Biology

Welcome to Week 4 Biology!

This week you are reviewing DNA & the Central Dogma and learning how Forensic Scientists apply it. As a finalist for a forensic scientist position available with regional law enforcement, you will need to demonstrate an understanding of various evidence-gathering techniques, and the ability to apply scientific principles in order to determine the value of the evidence. Part of your job will be to educate law enforcement and the entire community concerning forensic science. Additionally, the successful applicant will need to provide solid evidence to the district attorney's office to gain convictions in criminal cases.Your goal is to demonstrate the knowledge and skills necessary to obtain a job as a forensic scientist with a regional law enforcement agency.

Overview

Role

You are a forensic scientist who has just applied for a job with a regional law enforcement agency. Should you get this job, you will be working with the district attorney's office on many criminal cases. You will also be working with crime scene investigators to gather evidence and use this evidence to help make a conviction in these cases.

Audience

Your audience is made up of leaders from the regional law enforcement agency and the district attorney's office. You will need to demonstrate an understanding and knowledge of forensic sciences, especially as related to blood and DNA.

Situation

As a finalist for a forensic scientist position available with regional law enforcement, you will need to demonstrate an understanding of various evidence-gathering techniques, and the ability to apply scientific principles to determine the value of the evidence. Part of your job will be to educate law enforcement and the entire community concerning forensic science. Additionally, the successful applicant will need to provide solid evidence to the district attorney's office to gain convictions in criminal cases.

Step 1: Review

Before you pick your product, spend about 30 minutes today reviewing DNA, Replication, & the Central Dogma. To the left you will find videos to support your learning.Below are some review questions to guide your note taking.

What is the structure of DNA?
What is the central dogma? Write down each step and what happens at each step.
How does DNA Replicate?
Why does DNA need to replicate?
How is DNA unique to each individual?

Step 2: Research & Choose a Product

Below are the three products you can choose to create. There is a description of each task and the rubric above it. In order to develop your product you will need to do some research to inform your design. Read through the articles and watch videos to learn more about DNA Fingerprint and Forensic Science and feel free to look for additional resources to support your learning.

Video: DNA Fingerprinting

Video: Watch DNA Fingerprinting

Video: Day in the Life of a Forensic Technician

Article 1: Eureka!

Article 2: DNA Evidence

Article 3: What evidence works in policing

Article 4: Seeing the Invisible

Oral Presentation

Prepare a 3-5 minute oral presentation that shares with law enforcement the value of blood as evidence in a criminal trial. Be sure to share the positive and negative potential as evidence in a criminal case. Include within this presentation various techniques for obtaining blood evidence. Demonstrate how empirical evidence is required to make claims about specific causes and effects.

Brochure

Create a brochure demonstrating how DNA can be used to identify individuals. Within the brochure please share information related to the relationship between DNA and chromosomes in the process of cell division that pass traits from one generation to the next. Share techniques utilized by forensic scientists to identify DNA based upon the understanding that all cells contain genetic information in the form of DNA molecules.

Materials & Equipment List

Construct a list of the 6 - 8 most critical products that regional law enforcement should purchase for the new laboratory that will be created once a forensic science office is created. Be sure that you provide a rationale as to why each of these products should be purchased, based upon the value of the evidence and the scientific basis for tests and the products. Remember to consider how these resources can be used to identify blood and DNA.

Step 3: Design & Create

Brainstorm Ideas

It's time to think about product development. You will begin with ideation, which is the start of the creative process. During the ideation phase, you will brainstorm with your group about all the potential ways you could approach this product. Remember, the more creative and innovative your ideas are at this stage, the better! Your group will need to check and make sure that each of your initial ideas are meeting the requirements related to the goal, audience and product description. What are the directions or criteria that need to be followed? Who is your audience and what will they need from this product?

Analyze & Decide

As you discuss the possibilities during your brainstorming, you will narrow the ideas down to those that seem like they would best solve the problem or address the challenge. Once you have narrowed down to two or three ideas, grab some paper and a pencil and make an outline or sketch a plan for each one. What will the product need to include? How will you best use the information that you found in your research to create it? What would the product look like based upon each idea?

After outlining your product ideas. Discuss with your group and decide on ONE that you would like to move forward with. When you have selected one idea, you will move on to the creation phase, keeping in mind that you may go through several rounds of creation and revision before you are ready to present.

Create & Revise

It is possible that while you are creating the first version of your product, you will develop more questions that need to be answered before you can continue. If so, you may need to do additional research. Reflect on how any new information affects your product and make revisions as needed.

Your group should also be looking at the rubric during the creation phase. Here, you can practice thinking critically and collaborating with your peers to understand what needs to be included in your product. Then, you should reflect on whether or not your initial work meets those criteria. If you realize that it does not, you may need to go back and make additional revisions.

As you work through the process of creating and revising your product, communication with your teacher and classmates will be very valuable. Asking for help and discussing your product with others can help you clarify whether or not your product meets the goal of the task and is appropriate for the audience.

Remember, creating this product is a fun opportunity to apply what you have learned about important topics in a more creative and independent way.

Step 4: Reflect

Congratulations - You finished! Now take some time to reflect on the process. Look at the questions below to guide your reflection.

What classroom content did you use to create your products and solve the issue/challenge?

What skills did you use (21st century skills) to work through the task and finish the project?

What problems did you encounter while you were working on this task? How did you solve them?

What did you learn were your greatest strengths? Your biggest areas for improvement?

What part of your work are you most proud of? What would you do differently next time? Why?

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