JURASSIC PARK
Science Fact...or Science Fiction?
Big6ä Research Project
The Big6ä Information Gathering Process:
 
Step 1.  Task Definition
                1.  What am I supposed to do?
                    2.  What information do I need?
 

This week you will be starting a two-week long project on the feasibility or reality of the movie Jurassic Park. Jurassic Park is a movie in which scientists clone dinosaurs by obtaining dinosaur DNA and  make several individuals with it. The end result will be a 3-4 page typed paper that discusses the reality of Jurassic Park and the ethics behind this type of scientific work.

Part 1

We will start the project by watching the movie, during which you should be taking notes that will help you to answer the following questions. Your notes will be handed in along with your paper and will be part of your grade.
 
Focus questions:
1. How did the scientists obtain the dinosaur DNA?
Make sure your answer will be detailed and complete!!!
2. How did they make a dinosaur from the DNA? Include how they addressed the problem of gaps in the dinosaur’s DNA.
3. Should this type of work be allowed? Why or why not?
Pay special attention to the objections raised by Malcolm and the other scientists. This will help you when you start writing about the ethics of this line of work.

Part 2 This research will be on the reality of Jurassic Park and the ethics of cloning.
  Focus Questions:
1. What is cloning?
2. Do we have the technology to do the work done in Jurassic Park?
If we do not, what are we able to do and what are we not able to do?
Can we clone any organisms? If so which ones?
What are we not able to clone? Why not?
What are the difficulties of cloning?
What part of the cloning process in Jurassic Park are scientists not able to do?
3. What is one argument for cloning organisms?
4. What is one argument against cloning organisms?

Part 3 This is the process of actually writing the paper. You will have the rest of the class periods next week to write the paper. The general format of the paper is below.
  Title
Come up with a creative, appropriate title for your paper.
  Body of the paper:
First paragraph
Introduce the purpose of the paper and briefly summarize about what you will be writing. Include the definition of cloning.
  Next 2 paragraphs
Briefly summarize the science in the movie. Specifically, address the first two focus questions from Part 1.
1. How did the scientists obtain the dinosaur DNA?
Make sure your answer will be detailed and complete!!!
2. How did they make a dinosaur from the DNA? Include how they addressed the problem of gaps in the dinosaur’s DNA?
  Next 1 to 1½ pages
Discuss the information you found about the reality of Jurassic Park. Answer the first two questions posed in Part 2 above.
1. What is cloning?
2. Do we have the technology to do the work done in Jurassic Park?
If we do not, what are we able to do and what are we not able to do?
Can we clone any organisms? If so which ones?
What are we not able to clone? Why not?
What are the difficulties of cloning?
What part of the cloning process in Jurassic Park are scientists not able to do?
  Next page
This section will be about the ethics of cloning, especially cloning dinosaurs.
You need to determine whether you think:
1. the cloning of dinosaurs should be allowed
2. the cloning of other organisms (ones that will not eat people) should be allowed
You need to state your opinion (there aren’t any wrong answers!!) in both of the cases above. After stating your opinion, you need to back it up using a combination of the information in the movie (question 3 in Part 1) and information that you found in your research (questions 3 and 4 in Part 2)

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