The purpose of this assignment is to have you learn how to read science news, find the original research upon which the news journal article is based and assess the quality of the scientific reporting.

Find a news article about a recent scientific finding. Pick a topic that is of interest to you as you will need to do some additional research on this topic for the oral presentation assignment later in the semester. This news article should have been published within the past three months. You can use articles from newspapers (including, but not limited to, NY Times, Washington Post, Detroit Free Press) or weekly magazines (including, but not limited to, Economist, Time, Newsweek, Science, Nature).

The topic should be something related to the content of this molecular biology course (-Epigenetic mechanisms of gene regulation.

-RNA processing- splicing and disease.

-Telomeres

-DNA replication and telomere maintenance

-Transposable elements

-Genetically modified organisms

-GMO -Knockout mice

-CRISPR/Cas9

-Cloning by nuclear transfer

-Cell Reprogramming

-Stem cell biology ). Next, find the scientific primary literature article that is referenced in the news article. The article must be published in a peer reviewed journal. Articles posted on bioRxiv.org and medRxiv.org have not yet been peer reviewed and are not acceptable for this assignment. The majority of the experiments in the article should use molecular biology techniques. The article must contain a minimum of three data figures (not panels within a figure, three separate figures that present data) and the authors must use as least two distinct experimental methodologies. Articles that focus solely on epidemiological or clinical trials are not appropriate. Articles that only contain DNA sequencing data are not appropriate. If you want confirmation that you have selected a suitable article, you can send the abstract to Instructor for approval. The article that you select will serve as the basis for your oral presentation later in the semester.

For this writing assignment, write a summary of the primary literature article. In your summary, be sure to address the following points:

Gap in the field

Objective

Major results and how they were obtained (what type of experiment)

Conclusions/ Take home message

Do not plagiarize. Do not submit a reworded version of the abstract.

The summary should be approximately 500 words, typed, 12 point font, and double spaced. This is equivalent to about two pages in length.

Use key sentences. Underline key sentences in the summary.

Include a cover page with your name, the word count and a list of the key sentences.

Also include a copy of the news article and a file with the primary literature article. These files can be included as part of your assignment submission or you can add them as attachments after you upload the file with your summary.