenever possible, based on the explanation on the related Web page and protocol, create/set-up data-collection charts in your lab notebook prior to coming to lab so that you don’t have to do that while you are trying to collect your data.
2. You will need to listen to and take notes on your instructor’s background comments and instructions and pay close attention to any demonstrations of skills and techniques.
3. You, personally, will need to physically perform the necessary steps in the lab, gather the appropriate data, and correctly perform the required calculations. While much of this will occur during the actual lab time, since the length of our lab time was drastically reduced when we switched to semesters, there may be times when you will need to finish something at home. As a related note, increasing numbers of students have found it useful to use a cell phone or a point-and-shoot camera to photograph lab specimens as another “study tool.” However, if we’re using toxic or caustic chemicals or pathogenic bacteria, that would not be a good time to have that kind of equipment nearby, and is prohibited in the new safety regulations.
4. Just going through the actions is not enough. You are here to learn from doing, not just do it. You are to use the techniques learned to get at/investigate the underlying principles and concepts. Thus, you will need to set aside time to think about and analyze your experiment and draw conclusions based on the data you have collected. Written documentation of this will be included in your lab notebook.
5. Any/all of these will serve as possible test material: information in handouts and Web pages, techniques and skills learned, and underlying principles and understanding of what the gathered data show.
3. Thus, while some of your out-of-class study time will be devoted to reading, you will also need to spend some time performing writing/documentation/record keeping, as well as thinking, and perhaps physical manipulation typical for a lab course. Much of your time will probably be spent in the mentally relatively “easy” task of keeping your lab notebook up to date.

Expected time commitment:

1. Nationwide/worldwide, it is a “given” that college students are expected to put in an average of 2 hr/wk out of class for every hour in class. Thus for this class, if you count it as one credit hour, that’s 2 hr/wk out of class, and if you count it as three actual hours in class, that’s about 6 hr/wk out of class. Thus, to do well in this class, you’ll probably need to spend somewhere in that range of time.
2. Note that for a student taking 12 credit hours per semester, including this lab, that comes to around 24 to 28 hr/wk IN ADDITION TO the time spent in classes, thus approximately totalling the equivalent of a 40 hr work week!
3. More information to help you think through your time committment can be found on the How to Succeed Web page and corresponding pages in your protocol book.

Lab Safety Information:

A copy of the recently-adopted safety regulations has been placed among the online course materials, and you are required to read and become familiar with those regulations.

1. The kitchen area is not an area for students to wander through unsupervised. You may only be back there with a reason and permission. Other projects may be in progress.
   1. We will do some food-related labs in there.
   2. The emergency phone is in there, by Nick’s desk.
   3. The kitchen is a “clean” area, and no “chemicals” or pathogenic bacteria are allowed to be brought into the kitchen area.
2. In general, if you use common sense, know what you’re doing, and are awake, alert, and paying attention, science labs can be very safe, but if you’re goofing around, distracted, or doing something you’re not suppose to be, working in a lab can be very dangerous.
1. Students are not permitted in the Biology lab area unless lab personnel are present to supervise.
2. Please do not mess with anything in the lab area unless you have been given permission/instructions to do so.
3. The drawers in front of you are off limits until your instructor tells you that you need to use something in there, and then only the thing(s) you need. Many of the items stored in those drawers are used for other courses. These drawers and the microscope cabinets are NOT for garbage! These drawers are not receptacles for doodling and graffiti.
3. Again, the new safety regulations state that you must purchase your own goggles by the second class period and bring them with you to each class (whether we end up using them or not). Gloves are available, and will be required for some labs. We will not need them for many of the labs we will be performing. For a few of the labs, you may choose to wear them at your discrection. You should be conservative with your use of gloves, but also use common sense in terms of keeping yourself safe. If a glove tears and needs to be replaced, do so, and if a glove becomes contaminated, by all means, replace it, but please try to not “waste” gloves by changing them more often than is needed. Do not try to wash and save gloves.
4. As mentioned above, much of our equipment is numbered to correspond to your seat number and if we are using numbered equipment, you should use the appropriate number.
5. We have segregated garbage. Regular trash may be placed in the gray trash can, broken glass should be (carefully) placed in the designated broken glass box, any bacteria, body fluids, animal parts, etc., should be place in the red biohazard box/bag, and sharps should be placed in the designated sharps container. Think before you pitch it — are you putting it in the proper location? No trash is to be left in the drawer at your desk, the microscope cabinet, the sinks/drains, on your tabletops, or the floor. “Your mother doesn’t work here” and it is a violation of the new safety regulations if you walk out of here, abandoning dirty/used glassware that you haven’t cleaned and/or leaving your garbage in an inappropriate location.
6. Note the locations of showers, eyewashes, the emergency gas-shutoff button, fire extinguishers, and closest telephone. These are not toys, but to be used in an emergency. We had an incident in one of the labs that required the use of a fire extinguisher, and approximately “only” 2 lb out of the 17 that the fire extinguisher contained had to be released, and that resulted in so much hazardous dust that the whole lab area had to be closed off for several days while Haz-Mat people were cleaning it all up. It is highly recommended that you draw a map in your lab notebook (which way is NORTH?) and indicate the locations of these safety features.
7. As time allows in between lab activities, familiarize yourself with the fire, tornado, etc., safety information posted on the bulletin board.
8. In case of a fire alarm, go out the lab door (last one out, shut the door), past the display case, through the blue door, down the stairs, and outside at a safe distance from the building. Keep together as a class, and follow any instructions given by officials. Do not use the elevator. People who cannot use the stairs are to go to the designated “rescue” area, instead.
9. By federal law, we have MSDS sheets available for our chemicals. These are centrally located in the kitchen area. If you need to see one, let the lab staff (Nick or Fannie) or your instructor know.
10. No food/drinks are allowed in the lab room, and according to the new safety regulations, that even includes closed containers hidden in your backpack and chewing gum. The microbiology students work with E. coli, MRSA, Salmonella, etc. in this room, and the A&P students dissect their cats on these desks. Thus, it has been suggested that you may wish to wipe your desktop with 70% alcohol when you arrive. You should also check for lit Bunsen burners or other potential safety hazards left by the previous class. You may bring a bottle of water with you when we go on a hike, but according to the new safety regulations, even if closed, it must remain out of the lab area. If you have problems with diabetes, hypoglycemia, etc., and must eat something immediately, eating out in the hallway is an option or perhaps, with permission from the lab staff, you might be allowed to eat in the kitchen area on an emergency basis. There are a few of our lab exercises that involve working with food, and for those labs, we will work in the kitchen area.
11. No smoking is permitted during lab, both during indoor lab experiments and while we are out on hikes. You never know who else in the class may be allergic to tobacco smoke, nor which direction the wind may carry your smoke, so it is important to not “force” them to inhale your smoke while we’re out on a hike. Please be considerate. (Clermont is moving toward becoming a totally tobacco-free campus, anyway.)
12. As mentioned above, you are required to wear closed-toe, closed-back shoes or boots (adequately-sturdy and unable to accidentally slip off), have your legs covered (long pants), and make sure your midriff, chest, ankles, and buttocks are covered. One more reminder: if you are not properly dressed, you will be told to leave. Ladies, use common sense: while spike heels are not expressly prohibited by the safety regulations, it would very unwise to wear them in a lab or hike situation. The possibility of falling and twisting an ankle is bad enough — doing so while carrying, say, a beaker of acid or a flask of bacteria is even worse. Make sure when we are working with Bunsen burners that baggy sleeves, etc. are removed or safely bound up, ball caps are removed or turned backwards, and long hair is pulled back in a rubberband. Also, dangling scarves, jewelry, jacket ties, etc. all need to be removed or secured in such a way that they cannot dangle/drop into a flame. It is suggested that you wear clothes made of natural fibers, as those, if ignited, tend to smolder, and bits may drop off. Conversely, synthetic fibers tend to melt/stick onto your skin as they burn, thus causing more serious burns on your skin. (. . . And anyway, natural fibers will keep you warmer in winter and cooler in summer with less body odor.)
13. Similar to airline requirements, please store your backpacks, especially all the straps and buckles, under your desk or in one of the blue lockers near the door while you are in lab. Do not place backpacks out in the aisles – keep the aisles clear for people to walk past. Also, keep the secondary aisles behind your chair clear for people who need to get from one side of the room to the other.
14. Here are a number of other things that are listed in the new safety regulations (some of which were mentioned, above):
    1. Read the printed protocol and Web page for each lab before you arrive, so you know what you will be doing.
    2. No food, drinks, or application of make-up is/are allowed.
    3. If there is a chemical spill or broken glassware, you need to notify your instructor and/or lab staff.
    4. You are encouraged to volunteer any information about any medical condition that you feel it is important for your instructor or the lab staff to be aware of and that they should be prepared to deal with. Any instructions on how to be of help in an emergency and emergency contact information would also be helpful.
    5. Nothing is to be left blocking the aisles. Whatever won’t fit under your desk should be placed in one of the blue lockers.
    6. You must clean up after yourself. You cannot just leave and abandon your mess for others. Before you leave the room, you must make sure your desktop is totally clean, that all of your glassware has been washed and placed in/on one of the drying racks, and that all of your trash has been properly disposed of. If you have been working at the side counter (for example, when using a pH meter), you must also clean there, too — don’t leave puddles of mystery liquid for others. Do not leave glassware, pieces of experimental specimens, etc. in the sinks — put them in the proper locations.
    7. While, as mentioned above, students often use calculators, tablets/small laptops, cell phones (as calculators or cameras), point-n-shoot cameras, etc., during lab, be aware that officially, the new safety regulations say that “electronic equipment” is prohibited. Definitely, cell phones are not to be used to make/receive phone calls or text messages during lab, and the ringer should be turned off. If you bring one of these devices into the lab room, you must utilize extreme common sense and care. Having one of these devices around chemicals – even non-toxic but sticky chemicals such as a sugar solution, or electrically-conductive chemicals such as a salt solution or around bacteria would be a very unwise thing to do.
    8. Another reminder: you need to know where all the safety features are. A map of the lab room, drawn in your notebook and with those indicated would be a good way to remember their locations.
    9. Any injuries that occur necessitate filling out an official “incident report.”
    10. Broken glass should not be picked up with your hands. Rather, a broom and dustpan should be used to sweep it up (check around to get as many of the little slivers as possible). It should be disposed of in the broken glass box, not the trash. Make sure your instructor or the lab staff are made aware of the breakage.
    11. You are allowed in the lab room only when your instructor or lab staff are present. You are only allowed in the kitchen when permission has been granted, and again, under supervision. No “chemicals” or bacteria are permitted in the kitchen (don’t go wandering in there with a petri dish in your hand).
    12. Note that, when we actually use Bunsen burners, we will talk more about burner safety, and when we do blood typing, we will talk more about blood and needle/sharps safety. Since people in other classes may accidentally leave a Bunsen burner lit, get in the habit, at the beginning and end of class, of scanning the perimeter to check for lit burners (perhaps as you clean your desktop and the side counters).
    13. The new safety regulations include a student agreement. You are required to read and sign two copies of that document. One copy is for you to keep for your reference. The other is to be returned to your instructor (to be given to the lab manager).

Assignment:

This is to be completed as soon as possible.
1. As soon as you can (within the first couple weeks of class), please complete and submit online the PRE-LAB QUESTIONNAIRE as soon as possible. The object here is just to see where students are, background-knowledge-wise, upon entering this class, and thus, you will not be graded based on your answers, but you will receive 5 pt. toward your semester total just for attempting the questionnaire.