Mixed Student Ideas about Mechanisms of Human Weight Loss.

Recent calls for college biology education reform have identified "pathways and transformations of matter and energy" as a big idea in biology crucial for students to learn. Previous work has been conducted on how college students think about such matter-transforming processes; however, little research has investigated how students connect these ideas. Here, we probe student thinking about matter transformations in the familiar context of human weight loss. Our analysis of 1192 student constructed responses revealed three scientific (which we label "Normative") and five less scientific (which we label "Developing") ideas that students use to explain weight loss. Additionally, students combine these ideas in their responses, with an average number of 2.19 ± 1.07 ideas per response, and 74.4% of responses containing two or more ideas. These results highlight the extent to which students hold multiple (both correct and incorrect) ideas about complex biological processes. We described student responses as conforming to either Scientific, Mixed, or Developing descriptive models, which had an average of 1.9 ± 0.6, 3.1 ± 0.9, and 1.7 ± 0.8 ideas per response, respectively. Such heterogeneous student thinking is characteristic of difficulties in both conceptual change and early expertise development and will require careful instructional intervention for lasting learning gains.

Controversy in Biology Classrooms-Citizen Science Approaches to Evolution and Applications to Climate Change Discussions.

The biological sciences encompass topics considered controversial by the American public, such as evolution and climate change. We believe that the development of climate change education in the biology classroom is better informed by an understanding of the history of the teaching of evolution. A common goal for science educators should be to engender a greater respect for and appreciation of science among students while teaching specific content knowledge. Citizen science has emerged as a viable yet underdeveloped method for engaging students of all ages in key scientific issues that impact society through authentic data-driven scientific research. Where successful, citizen science may open avenues of communication and engagement with the scientific process that would otherwise be more difficult to achieve. Citizen science projects demonstrate versatility in education and the ability to test hypotheses by collecting large amounts of often publishable data. We find a great possibility for science education research in the incorporation of citizen science projects in curriculum, especially with respect to "hot topics" of socioscientific debate based on our review of the findings of other authors. Journal of Microbiology & Biology Education.

Anode Biofilms of Geoalkalibacter ferrihydriticus Exhibit Electrochemical Signatures of Multiple Electron Transport Pathways.

Thriving under alkaliphilic conditions, Geoalkalibacter ferrihydriticus (Glk. ferrihydriticus) provides new applications in treating alkaline waste streams as well as a possible new model organism for microbial electrochemistry. We investigated the electrochemical response of biofilms of the alkaliphilic anode-respiring bacterium (ARB) Glk. ferrihydriticus voltammetry (CV), electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS), and chronoamperometry. We observed there to be at least four dominant electron transfer pathways, with their contribution to the overall current produced dependent on the set anode potential. These pathways appear to be manifested at midpoint potentials of approximately -0.14 V, -0.2 V, -0.24 V, and -0.27 V vs standard hydrogen electrode. The individual contributions of the pathways change upon equilibration from a set anode potential to another anode potential. Additionally, the contribution of each pathway to the overall current produced is reversible when the anode potential is changed back to the original set potential. The pathways involved in anode respiration in Glk. ferrihydriticus biofilms follow a similar, but more complicated, pattern as compared to those in the model ARB, Geobacter sulfurreducens. This greater diversity of electron transport pathways in Glk. ferrihydriticus could be related to its wider metabolic capability (e.g., higher pH and larger set of possible substrates, among others).

Dynamic potential-dependent electron transport pathway shifts in anode biofilms of Geobacter sulfurreducens.

Biofilms of the anode-respiring bacterium Geobacter sulfurreducens (G. sulfurreducens) demonstrate dynamic potential-dependent changes between two electron transport pathways that are used selectively depending on the anode potential. Electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS) measurements suggest that these pathways (both n=1), with midpoint potentials of -0.155 (± 0.005) and -0.095 (± 0.003) V versus standard hydrogen electrode, are not additive within the biofilm, but are preferentially used depending on the anode potential. Potential step voltammetry and cyclic voltammetry (CV) confirmed rapid changes between the two pathways in minutes when the anode potential is changed. We confirm that the electrochemical response observed in a slow-scan-rate CV (∼1 mV s(-1) ) is often composed of at least the two pathways characterized. Thus, beyond understanding the electron transport pathways in G. sulfurreducens, this study also has implications on the interpretation of previously collected and future potential-dependent datasets.