Chapter 4 - Fate
Ridley basically says that we have genes to cause diseases, and we only get them because the genes aren't working correctly. The gene that lies on chromosome 4 is very special because it is associated with the Huntington's chorea. Mutated versions of genes cause that, while a complete lack of gens cause Wolf- Hirschhorn. It is considered fate to whether you get the disease or not. Either you have the Huntington's mutation and will get the diseases or not. There is no theory or prophet to tell when a persons life may end. Huntington's disease leaves a fifty percent chance to the offspring as how Ridley mentioned Nancy Wexler writing a story about a woman in the Lake Maracaibo study. Nancy Wexler wanted to find the gene to this disease because she wanted to find a cure for it, unfortunately when she took the test, she found out she was diagnosed.
Citation:
Ridley, Matt. Genome: The Autobiography of a Species in 23 Chapters. New York: HarperCollins, 1999. Print.
Monday, May 21, 2012
Genome - Entry 6
Chapter 11 - Personality
Ridley begins the chapter talking about a protein called the dopamine receptor. He mentions that dopamine is a neurotransmitter which causes their own neuron to discharge an electrical signal from it's own. D4DR gene identifies neurons as members of the brain's dopamine-mediated pathways. Dopamine is considered a motivational chemical for the brain. It is also said that people with more D4DR genes don't have the adventurous approach to things like people with shorter D4DR genes. Hamer mentions that serotonin is considered the punishment chemical for the brain which causes anxiety & depression. Personality is the thing that varies people to the way they respond to social stimuli mediated through neurotransmitters.
Citation:
Ridley, Matt. Genome: The Autobiography of a Species in 23 Chapters. New York: HarperCollins, 1999. Print.
Ridley begins the chapter talking about a protein called the dopamine receptor. He mentions that dopamine is a neurotransmitter which causes their own neuron to discharge an electrical signal from it's own. D4DR gene identifies neurons as members of the brain's dopamine-mediated pathways. Dopamine is considered a motivational chemical for the brain. It is also said that people with more D4DR genes don't have the adventurous approach to things like people with shorter D4DR genes. Hamer mentions that serotonin is considered the punishment chemical for the brain which causes anxiety & depression. Personality is the thing that varies people to the way they respond to social stimuli mediated through neurotransmitters.
Citation:
Ridley, Matt. Genome: The Autobiography of a Species in 23 Chapters. New York: HarperCollins, 1999. Print.
Friday, March 2, 2012
Genome - Entry 5
Chapter 12 - Self Assembly
Ridley starts off the chapter talking about the analogies that we use like how our eyes are considered as a camera, and how our heart is like a pump. Two scientists working in Germany named Jani Nusslein-Volhard and Eric Wieschaus that tried to find as many mutant flies as possible. They would dose their flies with chemicals that would cause mutation and bred them. The mutated flies came out in separate groups with some only having wings, or only limbs. If you move a hedgehog-expressing piece of tissue int the anterior half of the wing, the fly would come out as if it has mirrored the front to the back. Hox and hedgehog genes aren't the only genes that can control development, in fact, there are many more genes that can do the same.
Citation:
Ridley, Matt. Genome: The Autobiography of a Species in 23 Chapters. New York: HarperCollins, 1999. Print.
Ridley starts off the chapter talking about the analogies that we use like how our eyes are considered as a camera, and how our heart is like a pump. Two scientists working in Germany named Jani Nusslein-Volhard and Eric Wieschaus that tried to find as many mutant flies as possible. They would dose their flies with chemicals that would cause mutation and bred them. The mutated flies came out in separate groups with some only having wings, or only limbs. If you move a hedgehog-expressing piece of tissue int the anterior half of the wing, the fly would come out as if it has mirrored the front to the back. Hox and hedgehog genes aren't the only genes that can control development, in fact, there are many more genes that can do the same.
Citation:
Ridley, Matt. Genome: The Autobiography of a Species in 23 Chapters. New York: HarperCollins, 1999. Print.
Genome - Entry 4
Chapter 15 - Sex
Ridley introduces this chapter by mentioning a five-year-old girl who has a rare inherited disease called Prader-Willi syndrome. The Prader-Willi syndrome has many symptoms like having small hands and feel or mildly mentally retarded. In the late 1980s there were two scientists who tried to have a mouse with only one parent, but failed because the method they used did not help develop the embryo. Ridley mentions that diseases " do not always result from a mutation in one of these genes but from an accident of a different kind." The placenta is an organ that a father's gene would not trust the mother's genes t make and then the cerebral cortex is the organ that is the other way around. Ridley then continued to talk about a boy who got a circumcision, but went wrong and changed the boy into a girl by castration. The boy grew up thinking he was a girl until his parents told him the truth.
Citation:
Ridley, Matt. Genome: The Autobiography of a Species in 23 Chapters. New York: HarperCollins, 1999. Print.
Ridley introduces this chapter by mentioning a five-year-old girl who has a rare inherited disease called Prader-Willi syndrome. The Prader-Willi syndrome has many symptoms like having small hands and feel or mildly mentally retarded. In the late 1980s there were two scientists who tried to have a mouse with only one parent, but failed because the method they used did not help develop the embryo. Ridley mentions that diseases " do not always result from a mutation in one of these genes but from an accident of a different kind." The placenta is an organ that a father's gene would not trust the mother's genes t make and then the cerebral cortex is the organ that is the other way around. Ridley then continued to talk about a boy who got a circumcision, but went wrong and changed the boy into a girl by castration. The boy grew up thinking he was a girl until his parents told him the truth.
Citation:
Ridley, Matt. Genome: The Autobiography of a Species in 23 Chapters. New York: HarperCollins, 1999. Print.
Genome - Entry 3
Chapter 6 - Intelligence
Ridley introduces the chapter by first mentioning that "GENES ARE NOT THERE TO CAUSE DISEASES" and then eventually talking about how a gene for intelligence has been found. Robert Plomin has been researching, and found a group of gifted teenagers. It was proven that the smarter teenagers have a different DNA sequence than a normal teenager. There are two sides on where intelligence comes from, either nature or nurture. I go on the nature side because i believe that people are born with intelligence inside them, they grow up to learn how to use intelligence, but they are born with it. The intelligence gene they found is very big, it contains 7,473 in total and the sense-containing message spreads over 98,000 letters of the genome.
Citation:
Ridley, Matt. Genome: The Autobiography of a Species in 23 Chapters. New York: HarperCollins, 1999. Print.
Ridley introduces the chapter by first mentioning that "GENES ARE NOT THERE TO CAUSE DISEASES" and then eventually talking about how a gene for intelligence has been found. Robert Plomin has been researching, and found a group of gifted teenagers. It was proven that the smarter teenagers have a different DNA sequence than a normal teenager. There are two sides on where intelligence comes from, either nature or nurture. I go on the nature side because i believe that people are born with intelligence inside them, they grow up to learn how to use intelligence, but they are born with it. The intelligence gene they found is very big, it contains 7,473 in total and the sense-containing message spreads over 98,000 letters of the genome.
Citation:
Ridley, Matt. Genome: The Autobiography of a Species in 23 Chapters. New York: HarperCollins, 1999. Print.
Genome - Entry 2
Chapter 9 - Disease
Ridley introduces this chapter by mentioning the different blood types like A, B, AB, and O. He explains how A and B can provide blood for AB, but AB cannot provide blood for A or B. He also mentions that O is a universal donor for any blood type. A and B type of bloods have difference in their genes, where the letters are ordered differently. Ridley explains how the people who have AB blood type are more healthy and to be AB, they have to be offspring of A and B bloody type. So it is suggested for an AA to mate with a BB to have AB healthy children. Ridley talks about a experiment with wearing and smelling a t-shirt with no perfume or deodorant for 2 days, and ranking them by the attractiveness of the smell. There will always be change, and nothing stays the same.
Citation:
Ridley, Matt. Genome: The Autobiography of a Species in 23 Chapters. New York: HarperCollins, 1999. Print.
Ridley introduces this chapter by mentioning the different blood types like A, B, AB, and O. He explains how A and B can provide blood for AB, but AB cannot provide blood for A or B. He also mentions that O is a universal donor for any blood type. A and B type of bloods have difference in their genes, where the letters are ordered differently. Ridley explains how the people who have AB blood type are more healthy and to be AB, they have to be offspring of A and B bloody type. So it is suggested for an AA to mate with a BB to have AB healthy children. Ridley talks about a experiment with wearing and smelling a t-shirt with no perfume or deodorant for 2 days, and ranking them by the attractiveness of the smell. There will always be change, and nothing stays the same.
Citation:
Ridley, Matt. Genome: The Autobiography of a Species in 23 Chapters. New York: HarperCollins, 1999. Print.
Thursday, March 1, 2012
Genome - Entry 1
Chapter 7 - Instinct
Ridley describes some examples of how instinct is like for animals, and how humans don't NEED to rely on instincts, but instead we learn. Chomsky studied the way human beings spoke, and came to a conclusion that there are similarities to all languages that bore witness to a universal human grammar. Ridley discusses how we can change a statement in English by just changing one word to the front, making it a question. There are particular parts in the brain that can cause one to lose the knowledge of how to use sentences that are grammatically correct. English is something we can learn by reading books, but the environment allows us to improve our English. All human beings have instinct, but that doesn't mean that it is developed equally. There are many people who are more advanced than others who could just be slower in learning grammar.
Citation:
Ridley, Matt. Genome: The Autobiography of a Species in 23 Chapters. New York: HarperCollins, 1999. Print.
Ridley describes some examples of how instinct is like for animals, and how humans don't NEED to rely on instincts, but instead we learn. Chomsky studied the way human beings spoke, and came to a conclusion that there are similarities to all languages that bore witness to a universal human grammar. Ridley discusses how we can change a statement in English by just changing one word to the front, making it a question. There are particular parts in the brain that can cause one to lose the knowledge of how to use sentences that are grammatically correct. English is something we can learn by reading books, but the environment allows us to improve our English. All human beings have instinct, but that doesn't mean that it is developed equally. There are many people who are more advanced than others who could just be slower in learning grammar.
Citation:
Ridley, Matt. Genome: The Autobiography of a Species in 23 Chapters. New York: HarperCollins, 1999. Print.
Describe a starfish in terms of symmetry, germ cell layers, coelem, Circulatory system, reproduction, feeding, excretion and nervous system. Find picture examples of each living class Crinoidea, Ophiocistioidea, Astroidea, Echinoiudea and Holothuidea.
The starfish has 5 rays or arms, most of the space in the ray is covered up by the starfishes branched digestive glands. The food that goes through the starfish's is partially digested through the anus of the starfish. The anus of a starfish is where the waste products are released to the outside. There are two rectal pouches near the anus, which functions as a temporary storage for the waste products before being released. the male and female gonads look very alike to the point where it has to be microscopically examined to tell the difference. The ovaries of a starfish are considered to be larger than the sperm, and the testes have flagellated sperm. The water vascular system consists of seawater filled ducts that help the starfish feed and move around.
Crinoidea
Ophiocistioidea
Astroidea
Echinoiudea
Holothuidea
Sources: The little booklet from Starfish Dissection and google images.
Crinoidea
Ophiocistioidea
Astroidea
Echinoiudea
Holothuidea
Sources: The little booklet from Starfish Dissection and google images.
Describe double fertilization
Double Fertilization occurs when a female gametophyte is joined with 2 male gamete. This happens in angiosperm plants, which is capable of having asexual or sexual reproduction. A diploid zygote and triploid endosperm form during Double Fertilization. When the haploid sperm cell joins with a haploid egg cell in order to try and form a diploid zygote, which allows the outcome to develop into a embryo. The ovary develops into a fruin in order to protect the seeds that may help distribute.
Describe how a nephron works. How is this similar to counter currents or hydrostatic skeletons?
Some of the nephron functions are the secretion of some solutes, or re-absorption of various solutes. The nephron has cells with different properties, it also helps the kidney regulate blood because it has a unique blood supply. Parts of the nephron like the Bowman's capsule helps filter and removes all the organic wastes, and water.
Counter Currents: Creates concentrated urine based on what the body needs or wants. Loop of Henle's length is based on the amount of water that goes through, it allows the absorption of water to go back into a body.
Hydro-static Skeletons: Found in many cold-blooded organisms, and surrounded with muscles. Hydro-static skeletons play a role in how sea creatures move in the water.
Counter Currents: Creates concentrated urine based on what the body needs or wants. Loop of Henle's length is based on the amount of water that goes through, it allows the absorption of water to go back into a body.
Hydro-static Skeletons: Found in many cold-blooded organisms, and surrounded with muscles. Hydro-static skeletons play a role in how sea creatures move in the water.
Tuesday, February 7, 2012
Extra Credit Blog
What topics really confused you?
- The chapters on photosynthesis confused me along with the BioChemistry chapters. I wasn't really good with Chemistry and the bonds really confused me.
What topics do you feel very clear on?
- I feel really clear on the plant dissection, and structure of the plants. I also really liked the ecology unit, i'm not sure if it was easier because it was at the beginning of the year, but i really understood that.
What lab/ activity was your favorite? Why?
- My favorite lab was the toothpick lab, because it was really fun, and hands on. I really understood it because it was simple and direct.
What lab/activity was your least favorite? Why?
- My least favorite lab was the virtual genetics fly lab, i didn't understand what we really had to do, i guess it was a bit confusing for me because it was the first virtual lab that we had to put onto our notebooks.
If you could change something about the class to make it better, for instance the type of homework (not the amount) what would it be and why?
- If i could change something about the class, i honestly think it'd be a lot easier if we didn't have online homework, sometimes there could be problems where we can't open a link, or anything could go wrong and we won't be able to do much until the next day. I like that we can turn in some homework over the weekend, but i think that we can do a lot better on studying or working on our lit circle books if we had more time with reading and studying than online blogs. I also think that it would be a lot more helpful if we can know exactly what we need on our spiral and lab notebooks a few days before they are all due, so that it can be a way of checking off what we need in order to get a high score.
- The chapters on photosynthesis confused me along with the BioChemistry chapters. I wasn't really good with Chemistry and the bonds really confused me.
What topics do you feel very clear on?
- I feel really clear on the plant dissection, and structure of the plants. I also really liked the ecology unit, i'm not sure if it was easier because it was at the beginning of the year, but i really understood that.
What lab/ activity was your favorite? Why?
- My favorite lab was the toothpick lab, because it was really fun, and hands on. I really understood it because it was simple and direct.
What lab/activity was your least favorite? Why?
- My least favorite lab was the virtual genetics fly lab, i didn't understand what we really had to do, i guess it was a bit confusing for me because it was the first virtual lab that we had to put onto our notebooks.
If you could change something about the class to make it better, for instance the type of homework (not the amount) what would it be and why?
- If i could change something about the class, i honestly think it'd be a lot easier if we didn't have online homework, sometimes there could be problems where we can't open a link, or anything could go wrong and we won't be able to do much until the next day. I like that we can turn in some homework over the weekend, but i think that we can do a lot better on studying or working on our lit circle books if we had more time with reading and studying than online blogs. I also think that it would be a lot more helpful if we can know exactly what we need on our spiral and lab notebooks a few days before they are all due, so that it can be a way of checking off what we need in order to get a high score.
Sunday, January 22, 2012
Comparing Bacteria, Virus, Prion, and Protist
Bacteria : Bacteria are there all around us, but they are not plants nor animals. There are a few species of bacteria that are pathogenic and can cause very serious disease, but there are also many that are beneficial to human beings. There are bacteria that can provide nutrients, and the study of bacteria is known as bacteriology. Lactobacilli bacteria is one of the beneficial bacteria's due to the function of how it can aid in developing natural defenses to protect the body from dangerous diseases. 
Virus : Virus is a infectious part that can replicate inside living human beings or any living organisms. Virus' can come from many animals, or from humans too. A virus can spread with blood contact, like blood-sucking insects can pass around a virus. Virus's are capable of infecting many different species all around the world.
Prion : A prion is a infectious thing that is composed of protein, it's name was derived from the words protein and infection. When a prion enters a healthy body, it immediately changes it into a sick and infectious being.
Protists : Protists have the meaning of that they are multiple cells that contain a nucleus within a membrane. Protists come from the Kingdom called Protista. Protists don't really have much in common other than their simple organization. The organization allows the protist to be known from different eukaryotes like animals or plants.
Virus : Virus is a infectious part that can replicate inside living human beings or any living organisms. Virus' can come from many animals, or from humans too. A virus can spread with blood contact, like blood-sucking insects can pass around a virus. Virus's are capable of infecting many different species all around the world.
Prion : A prion is a infectious thing that is composed of protein, it's name was derived from the words protein and infection. When a prion enters a healthy body, it immediately changes it into a sick and infectious being.
Protists : Protists have the meaning of that they are multiple cells that contain a nucleus within a membrane. Protists come from the Kingdom called Protista. Protists don't really have much in common other than their simple organization. The organization allows the protist to be known from different eukaryotes like animals or plants.
Saturday, January 21, 2012
Cell diversity Wordle
Every different cell has their own functions which causes them to have different structures. There are big cells that are like tissues, and also way smaller cells like organelles. The different variety of cells go on and on, but it is something that keeps everything on Earth alive. There are many cells that live in our body too, and some are quite obvious like blood cells, or brain cells. Animal's don't have a cell wall, but plants have one. The chloroplast in a plant cell allows the plants to take in energy from sunlight.
http://www.wordle.net/show/wrdl/4708555/Untitled
http://www.wordle.net/show/wrdl/4708555/Untitled
Cellular Metabolism Wordle
Cellular Metabolism shows all the thousands of chemical reactions within cell. There are many metabolic pathways that can release energy by breaking down complex molecules into simpler compounds. Metabolism occurs in a flow of biochemical reactions that are known as pathways. Metabolism is connected with controlling the material and the energy resources from the cell. Metabolism is a property that begins through interactions with molecules in the environment of the cell.
http://www.wordle.net/show/wrdl/4708548/Untitled
http://www.wordle.net/show/wrdl/4708548/Untitled
Monday, January 16, 2012
3 Beneficial Bacteria
STAPHYLOCOCCUS EPIDERMIDIS : This bacteria is beneficial because it's the bacteria that provides the first line of defense on the skin that protects it from other harmful bacteria. This bacteria is a skin-colonizing bacterium that has been proven to not cause any diseases but instead to have known to maintain a commonly benign relationship with its host.
http://www.livestrong.com/article/355815-list-of-beneficial-bacteria-for-humans/
LACTOBACILLI : This bacteria is one of the important beneficial bacteria that can be found mainly in the small intestines. This bacteria is also found in the vagina, and they are a mojor part of the lactic acid bacteria group. Lactic acid allows the environment in the vagina acidic protecting harmful bacteria from growing and multiplying.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lactobacillus
VIRIDANS STREPTOCOCCUS : This bacteria is beneficial because of it's ability to protect the body from harmful bacteria that try to get into the mouth and throat. It has access to the heart & bloodstream, and is also known to stay in the body for life because it's the main microbial flora for the throat/mouth.
http://www.livestrong.com/article/355815-list-of-beneficial-bacteria-for-humans/
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