Shown above are the three teams from the Immunology Spring 2007 Debate: Left: Team Innate Immunity (Malcolm Road, Colleen Lucke and Matt Smith), Center: Team Humoral Immunity (Sam Hume, Keith Heck and Matt Tompkins) and Right: Team Cellular Immunity (Matt Berke, Maikel Griages and Laura Romano)

Writing Assignment 1

Description: You will be provided with the name of a person or a group of scientists whose contribution to the field of immunology has made a profound impact. You have to imagine you are a science correspondent for a newspaper (e.g. Time, Philadelphia Enquirer) and have been asked to write an article about this person/people. This may either be an obituary or an interview.

Audience: Immunology Class Spring 2008

Strategy for completing assignment

Use your imagination: Gather together as much information about this person/persons as you can. Imagine you are meeting them. What would you want to know? What do you think science was like at this time? What were THEY like as people?

Style: As a reporter, you are going to have to explain the discovery in such a way as to make it easily understood by your readers. You can use diagrams to illustrate your explanation, photos etc. Also, it HAS to sound interesting and to have had a profound impact or nobody will want to read your story. Also, tell me which paper you are writing for.

Sources: To start you off, select the links section of this Website and use the Famous Immunologist links to get "starter" information on the careers of famous people in the field.

Schedule for submitting rough and final drafts: All essays must be word-processed and single spaced

Rough Feb. 8^th (1/2 – 1 page in length)

Final Feb 18^th (2-5 pages)

Policy on late papers: Sufficient justification will result in extensions of up to 2 days. Lateness without justification will result in the deduction of points from the grade of the paper.

Writing assignment 2

Description: Our culture has been shaped by voyages made by traders, missionaries and explorers to new and distant areas of the globe. On many occasions, however, these resulted in epidemics, which decimated the local inhabitants. Discuss the historical impact of these epidemics and the factors involved in the sudden outbreaks of disease in previously unexposed populations.

Next, select ONE voyage and imagine you are an immunologist/physician amongst the travelers. Bearing in mind the medical capabilities of the time, what would you do to help the islanders once they become ill? How are you going to limit the spread of the infection?

Audience: Immunology Class Spring 2007

Strategy for completion of assignment:

Use your imagination: Put yourself in the position of the person on the voyage. What might it have felt like to go to an unknown place? (Your hopes, fears etc.) Also how do you feel about the people you are about to encounter?

Documentation style: The first section has to be scientifically accurate, the second has to be written in one of three styles: -

Diary style (journal)

Memo style (as if reporting back to a commanding officer or head office)

Letter to a relative

Sources: Try looking at the epidemics links section on this Website, particularly .

Schedule for submitting first and final drafts

Rough March 30^th (1/2 – 1 page in length)    Final April 9^th (2-5 pages)

All essays must be word-processed and single-spaced

Policy on late papers: Sufficient justification will result in extensions of up to 2 days. Lateness without justification will result in the deduction of points from the grade of the paper.

Assignment 3

Class Debate (Teams) - April 30^th

Description: During the semester you have heard about the three components of the immune system; non-specific immunity, humoral immunity and cellular immunity. Imagine we are about to “evolve” again and plan to rid ourselves of TWO of these three components. Which ONE would be retained?

Strategy: Nine members of the class will hold the debate with three people being assigned  each arm of the immune system. One person in each group will speak about the positive aspects of their component of the immune system. The other two will be asked to speak on the negative aspects of each of the other two arms of the immune system. The remaining person/persons in the class will vote after all speeches have been given. Remember each group will stand/fall on the basis of ALL its members. When preparing your argument for your arm of the immune system, think about the following: -

1.       What would life be like without it?

2.       When did it appear in the evolutionary scheme of things (i.e. how basic is it)?

3.       Why is it “better” than the other components of the immune system? (Protection against disease, kinds of diseases which occur when it is not present – how life-threatening are they)

Grading: Following all the arguments, the class will vote on which arm of the immune system should be retained. Final grading of the presentations will be based on style, content and persuasive argument and will be by the instructor.

Written assignment 3

Description

The remaining members of the class not selected for the class debate will be asked to select from the following 6 essay title choices.

1.       Patients with a history of tuberculosis often show scars in the lungs and experience recurrent infection. Account for these effects on the basis of the inflammatory response induced by the disease.

2.       Explain how the genetic coding of immunoglobulins allows for the recognition of an unlimited number of antigenic substances

3.       During the past few years, the former Soviet Union has witnessed a massive increase in the number of adults infected with the childhood disease diphtheria and a series of influenza epidemics. Describe the effect that vaccination has on the body, giving examples of important vaccines, and explain in immunological terms what is happening to the population of this former nation

4.       Describe the steps by which the HIV virus invades human T cells. If you were trying to develop strategies to prevent this occurring, explain what you would do. Now compare this with what is currently being attempted. Why is making a vaccine against this virus proving so difficult?

5.       Explain what epidemiologists do, describing what is meant by surveillance, giving examples of reportable/notifiable diseases, disease prevalence, epidemics and pandemics. Give an example of an epidemiological investigation that identified a particular source of infection.