Arthropod Problem Report

Minor Project- Chose either an Arthropod Problem Report or Scrapbook Minor Projects Submit your minor project as a PDF (preferred) or Word or PowerPoint format. Other formats will not be graded, and you will receive a zero until the correct format is submitted. Due to Canvas by 5:00 pm Friday, July 2nd. Papers and Scrapbooks will be checked for plagiarism. Make sure you cite your work.

Arthropod Problem Report Purpose To identify a current arthropod problem facing some aspect of society and to propose short and long term solutions to the problem. Some websites you might want to explore: http://www.invasivespeciesinfo.gov/animals/main.shtml

http://www.cdc.gov/zika/

Guidelines

1. Identification: Identify and describe the problem a. Research current news (last 12 months) and government websites. b. What is the problem? What are some of the possible reasons for its occurrence? c. Consider the scale of the issue; can range from local community to global networks. d. What are the short and long term consequences of the issue?

2. Contributions: What is currently being done to address this issue?

a. Discuss some of the newer and more innovative techniques for dealing with the problem that are currently being applied in the real world. Be specific in describing these techniques. For example, if you are going to say that insecticide is used you need to describe the type of insecticide and its mode of action.

b. Try to find at least several different tactics that are currently being used, or tested, by different people in different locations to deal with the same problem.

3. Future outlooks a. Based on what is currently being done to manage this problem, what are the long-term

prospects for the situation? Will current management techniques become obsolete? If so, why? Are current management techniques socially, environmentally and economically sustainable? Why or why not? Are there non-target effects? Can you suggest a supplemental or alternative idea to address this issue?

Some Issue Areas Invasive Species, Food Growth/Supply, Conservation, Climate Change, Human Health

Requirements

- Provide name, section, and major in top right of paper - 3-4 pages in length, double-spaced, size 12 font - Report must have a descriptive title and the body itself must contain 3 properly headed

sections (Identification, Contribution and Future outlooks) - Include 3 references – Must be credible peer-reviewed literature, or government publications.

Grading (50 points total)

- Proper Formatting (10) – Headings, title, length, spacing, font, references - Proper Spelling and Grammar (10) - Quality (30) – Proper fulfillment of section guidelines

Scrapbook Project

Electronic Entomology portfolio or Scrapbook — Created using PowerPoint or similar software. Up to 50 points possible. NOTE: Read this entire section and then start immediately on this project….don’t leave it until later.

Purpose - to raise awareness of the roles and plights of arthropods in human culture:

1. Ubiquity of insects in human culture: The purpose of this assignment is to open your eyes to the prevalence of arthropods in the world around you. Once you start looking and paying attention you will see just how much insects impact human society; you will see news related to insect-borne diseases, decline of pollinators (this is not a trivial problem), insect impacts related to global climate change, and countless other incidents where human culture and insect culture collide. You will be surprised just how frequently insect and arthropod images are used in our culture—fabric, jewelry, home furnishings, media (movies, magazines, etc.), restaurant menus, Web site mascots, sports team mascots, etc. You will also find journal articles about butterfly gardening, insects in water gardens, and various pests, pollinators and other insects.

2. “Arthropod specism:” While we know that some arthropods are capable of transmitting disease

or delivering a venomous sting, of the million and a half species of insects, those that are dangerous to humans are a tiny fraction of a percent. The vast majority of them make life on Earth possible for us, and provide us with important services, like pollination, decomposition, keeping pest insects in check, and so on……Likewise, of the over 40,000 species of spiders, only a few are capable of harming humans, yet the reaction to a spider or an insect is frequently one of horror or repulsion. When asked why an individual finds arthropods to be loathsome, the response will often be that “they look disgusting.” Peter Singer (1990), a well-published human rights advocate who has written on the history of civil rights movements based on race, gender, and even biological classification. He warns

“We should always be wary of talking of ‘the last remaining form of discrimination.’ If we have learned anything from the liberation movements we

should have learned how difficult it is to be aware of latent prejudices in our attitudes toward certain groups….A liberation movement is a demand for an end to prejudice and discrimination based on an arbitrary characteristic like race or sex (or having 8 legs or 6 legs). The aim of this book is to lead you to make this mental switch in your attitudes and practices toward a very large group of beings: members of species other than our own. I believe that our present attitudes to these beings are based on a long history of prejudice and arbitrary discrimination. I argue that there can be no reason – except the selfish desire to preserve the privileges of the exploiting group….I ask you to recognize that your attitudes to members of other species are a form of prejudice no less objectionable than prejudice about a person’s race or sex.

Dr. Singer does not advocate that all species be treated the way we treat humans, but that we acknowledge that they are living beings that differ from us in appearance. Rather than an immediate reaction of revulsion based simply on appearance, each animal should be evaluated on characters other than their exterior countenance, and that, whenever possible, we should consider our viewpoints from perspectives other than our own. Scrapbook Items You are expected to compile a “scrapbook” of items about insects or other arthropods. Your items must address the specified categories (see below). These items can be journal articles, newspaper clippings, original poetry or artwork, advertisements, etc. which you will make into an electronic album (using PowerPoint or a similar slide presentation software). You must meet the required number of four items for each category. Some of the things you find will fit more than one category – it will be up to you to decide where they go and to explain your decision. For each of the 4 categories below, ONLY 1 item in each may be non-insect arthropods. Item Categories:

1. Insects of medical and veterinary importance (4 items) – can include insects involved in disease transmission, insects used in medical therapies, insects as parasites….anything with a medical or veterinary focus.

2. Insects in artistic context (4 items) -could include visual art, music, folklore, literature, movies, books, comics, etc.

3. Insects unfairly loathed (4 items) – this category may require a little thought and a very receptive eye. These items should depict insects or other arthropods, which are actually harmless or even beneficial, as loathsome or “evil.”

4. Current insect issues in the news (4 items) -could be related to invasive species, agriculture, endangered species, conservation, climate change, etc.

Creative component - applies to the entire scrapbook – creativity involves the items that you choose to include, how you organize them and what you choose to write about those items. Make sure your font is legible with your background.

Administrative details:

• You must provide source/ reference with each item, e.g., Newsweek, Vol. 8, No. 9, April 5 issue, or Tulsa World, April 1, 2007 etc. properly cite sources (pictures, materials acquired from websites)

• You must number each item (#1 through #16) and put each item on its own separate slide

• Separate your scrapbooks into the prescribed item categories, either with a heading or a title slide for each of the 4 categories

• You should also include a personal comment with each of your items. These comments should describe your reasoning for putting the item into that particular category; additionally they could include your thoughts on the use of that insect in that particular context, or a particular motivation that stirred you to write an original poem…..

Grading - Scrapbooks

• 20 points for creativity and appropriateness of items

• 10 points for quantity of items and attention to detail (numbering, format, etc.)

• 20 points for quality of Comments that accompany the items – the comment should explain why you put that particular item into that particular category. Did you include some sort of descriptive statement about the arthropod in the item? Did you make an insightful statement, that is, not “This is the in the Order …” over and over again.

• Put effort into the presentation of your scrapbook. Did you number each item, group them into categories and label your categories?

Did you:

 Divide each category, either with a heading or a title slide?

 Include the proper number items per category (4 items for each category)?

 Provide a source/reference for each item? –ON THE SAME SLIDE WITH EACH ITEM (not in the

back of the scrapbook, please)

 Number each item (#1 through #16)?

 Include a creative comment about why you chose each item?