Health Canada must soon weigh on the evidence of the safety of aspartame in order to provide a clearer regulation policy and to provide information for Canadian consumers. As a Senior Food Research Scientist for Health Canada (with a PhD in Physiology), you are tasked with analysing the available evidence about the use of aspartame and to provide recommendations to be used by the Health Canada food and beverage regulation safety committee. Furthermore, your summary for Canadian consumers on the safety of aspartame will also be used by Health Canada in a future summary document for the Canadian public.
Your work will, therefore, comprise two parts. One, a reasoned analysis and evaluation of the evidence on aspartame and a conclusion about how safe it is and how they should be regulated. Second, a brief summary of your conclusions that will be used in a brochure for the public on the safety of aspartame.
It is important to note that you must be as unbiased in your approach as possible. That is to say that you must not ignore valid sources simply because they do not support your final decision. Instead, you must provide at least one valid/reliable source with an opposing view, and, if possible, include a brief section debating (or debunking) the source’s main point(s).
Because of the requirement to release the brochure before the end of the month, Health Canada has imposed a strict deadline for your conclusion and brochure - 2 days from now. Good luck.
TASK
Remaining "unbiased"
Not allowing yourself to be biased pretty much means that you have to look at all the evidence before making an informed decision. Do not let how you feel about the issue get in the way of looking at all the evidence. Eventually, you will be making a decision (and how you feel will probably make a difference) but bias during the process (i.e. during the research) is problematic when you are being counted on to make a fully informed decision.
This type of decision impacts more than just you; you are in a position to influence many people, and it is your responsibility to get it right!
You are the judge
When it comes down to it, this is your WebQuest. The point of this activity is not to tell you what is right or wrong, but to encourage you to explore resources and determine what you believe. This means that if you find a resource you absolutely love, but it seems a bit outdated or biased, it is your choice to use it. Sometimes, this can even be beneficial as long as you take note of its limitations.
Check the date on your resources
Often, available online resources are not current. Even if the source is normally completely valid and reliable, if it was written in 1967 (for example), some things could have changed. The science could have been updated since then, little/no research was available at the time, etc.
Finding valid and reliable sources
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Remember, just because it is written down somewhere on the internet does not mean it is true. Try to find sources you recognize (and trust). If it is new to you, you'll have to trust your judgement, but ask yourself: does it look professional/reliable? Is it written well? Was the site put together in a matter of hours?
Also, observe how the whole resource is set up. Even if it seems reliable, assess the amount of bias on their end too. You want to remain unbiased (as discussed above), and so you should try to find at least some resources that are unbiased too - which is often harder than it seems.
