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Understanding the scientific method fosters the development of critical thinking and logical analysis of information. Additionally, proposing and testing a hypothesis is applicable not only to science, but also to ordinary facts of daily life. Knowing the way science is done and how its results are published is useful for all citizens and mandatory for science students. A 60-h course was created to offer undergraduate students a framework in which to learn the procedures of scientific production and publication. The course's main focus was biochemistry, and it was comprised of two modules. Module I dealt with scientific articles, and Module II with research project writing. Module I covered the topics: 1) the difference between scientific knowledge and common sense, 2) different conceptions of science, 3) scientific methodology, 4) scientific publishing categories, 5) logical principles, 6) deductive and inductive approaches, and 7) critical reading of scientific articles. Module II dealt with 1) selection of an experimental problem for investigation, 2) bibliographic revision, 3) materials and methods, 4) project writing and presentation, 5) funding agencies, and 6) critical analysis of experimental results. The course adopted a collaborative learning strategy, and each topic was studied through activities performed by the students. Qualitative and quantitative course evaluations with Likert questionnaires were carried out at each stage, and the results showed the students' high approval of the course. The staff responsible for course planning and development also evaluated it positively. The Biochemistry Department of the Chemistry Institute of the University of Sã o Paulo has offered the course four times.

The volatile oils from the leaves and stem barks of Cedrela fissilis were submitted to GC-MS analysis and separation by adsorption chromatography. The fractions were analysed by GC, 1 H-and 13 C-NMR as well as GC-MS. The major components found in the leaf oil were β β β β β-caryophyllene (26.3%) and bicyclogermacrene (34.6%), while in the stem bark oil the major compounds were β β β β β-bisabolene (10.9%) and globulol (10.9%). In an antibacterial assay, only the leaf oil was able to inhibit growth of Staphylococcus aureus and Eschorichia coli.

No presente artigo foram investigados os conhecimentos de educação científica de um grupo de professores de química, biologia e ciências, com especial atenção aos indicadores de alfabetização científica. A partir do oferecimento de um curso de extensão de formação continuada para esse grupo de professores, foram coletados os dados de pesquisa por intermédio do registro audiovisual das aulas e posterior transcrição das mesmas. Esses dados foram analisados de acordo com os indicadores de alfabetização científica, resultando na manifestação da maioria dos indicadores esperados em cada um dos episódios analisados, sendo que o curso oferecido auxiliou no processo de alfabetização científica destes profissionais. Assim, a principal contribuição desse trabalho consistiu na identificação e análise de indicadores de alfabetização científica, a fim de corporificar o quadro teórico das pesquisas em formação continuada de professores.

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