Evolution

(20/7/2012)
Microscopy

Three pieces of sewing thread under the microscope.
Fascinating to see those fibers. 

An originally really small font size of text on a newspaper article.
So cool :B

(13/7/2012)
Harvard VPA


Harvard VPA, the acronym stands for Virtual Performance Assessment. Having a chance to try it out, here's a screenshot of one of the two games. 

(9/7/2012)
Classification


Why do we need to classify organisms? 
It's easier for us to tell the organisms apart, group them together and understand them better. This improves the accessibility and retrieval of information.


What is Classification?


Classification is the arrangement of organisms into orderly groups based on their similarities. 
Classification is also known as taxonomy.
Taxonomists are scientists that identity & name organisms.


Benefits of Classification


Accurately and uniformly names organisms
Prevents misnomers such as starfish and jellyfish that aren't really fish.
Uses same language (Latin or some Greek) for all names


Problems in Classifying Organisms

• Species are always changing
• Inter-breeding (usually human-induced)

Standardized Naming

• Binomial Nomenclature
• Two-word name (genus & species)
• Italicized in print
• Capitalized genus, not species e.g Homo sapiens
• Underline when writing

Classification Group

• Taxon (taxa - plural) is a category into which related organisms are placed.
• There is a hierarchy of groups (taxa) from the broadest to the most specific. 
• Domain, Kingdom, Phylum, Class, Order, Family, Genus, species

:D

King

Phillip

Came

Over

For

Gooseberry

Soup

Domain - Three domains

• Archaea and Eubacteria are unicellular prokaryotes (no nucleus or membrane-bound organelles)
• Eukarya are more complex and have a nucleus and membrane-bound organelles.

Genus

Most genera contain a number of similar species, with the exception of Homo that only contains humans.

(6/7/2012)
-mealworm experiment still underway- 









(2/7/2012)
Get A Grip!
honing our observational skills...


The different ways of holding different objects with one hand...

• clutching with all fingers (holding a water bottle)
• hammer grip (tennis forehand)
• using whole palm (grabbing)
• fingers around an object, fingers meet each other (wrapping)
• use of 3 fingers [thumb, index, middle]
• 2 palms adjacent to each other (scooping motion- touching) (balancing motion - not touching)
• hand & arm (hug)

My little sketch of a certain kind of hold on a petri dish.
Use of 3 fingers (middle, thumb, index)
Only the tips of the fingers are in contact with the dish.
They sort of clasp the dish, thumb on the top and index & middle finger the bottom.

                    

Having watched the clip of those primates, I have observed certain movements of a gorilla's using their arms, legs, hands, and feet...


Sometimes, they walk with their hands clenched into a fist, pushing off the ground with the back of their hands while other times they walk on their legs. They also pound their chests sometimes when they run. 


Questions on how primates move...

1. Why on all fours at times and two other times?
2. Why is there a large space between their 1st toes and the rest?
3. Why do they pound their chests?
4. Why are their arms longer than their legs?
5. Why is their skin so rough/horny

horny: referring to calloused skin
___________________________________________________
                    The Chimp Scientist (pg 84 -86)


Takeaways from the article: 
       After reading this article, I was informed of how the stereotyping of scientists had existed even 30 years ago. For if a mistaken image was bad enough, people had thought that talking simply about an animal's behavior or mind or ''to give funny names to their subjects'', I quote from the article, was not scientific was definitely thinking of science from such a restricted perspective. 
       I was further more clarified with the meaning of science from this article. 
       Also, I have been reminded of the fact that chimpanzees are the closest living relatives of the human species. So then, they are definitely creatures who can think, feel and act. They themselves also possess intellectual abilities. 


''Science is a particular way of knowing and learning about the world.''

(29/6/2012)
Practical 1: Is it alive? 


Work done before the practical...
breaking into groups to think of factors which would determine whether an object is alive or not. afterwards, devising experiments to test out our hypothesis on google docs!(:
link to google docs
http://goo.gl/g35sa


We worked in pairs and whilst my partner took home specimens A,B&C to scrutinize, I got D&E.
So, this is what happened after 24h and 36h respectively.


All specimens are contained in closed petri dishes and placed on cotton pads while observed. 


After 24h

Specimen D
(wet)
Dark Brown with a tinge of Red,
Beady

        

Specimen E
(wet)
 Brown, fine & sandy

After 36h

Specimen D
(wet)
Grown into small, baby plants.
Seed coat is still brownish-red
Leaves are light green

Specimen E
(wet)
No difference.
Brown, fine & sandy






We were provided with three different liquids to test the reaction of the specimens to conclude whether or not they were alive.

1) Glucose 
If the specimens were alive, they might feed on glucose. 


2) Water 
Water was chosen because it is basically quite neutral and harmless, and it is an essential factor in the survival of living things. 
Also, it is possible to spot air bubbles in water when the specimens were placed in test tubes earlier on which would show that the particular specimen which produced them is a living thing.


3) Saltwater 
Some organisms can only survive in saltwater, ensuring a test taken with saltwater helps to rule out any uncovered possibilities of the specimens actually being living things.