Your term paper should be a critical evaluation of 5 original articles.

• 1-2 articles must be REVIEW your topic
• 4-3 articles must be a JOURNAL article (only one can be from Science or Nature, none from Scientific American or other popular, non-technical journals). Journal articles have methods and resuls sections.


FORMAT

• typed
• spacing: 1. 5 line
• font: Times Roman 12 point or Arial 11 point
• 1 inch margins. Keep a Xerox for yourself.
• 10-18 pages will probably satisfy the assignment, but you may write more if so inclined.
• use the first person (I) whenever possible!


The term paper should be assembled as follows:
 

• COVER PAGE: (1 page) Title of paper, last 4 digits of your SSN, and a brief (300 word or less) ABSTRACT.
• INTRODUCTION (1-1.5 page)
• explain why you chose this topic, and explain why you narrowed your paper to these particular five articles.
• TOPIC SIGNFICANCE: (1-2 page)
• Using the reviews and the papers explain the significance of the topic:
• why is important ?
• why should scientists or anyone else care about research in this area?
• what is the relevance for humans? for fundamental understanding of biological systems?
• PAPER MINI-REVIEWS: (2-3 pages each). Summarize the key points of each paper. This should not be a rephrasing of the abstract or paper! Suggested approach
• Introduction. (1-2 paragraphs) why is this work being done? what is the background big question? what hypothesis etc did the authors set out to test? what was their overall aim?
• Methods. (1-2 paragraphs) what methods were used? explain whther you understod these or not
• Results. (2-3 paragraphs) Briefly explain thei results by describing the figures. Challenge the results if you think the data were not up to par. Acknowledge a technically interesting or important result.
• Discussion. (2-3 paragraphs) what key points were made? What do the authors think is significant about their data? what is the relevance to the field at large? what were the key findings?
• Evaluation. (1-2 paragraphs) Your scholalarly judgement. Write this in the first person. Discuss your thoughts about the paper. ( imagine that you were asked to review it for publication.)
• what was the KEY QUESTION that motivated the research? what was the MAIN CONCLUSION of the paper? do yout think this was a major contribution?
• do you believe the author's conclusions were supported by their data?
• was the paper well written? did it stimulate your interest?
• were animals used? were you comfortable with how the animals were handled? did the paper raise ethical issues for you?
• DISCUSSION: (1 ½ to 3 pages)
• provide a discussion that integrates all five papers, and gives your overall impression of the field, based on your literature search and readings.
• explain which you think was the best paper (define your own criteria for best) and which the worst
• provide a summary section that gives your own personal assessment of the scientific value of the research and the significance of the work.
• EPILOGUE (1-2 pages) Answer the following in the first person:
• Do you feel comfortable reading original articles? What did you learn from this experience
• What courses at NMSU have prepared you to understand this research?
• Provide an assessment of whether the material covered in class did or did not help you understand the papers.
• BIBILIOGRAPHY.
• List of references (papers you considered and the ones you selected)
• APPENDIX:
• provide a xerox of the abstracts from the five papers.


Categories and criteria for evaluating the term papers: 150 points

Following instructions (20 points)

• were 5 papers reviewed? were all components included?
• was it typed, 1.5 line spacing, with 1 inch margins and page numbers?
• did you provide the introduction and discussion as requested?
• did you include the bibliography?
Clarity of writing (20 points)
• was the topic under review clear?
• were the paragraphs well organized, in a logical sequence with headings?
• was it easy to understand what the papers were about?
• was the writing succinct and to the point?
Grammar (20 points)
• was the spelling corrected? spellcheck can only help a little. for example, spellcheck programs will accept there and their as correct, BUT only one of these will be appropriate in most sentences!
• were the sentences complete, each with a noun and verb?
Scholarship (90 points)
• how well did you integrate the different papers?
• was the significance of the topic and the papers (or lack of!) made clear to the reader?
• was your understanding of neurobiology evident?
• what was the overall quality of the document? my judgement call!!!