Bioethics Report

After the oral presentations some modifications and additional information about your report may be given:

• Please remember that this Bioethics Report is not a review paper, it is a paper where you take a stand on one side of the issue, and defend that stance. (Your stance must be absolutely clear in the paper in order to receive full credit)
• Your written report should be at least 8 pages long, double-spaced, one inch margins and either 12-point or 14-point font sizes. References are in addition to this length requirement.
• At least ten references must be included, which may be from the internet, newspapers or magazines, or scientific references. References must be real and not just opinion of their authors.
• No plagiarism allowed. If you use information from a referenced source, be certain to give credit to that source.

Important Dates (Date shown is for the Thursday of that week, except Thanksgiving week which is a Wednesday):

This report is required to pass the class. This report must be typewritten and turned in on time. Due date is for the upcoming semesters is listed above for each of the components of this assignment.  The actual written report should be about 8-10 pages long (double-spaced using 12-point or 14-point font size) including references, and must include:

• Title (separate title page is acceptable with your name on it as well)
• Abstract, which includes a brief recap of the paper and pertinent conclusions
• Introduction, describing the topic to be covered and some background information (maximum 2 pages)
• Body of the report where you clearly demonstrate your stance and the support of your stance (pro or con)
• Conclusions
• Literature Cited (at least ten independent references are required and can be acquired through traditional sources, such as printed magazines and newspapers, as well as internet sources)

The topic that you select can be anything related to bioethics. Topics might include, but certainly are not limited to, the following (URL links indicate online information is available):

• Bioterrorism
• Genetic engineering of foods, animals or medicines
• Stem cell research (embryonic, adult or placental)
• Euthanasia
• Abortion
• Homosexuality, including genetics, societal considerations, marital rights
• Human and/or animal cloning
• The Atkins diet, is it healthy or just a fad?
• Vegan lifestyles
• Xenotransplantation

You must give Dr. Robertson the subject of your bioethics paper by the date shown above. Use one of the forms below to submit your submit.

Be sure you include your name and the topic of your subject on this piece of paper. The in-class oral presentation will be a 4-5 minute individual presentation (it will be timed, so prepare your thoughts well) to the entire class about your topic and the types of material you will be including in your report. Be prepared to answer questions from the class, or the instructor, which might assist you in writing your formal report, by suggesting areas that you may not have thought about.  After you have given your presentation to the class, you must turn in to Dr. Robertson a type-written one-page outline or description of your bioethics paper.  This document will become part of the material graded for this research paper.

During this lab period, at the end of the presentations, Dr. Robertson will give some supplemental information that must be included in your report. You will not know about this information until that time.

Remember that this bioethics report is not a review paper, although a short review of the topic is an important part of your paper.  After you review the concept or idea you wish to address, you must detail your views on this particular topic and why you are writing this paper.  You must take a stand that is clearly obvious to anyone reading the paper.  You must defend your chosen stance (pro or con).  Explain clearly you support your particular view of this subject.  It must have some moral or ethical component.  For example, one student in a previous semester said, "I want to present a paper of the advantages of flossing your teeth."  Well, students, I don't think you will find anyone who does not believe that flossing is good for your dental health.  Therefore, this is not a topic that would be appropriate for a bioethics report.  Look at some of the topics shown above, and you should be able to see that each has some "pro" and some "con" points of view.  You should ask yourself, "Is this topic something that some people agree with and others disagree with?" in order to determine if you have selected a topic which meets these criteria.  You must take a stand on the topic for your paper.

I am repeating that unless your paper is written in such a manner that a clear and obvious stance is being taken, you will not receive full credit for this paper.

Good luck.

Dr. Robertson