Your
initial project idea can be a paragraph or just a
sentence.
The more
you put down about your idea, the more to work with
when discussing possibilities together.
You can
give more than one idea.
See previous projects
to see what others have done (PowerPoints loaded onto
Canvas). Your project can be along similar
lines, but asking a different question (you may ask a
question that follows from another's results)
Please note
that submitting an idea is part of your project
participation grade
Submit either as
hardcopy or by email.
Guidelines for
Project Proposals –
Project
proposals, along with key reference pdf's, are due Sunday, end of
Week 3 - Late evening ok.
Include your first_last
name & the word 'proposal' in the filename
Cite and
Submit at least one key journal article that
relates to your question
Submit as
pdf, or by DOI# (or link to other online source).
Proposals
count toward your project grade. You must include all elements
laid out here to receive full credit.
Note: Be sure to review all previous projects
for overlap with your proposal. If any are
clearly related to yours, you must show how your
project is distinct from or builds on earlier
projects.
- See Canvas for
previous year projects' PowerPoints
The purpose
of the proposals is to get your projects started and
to get feedback.
They are not
set in stone – that is, your
question & plan can be modified as you proceed
with your project.
Follow guidance in "Writing a Research
Plan" by J. Austin. 2002. Science Career
Magazine July 26, 2002 (pdf, 160k)
Must be a
Field Project - ask a question that
can be explored through field data collection and
analysis.
Format:
Max. one & a half pages (double-spaced) –
be succinct, yet as specific as you can at this
point – that is, say where you are in
your thinking. Include:
Title,
reflecting your question
Introduction
- a background paragraph developing the rationale
for the research question you propose to address
Include
underlying concepts.
Support your
statements by citing references.
Your plan
(See 'Developing Your Plan' below) - layout your Methods.
Your Methods
should clearly be designed to address your
question.
References
- peer-reviewed journal articles that you've cited
(or expect to cite) in your proposal that relate
to your question, methods, field sites, etc.
Follow format
for in-text cites
and Reference section citations used in
any major ecological journals.
Start by
reading chapters or sections in course texts LC,WEH (at Norlin &
MRStation Reserves), and Winter
World (by Bernd Henrich; course recommended
text) that –
connect with
a general interest you have, or
relate to
some topic you've heard about and are curious to
learn more.
Pursue this
more by looking at papers they cite (at the end of
WEH
chapters, or endnotes in LC).
Most papers are downloadable from the CU library's
eJournals
website
Note that
all enrolled students have free access to the
Library's online resources. Talk
to the Library to set that up if you have
problems accessing these sites.
Follow up with
web searches, using both
general
search sites (e.g. Google Scholar)
scientific
publication indices - such as the Web
of Scienceaccessed through the CU
library website.
Note that
this site can be used for searches by topic,
but also, more importantly, to track down more
recent articles that cite a key paper you've
already come across (e.g. in the course texts
or in on-line searches)
Developing
your plan:
Your question
must relate directly to wintertime ecological
processes.
Narrow your
question –
Make it
conceptually and logistically manageable (i.e.
not overly complex and do-able in the allowed
timeframe)
For example,
focus on a two-way comparison – such as:
2 different
species, 2 different environments, or the
end-points of an environmental gradient.
State your question clearly,
and then rephrase as testable hypotheses (see
text box)
Field
Methods –
Discuss your
methods and site selection. Make it clear
that it is doable in the few field days
available to you.
Include your design layout
(see box)
Layout
(outline) what you need to do, so you know it's
do-able.
Use the process
of writing down your ideas as a way to work
them out.
Read about the power of
observation - “Zen and the Art of
Sherlock Holmes” by S. Kendrick. Utne
Reader, Jan-Feb 2000, p. 65-69. (pdf, 850k)
FIELD DESIGN
In finalizing your field data collection
design, here are some tips:
1) Restate your question as testable
hypotheses (null H and alternate H),
if you're familiar with this approach.
This should simplify/clarify what's required
of your design.
2) Define the number of samples
you'll have for each situation (e.g. each
different landscape unit) that you're
contrasting.
- This needs to be at least 3 per
situation to statistically test your
hypotheses. More samples gives a more
powerful test, but must be balance by field
collection effort required.
- Acknowledge whether these are true
replicates or pseudoreplicates (for the
class, pseudoreplicates allowed; for the
real world, not).
3) Define how you'll be locating
your transects/samples within the
landscape unit (or other contrasted
situation) you're sampling.
- This should be by some random
method to satisfy statistical test
assumptions.
4) Finally, review your design,
thinking about how you'll analyze your data,
to be sure that the design will actually
test your question/hypotheses.
(When it comes to analyzing your data,
I'm happy to help you with stats. - Tim)
The draft
presentation is to reflect where you are currently
in your project research. The farther
along you are, the more material on which I will be
able to give you feedback. Due Monday,
Week 6 - Evening ok.
Include your first_last name
& 'draft' in the filename (see also
Submission instructions
for final presentation filename)
Include in your
draft, Introduction and Methods
slides (the upper part of the 'double funnel'
model for presentations).
In the Intro,
make an argument for what you're studying, leading
to a statement of your
question. Include underlying concepts and
importance of your question.
For purposes of this class, using common names for
species is preferred -- But give scientific names in
parentheses the first time you mention a species.
Use metric units (can also give US units in
parentheses - e.g., good to give for elevations)
Format:
PowerPoint
(ppt, pptx) or otherwise a pdf
In outline form
or more fully composed text w/
bullets
Be sure to give
citations of papers you're using ("Literature
Cited") - see notes re in-text
cites and Reference section citation formatting
under Proposal Guidelines
and Citation Guide (pdf, 140k)
Provide the DOI
or, if not available, the URL for your references
Presentation are
limited to 10 mins + 5min for questions.
Be succinct -
better to present few interesting, key ideas in
depth than to cover lots of ideas
superficially. Remember, it's the
details that make concepts real.
Bad form to go
over (part of "Timing" on Grading Criteria).
Tips for PowerPoints
(ppt, 1.8M) - "The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly": A general guide [source: SEE-U,
Columbia Univ]
How to include
citations on
your Intro, etc slides --
Citations
(author, year) can be in small font on the slide
(so doesn't visually interfere with your
bulleted points), with the full reference on a
Reference slide at the end.
If the
material being referenced is only referred to in
the notes frame, then the citation can be placed
there.
Submission
instructions (these elements count towards grade)–
Your complete
.ppt files are due Sat.at
12noon - easiest way is on a
thumbdrive. Presentations start at
12:30p
Use the
Notes pane for each slide to include the details
of what you're presenting, and any extra material
Be sure
to include a References slide at the end.
But end your presentation on your
Conclusions/Take-home messages slide - so folks
can re-read this as forming questions.
In your .ppt
filename - Please
include your name,
title keywords, and 2-digit year: e.g.
"JamesSmith_Treeline&Snowdepth_11.ppt"
use underscores
in place of spaces
Excel sheets –
Submit
your data & analysis Excel file(s) along with
your PPt (include your name on file). No need to
spend time cleaning it up. This is part of the
record of your work; I may refer to it while
grading.
Be sure to include on Title
slide:
Your name
Name of course,
with semester/year
Course
location: "Mountain Research Station, University
of Colorado, Boulder"
Be sure to include
in the Notes part of the title slide, in
the following information:
Your Name
(first last), This Year, Presentation Title,
Filetype (ppt, pptx, pdf), Filesize, 3-5 Keywords
[see Previous
Years' Projects Index for examples]
This is to
assure that your project is correctly cited and
indexed among Previous
Years' Projects
Submit your journal references
as pdf's if you
have not included their DOI or URL's on your
References slide.
If you have a lot
of images, compress
imagesin your .ppt to make the file
more manageable.
PowerPoint2003
(PC version) --
Right click
on any image and select "Format Picture"
Click
"Compress..." button
Select "All
pictures in document" and "Print" resolution
Check
"Compress pictures", and optionally to "Delete
cropped areas" (the latter action will be
permanent)
Click
OK. After processing is complete, click
OK again
Then Save
the file (I suggest Save As, using another
filename so your original is intact)
PowerPoint2007/2013:
click on any image.
On the ribbon menu, click
on Format tab (under the highlighted Picture
Tools tab), then select "Compress Pictures..."
Make selections to
‘Apply: to all your pictures’, ‘Change
resolution: print (200dpi)’, and ‘Delete
cropped areas’)
If
the resolution ‘print (200dpi)’ is not
available, try these steps on another image;
otherwise, select the option with the
highest resolution
The Writing
Center. Looking for writing advice?
Meet one-on-one with a consultant for sound advice
at any stage of the writing process. Learn
strategies to formulate and organize strong thesis
statements, use and cite evidence appropriately,
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Located in the Norlin Library. Email WritingCenter@colorado.edu,
ph 303-735-6906. Additional information: https://www.colorado.edu/program/writingcenter
