Philosophy and Goals
of Senior Thesis in Science
The experience gained in doing original research - working independently,
learning to ask good questions, experiencing the process of experimentation,
and imparting your findings to others - is something that cannot
be taught in the classroom, but is, ultimately what science is
all about.
For these reasons, we consider the thesis experience, whether
it involves library, field, or laboratory work, as a very important
aspect of your education.
The weekly senior seminar should give you guidance towards a
successful research experience. In addition, the seminar will enhance
your knowledge of research trends that are current in science today.
First Semester Goals (what is expected in a two-semester thesis)
- Become familiar with your thesis topic in order to have a clearer
grasp of where you r work will fit in relationship to previous
work done in the field. This will involve literature searches.
- Develop a feasible project design.
- Learn to make maximum use of the diverse library facilities
available at Claremont.
- Compile an essentially complete list of references related
to your project.
- Learn how to and give an oral presentation on your project
design and future plans.
- Begin experimental work, develop most of the methods needed
to do the thesis research, and obtain some preliminary results.
- Write a first draft of the introductory sections of your thesis
- introduction, historical background, experimental methods,
results, preliminary discussion, future experiments, etc.
Second Semester Goals
- Carry out the remainder of your experimental program (or library
research).
- Analyze the results carefully and early(!) so that additional
work may be done if needed. A proper statistical analysis of
your data will be required in order to convince anyone of its
significance.
- Prepare your final written thesis incorporating the introductory
sections from the first semester with the results of the second
semester work. A rough draft will be turned in to your thesis
director several weeks before the final draft is due.
- Present your results in a poster session to an audience of
professors and fellow students from all scientific disciplines.
Grading
Originality of Project
All scientific advances are built upon what has gone before. Your
work should enter new areas. This does not require new findings.
It may involve simply a new way of looking at things - a new synthesis
of ideas.
Asking a Good Questions
Science can
be defined as "an exploration of the material
universe that seeks natural, orderly relationships among observed
phenomena." Science is not simply a description of the universe.
It is an attempt to understand it. Describing a new species of
fish or a new chemical is not science (though it may well be a
necessary first step); comprehending its place in nature, its relationships
to previous knowledge, is. A major portion of the scientific endeavor
is the asking of good questions, ones that increase our understanding
of the universe.
Design of Project
Design includes elegance of your technique and thoroughness of
planning; choosing a project and designing it so that it can be
accomplished in the time allotted.
Project Report
An important aspect of science is the passing of knowledge to
others. Communication skills are of utmost importance here. You
will be graded on both oral and written presentations of your results.
It is your
responsibility to keep your readers informed about what you are
doing and to
show them an outline of your plan of
attack. There is nothing worse than having your thesis director
ask in the last week of April, "Why didn't you do this experiment?" or "Why
isn't there a discussion of this in your thesis?" If the criticism
makes sense, it is far too late at that point to do anything about
it other than blame yourself for not talking to others about your
work sooner. It is to your advantage to keep in touch with your
readers and pay attention to suggestions they might offer.
|
