Using Transparent Media and Time-lapse Photography to Observe Root Growth in a Research-focused Educational Laboratory Exercise

 

Nathan Sammons

Tested Studies in Laboratory Teaching, 2019, Volume 40

Abstract

Roots typically grow in the unseen depths of soil; consequently, lab students are rarely able to directly observe important structures or physiological responses such as root hairs, lateral root growth, tropism, or rhizosphere dynamics. In this lab, students will design and implement a research project that tests the effects of an environmental variable on the growth and development of root systems of Raphanus raphanistrum (radish). By growing study plants in transparent media, the students are able to witness root system development in real time. Students experience the process of science at all levels, from question formation to research presentation. They are guided through the manufacture of custom-made equipment, review basic concepts of photography, and create a time-lapse video of their root systems as they develop.

Keywords:  collaboration, botany, guided inquiry, roots, prototype, time-lapse, design thinking

The Ohio State University (2018)