Cell biology

When I was a little girl, I use to tell people I was going to be a princess. I had it all planned out, I was going to marry a prince and live in this huge castle. We would have two kids and a lot of animals. My imagination was basically a Cinderella Story. I have three goals in my head that can and will be accomplished. One goal I would love to accomplish is being a marine biologist. I love the ocean and animals, so I thought combining them would be a good idea. Basically being a marine…

Honors Ethics of Genome Editing Faculty: Jennifer L. Cruise (Biology) and Michael J. Degnan (Philosophy) Where do you draw the line between the ‘good’ and ‘bad’ of genome editing? Which traits are we allowed to change, and who decides this? Will we be allowed to use gene editing to change basic human traits such as intelligence and athletic ability? Who will be able to afford gene editing? Will it make society less accepting of people who are born with genetic conditions? These are some of the…

According to the reading of Brown and Richerson (2014), the major debates among human behavioral ecologists, evolutionary psychologists, and cultural evolutionists was about the most important factor to human development. Cultural evolutionists preferred the social learning over the influence of genetic modules, and evolutionary psychologists held the opposite. Also, Turner and Thompson (2013) argued that the evolutionary discordance or mismatch model was overemphasized on the importance of…

X Files “Humbug” Dr. Blockhead believes that genetic engineering will change all the freaks and the freaks will become normal like everyone else. Dr. Blockhead does not like this because he believes their deformities make them different from everybody else. I think genetic engineering is justified because no one wants to be stared at and look at differently than everyone else. If, people were created without deformity they wouldn't be bullied because of what they look like. I also believed…

Nature versus nurture has been a controversial topic for a very long time. Many individuals argue that you experience one or the other during your development stages. While others may suggest that a little of both takes a factor in how an individual development in their life. If a person feels that nature influenced them the most, they believe that the things surrounding them such as their families, parents, and friends, took an effect on their behavior (Nature. (n.d.), 2016). In the process of…

The introduction of a new idea is often met with risks and turmoil. These are unintended and unforeseen consequences that come inherent with the disruption of the status quo by an eager challenger. Whether or not this idea actually holds merit is irrelevant; what is important is that society possesses the necessary information to fully understand its potential impact, both now and into the future. Currently, this new attractive idea is genetic manipulation. On the surface, genetic engineering,…

Squirrels, likewise to humans and non-human animals, adjust their behaviors in accordance to seasonal changes. One key behavior that has been shown to vary by season is squirrel foraging behavior. It is important to understand this relationship in order to promote the well-being of squirrels by ensuring their ability to acquire energy-rich food year round. In a study conducted by researchers Everts, Strijkstra, Hut, Hoffmann, and Millesi (2004), it was shown that aboveground activity level…

uncommon, the realization of what was within those fossils were the real surprise. Scientist discovered that one of the bones within it was very much intact and interweaved to it was what looked like to be a system of blood vessels which contained cell like structures, from this discovery scientist were able to begin extracting DNA and coming to the conclusion that Ostriches were closer related to Dinosaurs then they were believed to be, thus achieving what was deemed impossible and unrealistic…

Evolutionary synthesis is described as “a unified theory of evolution that combines genetics with natural selection” (Larson 2014:42) and points out that natural selection, ,gene flow, mutation and genetic drift are the four causes for evolution. Gene flow focuses on the spread of new genetic information between populations of the same kind (Larson 2014:44). This really is how genes spread from one population to the next. There are many factors that come into place when looking at gene flow.…

to choose the height and intelligence of a child, which is not possible as of now. There is also the degree of “designing a child where parents test to see if their child will inherit genes that are medically hindering, like Down syndrome and sickle cell anemia. Screenings like these are used today and are helpful to parents worried about such diseases, also these tests are used with in vitro fertilization, to ensure only viable embryos are implanted in a woman. Since most couples who undergo…