Science is the belief in the ignorance of experts

1. The final exam consists of 21 questions, each worth 5 points.
• The first 14 questions (70%) comprise the comprehensive section of the exam. They cover all 6 units.
• The next 6 questions (30%) comprise the new material covered in Unit 06.
• The last question is an extra-credit question.
2. A significant portion of the final is devoted to applying what you have learned to the analysis of a novel situation.
3. There will be several quantitative questions (require manipulation of numbers). Feel free to bring a calculator but, as per the syllabus, not one attached to a wireless-capable device.
4. An abbreviated review for the comprehensive section is linked at the bottom of the course documents page. Trust me, it is deceptively short. There is no way to condense a 14-week semester into a mere two pages.
5. Each section has a specific time allocated for its final exam. Consult the syllabus or the Office of the Registrar for details.
• Show up at the appointed time and place. If you do otherwise, there will be no final exam ready for you.
• If you are unable to attend your sections’ scheduled final, contact me ASAP to arrange to take the final with one of my other sections. If you do not contact me, in advance, there will be no final exam ready for you.
• If you arrive late and a student has already turned in his/her final, you will not be permitted to take the final at that time.

1. The due date first written assignment has been been extended until Wednesday 2012-04-04. If your proposal has not yet been returned, look for it outside of my office door (PREX 207 or Premont 207).
2. The assignment, you should recall, is to choose an alternative energy resource and to explore the feasibility, advantages, and disadvantages of using it.
• Note, alternative energy means alternative to fossil and nuclear fuels.
• The length of the body of the assignment is five (5) pages of double-spaced, concise analysis (12-point font). It is all right to exceed this length if necessary. Submissions which are under this length or which are padded and full of fluff and filler will be docked accordingly. Title page, figures, bibliographic citations, etc. are not considered the body of the assignment.
• No quoting  of material is permitted with the possible exception of a pertinent brief quote as a section heading. All material presented is to be paraphrased (express in your own words).
• I expect a minimum of 10 references and prefer peer-reviewed references over magazine or news sources. Sources should be cited in the text and a full bibliographic citation included in a Work Cited or Literature Cited section. Two useful links in this regard are Melvin Page’s Citation Guide for Internet Sources and some examples of good citing technique.
• Digital submission to turnitin.com on or before 2012-04-04
• You must register at turnitin.com before submitting your assignment for review! We will NOT use the submission-to-turnitin.com feature in Blackboard.
• The courseID and password for your section is in the course syllabus.
• Your assignment will not be graded until a .rtf (rich-text format) file of the the complete assignment is submitted to turnitin.com; be certain to submit your .rtf file to the appropriate section
• You must obtain a similarity score of 10% or less from turnitin.com. Note : turnitin.com is configured to ignore your bibliographic material. You may resubmit as many times as you wish – up until the due date – in order to achieve the 10% or less Similarity score.
• Be certain that the name of the file that you submit is something very close to this : ensp2324sp2012_assign01_yourlastname_yourlastinitial.rtf
• Hard-copy submission to me on or before 2012-04-04
• Submit your entire written assignment on 8.5″ x 11″ paper in a standard manila folder. Staple or paperclip the sheets together. Do not fold-over (dog-ear) the corners.
• Prepend a copy of the Similarity score generated by turnitin.com
• Include a copy of your returned proposal (appended to the back).
• Print out and append copies of short articles that you cite as part of your work. do not attach these to the assignment.
3. Tips for a better grade
• Remain neutral. Present fair and even coverage of both the advantages and disadvantages of your chosen alternative.
• Be critical! Don’t just accept what you see on the printed page (or monitor screen).
• Be concise and analytic in your writing. This is not Shakespeare so no flowery prose is desired.
• Avoid hyperbole … exaggeration.
• Avoid the use of run-on sentences. Avoid creating pages that consist of a single long paragraph.
• Craft an opening paragraph that sets-up the whole assignment.
• Be certain that all citations in the Work Cited or Literature Cited section contain full bibliographic information :
• for journal articles : author(s), date, article title, journal title, volume & issue number, page range.
• for books : author(s), date, book title (& edition where noted), publisher, number of pages.
• for article in edited volume : author(s), date, article title, editor(s), title of edited volume, publisher
• for resources available online only, provide a complete URL that could be accessed by anyone … not just members of the St. Edward’s community … as well as author, date, title.
4. Do not e-mail me any attachments. I will either have a hard copy in my possession by the due date or your assignment is late and points will be deducted according to the syllabus.
5. Did I leave anything out? Did I leave any questions unanswered? If so, e-mail, text, or call me.

The Unit 3 quiz will be delayed until 22 March (TTh sections) and 23 March (MWF section). Revision of review material is underway. Look for some updates tonight and tomorrow.

Feedback on the proposal on 1st written assignment will be sent around tomorrow (TTh sections) and Wednesday (MWF section). The new due date for the written assignment is 29 March (TTh sections) and 30 March (MWF section).

The Unit 4 quiz might be delayed from its schedule date of 03 April (TTh sections) and 04 April (MWF section). I will have a better feel for that after we return from Spring Break.

Readings for Unit 4 will be updated later tonight.

Your first written assignment deals with alternatives to our traditional sources of commercial energy (coal, crude oil. natural gas, and nuclear).

Your first task is to provide me with a proposed topic – your choice – by the beginning of next week (Thursday for the TTH section, Friday for the MWF section). Keep in mind that the paper will run up to five pages of double-spaced text. Don’t overreach! Some topics, e.g., biomass fuels, cannot be covered in their entirety; however, some aspect of biomass fuels, say, ethanol from sugar cane residue, clearly could be.

How much of the world’s fossil fuel or nuclear electricity would be saved by switching to the alternative energy technology? What is the energy return on investment (or net energy ratio)?

How much net CO2 would be produced as a consequence of switching to this alternative energy resource?

Is your proposed alternative viable for the short-term, the mid-term, or the long-term? Is it sustainable? What pollution, health, or other societal costs would be incurred as a result of the switch?

More details about the style of citing sources in the text and in the literature cited sections, the page format, etc. will follow soon.

The assignment will be submitted on or before the end of the week following Spring Break (22 March for TTH sections, 23 March for the MWF section) … first the digital version to turnitin.com (with a similarity score of 10% or less), then the complete hard copy to me (including the attached originality report from turnitin.com).

Jacqueline Jacot, is leading the Green Ambassadors Program in the student residence halls.

The program aims to :

• Educate students about sustainability, especially sustainability initiatives on-campus.
• Empower students with information about the various ways to achieve a sustainable lifestyle.
• Prepare students to become information disseminators and role models to others who wish to live more sustainably.

You are invited to participate in the program. Students from every residence hall are needed. Students interested in this exciting initiative, should contact Jacqueline at jjacot@stedwards.edu by this Friday, Feb. 17 so that she can move forward with the program.

More about the program :

• Green Ambassadors Tentative Meeting Format
• About 30 minutes depending on discussion and activities
• Meetings held every other week
• Location : TBD

Topics for discussion:

• How can I be more sustainable?
• How can SEU be more sustainable?
• Off-campus meetings at local and sustainable businesses
• Sustainable changes to residence halls
• Movies, Music, and Art about environmentalism
• Spreading word about on-campus and local green initiatives

Promotion of the Program :

• Sustainability Blog
• Students for Sustainability Facebook page
• Networking with RDs and RAs

Peck Phillips at the campus bookstore has announced that the inventory of unsold textbooks will be returned to the publishers soon.

If you still in need of a textbook, act accordingly!

Science, as I have told you, is but another of Life’s many games. Like all games, there is an element of fun if you will simply permit yourself to enjoy it.

I suggest that y’all read the following brief article (if for no other reason than your own self-advancement) :

P.S. Blackawton et al. 2011. Blackawton Bees. Biol. Lett. 7(): 168-172
(first published online 22 December 2010)

There is also an accompanying video podcast that you might enjoy.

Thanks to Jim over at the Confusion Research Center for bringing this article to my attention!

Gravitational lensing : NASA image

Source :

http://www.nasa.gov/multimedia/imagegallery/image_feature_575.html

This image, from the Hubble Space Telescope, shows the gravitational lensing resulting from the massive cluster of galaxies in the center of the image. The light from  one galaxy behind the cluster  is bent to create the three objects outlined in red. The light from an even more-distant quasar is bent to create the five objects outlined in blue.

The Society for a Human Right to Water (SHRW) is having its first meeting of the semester:
Thursday (Today)
February 2nd
*BAIN BOARDROOM*
Room 330 in Ragsdale
7:30 PM
(FOOD!)

MEETING WILL COVER:
•        General SHRW Information
•        Our Definition of a “Human Right” – (VOTE?)
•        SHRW 2012 Goals
•        SHRW Future Goals
•        Collaborating with other Organizations
•        Upcoming Spring 2012 Events
•        Charity Water Fundraiser “Q Drum Race”
•        Service Project Ideas (Water Well Testing)
•        SHRW Social Media (SHRW.org, Hilltop Views, etc.)
•        T-Shirts (as seen at the involvement fair), Buttons, Bumper Stickers
•        Speakers, Visitors (Clean Water Action/Fund)

A Society for a Human Right to Water helps raise money for international non-profit groups, broadens student’s knowledge about crucial water issues, allows students to meet various water experts and make new friends.

***Facebook page***

http://www.facebook.com/pages/Society-for-a-Human-Right-to-Water-SHRW/193500630693065

^ This is the best way to keep updated and stay in contact.

Feel free to ask me any questions!
Thanks!

Sabrina Trudeau
President

“We hope to promote education about water responsibility, water conservation, and reasonable and responsible water use. Our goal is making a human right to water a ‘vested’ right globally.”

You can read a synopsis of the Karen Ruggiero saga by using the university library’s online newspaper database. Mark Lisheron penned two articles in the Austin American-Statesman on the subject on 2001-11-18 (page A1) and 2002-01-03 (page B1).

A decade later, her influence continues.

Jan Hendrik Schön’s career train derailed at roughly the same time as Ruggiero’s. At one point in 2001, Schön’s name was appearing as an author (or coauthor) on a new publication once every eight days!

In the aftermath of his scientific misconduct, three dozen peer-reviewed publications were retracted in major (“name brand”) scientific journals.