Journal Club Presentations for Biology 1A

 

            Most research institutions have a Journal Club that meets once a week. During the meeting, a recent research journal article is presented by one person and discussed among the club members. This is a great way to keep up with exciting new technology and to get ideas for your own research. We will be simulating this experience by having you get into groups and present an article during one of the three “Journal Club Sessions.” You will work towards giving a 40-minute oral/visual presentation, followed by 10 minutes of question-and-answer. The group will choose a recent research article from a major journal that applies a technology used in lab or discussed in lecture. The presentation will consist of an introduction to the article, a description of how the technology was used and the results from the technology, and a discussion of how the paper contributed to the field and your critique. The material covered in the presentations will be on the Journal Club Test (12/6/06), so in a way, you will be contributing to the exam questions!

 

Picking a paper

 

  1. First form a group of 3 and sign up for a technology.
  2. Choose a paper that uses the technology you chose to solve a research problem. For example, you might choose a paper that uses microarray technology to find genes that are overexpressed in ovarian cancer.
  3. Your paper must be a recent (within two years) research article, not a review, news article, or other non-original research paper. It must come from a major peer-reviewed journal. Examples are: Cell, Nature, Science, Molecular Cell Biology, EMBO, PNAS, Journal of Biological Chemistry, Journal of Immunology, etc. Please avoid obscure journals, like national journals and “specialized” journals containing the words “Archives,” “Acta,” and “Communications.” If you are unsure about a journal from which you might choose an article, ask me first.
  4. You will clear the paper with me first at least 2 weeks before your presentation date. I will need an electronic file (pdf file or active link) at least one week ahead of time so that I can post it on my website. This will allow your classmates to read them before your presentation.
  5. You may do searches of abstracts from the www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov (click on “pubmed” after launching site). You may not have access to articles in NCBI from the link above. You can try this link through UCSC. Click on “PubMed UC version” and you may have more access to articles. Also check out www.freemedicaljournals.com for free journal articles. These articles are all after a certain time period (e.g. older than 6 months old).

 

Presenting the paper

 

You will create a powerpoint slideshow that will be orally presented to the class (see example). Your slideshow will be run from my notebook (PC) computer, so on the day of your presentation bring in a disk or USB jumpdrive with your file(s) to load on my PC. You may run animations and sound clips from my notebook as well. In addition to your slideshow, you may use the wipeboard to make drawings/lists to help break up the talk. Public speaking is fun, but it can also be very nerve-racking! The best antidote to nervousness is practice. The more you practice, the more confidence you will build, and the less nervous you will be on the day of the presentation. You can also enroll in Comm8, which is a 1 unit independent study course in speech preparation. This will help you conquer fears and prepare you for the talk.

 

Content: (80 pts)

  1. (15 pts) Introduction (~10 min): You will give a brief introduction to the technology and the research paper.

·         Include a “hook.” Why did you choose this paper? Do you have some personal interest in the subject? You should draw the audience in with interesting facts/anecdotes.

·         Give an overview of the problem that is to be solved. You may have to include background information to help the audience better understand the paper.

·         What technology was used to solve the problem? What is the general principle behind using this particular technology? Is there a new way that the researchers are using the technology?

  1. (30 pts) Methodology and Results (~15 min): Present how the technology is used in the paper.

·         Explain the strategy used by the researchers in their experimental design. Do not explain what the technology is, but how it is used to solve the problem.

·         Present the important findings in the paper from your choice technology. Do not go through every data figure of the paper, but just focus on the ones that use your technology or are important to the overall findings. For each data figure you cover, explain: 1) what the general methods were used to create the data, 2) what the controls are, 3) what the findings are.

·         Give a brief summary of the findings.

  1. (25 pts) Discussion (~15 min): Explain how the findings contribute to the field and critique the paper.

·         Summarize the contribution to the field of study. Did the researchers use the technology in a new way? How does this paper change how we think about the field? Is there a new/refined model/theory proposed by the researchers?

·         Critique the paper. Critique the scientific merit of the paper. Could there have been a better way to use the technology? Did the researchers interpret the data properly? Use specific examples from the paper in your critique.

·         Future work. Talk about possible follow-up studies. Do you have any ideas not in the paper?

·         Provide a “closer.” What bits of information do you want the audience to leave with? You can revisit your introductory “hook” to close out your presentation.

  1. (-5 pts for lack of references) Include references if you used information not in the paper (i.e. background information)
  2. (10 pts) Questions from the class (~10 min): Address questions from the class.

 

Style: (20 pts)

  1. (10 pts) Visuals: Was the slideshow clear and engaging? Was the font readable and figures clear? Avoid too much text on one slide!
  2. (10 pts) Oral: Did you speak clearly and in an engaging fashion? Did you verbally explain your slides well?

 

Grading: I am looking for clarity of the presentation and depth of understanding of the concepts in the paper. Follow the point system and suggested presentation time for each section above. I will grade the group together, which means that you will get the same grade as everyone in your group. Since your performance will affect the grade of your partners, it is important that you work together closely in preparing and practicing your presentation.