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Botany LS1203 - Plant Biology - Details for Written Assignments

        You are to summarize three research papers (articles) from the scientific journal Economic Botany. You cannot substitute any other journal.  The Stewart Library received this journal in print - call number SB1.E19 - through 2005.  Electronic access is available via the Stewart Library web site. If a paper in Economic Botany is headed "Utilization Abstract," "Notes on Economic Plants," "Botanical Note," "Collections Corner," "Plant Portraits,"  or "Book Review," it may not be used. (Basically, avoid any article that is four pages or less in length.)  With the exceptions given below, you are to use "Research" articles from 2000-2009. 
          Each assignment will begin with a one paragraph summary of the article. Your paragraph should address the following:  What question was asked by the author(s) of the paper?  What process or processes did the author(s) use to get an answer?  What was the answer?  What conclusions did the author(s) draw?
        The summary paragraph will be followed by one paragraph in which you broaden the topic of the article and discuss what the article tells you in general about plants (structure, metabolism, growth, ecology, etc.). 
        All assignments are to be typed (word processed), double spaced, with one inch margins and 12 point font (Times New Roman or Arial). Do not use a cover page.  A photocopy or printout of the PDF file of the chosen article is to be turned in with your summary.
        All written assignments are due at the beginning of class on the due date. Each assignment is worth 40 points. Late assignments will lose 8 points per calendar day. Any assignment that is more than three calendar days late will not be graded. If you cannot turn in an assignment on time for a valid reason (death in the family, medical emergency), contact me ASAP.  If you will be gone on official university travel, it is your responsibility to turn in assignments early.  Any plagiarism in an assignment results in an automatic zero.

Exceptions to the 2000-2009 restriction on articles.  You may use ONE of the following during the semester: 

Burton RA, Cox PA.  1998.  Sugarbeet culture and Mormon economic development in the Intermountain West.  Economic Botany 52(2):  201-206.

Floyd ML, Kohler TA.  1990.  Current productivity and prehistoric use of piņon (Pinus edulis, Pinaceae) in the Dolores Archaeological Project Area, Southwestern Colorado.  Economic Botany 44(2):  141-156.

Monson CS.  1996.  Mulberry trees: The basis and remnant of the Utah silk industry.  Economic Botany 50(1):  130-138.

Neumann A, Holloway R, Busby C.  1989.  Determination of prehistoric use of arrowhead (Sagittaria, Alismataceae) in the Great Basin of North America by scanning electron microscopy.  Economic Botany 43(3):  287-296.

Format for Written Assignments
Remember, do not use a cover sheet.  The final length of each assignment should not exceed two pages.

YOUR LAST NAME, First name

Complete citation for the Economic Botany article CSE format (may be single spaced)

Your two paragraphs ==>  double spaced!!

Example for print access to article:

STUDENT, Joan W.

Votava EJ,  Baral JB, Bosland PW.  2005.  Genetic diversity of chile (Capsicum annuum var. annuum L.) landraces from northern New Mexico, Colorado, and Mexico.  Economic Botany 59(1): 8-17.

Paragraph 1 ==> summarizes the Economic Botany article

Paragraph 2 ==> discusses or describes what the article tells you in general about plants

 

Example for electronic access to article:

STUDENT, Joan W.

Votava EJ,  Baral JB, Bosland PW.  2005.  Genetic diversity of chile (Capsicum annuum var. annuum L.) landraces from northern New Mexico, Colorado, and Mexico.  Economic Botany [Internet].  [cited 2009 Aug 13]; 59(1): 8-17.  Available from: http://www.bioone.org/toc/ebot/59/1

Paragraph 1 ==> summarizes the Economic Botany article

Paragraph 2 ==> discusses or describes what the article tells you in general about plants

 

Scoring of written assignments:
Points Qualities
36-40 The summary paragraph addresses all four questions posed above and is a well constructed piece of writing.  The second paragraph is an extension of the article, not continued summary.  The second paragraph also is well constructed, with good narrative flow.  The paper is in the correct format (citation of the article, only two paragraphs, double spaced, etc.), mechanical errors do not detract from the paper, and a photocopy or PDF printout of the original Economic Botany paper accompanies the assignment.
32-36 The summary paragraph is incomplete, with one or two of the questions not addressed.  The second paragraph is underdeveloped.  The paper is in the correct format (citation of the article, only two paragraphs, double spaced, etc.), mechanical errors do not detract from the assignment, and a photocopy or PDF printout of the original Economic Botany paper accompanies the assignment.
28-32 The summary paragraph is incomplete, with one or two of the questions not addressed.  The second paragraph is underdeveloped.  There are format problems (citation wrong or incomplete, extra paragraphs, not double spaced, etc.), mechanical errors detract from the assignment, and the copy of the original Economic Botany paper is in HTML.
24-28 The summary paragraph is substantially incomplete.  The second paragraph is inadequate.  Format problems are extensive,  mechanical errors detract from the assignment, and there is no copy of the original Economic Botany paper.
0-24 No apparent effort to do the assignment as given, including using a paper that is not from Economic Botany.
0 Plagiarized.

Plagiarism: What It is and How to Recognize and Avoid It from Writing Tutorial Services at Indiana University

How to Read a Scientific Research Paper

Plant Information Center:  Student Botanical Dictionary

Merriam-Webster Online Dictionary

Stewart Library Reference Department
        A dictionary of plant sciences / edited by Michael Allaby.  Call number:  QK9.D52 1998
        The Penguin dictionary of plant sciences / edited by Jill Bailey.  Call number:  QK9.P465 1999       

Return to Botany 1203 Syllabus.

Return to Botany 1203 Home Page.

13 August 2009