BME100 f2014:Group26 L1
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Home People Lab Write-Up 1 | Lab Write-Up 2 | Lab Write-Up 3 Lab Write-Up 4 | Lab Write-Up 5 | Lab Write-Up 6 Course Logistics For Instructors Photos Wiki Editing Help |
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OUR TEAMLAB 1 WRITE-UPIndependent and Dependent VariablesThe independent variable (the variable being changed as part of the experiment) is the dosage of the lipopolysaccharide. The dependent variable (the variable consequentially being changed by the change of the independent variable) is the increase in the production of the inflammatory protein: inflammotin. The dosage of the lipopolysaccharide is the independent variable because it is what is being manipulated in the experiment, specifically to find a lowest possible dose to produce an increase in the production of inflammotin, which is the dependent variable, as it is being measured in response to different dosages of lipopolysaccharide. Experimental DesignGroups
Age
Subject SelectionSubjects of ages 65-85 will be chosen from 3 retirement homes around the valley. Each retirement home will be provided a volunteer sign-up sheet, and of the individuals that sign up per location, 10 will be chosen at random. This is being done in order to prevent bias in the experiment. As a result of a limited budget, this experiment will not be searching for subjects outside the Tempe, Arizona area.
Sources of Error and BiasSome possible scientific error could result from drug interactions, failure to comply with drug administration and preexisting medical conditions. To fix these sources of error, patients could be monitored periodically or tested each time they come in to make sure they are taking the assigned prescriptions regularly. Furthermore, subjects could be tested for any concurrent or previous drug use that may interfere with the data from this lab. In addition, it may be beneficial to review the subjects' medical records and make sure their preexisting medical conditions are compliant with the drug. Bias could result from small test groups, limited pooling area, and age range. Although there are only ten subjects per group, the individuals are chosen at random to minimize experimental bias. Three trials will be run, using the same subjects, to increase the veracity of the results. The limited pooling area is countered by the selection of test subjects from three different retirement homes. The age range was specifically chosen for older individuals 65-85 years old because, statistically speaking, the prevalence of inflammation increases with age, which explains why an older age range was set as the focus group of the experimental subjects.
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