Step 1: Pick a topic
Your topic must be biological, but there is a lot to choose from in that category! Your topic could be
medical, environmental, genetic, microbial, biochemical, cellular, or some other aspect of biology.
Your topic must have been discovered, researched, or in some other way used to significantly impact society in the past 120 years.
Make sure you pick a topic that you are able to discuss the pros and cons of, I
want to know your thoughts about the subject not just information about the topic.
The following are
some ideas: (you may choose something on this list, or something else)
Vaccine for a disease (polio, smallpox, etc.)
Artificial body parts (hips, knees, prosthetics, hearts, etc.)
Genetically modifying plants
Genetically modifying animals
Gene therapy
Epigenetics
DNA profiling
Hole in the ozone layer/Global Warming – MY TOPIC OF CHOICE!
Step 2: Research Your Topic
You will need at least 3 sources which must be reputable. Encyclopedias and dictionaries may not be
used; this includes on-line versions. If you are not sure if a source is reputable, please ask.
Step 3: Write Your Paper
In your paper you should include a detailed description of your topic.
How are genes inserted into plant
cells?
How does the vaccine interact with the body to produce immunity?
How does gene therapy
work?
You should also include historic information. When was PCR invented?
What types of polio vaccines
were tried and failed before we succeeded?
What are the times, the dates, and the people involved?
What was the world like before?
If your topic is relatively new, or something that is still being developed, you may want to include where the future is heading.
Gene therapy isn’t commonly used now; why not? What needs to be perfected?
How will that be done?
You should discuss the good and bad side of your topic (every topic has both!).
What benefits have we
gained from gene therapy?
What are the downfalls of the smallpox vaccine?
How can DNA profiling be
used in positive and negative ways?
Why did/are some people “all for” this topic?
Why are some
people dead set against it?
Make sure your closing paragraph wraps up all aspects of your paper nicely: what it is, how it affected
the world, why it’s good and bad.
IMPORTANT: Your paper may NOT contain more than 10% direct quotes from other sources. This should be mostly
your own thoughts!
In addition, you must cite your sources in the body of your paper.
Paraphrasing
other author’s work without correctly citing it is still plagiarism.
Papers must:
Be at least 3 pages long, not including the title page, reference page, or any figures
Have a TITLE PAGE including the title of your paper, names, class name and number, and date the
paper is due
Be typed in 12 point Times New Roman font or 11 point Calibri font
Have 1” margins (check the default!)
Be double-spaced
Have any figures or pictures placed at the end of the paper
Use APA citation
