Protein Evolution
Scott Cooper, University of Wisconsin-La Crosse
In this activity students explore the evolution of proteins by comparing 2D and 3D alignments of orthologs and paralogs.

Co-evolution of Life and Minerals
Penelope Boston, New Mexico Institute of Mining and Technology
Based on the 2010 Scientific American paper by Hazen, and the more technical 2008 paper of Hazen et al, both of which explore the effect of the biosphere on the tremendous number of mineral species that occur on ...

Analyzing datasets in ecology and evolution to teach the nature and process of science
Rebecca Price, University of Washington-Tacoma Campus
This quarter-long project forms the basis of a third-year course for majors and nonmajors at the University of Washington, Bothell called Science Methods and Practice. Students use databases to identify novel research questions, and extract data to test their hypotheses. They frame the question with primary literature, address the questions with inferential statistics, and discuss the results with more primary literature. The product is a scientific paper; each step of the process is scaffolded and evaluated. Given time limitations, we avoid devoting time to data collection; instead, we sharpen students' ability to make sense of a large body of quantitative data, a situation they may rarely have encountered. We treat statistics with a strictly conceptual, pragmatic, and abbreviated approach; i.e., we ask students to know which basic test to choose to assess a linear relationship vs. a difference between two means. We stress the need for a normal distribution in order to use these tests, and how to interpret the results; we leave the rest for stats courses, and we do not teach the mathematics. This approach proves beneficial even to those who have already had a statistics course, because it is often the first time they make decisions about applying statistics to their own research questions. We incorporate peer review and collaborative work throughout the quarter. We form collaborative groups around the research questions they ask, enabling them to share primary literature they find, and preparing them well to review each other's writing. We encourage them to cite each other's work. They write formal peer reviews of each other's papers, and they submit their final paper with a letter-to-the-editor highlighting how their research has addressed previous feedback. A major advantage of this course is that an instructor can easily modify it to suit any area of expertise. Students have worked with data about how a snail's morphology changes in response to its environment (Price, 2012), how students understand genetic drift (Price et al. 2014), maximum body size in the fossil record (Payne et al. 2008), range shifts (Ettinger et al. 2011), and urban crop pollination (Waters and Clifford 2014).

Virtual fieldtrip on the Quaternary evolution of Rhodes Isl. (Greece).
Niki Evelpidou, National and Kapodistrian University of Athens
This virtual fieldtrip takes place on Rhodes Isl., Dodecanese, Greece. Rhodes is the largest island among the Dodecanese Archipelago in the southeastern Aegean Sea. Along with Kassos, Karpathos and Crete islands, ...

Teaching Molecular Evolution and Phylogenetics
Nathan Lents, CUNY John Jay College Criminal Justice
This activity uses DNA sequences, protein sequence, and chromosome-density maps to re-trace the ancestry of humans and some of their closest relatives.

Investigating slope failure and landscape evolution with red beans and rice!
Tom Hickson, University of St. Thomas (MN)
Students investigate the behavior of a slope profile over geological timescales using a very simple experimental apparatus. The lab allows students to understand concepts of equilibrium, controls on slope profile, ...

Evolution, Natural Selection and Speciation
Scott Cooper, University of Wisconsin-La Crosse
In this out of class tutorial, students explore several examples of natural selection and speciation.

Teaching geologic time and rates of landscape evolution with dice
Kate Ruhl, Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Landscape evolution provides a convenient framework for understanding geologic time and rates because students can observe how processes like erosion and deposition shape their surroundings. In this example, students build 3-D sandbox models based on topographic maps and design and stage a "virtual adventure race." Sandbox landscapes are used to illustrate erosional processes,while local examples are used to discuss landscapes as transient or steady over different time- and length scales. Dice experiments illustrate radioactive decay and the shape of the age equation curve, and 14C dating, geochronology and thermochronology are introduced as "stopwatches" that start when a plant dies, a crystal forms, or a rock nears the surface and cools to a certain temperature. The sandbox model and thermochronometer "stopwatches" are combined to measure erosion rates and rates of landscape change. Ultimately, model rates (cm/hour) calculated from stopwatch times on the order of seconds can be related to geologic rates (km/My) calculated from real million-year-old samples.

The evolution of federal budget surpluses and deficits in the U.S. since 1970.
Natalia Smirnova, University of Connecticut
Students analyze the United States federal budget surplus/deficit as a fraction of gross domestic product (GDP) and discuss the evolution of federal budget surpluses and deficits since 1970. Students propose ...

Evolution of Normal Fault Systems During Progressive Deformation
Bob Burger, Smith College
This activity is based on QuickTime movies and color digital photographs derived from sandbox experiments that produce normal faults in a variety of boundary conditions following experiments developed by Ken ...