Unit 4 Reflection

To further grasp the concept of punnett squares and probability, in this Coin Sex Lab we flipped coins as a fair way to guess the probability of traits that offspring could inherit. Practicing monohybrid and dihybrid punnett squares helped me learn more about how to predict probabilities. My actual results in the dihybrid cross simulation came out completely different than my expected results. Almost all of the genotypes were off, since coin flipping causes the outcomes to be completely, uncontrollably, random. Although punnett squares can be used to predict certain traits offspring could inherit, it is not entirely accurate. There could be so many outcomes, punnett squares just tell the probability of the outcomes actually occurring. This relates to my life because I now know how to predict the probability of my kids having brown eyes and other traits. It's also helpful because I can see if my sons have a chance of being bald, and if I have  a chance of inheriting any bad traits my parents have. This unit was about connecting the puzzle pieces of genetics together. My strengths were doing the punnett squares because I find those fun. My weakness in this unit was understanding the difference between haploid and diploid. I learned more about how the human body has copies of chromosomes and how one sex chromosome from each parent gets passed to the offspring. The infographic taught me how to organize information neatly, and how to use specific colors, such as pink and orange, to contrast each other. I enjoyed creating the infographic. I want to learn more about codominance and the outcomes from it. 

https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/d/dd/1909_US_Penny.jpg

https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/9/92/Incomplete_dominance_punnett_square.png

Genetics Infographic

Why is Sex Important?

Dr. Tatiana's Sex Advice to All Creation by Olivia Judson is about how different organisms reproduce sexually or asexually. It goes into detail about a fictional talk show, in which Dr. Tatiana asks organisms how they reproduce. The book then proceeds to talk about how abolishing males from a species can be very dangerous. This book gives accurate scientific  information in a creative way.

 Sex is necessary for survival for sexually producing species. According to Dr. Tatiana's Sex Advice to All Creation by Olivia Judson, "...the loss of sex is almost always followed by swift extinction. Apparently, without sex you are doomed"(3).  Yet asexually producing organisms can go without having sex all their lives. Why is that? For example: the bedrid rotifer and her family mentioned in this book "has not had sex for more than eighty-five million years"(213). This bacteria also mentions that her species "...abolished males. They said they were better off without them"(214).
 This shows that sex is not important for asexually reproducing organisms. Instead of having sex, asexual organisms clone themselves. According to Olivia Judson, "sex may be fun, but cloning is much more efficient"(215).  Since "most bacteria don't have sex of any sort very often," they solely rely on cloning to pass down their genetics.  Yet in other cases when organisms stop having sex they die. In conclusion, sex is important because without it, organisms go extinct. What is the process of asexual cloning? Why can bacteria go without sex but not humans?

Unit 3 Reflection

This unit contained information explaining the cell theory, which is the belief that all things are composed of cells, cells are the basic unit of life, and new cells are generated from existing cells. I also learned that prokaryotic cells have no nucleus, 1 chromosome, and circular DNA called plasmids. Eukaryotic cells have nucleus and long chains of DNA called chromosomes. 
I also learned that each macromolecule makes up a different part of the cell, serving a different purpose. For example: Carbohydrates make up call walls, help cells communicate , and they store energy. Proteins are catalytic building blocks that allow molecules in and out of the cell. Lipids make up plasma, and nucleotides hold information.
The Unit then explains osmosis which is the diffusion of water across a selectively permeable membrane. Tonic is the ability of a surrounding solution to cause a cell to gain or lose water. Cells change in response to different environmental conditions because of the typically small molecules- Turgor pressure exists inside the cell when the cell swell.
Photosynthesis is the process in which plants produce glucose and oxygen using sunlight and carbon dioxide. Plants grow best under red and blue light, and worst under green and yellow light.
Cellular respiration of process of cells breaking down glucose and energy. Both of these processes rely on each other.
An essential theme was understanding exactly what part of the cell performs what function. The understanding of parts of the cell is essential in this unit to completely understand photosynthesis and cellular respiration. This topic was thoroughly explained.

One of my weaknesses was keeping track of which process produced what product(s). I eventually figured out that glycolysis is the process in which one molecule of glucose is broken in half, producing two molecules of pyruvic acid, a 3-carbon compound. The Krebs cycle breaks down pyruvic acid into carbon dioxide in a series of energy-extracting reactions. I want to learn more about the Krebs cycle.

Egg Diffusion Lab

In this lab we asked the question, "How and why does a cell's internal environment change, as it's external environment changes?" We tested how hypertonic and hypotonic solutions affect a raw egg. First, we soaked an egg in vinegar. Next, in the hypotonic solution, the egg grew in size. This happened because the water entered the egg, increasing its size.Then we soaked the egg in the hypertonic solution, fructose corn syrup, the egg shriveled and decreased in size. The egg got smaller because the water exited out of the membrane, causing the shrinkage.

Placing the egg in vinegar did not change the shape or size of the egg, it did however change it's texture and changed it into a balloon-like substance. The water increased the size of the egg, because the water went into it. When soaked in sugar, the egg shrank and shriveled into a deformed egg, which appeared to have dents in the surface.

The mass of the egg changed -47.15% when soaked in the sugar concentration. The circumference decreased -24.24%. The solvent of sugar created indentations into the egg.

The internal environment of the egg changed when it was soaked in vinegar. Vinegar in the external environment caused the egg to become almost balloon-like. Water caused the egg to increase in size, and sugar water caused the egg's size to decrease.

This lab demonstrates the principle that hypertonic, isotonic, and hypotonic solutions cause a solute to change from its original state.

I think that foods such as pickles are kept in a jar with vinegar in order to preserve them. This concept applies to many different foods and how they are preserved.

Based on this experiment, I would like to test the affects of vinegar on other foods.

Egg Cell Macromolecules Lab

In this lab we asked the question "Can macromolecules be identified in an egg cell?" We found that the egg membrane tested positive for protein. The egg membrane turned from blue to purple, signifying that the macromolecule was present. The quantitative amount of protein the egg membrane contained was at a level of 7. The egg membrane is naturally white, so we knew that the macromolecule, protein, was in it when the membrane turned purple. The egg membrane tested positive for having monosaccharides because the carbohydrates store energy there. This concept connects to the information learned in the Unit 4 Miniature Biology Vodcast. This data supports our claim because carbohydrates are sugars broken down by mitochondria to make ATP.

Our data contradicts the expected results because not enough drops of Sudan III were placed into the test tubes to accurately test for lipids. This affected the results because the lack of Sudan III caused the egg membrane to test negative for the lipids. An error that could have occurred would be not timing how long the test tubes sat in hot water for the monosaccharide test. This would affect results because the benedict's solution would not have enough time to change from its blue color. Due to these errors,  in future experiments I would recommend telling the students repetitively the number of drops needed in each of the tests.

This lab was done to demonstrate the different macromolecules that can be found in specific parts of a cell. From this lab I learned that an egg membrane contains, monosaccharides, polysaccharides, and protein. The egg yolk contains lipids, and the egg white is protein. This helps me understand the concept of macromolecules and their functions, such as how monosaccharides and polysaccharides are used as energy storage. Based on my experience from this lab, I can apply this information to our recent vodcast, "What does a Cell do?", and  connect the information about where macromolecules are located.

Unit 2 Reflection

This unit contained information about how the molecular complexity  serves as the building blocks for life by bonding together and being the base of everything. It was also about the different types of carbohydrates, such as monosaccharides, which are very sweet and consist of one ring, disaccharides, which are somewhat sweet and consist of two rings, and polysaccharides, which taste plain and starchy, containing three or more rings.









 I also learned about lipids, which are large molecules that include fats, phospholipids, oils, waxes, and cholesterol. Lipids are made up of long chains of carbon and hydrogen called fatty acids.







 Unit 2 also teaches about Enzymes and their structure of individual amino acids chained together, bonded by a peptide bond.
















An essential theme was understanding the structures of things such as carbohydrates, enzymes, and lipids. My strength was understanding the different types of carbohydrates.  I fully understood this topic Mr. Orre thoroughly explained it.











One of my weaknesses was understanding what exactly enzymes do. I did not fully understand the vodcast, "Messing with Enzymes," because I was absent the day it was explained in detail. I learned how to differentiate monosaccharides, disaccharides, and polysaccharides from eachother. The information was a bit difficult to grasp, but in the end, I was able to understand more about these topics which made me feel like a better student. I want to learn more about Polysaccharides and find out why they taste so plain.