1. Start your project by Week 3 of the course to allow enough time for your experiment to progress
2. Develop a short document (3-page max, single space, 12-point font) summarizing your project:
a. Introduction: Describe the system under study. State your Hypothesis. Use 3 scholarly references (10 points)
b. Methods: Briefly describe the materials and steps followed (7 points)
c. Results: Make observations for all three stages. How did it look during the experimental period, what changed? (10 points). Pictures, tables or graphs are encouraged.
d. Conclusions: What did you learn? Did you come up with any questions about this system during this process? (10 points)
e. References: 3 scientific references minimum listed in order and using standard formatting (3 points, the reference list does not count towards your page limit).
3. For your document, make emphasis on how this project relates to microbes (what microbes are involved, what do they do, what conditions are required, etc.). Also try to connect it to the environment. For example, answer questions such as: Is this process affected by environmental factors? Is this process beneficial to the environment?
4. For each project you can do two experiments (one per partner) for comparison, or one experiment between the two of you. It’s up to you. At the end, you will present just one report. You and your partner may meet in person, or via zoom. If you choose to do just one experiment, then meeting in person a few times is recommended so that you can both observe the experiment.
5. WARNING: For the Kombucha projects, observe extreme caution and do not consume the product if it has mold growth or any other suspicious properties. We are not requiring that students consume the product as part of the grade, just that you undertake the process and make observations.