Plant growth chambers with modern environmental controls will facilitate changes in the introductory biology curriculum, permitting an experimental motif whereby all students acquire research experiences and skills. Descriptive, observational lab exercises in botany are being replaced by experiments that emphasize physiological processes. Students then become involved with hypothesis formulation, data collection, statistical analysis, computer graphing, and report writing. Such a transformation meets several intertwined goals: more engaging biology laboratory experiences, better retention of science students, heightened student interest in research careers, and improved research training for undergraduates. Growth chambers meet an urgent need for reliable environments in which to place botanical experiments; they also open new opportunities for experimental manipulations of temperature, humidity, and light regimes. Courses for introductory students and several courses for advanced undergraduates (Developmental Biology, Terrestrial Ecology, Plant Identification) will improve, and new opportunities will open for independent/team research projects by undergraduates and, during summers, by secondary students in the Governor's School for the Sciences.
