Blog #12 The Pea Plant

In Gregor Mendel's experiment he discovered dominent and recessive genes. In the P1 generation the plants look alike because the dominent genes out numbered the recessive genes. But after crossing the plants again, in the F1 generation there were enough recessive genes that those traits actually showed up in the pea plant. 

    

http://www.juliantrubin.com/bigten/mendelexperiments.html

Blog # 11 GATTACA

I do not believe parents should be able to pick traits. I guess I'm just a traditionalist, but I want to be suprised what traits my children have, when I have children. Sure some traits maybe unwanted, and maybe the deleting those traits from a child is not a bad thing but completely designing a baby is over the top.

Blog #10 Food with Fermentation

Homemade Yoghurt by Crystal Miller

- 8 cups milk, cow or goat (I raise Nubian goats and use my own goat milk most often, but have made lots of yogurt with ordinary milk from the store)
- 1/3 cup powdered milk (this is optional but will make a thicker yogurt)
- 1/4 cup pure maple syrup, optional for sweetened yogurt
- 1/2 cup starter yogurt
Before you begin wash 2 quart-sized canning jars. If you want to use 4 pint-sized jars instead that would be fine too. Have the metal rings and lids ready to cover the jars when you are done.
Pour your milk into a large cooking pot. Heat the milk up to 185 degrees. Allow the milk to cool down to 110 degrees. The cooling can take a long time. If you want to speed the process up fill your sink with cold water and place the pot of hot milk in the water and stir and stir. The temperature drops fairly quickly this way, so make sure to have your thermometer handy to keep checking.
After you reach 110 degrees add the remaining ingredients and stir until everything is dissolved very well. Pour this mixture into your ready and waiting jars. Put the lids on and put them into what ever place you are planning to incubate and culture them. Leave them there for 10 to 12 hours. Try not to disturb the jars to much. When the yogurt is firm it is time to remove them and put them in the refrigerator to get nice and cold. Usually 12 to 24 hours. If you make and incubate the yogurt during the day it can refrigerate overnight and be ready for breakfast the next day.
If you would like flavored yogurt, just add fresh cut up fruit or a little bit of flavored jam when you are serving your yogurt.

http://www.allfreecrafts.com/giftinajar/homemade-yogurt.shtml

With yogurt, like cheese, the fermentation turns the milk into the thick form of curds we can flavor and eat. The fermentation process is important because fermenting milk thickens up into the gelatinous consistance that is yogurt after a certain period of time, (too much fermenting though will give you the hard cosistancy of cheese). Without the fermentation the milk would stay milk.

 

 

 

 

Blog #9 #9 #9 #9 #9 #9 #9....

How Far Should the Government Go?

     That question seems to be asked a lot, for more than one situation though. The situation I am talking about is how far should the government go when dealing with infectious diseases and the people infected.
I believe that major viruses, level four viruses such as ebola or marburgs, people should be isolated and confined to certain spaces. Those types of viruses cannot be killed by antibiotics, the only way to kill a virus like that is to eliminate any possiblity of it being spread to another person. And common logic says that it cannot spread if there is no one for it to go to. That is why isolation is a must.
Now the government chooses to use the military to carry out these types of isolation. I can see why the government uses military, they are trained in controlling hostile situation, and people surrounded by dying people will be hostile. But the problem with the military is when they control groups of people they give out limited information to the people they are controlling and the offten use excusive force. Now infected people are not enemies that must be controlled during war, they are still human beings that live in the country the military fights for. So they should be given as much information as possible and treated fairly. If the military can do those to things they should be used to control virus outbreaks.

Blog #8 IMing With A Disease!!

IM:
Me:Wuts dat pain n my head?
Disease:O dats jst me

Me:U? Who r u?

Disease:Old Meningitis

Me:Meningitis, wuts dat? N y r u hurtin my head so mch?

Disease:Im only a inflamation of da protective membranes round ur brain n spinal cord. im hrtin u cuz there iz to much pressure on ur brain

Me:How did u get n me?

Disease:Well there r many dif ways i can get n u. But i got n2 u by a contagious virus. Im suprised u rnt vomiting or hav a fever, usually dat virus causes dat too.

Me:Well im glad i dnt have either of those! How can i get rid of u n ur awful headache?

Disease:U can go 2 the dr. n get antibiotics, those shuld help. Im sorry im giving u a headache, its just n my nature.

Me:Its ok uv been helpfull, kinda. 

Translation:

Me:What is that pain in my head?
Disease:Oh, that's just me.
Me:You, who are you?
Disease:Old Meningitis.
Me:Meningitis, what is that? And why are you hurting my head so much?
Disease:I'm only an inflamation of the protective membrane around your brain and spinal cord. I am hurting you because there is too much pressure on your brain.
Me:How did you get in me?
Disease:Well there are many different ways I can get into you. But I got into you by way of a contagious virus. I'm suprised your not vomitting or have a fever, usually that virus causes that too.
Me:Well I'm glad I don't have either of those! How can I get rid of you and your awful headache?
Disease:You can go to the doctor and get antibiotics, those should help. I'm sorry I'm giving you a headache, its just in my nature.
Me:Its okay, you've been helpful, kind of.

Blog#7 Hot Zone Safety

When entering a hot zone there are many precautions and precedures taken to secure the safety of those going into the hot zone and the possible spread of the pathogens in the hot zone. First, anybody that is entering a hot zone, or a level 4 biosafety area, must wear a multilayered Hazmat suit that is equipt with a personal life support system. Second, the hot zone itself must be isolated from any surrounding building or other parts of the building it is in.

Third, to enter and exit a hot zone one must go through multiple rooms that include shower rooms, ultraviolent rooms, vacuum room, and other rooms with safety precautions designed to kill the virus. Also the rooms are secured with multiple airlock systems. Fourth, all water used in these rooms or in the hot zone itself goes through processes to kill the viruses. Lastly, all people that enter the hot zones must be thoroughly trained in what to do in an emergancy and what precedures to take when there isn't an emergancy.

Blog 6 Hot Zone Poem

Monet
Infectious, Unknown
Vomiting, Bruising, Acheing
Shocks, Depersonalizes, Changes Color, Takes Over

Marburg

Blog 5 Bacteria, oooohhhhhh

A good bacteria I found is lactic acid bacteria.
Lactic acid bacteria converts lactose into lactic acid which can be easierly used by the body.

Some people though have a poor lactose tolerance so the ingestion of active lactic acid bacteria helps them convert the lactose easier.

LACTIC ACID BACTERIA CELL

   

A bad bacteria I found was salmonella.

Salmonella is a motile enterobacteria that can be passed from warm blooded humans and non-human animals. Most infections of salmonella are caused by the inguestion of infected food. The bacteria causes such illnesses as typhoid fever, paratyphoid fever, and the foodborne illness (food poisoning). The first two illnesses can be deadly to humans and animals.

SALMONELLA CELL

 In the article, the link is given below, the gathering and killing of Badgers in Pembrokeshire, Whales, has been halted by an appeals court.
Badger activists had supplied the outcry to stop the killings.
The Badgers had been culled because they were believed to be spreading the TB virus to cattle. The virus had been killing, and still is, most of the cattle. The cow farmers have been losing money so they wanted the source of the TB to be culled.
But the problem with the cull, in the judge's eyes, was that it was given to all of Whales instead of just a specific area. So the judge agreed with the Badger activists.

I believe this is important because it gives insight into foreign policies and how foreign governments work. The government in Whales is similar to the government in the United States, it has a similar appeals court. Also animal activists are similar in Whales. They fight for the survival of almost any animal.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/10612240

Blog #3 Non-Carbon Life Forms

I truly believe aliens exist out in the universe somewhere
but I believe they are most likely made of carbon.
Out in space there are so many different stars that are made up of carbon. The carbon particles have drifted out into space. And because carbon easily bonds with itself and other elements it is a very strong element. That is why all life on Earth is made of carbon.
So if there is other life forms out there the easiest way they were created is through carbon.

The Metric System #2

You know we all have to learn the metric system in school so why don't we just switch to it already??????

When we have important rockets blowing up because they parts were not made to the same scale there obviously is a problem!!!

I can understand that many Americans will complain that it would be to hard to learn a new system if they are unfamiliar with it. But the metric system is all based on multiples of tens, a second grader can count by tens!:) I'm sure in a game like football the distance of the field would still be 100 yards even if we are on the metric system because its just programmed in our heads that that is the distance.
Yet for important measurements such as train tract distances and medicine formulas a standard international system should be used.
The chances of a mistake being made when everybody is on the same system is far less than if they had to constantly convert measurements.

So when are we going to switch????

School Goals

This year I want to continue with my good grades.

I always strive to do my best in my classes, I don't know why I guess I'm old fashioned. 

I want to excel in sports. 

Also I want to start playing my guitars again! I love music but where is the time to play??

Those are my two major goals for this school year, but as the year goes on I'm sure my goals will grow.