Minor Project- Chose either an Arthropod Problem Report or Scrapbook
Minor Projects
. Papers and Scrapbooks will be checked for plagiarism. Make sure you cite your work.
Arthropod Problem Report
Purpose
To identify a current arthropod problem facing some aspect of society and to propose short and long term solutions to the problem. Some
websites you might want to explore:
http://www.invasivespeciesinfo.gov/animals/main.shtml
http://www.cdc.gov/zika/
Guidelines
1. Identification:Identify and describe the problem
a. Research current news (last 12 months) and government websites.
b. What is the problem? What are some of the possible reasons for its occurrence?
c. Consider the scale of the issue; can range from local community to global networks.
d. What are the short and long term consequences of the issue?
2. Contributions: What is currently being done to address this issue?
a. Discuss some of the newer and more innovative techniques for dealing with the problem that are currently being applied in the real
world. Be specific in describing these techniques. For example, if you are going to say that insecticide is used you need to describe the type
of insecticide and its mode of action.
b. Try to find at least several different tactics that are currently being used, or tested, by different people in different locations to
deal with the same problem.
3. Future outlooks
a. Based on what is currently being done to manage this problem, what are the long-term prospects for the situation? Will current
management techniques become obsolete? If so, why? Are current management techniques socially, environmentally and economically sustainable?
Why or why not? Are there non-target effects? Can you suggest a supplemental or alternative idea to address this issue?
Some Issue Areas
Invasive Species, Food Growth/Supply, Conservation, Climate Change, Human Health
Requirements
– Provide name, section, and major in top right of paper
– 3-4 pages in length, double-spaced, size 12 font
– Report must have a descriptive title and the body itself must contain 3 properly headed sections (Identification, Contribution and
Future outlooks)
– Include 3 references – Must be credible peer-reviewed literature, or government publications.
Grading (50 points total)
– Proper Formatting (10) – Headings, title, length, spacing, font, references
– Proper Spelling and Grammar (10)
– Quality (30) – Proper fulfillment of section guidelines
Virtual Scrapbook Project
Electronic Entomology portfolio or Scrapbook — Created using PowerPoint or similar software. Up to 50 points possible. NOTE: Read this entire
section and then start immediately on this project….don’t leave it until later.
Purpose – to raise awareness of the roles and plights of arthropods in human culture:
1. Ubiquity of insects in human culture: The purpose of this assignment is to open your eyes to the prevalence of arthropods in the world
around you. Once you start looking and paying attention you will see just how much insects impact human society; you will see news related to
insect-borne diseases, decline of pollinators (this is not a trivial problem), insect impacts related to global climate change, and countless
other incidents where human culture and insect culture collide. You will be surprised just how frequently insect and arthropod images are used
in our culture—fabric, jewelry, home furnishings, media (movies, magazines, etc.), restaurant menus, Web site mascots, sports team mascots,
etc. You will also find journal articles about butterfly gardening, insects in water gardens, and various pests, pollinators and other
insects.
2. “Arthropod specism:” While we know that some arthropods are capable of transmitting disease or delivering a venomous sting, of the
million and a half species of insects, those that are dangerous to humans are a tiny fraction of a percent. The vast majority of them make
life on Earth possible for us, and provide us with important services, like pollination, decomposition, keeping pest insects in check, and so
on……Likewise, of the over 40,000 species of spiders, only a few are capable of harming humans, yet the reaction to a spider or an insect is
frequently one of horror or repulsion. When asked why an individual finds arthropods to be loathsome, the response will often be that “they
look disgusting.”
Peter Singer (1990), a well-published human rights advocate who has written on the history of civil rights movements based on race, gender, and
even biological classification. He warns
“We should always be wary of talking of ‘the last remaining form of discrimination.’ If we have learned anything from the liberation movements
we should have learned how difficult it is to be aware of latent prejudices in our attitudes toward certain groups….A liberation movement is a
demand for an end to prejudice and discrimination based on an arbitrary characteristic like race or sex (or having 8 legs or 6 legs). The aim
of this book is to lead you to make this mental switch in your attitudes and practices toward a very large group of beings: members of species
other than our own. I believe that our present attitudes to these beings are based on a long history of prejudice and arbitrary
discrimination. I argue that there can be no reason – except the selfish desire to preserve the privileges of the exploiting group….I ask you
to recognize that your attitudes to members of other species are a form of prejudice no less objectionable than prejudice about a person’s race
or sex.
Dr. Singer does not advocate that all species be treated the way we treat humans, but that we acknowledge that they are living beings that
differ from us in appearance. Rather than an immediate reaction of revulsion based simply on appearance, each animal should be evaluated on
characters other than their exterior countenance, and that, whenever possible, we should consider our viewpoints from perspectives other than
our own.
Scrapbook Items
You are expected to compile a “scrapbook” of items about insects or other arthropods. Your items must address the specified categories (see
below). These items can be journal articles, newspaper stories original poetry or artwork, advertisements, etc.which you will make into an
electronic album (using PowerPoint of the like). You must meet the required number of items for each category. Some of the things you find
will fit more than one category – it will be up to you to decide where they go and to explain your decision. For each of the 4 categories
below up to 1 item in each, may be non-insect arthropods.
Item Categories:
1. Insects of medical and veterinary importance (4 items) – can include insects involved in disease transmission, insects used in medical
therapies, insects as parasites….anything with a medical or veterinary focus.
2. Insects in artistic context(4 items) -could include visual art, music, folklore, literature, movies, books, comics, etc.
3. Insects unfairly loathed (4 items) – this category may require a little thought and a very receptive eye. These items should depict
insects or other arthropods, which are actually harmless or even beneficial, as loathsome or “evil.”
4. Current insect issues in the news (4 items) -could be related to invasive species, agriculture, endangered species, conservation,
climate change, etc.
Creative component – applies to the entire scrapbook – creativity involves the items that you choose to include, how you organize them and
also what you choose to write about those items. Make sure your font is legible with your background.
Administrative details:
• You must provide source/ reference with each item, e.g., Newsweek, Vol. 8, No. 9, April 5 issue, or Tulsa World, April 1, 2007 etc.
properly cite sources (pictures, materials acquired from websites)
• You must number each item, and divide your scrapbooks into the prescribed categories, either with a heading or a title page for each
category (#1 through #15).
• You should also include a personal comment with each of your items. These comments should describe your reasoning for putting the item
into that particular category; additionally they could include your thoughts on the use of that insect in that particular context, or a
particular motivation that stirred you to write an original poem…..
Grading – Scrapbooks
• 20 points for creativity and appropriateness of items
• 10 points for quantity of items and attention to detail (numbering, format, etc.)
• 20 points for quality of Comments that accompany the items– the comment should explain why you put that particular item into that
particular category. Did you include some sort of descriptive statement about the arthropod in the item? Did you make an insightful statement,
that is, not “This is the in the Order …” over and over again.
• Put effort into the presentation of your scrapbook. Did you number each item, group them into categories and label your categories?
Did you:
Divide each category, either with a heading or a title page?
Include the proper number items per category?
Provide a source/reference for each item? –WITH EACH ITEM (not in the back of the scrapbook, please)
Number each item?
Include a creative comment about why you chose each item?