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Create a pamphlet that communicates the information from the analysis submitted as Assessment 1. Your pamphlet should be appropriate to your audience and informs them of the impacts lifestyle choices have on the risk of cancer.
Scientific results that aren’t reported might as well not exist. They’re like the sound of one hand clapping.
—Robert O. Becker, orthopedic surgeon and researcher
Introduction
Cells, the microscopic building blocks of life, were first discovered and named by Robert Hooke in 1655. But it took another 200 years, and a scientist named Rudolph Virchow, to study how diseases affect those cells. Today, doctors use Virchow’s work to better diagnose and treat patients. But this is only possible because Virchow persevered in his work, told the scientific community about his discoveries, and made sure that others could confirm his findings (Edwards, 2013; Schultz, 2008).
In this assessment, you’ll continue to grow your innovation, problem-solving, and results-driven skills as you explore how scientists stay resilient in the face of failure, explain their work, and ensure that their conclusions are reliable.
It’s hard to overstate the importance of reading our own instruction book, and that’s what the human genome project is all about.
—Francis Collins, former director of the National Human Genome Research Institute
13 years.
2,800 researchers.
References
Edwards, S. (2013). Rudolph Virchow, the father of cellular pathology.
https://www.aaas.org/rudolph-virchow-father-cellul…
National Human Genome Research Institute. (n.d.). What is the Human Genome Project? https://www.genome.gov/human-genome-project/What
Schultz, M. (2008). Rudolph Virchow.
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC26030…
Overview
In Assessment 1, you analyzed a data set and then used the scientific method to determine if the data supports your hypothesis on whether lifestyle choices can reduce the risk of cancer. In this assessment, you will demonstrate results-driven skills by translating the study you analyzed in Assessment 1 into a pamphlet that will educate a targeted audience so they can make informed decisions for themselves.
Preparation
Use the following scenario for this assessment:
You work as a research assistant at a primary care center, where your role is to ask patients their lifestyle choices (that is, smoking, exercise, environmental exposures, et cetera). Based on this information, create a pamphlet to inform patients the risks of their choices so that the patients can make informed decisions for themselves.
Create a pamphlet that is appropriate for your targeted audience. You may use tools such as Word, PowerPoint, or Publisher to create your pamphlet. If you feel stuck, you can do a Google search to see examples of pamphlet layouts.
Instructions
Complete the following:
Step 1: Interpret the benefits and risks to the consumer using evidence from the course resources or your own study. Provide opinions and examples to support your interpretation and message to the targeted readers.
Step 2: Create a pamphlet appropriate for targeted readers. Use the information from Assessment 1 to fully describe the impacts of lifestyle choices on the risk of cancer. Make sure you include resources for targeted readers who might want to do more reading on the information found in your pamphlet.
The Scientific Method and Innovations: Part 1
Directions: Use his template to complete the scientific method to support your assignment. Use
Figure 1.4 in Chapter 1 of your course text to complete this assignment.
Your name:
Section 1: The Scientific Method
1. Explain the scientific method. Identify the origins of this method and provide examples
of its application to solve real-world problems. Also describe why this method ensures a
sound analysis of data.
The scientific method is a process consisting of a series of steps designed to
objectively establish facts through experimentation and testing. Dating back to the
1600s, the origin of this method can be seen during the Renaissance and the thinkers
of this time; furthermore, scientists from Copernicus to Newton utilized the scientific
method to develop well-known theories seen today, including the theory of Newtonian
physics (Blystone & Blodgett, 2006). For example, the scientific method was applied
to test the gravitational model of the solar system (Blystone & Blodgett, 2006). Today,
this method is consistently applied in the sciences, such as in clinical research when
in a drug discovery phase (Taylor et al., 2020). Individuals may consistently apply the
scientific method to any real-world problem and inquiry; for example, an individual
may have an observation, ask themself questions regarding that observation, then
conduct a real-life test to verify if this observation is true (Taylor et al., 2020). For
instance, if an individual noticed that a light does not turn on, the individual may
hypothesize that the bulb is not working and therefore, conduct a test to determine if
replacing the bulb results in the light turning on (Taylor et al., 2020). This application
of the scientific method can be similarly seen throughout many everyday activities,
including driving, cooking, and more (Taylor et al., 2020). With the scientific method,
the data collected is consistently reliable, allow for a sound analysis of data. This is
because this method allows for a collection of data without any bias, allowing for the
analysis to occur without any preexisting information to support the data and results
produced (Taylor et al., 2020).
2. Define the process or steps in the scientific method. Describe the typical activities
that would happen in that step or probes. Describe the objective of each step and the
typical activities or tasks for that step.
The scientific method consists of six key steps. This includes the observation,
question, hypothesis, prediction, test of prediction, and the results. During the first
step, observation, a problem or interesting feature may be noticed, prompting an
individual to determine the solution to such. The objective of this step is to identify a
problem or question, and generally only involves the initial notice of the key problem
or question (Taylor et al., 2020). The second step, question, involves the formulation
of a question related to the observation of interest. The objective of this step is to form
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a testable question that is consistent with the observation (Taylor et al., 2020). The
third step is the formation of the hypothesis. The objective of this step is to formulate
a hypothesis that answers the crafted question with only one alternate answer being
present (Taylor et al., 2020). The fourth step is to make a prediction based on the
hypothesis. The objective of this step is to ensure that the prediction is clear and
consistent, rather than adding nuances that may complicate the hypothesis (Taylor et
al., 2020). The fifth step is to test the prediction. The objective of this step is to carryout an experiment based on the prediction, and critically involves the experimental
processes and data collection to be conducted (Taylor et al., 2020). The final step,
results, involves an analysis of the data then presenting the results from such. The
objective of this step is to determine if the hypothesis was supported or contradicted
(Taylor et al., 2020). This final step is essential in determining if the overall research
supports the initial claims or if additional research may be needed (if the hypothesis is
contradicted) (Taylor et al., 2020). Collectively, these steps in the scientific method
help an initial observation often turn into data-supported results, allowing for unbiased
conclusions to be drawn from such.
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Section 2: Data Analysis
Use the information below to complete the questions of this section.
Data from 5,000 patients were recorded over a 6-month period to determine the correlation
between lifestyle choices (that is, smoking, diet/exercise, environmental exposures, genetics)
and cancer risk. In this particular study, individuals with “multiple factors” were double counted
and leads to the total being greater than 5,000. Use the information and data in Table 1 below to
help you generate your hypothesis, outcomes, and analysis.
Table 1: Lifestyle Choice and Correlation to Cancer
Lifestyle Choice
Smoking and
Tobacco
Good Diet and
Physical Activity
Sun and Other Types
of Radiation
Genetics
Multiple Negative
Factors
Total Responses
(Yes)
2,400
Cancer
(Yes)
1,020
1,250
80
900
180
450
1,300
250
1,000
1. Apply the scientific method to determine if lifestyle choices can address the
issues of the study. Analyze the data to see the relationship between lifestyle choices
and the risk of cancer. Evaluate the data to determine if lifestyle choices have any
bearing on the risk of cancer, and how. Provide opinions and supporting examples.
Based on the data, there appears to be a positive relationship between lifestyle
choices and the risk of cancer. For example, there is a strong relationship between
smoking and tobacco and the risk of cancer; moreover, in the data collected, it
appears that approximately 42.5% of individuals that have this lifestyle choice also
have had cancer. In contrast, those individuals with a good diet and physical activity
only had a 6.4% population of cancer. This relationship continues with multiple
negative factors contributing to a 76.92% population prevalence of cancer. Therefore,
based on the data, it can be determined that there is a positive relationship between
poor lifestyle choices and the risk of cancer, and a negative relationship between
good lifestyle choices and the risk of cancer. Based on the data, it can be determined
that these lifestyle choices can greatly increase the risk of cancer (42.5% of a poor
lifestyle choice compared to 6.4% of a good lifestyle choice). Additionally, this risk
value greatly increases when multiple negative lifestyle choices are involved
(76.92%). Therefore, lifestyle choices can greatly influence whether the risk of cancer
is significantly high or minimal, depending on whether the lifestyle choice has a
positive or negative effect on the body (i.e. smoking has a negative effect on the body
whereas physical activity has a positive effect). It is important to note, however, that
genetics are typically not included under the umbrella of lifestyle choices, as genetic
are often uncontrollable, and therefore should not be individually included in the data
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analysis (Voit, 2019). However, genetic should be included in the multiple negative
factors category, as there is an increased importance of those with genetic
predisposition towards cancer to promote more positive lifestyle choices (Voit, 2019).
2. Articulate the conclusions reached in the study. Make the connection between the
data and how this leads to the conclusion. Include specific data to support your thoughts
about the conclusion. Define a hypothesis that is suggested by the data collected in the
primary care center. What is your prediction based on the data collected? Explain how
you would use the scientific method to test your hypothesis or prediction? Describe the
results. Do you accept or reject your hypothesis? Explain your answer in detail.
Based on the data, the conclusion that can be made is that lifestyle choices can
greatly influence the risk for cancer, with positive lifestyle choices having a negative
relationship with the risk of cancer and negative lifestyle choices having a positive
relationship with the risk of cancer. For example, from the data, it was calculated that
those that had a positive lifestyle choice (good diet and physical activity) only had a
6.4% risk of cancer, whereas those that had a negative lifestyle choice (smoking and
tobacco) had a 42.5% risk of cancer. From the entirety of the data collected, a
hypothesis that can be created is as follows: Lifestyle choices, and whether they are
positive or negative, can greatly influence the risk of cancer. Based on the data
collected, a prediction that can be made is as follows: Negative lifestyle choices will
increase the risk of cancer and positive lifestyle choices will decrease the risk of
cancer. To test the hypothesis, the scientific method can be utilized to ask individuals
that conduct negative lifestyle choices, and those that conduct positive lifestyle
choices, and whether they have had cancer. From this, the results will be categorized,
and it can be determined if the individual negative lifestyle choices contribute to
cancer and if the individual positive lifestyle choices contribute to cancer. With these
results, it will be important to create percentages to better describe the data, as there
may be inconsistencies in the number of individuals that responded for each lifestyle
choice category (Voit, 2019). From the results, I accept the hypothesis – the data
supports the hypothesis that lifestyle choices can greatly influence the risk of cancer.
Therefore, it can be concluded from the research process and results that positive
lifestyle choices have minimal significance in the risk of cancer, whereas negative
lifestyle choices have great significance in the risk of cancer.
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Section 3: Limitations
1. Describe the possible limitations of interpreting your conclusions. Identify the
possible limitations of the collected data—what kinds of things might be happening that
the data isn’t showing? Explain how the limitations of the data might cause a
misinterpretation of the data.
The possible limitations of the data collected include inconsistencies with the research
samples collected, time constraints, the methods and techniques utilized to collect the
data, and the formulation of the objectives. For example, if poor techniques and
methods were utilized to collect the data, such as poorly worded informal
questionnaires, then the data may potentially be skewed. Similarly, while the data was
recorded over a six-month period, it is unclear if there was a specific timeframe that
had more patient data recorded. If there was a surplus of data collected during a
single month, for example, this would cause a limitation as there may be additional
factors contributing to results seen. Additionally, there are only a few categories
presented for the lifestyle choices recorded, which can lead to a poor formulation of
the objectives as there may be additional factors that contribute to the risk of cancer
rather than just the few seen. With cancer often being very complex, there may have
been additional lifestyle choices that contribute to the formation of cancer in
individuals (such as alcohol consumption) but they were not recorded. This leads to a
limitation of the data, and often a misinterpretation of such, because the data is not
fully representative of the entirety of factors that may have contributed to a patient’s
cancer or cancer risk. This misinterpretation may cause conclusions to be made
regarding specific lifestyle choices and the risk of cancer, of which may not be entirely
accurate due to the omitted factors that may have also contributed to such. While the
general conclusion of the data may continue to be correct – negative lifestyle choices
may increase the risk of cancer – this continues to be a misrepresentation as only
certain lifestyle choices are being reflected in the data and not the entirety that may
support this conclusion (Ross & Bibler Zaidi, 2019). It is, therefore, important to
address the limitations of the data to ensure that conclusions can potentially continue
to be supported and not intentionally misrepresentative to the audience viewing the
research (Ross & Bibler Zaidi, 2019).
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References
Blystone, R. V., & Blodgett, K. (2006). WWW: the scientific method. CBE life sciences
education, 5(1), 7–11. https://doi.org/10.1187/cbe.05-12-0134
Ross, P. T., & Bibler Zaidi, N. L. (2019). Limited by our limitations. Perspectives on
medical education, 8(4), 261–264. https://doi.org/10.1007/s40037-019-00530-x
Taylor, M. R., Simon, J., Dickey, J. L., Hogan, K. A., & Reece, J. B. (2020). Campbell
biology: concepts & connections (10th ed.). Pearson.
Voit E. O. (2019). Perspective: Dimensions of the scientific method. PLoS
computational biology, 15(9), e1007279.
https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pcbi.1007279
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