GENETICS by Sophia

Genetics is the study of heredity. In living organisms, there are genes, genetic variation, and heredity. The main idea of genetics being the study of heredity is that we observe that just about all living things inherit traits from both parents. The work of Gregor Mendel is what sparked the understanding of this process. This started in the mid-19th century and is still a huge subject of discussion.

Gregor Mendel was a scientist who studied the nature of inheritance in plants. For his work, Mendel traced inheritance patterns of traits in peas. After tracing this, he would describe them mathematically. Mendel concluded through this study that inheritance of many traits could be explained through rules and simple ratios. Very few people understood the concept of heredity until after Mendel’s death, when other scientists took on studies similar to his.

With genetics comes gene mutations. Gene mutations are alterations in the DNA sequence that is permanent. DNA sequences are what makes up a gene. Mutations range is size and can affect anything from a base pair to a large chromosome segment that includes multiple genes. Many children are born with gene mutations, like Sickle-Cell Anemia and Tay-Sachs disease. That’s just part of life.

Idaho’s State Flower, the Syringa by Joe

INTRODUCTION

The syringa (philadelphus lewisii) has been the state flower of Idaho since 1931, and was an obvious choice for the position due to its beauty and importance to the Native American as a means of creating tools. It grows on a shrub that can reach almost ten feet in height, with flowers growing in clusters on the ends of long stems. The wooded part of the shrub provided wood that the Native Americans used to create harpoons, bows, arrows, and numerous other tools requiring a wooden shaft. It is fascinating that an aromatic and aesthetically pleasing object would also be necessary for some cultures to hunt and forage for food.

INTERESTING FACTS ABOUT SYRINGAS

1.       The flower is named after Meriwether Lewis, as he was the first to collect and publish about it.

2.       The bark and leaves can be used to make a soap.

3.       Quail, deer, and elk are known to forage syringa.

 

QUESTION

How was syringa an integral part of the pioneering Native American tribes?

REFERENCES

Boise National Forest - Nature & Science. N.p., n.d. Web. 20 Apr. 2017.

"Syringa." State Symbols USA. N.p., n.d. Web. 20 Apr. 2017.

Light bulbs by Triston

Light bulbs can be put into anything that produces an electric charge, like a lantern or a flashlight if your are going camping, or if you need to go somewhere that doesn't have a light in the room. They go on the front of your car, and the back of it. They can go on any motor vehicle that you want you just need the extra parts. There are are different types of light bulbs like LED lights and there are incandescent, and CFL bulbs

Does temperature impact performance of a light bulb?

            I find this topic interesting because i might just buy LED lights because they last for 20 years with just one bulb.

Three neat facts about light bulbs are that the first light bulb that was ever invented was made in 1802 by Humphrey Devy. Halogen light bulbs were first produced in the 1950s. Another neat fact is that it takes 6 billion electrons to light up one 100-watt bulb for only one second.

Main Plant Parts By Brooklyn

          Plants play huge roles in our lives and on our planet. Without them, there is no us. They provide us with the oxygen we need to survive. With plants being very important pieces in our society, how do we not know more about them? Very few people have knowledge about plants and their anatomy.

            There are four main parts of plants. There are roots, leaves, flowers, and stems. All are extremely important to the plant and help it survive.

Roots are the thin branches on the bottom of the plant that help anchor it. They also store food and absorb water. There are two different types of roots, tap and fibrous. A tap root is one main root, it is usually very hard to pull (for example a carrot). Fibrous roots are many little roots that branch out and all play an equal role. They do not go very deep.

Stems help determine the plant’s size and position.  They move the leaves in order to get sunlight so the plant can photosynthesize. The xylem is the center of the stem, it moves the water from the roots to the leaves. The phloem is outside of the xylem and moves sugars down from the leaves to the roots so it can be stored.

            Leaves make food for the plants through photosynthesis. They collect the sun’s light and use it to make energy that the plant uses as food. Monocots are plants with straight-veined leaves. For example, palm trees are monocots. Dicots are plants with puzzle-veined leaves. The leaves branch out all over the place and have no particular pattern. For example, a maple is a dicot.

            Last, but not least, are the flowers. These help the plant reproduce. The stamen of the flower has pollen on it which is transferred  to other flower’s stigma by insects.

The more you know, the better off you are! Plants help us in so many ways and we should really take the time to learn more about them. Here’s my question for you: Which part of the plant is the most important, and why?

DNA by Jacob

DNA controls the cell when the DNA in a gene is changed. The change can cause the cell to behave differently.

Some mutations happen as a mistake spontaneously by a factor of the environment called a mutagen that has radiation, chemicals, and high temperatures. Asbestos was a used chemical by humans and many died because of it.They interact with the DNA molecule and cause changes.

Some mutations are bad but some can be good a lot of times such as the American Wirehair cat which the mutation had no harmful effect.

            Are mutations sometimes good for people and animals?

            What I find most interesting is that the Wirehair cat mutation happened and that it had no harmful effect on it.

1.)   Mutations can be sometimes caused by errors, transcription, cell division, or external agents.

2.)   The cells grow and divide very quickly to make cancer.

3.)   Chromosomal mutations are common in plants. 

Substances and mixtures by Asher

Substances and Mixtures

Matter consists of two broken down categories, mixtures and substances. A mixture is created by mixing two or more substances together. A substance has one atom type or a molecule. There are two types of mixtures, heterogeneous and homogenous. Heterogeneous mixtures have two or more distinguished mixed substances and do not have a fixed ratio, and homogeneous mixtures have the same amount mixed every time and are mixed thoroughly throughout the mixture.

When you measure a substance the boiling point and melting point are constant because a substance has a fixed ratio. Substances contain both compounds and elements. Elements are the building blocks of matter and compounds contain two or more elements within them.

The most interesting thing to me is that I can look at the world and identify if a certain object has different properties than another just by looking at them.

Fun Facts:

A substance has a fixed composition.

A mixture can be separated into its components.

No matter can be created or destroyed, only transformed.

Next time you eat a meal ask yourself, what kind of matter am I eating?