WNMU Biology majors Kiya Hamar (left) and Kiersten Hielkema look after seedlings in the greenhouse as part of an original experiment in their Plant Form, Function, and Diversity Lab, Oct. 24, 2024SILVER CITY, NM—Students in Assistant Professor of Biology Eric Casler's BIOL 2642L Plant Form, Function and Diversity Lab have an opportunity to conduct original research this semester.

The assignment, said Casler, is to come up with an original experiment on seed germination. "In teams of two, they have designed their own experiment," he said. "They challenge the seeds in different ways, and then they are going to write a scientific paper."

The level of responsibility required by the assignment is unusual for entry-level biology courses, indicated Casler. "We begin preparing for the experiment five weeks before it starts by reading and analyzing a scientific paper, after which the students submit proposals for their own experiments, meet with me individually, then revise their proposals," he said. "We offer extra credit if the students choose to present their research at the student symposium that is held on campus at the end of each semester."

Students have developed a wide variety of ways to challenge the seeds. "Some people do pH experiments with quite acidic or basic solutions," said Casler. "You can do things to the seeds ahead of time to see how that affects them. Some people have put them in a microwave or in the oven for a few minutes, or somebody worked at a dentist's office, and they blasted them with x-rays to see if that affects the seed when it tries to grow."

One student in the class, Kiya Hamar, said that her group's experiment was to see how mung bean seed germination would be affected by different growing media. "I am experimenting with different soil types. We have regular soil, we have coffee grounds, we have gravel, sand, and then turf," explained Hamar. "I am a softball player, so I wanted to see if seeds would be able to germinate on the field that we have. I also work for facilities, and I am always picking weeds, so we wanted to see if it is possible for the seeds to germinate on that."

"What we have seen so far is that the seeds have germinated a lot on the sand, and even some on the gravel, but we have had none on the turf, and only one on the coffee," said Hamar.

Another student, Kirsten Hielkema, said that her group's experiment was to coat black bean seeds with different materials. "I am coating one with glue, one in rubber cement, and one in clay," she said. "We also did one that was half in clay just to see how that affected the seed's sprouting." Hielkema said that her group had not seen germination, but she was not sure if that was due to the coating or due to other factors affecting germination.

On the whole, said Casler, the project allows students to take ownership of their work. "While creating opportunities for students to make, and learn from, their own mistakes, the whole experience provides our new biology majors a sense of agency, autonomy, and accomplishment as they begin their science education at WNMU," he said.