A Note from Professor Nipun Chopra

Science communication is a critical goal of every good scientist. Scientists must learn how to ask the right scientific question, research that answer and share that information with the general public. For this independent or small group project, students were required to ask a scientific question that interested them; one that involves cellular Biology processes and mechanisms. Using resources such as Google Scholar, PubMed, etc., students critically evaluated the literature and then selected multimedia modality to leverage as their means of science communication.

In this course, students learned the principles behind how cells work - from protein structure/function and cell signaling to cell cycle regulation. Students also learned how to critically read, evaluate, contextualize and disseminate peer-reviewed scientific literature.

Students were supported by personnel from the Tenzer Technology Center and the Pulliam Center for Contemporary Media. (Located on the campus of DePauw University, the Tenzer and Pulliam Centers are student-focused, co-curricular initiatives aimed at helping students gain practical, real-world technical and media-related skills.)

4 student teams built a website (leveraging a variety of features, including interactive timelines, data visualization, image maps and carousels); 3 student teams created videos; 1 student team created a podcast. Most of these students had never built anything like this before.

Explore the students' projects in the gallery below.