The following describes the Globalheartbeat activities completed by the Girls Summer Science Camp at theWrigley Environmental Center on Catalina Island California in 2002. Judy Lemus, Ph.D was science director of the camp and has written this summary.

Fourteen high school women participated in the USC Marine Science Summer Program in 2002. The students had more time this year to both design and collect data for CAPMON experiments. Students were divided into 3 groups of 4-5 girls each.  Prior to starting CAPMON activities, students collected large male Pachygrapsus crassipes (lined shore crab) from two different sites on the island. On the first day of CAPMON activities, all of the students were given an introductory presentation on environmental physiological monitoring and CAPMON technology. Following the presentation, we moved into the lab where the CAPMON procedures were demonstrated in their entirety, and the students were able to handle the crabs and test the equipment.  Students were given a list of possible experiments that they could choose for their turn in the lab. Each group was required to tell me beforehand which experiment they had chosen. Each group had a 4-hour block of time in the lab to perform their experiment. The three experiments chosen from the list were:

• Compare the heart rates of crabs in light vs. dark regimes.
• Compare the heart rates of crabs in their own home ambient seawater vs. seawater from another location.
• Compare the heart rates of crabs in natural seawater vs. seawater with copper sulfate added.
• Following the same experimental protocols, each group measured the heart rates of each group of grabs in the control environment for 60 minutes, followed by measurement of the heart rate of each group of crabs in the experimental environment.  Visual observations of crabs at designated time points were also made. Crabs used for each experiment were placed in separate holding bins so that they were not used by subsequent groups.  At the end of the three days of experiments, we returned the crabs to the environment.  The groups followed a lab analysis sheet to form the basis of a presentation that they gave to the rest of the students near the end of camp. 

The groups were given a guide to assist with their inquiry

The groups used spreadsheets to record their results
Spreadsheet 1     Spreadsheet 2     Spreadsheet 3

The groups presented their results
Presentation 1     Presentation 2

The  College of Exploration, 230 Markwood Drive, Potomac Falls, VA 20165
Tel: (1) 703 433 5760      Email: peter@coexploration.net