Over the last three semesters, The Science and Global Change Scholars program has significantly enhanced my understanding of global change, pseudoscience, scientific methods, and so much more.
As someone who interacts with a variety of people, all with different beliefs and characteristics, I have encountered a good amount of people who lack critical thinking skills. I most often experience people using logical fallacies at family gatherings. For example, my two family members got into a disagreement over which college is better. One argues that his son’s college is the best because it is a private institution whereas the other argues that it is not that good of a school and backs up his statement with proof. The first family member believes that correlation equals causation which is not correct. Although the school might be great in his opinion, stating the fact that it is the best due to it being a private institution is not correct. Instead, the family member could have listed reasons why this school is better than others. For example, the school is highly ranked and widely known for its rigorous academic curriculum. But, one cannot make a claim that the correlation is the causation.
Out of all the topics and lessons learned from the Science and Global Change colloquium, I would say that the most effective topic was the lesson on the anatomy of a scientific paper. As a physiology and neurobiology major, scientific papers play a big part in the understanding of science. This topic enhanced the way I viewed and approached my major materials. For example, I am required to take an introductory course on psychology (PSYC 100) and in that class we have discussions on assigned scientific paper readings. The lesson on scientific papers allowed me to engage in discussion and read the paper feeling prepared. It helped me understand the structure and flow of what I was reading, allowing me to better navigate the paper. Another example of how this topic enhanced my understanding would be when I needed to write my own scientific paper in my biology lab, BSCI 171. Our paper was based on research that we did as well as using information from peer-reviewed papers to build our introduction and discussion sections. The lesson on the anatomy of a scientific paper prepared me for knowing how to find the specific published papers and overall enhanced my approach for that assignment. Additionally, the anatomy of a scientific paper helped me with my major semester assignments for ENGL 100. For most of the semester, we had to write major assignments surrounding a topic and mine was on maternal mortality and why POC women had higher rates. In order to do those assignments, I had to do plenty of research using peer-reviewed papers. The lesson on scientific papers allowed me to approach the assignments with ease as I was very prepared with understanding the papers.
Being a SGC Scholars has allowed me to develop many connections with my peers, especially when we were in a time of isolation. When it came to learning, interacting with my SGC Scholar peers allowed me to better understand class material. For example, during this semester we did a two-day group simulation activity involving trade and resources for finding a solution to environmental problems. Before the activity started, I was super confused. However, working on it with peers allowed me to better understand the material and contribute to the work. Additionally, the Search for Solutions project was so much and a great way of learning about solutions with peers. When it came to researching the solution, anytime I ran into material that was a bit confusing to me, group members were so helpful in explaining the confusing materials. Also, when it came to viewing other’s presentations, I found my self understanding and recalling the information much more easily than compared to a normal lesson or if I had to learn the material by myself.
When it comes to contributing to SGC, I was unable to go on any fun field trips, but I did get to contribute in class through discussions as well as through projects. Whenever the class was broken up into groups to discuss the reading, or work on an in-class assignment, I was always contributing and even found myself leading the discussion or work. For example, I was once working on an in-class assignment on real science and news media with two girls who were quite shy. In that situation I ended up leading our discussion on the work through asking them questions and discussing what we found in the articles. They were very kind and as the class continued to start to engage more with me. Another example would be with the Search for Solutions project that I mentioned early. I actively contributed because the worst thing that one could do in a major group assignment would be to barely contribute. Instead, I was always on top of my work, getting my assigned tasks done, and helping my group members with their tasks. Being an active contributor in SGC helps you build better relationships with your peers, allows you to succeed in the class, and allows you to be a great representative for the Scholars community.
Before I became a Science and Global Change Scholars, I did not have that much understanding of global change and climate change. I always knew that climate change was bad, but I did not know how drastically till this class. Being in scholars has allowed me to understand the affects of climate change to a better degree and has provided me with much more information on the solutions. I never knew about half of the solutions till this semester. Being a GSC Scholar has greatly improved my understanding of the world and our climate.
My Scholars experience has definitely impacted and informed my future. The anatomy of a scientific paper was a very beneficial lecture that has allowed me to build on my understanding of it for my major courses and gen-eds. Also, the lecture on News Media and how it communicates science has changed how I view media and is beneficial to know for the future. Additionally, my understanding of global change over all will have a impact on my near future and far into the future.