BIOL 365: Research Methods in Biology

Resources for Course Assignments

This page includes some information, resources and links to help you complete different types of assignments.

Annotated Bibliographies, Research Proposals and Written Reports

Articles:

• Cody J Weinberger, James A Evans, & Stefano Allesina. (2015). Ten simple (empirical) rules for writing science. PLoS Computational Biology, 11(4), e1004205. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pcbi.1004205
• van Ekelenburg, H. (2010). The art of writing good research proposals. Science Progress, 93, 429–442. 
• Weixiong Zhang. (2014). Ten simple rules for writing research papers. PLoS Computational Biology, 10(1), e1003453. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pcbi.1003453

Web Resources:

• Writing an Annotated Bibliography (U. of Toronto)
• Annotated Bibliographies (Writing Center, U. of North Carolina at Chapel Hill)
• Helpful Handouts from the No'eau Center

• APA citing & Academic Writing page on this guide

Ebooks from the Library Collections:

Additional Resources

• George, A. (2016). Research ethics. Medicine, 44(10), 615–618. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.mpmed.2016.07.007
• Gump, S. (2014). Recovering the Covering Letter: Submitting Manuscripts to Scholarly Journals in the Twenty-First Century. Journal of Scholarly Publishing, 45(2), 172–185. https://doi.org/10.3138/jsp.45.2.004
• Jirge, P. (2017). Preparing and Publishing a Scientific Manuscript. Journal of Human Reproductive Sciences, 10(1), 3–9. https://doi.org/10.4103/jhrs.JHRS_36_17
• Masic, I. (2012). Ethical Aspects and Dilemmas of Preparing, Writing and Publishing of the Scientific Papers in the Biomedical Journals. Acta Informatica Medica, 20(3), 141–148. https://doi.org/10.5455/aim.2012.20.141-148.
• Rhodes, R. (2010). Rethinking research ethics. The American Journal of Bioethics : AJOB, 10(10), 19–36. https://doi.org/10.1080/15265161.2010.519233

Poster Presentations

Poster presentations are commonly used in the academic community and are often included in conference programs. Well done posters can effectively synthesize key information and research and raise awareness about topics and issues.

A typical poster usually includes brief text, tables, graphs and/or images.  A good poster is visually appealing, concisely presents the topic enunciated in the title and includes:

• A title that draws attention, and is short and readable from a distance
• No more than about 800 words of text that is organized into sections labeled with appropriate headings
• Graphs, tables or other visual means of presenting relevant data
• Image/s that illustrate key information

The following resources can help you plan, design and create a poster that successfully presents the topic of your choice:

• Designing communications for a poster fair (by the Teaching and Learning with Technology for the use of the McNair Scholars Program at Penn State University)
• Writing Guides : Overview of Poster Sessions (by the Writing Center, Colorado State University)

• Poster and Presentation Resources (by The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill Graduate School)

Software for Posters

There are several software products you can use to create a poster. Each of the following has some advantages or disadvantages. Your choice of software will depend on your preference, skills and ease of access to the following:

• Microsoft Powerpoint
• Microsoft Publisher
• Adobe Illustrator
• Adobe InDesign
• OpenOffice Impress
• Gimp

Note: UHWO Information Technology offers Microsoft Office365 for all qualified faculty, staff and students.

Finding Images

If you use images that you found on the web make sure they do not have copyright restrictions. You may ask permission to use images you find or you can use images that are in the public domain or that have a Creative Commons license. 

You can find images for your presentations at: