Skip to main content
Home

Secondary navigation

  • my.wilson
  • Alumni
  • Visit
Search
Give

Main navigation

  • Admissions
    • Undergraduate
    • Graduate
    • Teacher Certification Pathways
    • Transfer Students
    • Commuters
    • International Students
    • Dual Enrollment
    • Single Parent Scholar Program
    • Military
    • Partnerships
    • Apply
    • Visit
    • Get Info
    • High School Counselor Info
  • Academics
    • Undergraduate Programs
    • Graduate Degree Programs
    • Doctor of Occupational Therapy
    • Online
    • Teacher Certification
    • Pre-Professional Programs
    • Academic Success Center
    • Study Abroad
    • Internships
    • Advanced Placement
    • Learning Opportunities
    • Phi Beta Kappa
    • Library
    • Fulton Center for Sustainability Studies
    • Hankey Center and Archives
    • Equestrian Center
    • Registrar
    • Course Catalog
  • Online
    • Online Undergraduate Programs
    • Online Graduate Programs
    • Doctor of Occupational Therapy
  • Student Financial Services
    • Affordability
    • Financial Aid
    • FAQs
    • How We Help
    • Paying for College
    • Policies and Terminology
    • Tuition and Fees
  • Student Life
    • Academic Success Center
    • Campus Dining
    • Campus Housing
    • Campus Life FAQ's
    • Career Development
    • Clubs and Activities
    • College Store
    • Getting Involved
    • Living on Campus
    • Student Blue Book
    • Student Services
    • Student Wellness
    • Parents
    • Pets on Campus
    • Phoenix Against Violence
    • Student Orientation
  • Athletics
  • About
    • Our Campus
    • History and Traditions
    • President
    • Offices
    • Mission and Vision
    • Honor Principle
    • Values
    • Consumer Information
    • Human Resources
    • Notice of Non-Discrimination and Equal Opportunity
    • Employment Opportunities
    • Commencement
    • Conferences and Events
    • Campus Safety
    • Policy for Taking Photos on the Wilson College Campus
    • The Arts at Wilson
  • Academic Calendar and Events

Events and Projects

Marine Biology Field Trip

When the marine biology course is offered in the fall, the students in the course participate in a field trip to Wallop's Island Marine Science Consortium located on the Chesapeake Bay.  Students have the opportunity to visit a wide range of habitats including low and high energy beaches, mud flats, salt marshes, uninhabited dunes, maritime forests and inter tidal waters.  We also spend time out on the water trawling for organisms that are found in the coastal waters that line the bay.  An evening trip to catch bioluminescent ctenophores is always a highlight.

Invasive Species Removal on the Interpretive Trail

Wilson College is fortunate to have an interpretive trail on campus that includes a natural wetland, grassland area and forest.  However, like most natural areas today, the trail is plagued with invasive plant species.  During the fall of 2005, the Conservation Biology course decided to tackle the issue of invasive species and decide how best to return the trail to its natural state.  The students chose three plots where invasives would be removed as well as two control plots.  One control plot was relatively free of invasives and one plot had a very large percentage of invasives.  During the course of the semester, the students identified all the plants in the plot and physically removed all invasive species.  The goal is to have students from other classes continue the project and determine if the invasive removal was successful.

General Biology Course at Caledonia

Each spring, the students enrolled in the General Biology course take a trip to Caledonia State Park to conduct some field research.  They collect samples from the stream, identify plant life along the trails and attempt to find some interesting fungi.

Physical and Life Sciences Symposium

At the end of the fall semester each year, the senior biology and chemistry majors present their research projects at the Physical and Life Sciences Symposium.  This research was proposed by the student in the spring of their junior year and the research was conducted during the summer and fall.  Each student chooses their own topic and conducts the research independently under the nominal guidance of a faculty member.  Some of the abstracts from recent projects can be found on the student research page.

Pennsylvania Academy of Sciences

The Pennsylvania Academy of Sciences holds their annual meeting each spring and many of the Wilson seniors present their research at this scientific meeting.  This meeting is attended by faculty and students from across the state and provides an opportunity to share current data and research ideas.  Some of the presentations from recent years are listed below.

 

Clark, Falon, Altfeld, L.F., and Engle, B.E.  2011.  "A Comparative Analysis of the Effects of Different Wavelengths of Light on the Growth Rate, Pigmentation, and Behavior of Carassius auratus and Danio rerio."

Dennis, Megan, Altfeld, L.F., Austin, D.S.  2011  "Comparing Vitellogenin Induction by 17β-estradiol in Male Danio rerio Through Tritrophic Bioaccumulation Model and a Bioconcentration Model."

Khalifeh, Mariam, Engle, B.E., Austin, D.S. 2011 "The Effects of Water Soluble Fiber Combined with Poly- and Monounsaturated Fatty Acids on Plasma Lipoprotein Levels in Hypercholesterolemic Rats."

Luan, Jing, Engle, B.E., and Harriger, M.D.  2011 "Detection of changes in mitochondrial integrity and levels of GSK-3β in Hippocampal Mitochondria of the Triple transgenic Mouse Model of Alzheimer's Disease.

Pare, Monique M., Ward, N., Harriger, M.D., Santai, C.T.  2011 "The Efficacy of Dietary Supplementation of Polyunsaturated Fatty Acids on Psoriasis in the Psoriasisform Murine Model KC-Tie2."

Tadesse, Bemnete, Harriger, M.D., and Engle, B.E. 2010  "Morphometric Analysis of Interlobular Renal Arteries of Spontaneously Hypertensive Rat Pups Born to Mothers Treated with Methylphenidate Prior to and During Pregnancy."

Ditzler, Bobbie, Engle, B.E. and Austin, D.S.  2010  "Temperature Effects on the Seasonal Polyphenism for Melanization of Papilio polyxenes Larvae."

Davies, Susan, Engle, B.E. and Altfeld, L.F.  2010  "Pseudomonas syringae as a Distributor and Vector for Escheria coli in Spinacea oleracea."

Davies, Monica, Harriger, M.D., and Santai, C.T.  2009  "Comparitive Analysis of Total Coliform Bacteria and Escheria coli Concentrations Between the Conococheague and Little Cove Creeks of South Central Pennsylvania Utilizing Various Water Quality Parameters."

Lewis, Sara Ann, Harriger, M.D. and Santai, C.T.  2009  "The Effects of a Calorie Restricted Diet on Guinea Pig (Cavia porcellus) Reproduction and Metabolism."

Yeager, Merideth, Harriger, M.D., and Altfeld, L.F.  2009  "Effects of Inbreeding and Environmental Stress on Drosophila melanogaster."

Biology

Student Learning Goals
Biology Faculty
Events and Projects
Course Requirements
Wilson College and the Smithsonian-Mason School of Conservation

1015 Philadelphia Ave.,
Chambersburg, PA 17201

717-262-2002
admissions@wilson.edu

Follow us...

Footer menu

  • Alumni
  • Athletics
  • Employment Opportunities
  • Inclement Weather Policy
  • Library
  • MyWilson Portal
  • Online College Store
  • Order Textbooks
  • Parents
  • Privacy Statement
  • Visit
  • Wilson Email
  • Wilson Magazine
  • Wilson Online

Wilson College is accredited by the Middle States Commission on Higher Education, 1007 North Orange St., 4th Floor, MB #166, Wilmington, DE. 19801. (Telephone: 267-284-5011)