Laptop Labs

BY ELEMENTS STAFF

Fossil Records Although fossils are about the exact opposite of computers (though some may argue that their computers are essentially fossils), Professor Kena Fox-Dobbs has found a number of different ways to adapt the lab for Fossil Records, a geology course, to online learning. First, “since students are no longer able to work with fossil specimens in our teaching collection they are interacting with 3D models (scans) of fossils via the Digital Atlas of Ancient Life’s Virtual Collection,” Fox-Dobbs states. Second, a planned field trip to the Methow Valley, a fossil-rich region in north-central Washington, has been replaced with “Virtual Field Experiences” put together by the Eastern Pacific Invertebrate Communities of the Cenozoic project. Additional lab experiences are being modified to a fully digital format; for example, students will be “interpreting paleoenvironmental conditions of local lakes by analyzing diatoms previously extracted (and imaged) from a sediment core” or “using fossil leaf margin analysis of paleofloras to reconstruct climate conditions, based upon leaf images (not specimens).”

The switch to virtual learning has presented a particular challenge when it comes to labs and research. In light of this, Elements Magazine has compiled an article to showcase the creative ways in which professors and students have adapted lab classes and semester research projects to a virtual environment. While nothing can replace the joy of trying to use a P10 micropipette to put a single microliter of DNA onto a tiny pedestal, these online alternatives allow students to continue applying concepts, learning techniques, and working collaboratively to further their education.

Ecology In Ecology lab, the second half of the semester is generally devoted to designing and carrying out independent research projects. Because students can no longer carry out research on campus, Professor Carrie Woods has worked with them individually to develop projects they can do elsewhere. These projects span a broad range of topics: “some are growing plants at home” and others “are doing field-based studies on birds, lichen, marine life, mushrooms, and plants all over the US,” Woods relates. At the end of the semester, students will come together virtually to present their research findings to the rest of the class.

General Chemistry As many of us can attest, Gen-Chem lab can be pretty confusing even when it’s in person, but provides important reinforcement of lecture material. Luckily, Professor Jill McCourt has managed to move labs online for the more than 130 students taking the class. To design these labs, McCourt describes how she “found existing demos online, recorded [her] own lab demos, and found virtual labs for students to practice collecting their own virtual data.” This will ensure that students are able to have valuable, meaningful learning experiences, McCourt says: “Although students are missing the hands-on aspect, they are still collecting and analyzing data and thinking about chemistry concepts in an environment different from their lecture setting.”

Introductory Physics Physics labs often involve dropping things or spinning them around at high speed—neither of which should be done with a laptop. To get around this problem, Professor Amy Spivey says that physics professors have collaborated to “craft online computer simulations to replace in-person laboratory experiments for the introductory physics courses.” The goal of these simulations is to “supplement what is happening in class and allow students to practice what they are learning in a more active way than they are able to do in virtual class sessions.”

Unity of Life Professor Oscar Sosa teaches Unity of Life, an introductory biology course in which, he states, “labs provide a space for experiential learning.” In a typical semester, this may mean clamping bird wings up in a custom-built wind tunnel or getting a close-up view of the bacteria in your yogurt. To make sure that students are still able to practice important lab skills in the virtual environment, Sosa is utilizing a number of different tools and approaches. These include using “photos and diagrams [to explain] an experiment we would have performed in the lab that tests the effect of varying light intensities on photosynthesis,” running “statistical software to analyze an existing data set and practice graphing and presenting results in scientific format,” applying “bioinformatics approaches to explore online genetic databases that are available to the scientific community,” and taking advantage of “interactive, online tools that allow students to model cellular processes such as the development of cancer.”

Ornithology If you think you can’t go birding on a computer—think again! To replace field-based or museum-based independent research projects, Professors Peter Hodum and Peter Wimberger have turned to Cornell Lab of Ornithology Bird Cams, which live-stream bird feeding stations and nests from around the world. Students are also using citizen science data from eBird to analyze trends in the distribution and abundance of species. In lieu of a bird dissection lab, the professors are collaborating with Slater Museum Collections Manager Gary Shugart to provide videos of dissections, as well as using digital software to allow students to examine various aspects of internal anatomy. In addition, students are conducting socially distanced bird surveys either in their yards or near their homes to practice their identification skills and become more familiar with local birds.

Developmental Biology For students in Developmental Biology, no lab access doesn’t necessarily mean no experimentation. As Professor Alyce DeMarais relates, the class designs experiments and then she sets them up in the lab and sends the resulting images and data to the students. Students are also able to engage in at least some hands-on experimentation, such as the dissection of flowers to study comparative anatomy. In addition, labs are supplemented with online developmental biology resources which include “repositories for movies, images, and text such as the University of New South Wales Embryology site and the FlyBase site.” While these measures provide a good substitute for in-person labs, there are some things that remote learning can’t replace: as DeMarais shares, “we miss the spontaneity, camaraderie, and chance to talk science afforded to us by being in the lab.”

Modern Physics According to Professor Andrew Rex, his 200-level physics course requires a slightly different approach than the introductory physics courses when it comes to modifying labs. Rather than have students work through simulations, he sends them data “so that they can do the kinds of modeling and statistical analysis that they have learned throughout the year.” In one lab on radioactivity, for example, they used provided data to calculate half-lives and beta particle penetration depths. As a result, Rex says, students “still get to practice their analytical skills, even if they miss the part of the lab experience that involves adjusting equipment and taking measurements.”

Analytical Chemistry Though many jokes are made about the name of the course, analytical chemistry truly does require extremely careful and precise technique and measurement (re: titration lab). It’s hard to practice your technical skills from the comfort of your couch, but as Professor Dan Burgard says, “most of the techniques were at least introduced in the first half of the semester,” making them familiar to students. In lieu of inperson labs, Burgard is now providing students with videos of him doing the experiment, which they are expected to watch in conjunction with the lab handout prior to lab. Then, during lab, students are given LoggerPro datasets and placed in small groups to analyze the data and answer questions, which are then uploaded through a Canvas quiz. Burgard relates, “the synchronous group work on crunching the data seemed to be more successful than I anticipated and I have been really impressed with how well they all get to work in the groups.”

Student Perspectives

Biology Senior Thesis – Noah Dillon “How do you grow marine microbes to finish your thesis project while not in lab? Well, you can’t. Thankfully, I have an amazing advisor, Oscar Sosa, who is finishing up the lab work! It is not an ideal way to finish my senior year as I have been in lab since freshman year; however, we need to do our part in keeping the community safe. Missing lab work and social distancing is a small sacrifice to make in the grand scheme of things. I do think that science education has been affected by the switch to online learning. The good news is that people may appreciate the power of science in keeping us safe. We may see a boost to science education and research as a result.”

Photo courtesy of Noah Dillon

Photo courtesy of Gabe McHugh

Biology Senior Thesis – Gabe McHugh “I’m a senior working on my writing and researching for my thesis. Right now with no access to my lab notes or data I’ve been focusing on writing a lot more than researching. I’m lucky to have 4 years of past work to write about, but because I can’t get into the lab I have scrapped unfinished projects that would have been part of my thesis and am now writing about the past 3 years of work instead of 4. It certainly isn’t what I wanted to have happen but I’ve adapted. I’m still running into some challenges with reporting accurate lab reagent recipes and manufacturers; however, I’ve been able to rely on my research mentor to send photos of the materials I need. Hopefully I will be able to return and collect some of my data to work on for the lab after graduation and this pandemic.”

Photo courtesy of Daniel Balderrama

Photo courtesy of Helena Heyer-Gray

Biology Directed Research – Daniel Balderrama “While there is no substitute for actually working physically in the lab, thanks to new technologies there is still a lot we can do virtually and from home. In the Madlung lab we do a lot of genetic work to help us better understand the ways certain light receptor proteins affect plant development. When we are in the lab, on top of all of our individual projects, we all spend a lot of time in our greenhouse growing tomatoes as we try to breed new mutant lines for our research. Luckily we were able to extract DNA from a lot of plants, and have the DNA sent for sequencing. Now with the switch to doing everything virtually, we have the perfect opportunity to analyze all the genetic sequence data that’s been piling up. This is really important for the lab, because this will let us know if we have plants with the different genotypes we are looking for so we can collect fruit and seeds from them. This ensures that future students will have new genetic mutants and plenty of seeds so they can continue to conduct research for the Madlung lab. Even though my own personal experiment can’t continue, I’m glad I can do this to make sure that when students return to campus, the Madlung lab will be ready to start up again, and future students will be able to conduct their own experiments with the plants I bred, just as I was able to use mutants that past students had helped create.”

Biology Directed Research – Helena HeyerGray “I’ll admit it, I’ve been doing bioinformatics at home in my pajamas. I’m fortunate to be able to do some of my work (using DNA sequences to identify strains of fungus) outside of lab. This entire experience has been a pretty incredible demonstration of the resilience and adaptability of science— even a couple of decades ago, what I’m doing would have been impossible or prohibitively expensive; now it is possible, because of rapid sequencing and collaborative data processing programs. Virtual research has also highlighted just how important personal connections and a supportive community are in science. Ultimately (corny as it sounds) that’s where we get our strength from.”