Throughout my time as a Biology major, I have had multiple opportunities to refine my skills in writing effectively in multiple contexts within the discipline. I started doing this during the first semester of my freshman year. In my very first Biology class, I was required to write my first scientific lab report. This was my first experience writing scientifically at the college level, but I knew that it wouldn’t be my last.   This lab report was investigating the effect of sugar and salt on the rate of photosynthesis in elodea plants.  My writing and organizational style in this paper makes it clear that this was my first time being prompted with a scientific writing experience. The link to this assignment is listed below, along with some examples later in my career that demonstrate my growth as a scientific writer.

Later, during my sophomore year, I was able again demonstrate my skills as a scientific writer. During my junior year, I was able to construct a literature review in my Evolution class. I chose to write about the coevolution of metabolism and feathers in dinosaurs. To complete this assignment, I looked for any and all relevant papers on this topic and relate them together in an orderly fashion so that one could logically understand each component of the topic. I did a much better job demonstrating scientific writing during this assignment. My writing style had clearly matured and I was using much more advanced jargon. However, I could have improved on this assignment as well. The paper was a little hard to follow and some of the sources weren’t as relevant as they should have been. However, I definitely gained a lot of experience and knowledge of scientific writing through this assignment and it shows in my later writing. The link to this assignment is listed below.

In my Senior Capstone class, I’ve had many assignments that evaluate whether I can write effectively in multiple contexts within the discipline. In this class, we must each create our own novel research proposals. I chose to build my proposal around a treatment for type I diabetes that involves using punicic acid, which is a component of pomegranate oil. This writing process has been very successful for me. I was able to use many of the skills I acquired with my other writing assignments from my past semesters. I have successfully written my introduction, specific aim, methods, potential pitfalls, and potential conclusions, and now I am in the process of creating a final draft. I will link this assignment below once it is complete.

Lab Report

https://drive.google.com/file/d/1LqMGhu7PIstpHUnnuTeQcVOHz4o3msHb/view?usp=sharing

Evolution Paper

https://drive.google.com/file/d/1VAFRmloM1eRXvvtyU_al9U3gdZpqdQcs/view?usp=sharing

Diabetes Proposal