Write the report CER
Fri, Oct 2, 2026 · Week 6 · Principles of Biomedical Technology (Principles of Biomedical Science)
Today's goal: Write a full investigative CER report integrating all evidence and acknowledging limitations.
What a finished product looks like
This is a model of the work you should turn in today. Use it to check your own: match the structure and the level of detail, do not copy it. Your data and wording should be your own.
Parallel case: A sudden fish die-off in a neighborhood pond. A student team investigated why hundreds of fish died overnight, pulling evidence from four independent streams.\n\nClaim: The most likely cause of the fish die-off is oxygen depletion triggered by an algae bloom, not direct chemical poisoning.\n\nEvidence by stream: Field, a dissolved-oxygen meter read far below the level fish need to survive at dawn. Lab, water samples showed nitrate and phosphate concentrations high enough to feed a large algae bloom. Biological, a thick mat of decaying algae covered the surface, and decay consumes oxygen. Records, the weather log showed several hot, still, cloudy days with no wind to mix the water.\n\nReasoning (convergence): These four independent streams point to the same explanation. Low oxygen, bloom-feeding nutrients, decaying algae, and calm warm weather each describe one part of the same chain, and when separate methods agree on one story the conclusion is strong.\n\nConflict resolution: One water test flagged a trace of a lawn chemical, which hinted at poisoning instead. I resolved this by trusting the repeated oxygen readings and the visible algae mat over a single trace measurement that was near the detection limit.\n\nLimitations: 1) I did not test the water on the days before the die-off, so I am inferring the bloom timeline rather than observing it directly. 2) Oxygen and nutrient data show a strong pattern but cannot by themselves rule out every other stressor, so the conclusion stays a reasonable-certainty finding, not a certainty.
Also due today: Upload your draft CER to the tracker or hand in the written copy for peer review by end of class.
WebXam problem for today's skill
One exam-style question that uses exactly what you practiced today. Try it before you reveal the answer, then read why each choice is right or wrong.
Tap an answer to see the full explanation. Nothing is recorded or graded.

