Modeling Cellular Processes

An undergraduate research experience from a less distorted view.

Dr. Raquell Holmes and Ms. Maryam QureshiCenter for Computational Science, Boston University

Philosophical Context

• The activity of science is cultural.• Through the performance of scientific

conversation and research students learn biology and modeling.

• Students are co-builders of the learning environment.

• Learning is an activity to be done with students.– “Lev Vygotsky, a revolutionary scientist” Newman and

Holzman 1993.– “Schools for Growth” Holzman 1997

• Introduction of biology is done in the context of experiments and models. (3/10 meetings)– This context is used to provide students with tools to

engage and question models of the biology.

– Ask students how the group is doing. • What do they need to better understand or grapple with the

materials?

• Students are provided with research articles for models and the supporting experiments.– Students explore the model papers in groups.

• What’s in the model? How is it described mathematically?

• Where did the numbers come from?

Where did the numbers come from?

• Research articles are assigned.

• Students are asked to determine which figures or sets of figures provide the numbers used in a rate equation.– Students decide if they want the papers as a group or as

individuals.

• Students are warned about incorrect referencing and interpretations.

Deciphering the papers

• Students present to the entire group– Why they focused on particular figures– The findings or questions they have

• The process is re-iterated until the group (including the teacher) feels confident that the data is or is not available within the paper.

Cross checking the experts?

Questions about the experts• Are their numbers consistent with the models?• Could other numbers have been used?

Questions that arise as researchers• Do we know enough based on this paper?• Where do we get more information?• How do we read these papers?• How do we interpret the figures?

The distortion.

Write up of research experience as course outline

• Dynamic, performatory, cultural activity made static and directive.– Conversational, exploratory context can appear product

driven.

• Group-improvised decisions look teacher-directed.– Selection of resources beyond introduction– Assignment of tasks.

A different lens: a student’s perspective

• Although the assignment of writing down the flow chart arrows in words seemed easy enough at first, the mere process of trying to put into words what we had read in the text and then visualized in the picture required us to think more deeply about the process than we initially had.

Student summation

• It was an interesting experience to see how our work over the past semester had come together in creating a mathematical model of a system I had before now never thought of as a complex interacting system of components each with properties that affect the performance of the proceeding step.