An overnight trip will allow us to travel farther from Sacramento, work in different types of habitats, and spend longer, more focused time in the field. It is also fun. The weekend field trip is required. Alternative assignments may be arranged for those with schedule conflicts. All students are required to complete an individual project.
Individual projects emphasize the process of carrying through a scientific question.
The proposal should clearly identify the question your study seeks to answer and the methods that you plan to use. The independent research project is intended to provide you an opportunity to explore an environmental science question in greater depth than can be covered in class. The best way to really understand and learn field methods is to do some of it yourself from planning, to collecting data, analyzing the data, writing a report and presenting your findings. Perhaps you have a favorite bird, plant or group of organisms that you want to know more about. Hopefully the class material will also help you to develop interesting questions from an initial curiosity.