Using the Science Writing Heuristic to Improve Undergraduate Writing in Biology

Our objective was to investigate the impact of the Science Writing Heuristic (SWH) on undergraduates’ ability to express logical conclusions and include appropriate evidence in formal writing assignments. Students in three laboratory sections were randomly allocated to the SWH treatment (n?=?51 students) with another three sections serving as a control (n?=?47 students). All sections received an identical formal writing assignment to report results of laboratory activities. Four blinded raters used a 6-point rating scheme to evaluate the quality of students’ writing performance. Raters’ independent scoring agreement was evaluated using Cronbach's α. Paper scores were compared using a t-test, then papers were combined into low-scoring (3.5 of 6 points) or high-scoring (>3.5 of 6 points) sets and SWH and control cohorts were compared using Pearson's chi-square test. Papers from the SWH cohort were significantly (P?=?0.02) more likely to receive a high score than those from the control cohort. Overall scores of SWH cohort papers tended to be higher (P?=?0.07) than those from the control cohort. Gains in student conceptual understanding elicited by the SWH approach improved student ability to express logical conclusions about their data and include appropriate evidence to support those conclusions in formal research reports. Extending the writing tasks of the SWH to formal writing assignments can improve the ability of undergraduates to argue effectively for their research findings.     

儿童青少年运动员的营养需要

1. 儿童青少年运动员应该食用多样化的食物，其中，蛋白质应占膳食总能量的12％-15％，碳水化合物至少占55％，而脂肪至多占30％。日常生活中如何吃才能满足这些要求呢？膳食指南宝塔提供了一条可行之道。2.有些营养素对热爱运动的儿童青少年运动员非常重要，要保证摄入充足，这些营养素是碳水化合物（包括纤维素）、维生素B6、维生素D、铁、钙、镁、锌、铬。科学合理、包罗各类食物的平衡膳食，对青少年运动员最大程度地全面摄取各种营养素，满足生长发育和运动训练的需要，是非常必要的。3.鼓励儿童青少年运动员在运动训练前、中、后进行补液，以避免脱水的发生。4.如果膳食合理平衡，就没必要额外补充营养品。