About the Biology Major

Student Handbook

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Study abroad for Biology majors

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STUDENT RESEARCH

An important activity for Biology majors is an independent research. Under the direction of a member of the Biology Department faculty, students design and implement their own research, gather and analyze their own data, and present their results.

Some examples of these student research projects are:
• an experimental study of antipredator communication between free-living male and female red-winged blackbirds (see Burton, N., Yasukawa, K. 2001. The “predator early warning system” of Red-winged Blackbirds. Journal of Field Ornithology 72, 106–112.)
• a series of experimental studies of the endocrine control of estrus termination in guinea pigs (see Roy, M. M., Goldstein, K. L., Williams, C. 1993. Estrus termination following copulation in female guinea pigs. Hormones and Behavior 27, 397-–402.)
• an analysis of food webs using graph theory
• a study of nodule formation in Turtle Creek
• a study of an invasive plant species
• a study of public perceptions of bioterrorism


A second way that Beloit Biology majors do independent research is to work in a lab at another college or university. Many of our majors do research away from Beloit College during the summer or during the school year. Some recent examples are:

• a study of the factors affecting seed production in a rare prairie milkweed (Kansas University)
• a study of neurogenesis and cell migration in fetal and adult mouse brains (Northwestern University)
• a study of courtship latency and reproductive isolation in a stickleback species complex (University of Wisconsin—Whitewater) [add picture of Sindy Shell]
• a study of recombinant mannan-binding lectins (rMBL) and their interactions with various molecules (Rush University)
• a study of the use of directly observed therapy (DOT) in promoting patient adherence of highly active antiretroviral therapy (HAART) among HIV-positive drug users (Johns Hopkins School of Public Hygiene and Public Health)
• a study of the feeding interference task (FIT) as a measure of pain in lab rats (Vanderbilt University Medical Center)

• a study of viral-induced obesity using multi-adenovirus infection of 3T3-L1 preadipocytes (University of Wisconsin—Madison)

• a comparison of acetylcholine receptor specific IL-10 and IFN-g production in experimental Myasthenia Gravis (University of Texas Medical Branch as Galveston).
• a study of habitat use by jaguar in the Area of Conservation Guanacaste, Costa Rica (ACM Costa Rica Program)
• a study of the effectiveness of a wildlife corridor in the Engare Nanyuki region of Tanzania (ACM Tanzania Program)

A group of Beloit College Biology students have the opportunity to start research even before their first year through the Howard Hughes Medical Institute Young Scholars Program. These students spend 6 weeks in the summer working with a professor on a project of their choice. Recent student projects include a study of the communication behavior of redwing blackbirds when threatened, a GIS analysis of the occurrence low birth weight babies in Wisconsin, and the changing ecology of Chamberlin Springs, the Beloit College prairie. For more information on the Young Scholars Program, contact Professor Ken Yasukawa at yasukawa@beloit.edu

See 2002 students and their mentors at left.

Beloit College Department of Biology, last updated 2/25/03.
For more information:
Contact Biology@Beloit.edu
Last updated 2/26/03