Each year as we begin research, one of our first goals is to find out what
has been done already, what can we learn from it, and how can we extend
this work. One of the best ways to begin this quest is through reading
articles from the original researchers. These articles are typically very
hard to understand and extremely technical. Each of you is put into a
group to work through such an article today. It is hoped that as you
discuss the article you will see the techniques you will need as you do
reading on your own question. Spend five minutes quietly reading the
abstract (summary of the article)
independently. Highlight or take notes as you read.
As a group, read through the assigned article together, making sure that
each
member of the group understands each paragraph (and sentence where
necessary). You will encounter many unfamilair words. Try to grasp
their meaning by analyzing their context and or the word's prefixes and
suffixes. Use a dictionary when necessary to look up the word or word
parts. Write the answers to each of the following questions based upon
the group discussion.
1. What does the abstract tell you about the conclusions drawn by the
researchers?
2. What is the goal of the experiment?
3. What background information guided their choices for the experiment?
4. What variables did they identify and how did they control for them?
5. Outline the experiment.
6. What and how was the data gathered?
7. What possible conclusions did the researchers anticipate?
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