Self Analysis

      Based on the score i just got on my final, i'm feeling as though I might actually be learning something :)  Yah, i studied allot last night but still, I believe that the work I have put into the last few blogs and the last few weeks is paying off.  The questions i answered right were because I actually knew the basic concept, not because I memorized.  Also, finding out about the standards that we need to be addressing in the Std 1 thing helped quite a bit.  Shoot, now that I know about that, i predict a bit more of a better grade in the times to come after now.  I'm truely interested to see how much more I can improve next semester.
       To be completely honest, i hadn't a clue about what the heck we were spose to be doing in this class with the meeting of certain standards and what not.  But now, i gotta important tool.  Previous knowledge ha ha.  Now that i know what i'm going into, i'm going to make i new years resolution type a deal.  NO MORE Cs.  I now know more of whats expected based on previous failures, or coming up short, so now i know how to better prevent them.  Well see what 2011 has in store i suppose.  Over and out.

     Oh, and by the way, Merry Christmas, Happy New Years, and I'll be seein' ya again on the 4 of Jan.  Enjoy the pear too Mr. Ludwig.

The GreenMANchine

Da Cell an what it do mon

This is dee cell of an animal my main mon

         Alright, I'll quit talking like that, but this blog post will be devoted to the MANY wonderful units that make up all of humanity, the cell.  The cell is a single microscopic unit comprised of different parts that carry out life processes.  It does some of the some things humans them selves do.  It lets nutrients in and wastes out, it hydrates and dehydrates, and makes more cells from its' self.  Its even got a brain-like feature to it called the nucleus.  We'll get descriptive later though.  There are billions of cells that are floating around if you will that comprise, well, us.  They make humans pretty much.  The way our cells act and react with one another and within its' self differs from person to person.
      Cells were made to split, or reproduce in a way.  What happens is that the cell takes in all its little nutrients and water and grows.  Kinda like we do.  Then, it gets to a point where it will split in two.  Two cells from one.  Then those cells will grow, and produce four new cells.  Then eight, then 16.  But, cells also die as well.  Thats where your fingure nails, scabs, hair, eye lashes, come from.  Cells dieing off, and the body naturally placing them where they need to be to repair its self.  Our bodies are pretty B.A. huh?  But sometimes, not all is well.
     When cells begin to grow and don't split, problems then start to occur.  Ever heard of cancer?  Cancerous cells are made when the cell starts to take in the nutrients and never lets the wastes out basically.  They bond with other cells that have the same defect, and form cancerous tumors.  Its a horrble desease that is often unpreventable, and gentically obtained to a specific being from parents or grandparents. 
     But, enough story, lets get into the nitty gritty on these little organic balls.  We'll start with the Nucleus.  The nucleus as I said earlier is pretty much the brain of the whole out fit.  The DNA that tells every one apart from one another is stored here.  The nucleus is in charge of replicating the DNA for the reproduction process of a cell in the magical cell cycle.  Then there is a part called the Golgi Aparratus.  I know its not in the diagram above, but what this part does is control the flow of nutrients going into the cell, while also controling the waste departing the cell.  The Golgi is the mouth, and anus of a cell pretty much.  Now onto the Mitochondrian.  This part takes the nutrients (glucose) and tranfers it into energy that the cell uses to preform its regular processes.  The lysosome, helps the cell digest its food.  To the Lysosome now.  This part intteracts with the Golgi using enzymes to interact with things or events occuring either in or outside of the cell.  Now heres the easier parts.  Cytoplasm, and the cell membrane (also known as cell wall).  The cytoplasm is a clear jelly substance that is derived of all sorts of things from fatty acids, to protiens, to vitamins, to amino acids, carbohydrates, and sugars.  Its is the "stuff" that surrounds all the inner parts I just reviewed and is contained by the Cell Membrane.  I like to use cell WALL.  But any way, the cell wall is basically the outer lining or skin of the cell its self.  The cell wall holds everything including the gooie cytoplasm inside its self.  The cell wall is flexible in organisms and plays a role in how much sodium and nutrients enter and leave the cell as well.  Plants, well the wall its some what like a brick, but that will be on a different note. 
        So there ya have it mon, dat is dee cell and all of its' glorious parts that play a huge role in the inner workings of us human beings.  (and animals too)

Yeast Concoctions

As you can see, the more yeast added, the more pressure was obtained in the 3 minute period. 

 The acidic and basic Ph's had pretty similar end results.  Ph basic came out a little on top though.  Leaving the more neutral in the dust in a sense.

As you can already see, we weren't really able to obtain good results from the hot and cold testing because we happened to run out of time that day.  From what information I got though, as it says in the graph, the heated mixture had a bit of a better turn out than the cold.  

Poison Ivy

Poison Ivy

     Alrighty, take a moment to close your eyes (after reading this of course) and imagine yourself walking through the forest.  Got your hikin' boots, nice comfy pair of shorts, maybe a back pack on, and some water.
You get about two miles under your feet, and stop to take a break.  As your resting, you notice that your leg begins to feel uncontrollably itchy.  You can't stop scratching!!  Guess what just happened, you probly walked through a patch of poison Ivy, and got the poisonous oils contained in the leaves on your skin.
     Poison Ivy is the oil inside of poison ivy plants that leaks out of the leaves and is very stable, and potent when touched.  Once it gets on your skin, it is possible for the oils' effects to last for up to three weeks or so.  The oil inside the leaves is so strong that if it gets on tools, or clothing, you should highly consider throwing away the item, because there is not much you can do to remove it.  Rubbing alcohol helps, but will not remove it completely. 
     People ask too, how to identify the plant, and really, unless there is a specific type of weed the is general to the area, the leaves come in all different shapes and sizes.  Making it nearly impossible to identify the plant.  But if you do think you have run into the plant, start warming up.  Hot showers, blow dryers, deoderant, or hottest water you can stand soaked around the effected area is some of the best ways to aleviate the pain.  If the severety becomes to high, call the doctor, they can prescribe ointments to get rid of the sensations.
     Oddly enough though, some people are actually born with a gene that makes them imune to the ivy.  Yes, I'm saying that they can pretty much touch any type of poison ivy and have no effects.  Another lucky being that is highly imune to the poison is ANY, I repeat, ANY, non-human creature.  In fact, goats, cows, and birds eat and graze on it. 
    The oil inside the plant is called urushiol.  The oil is contained in every part of the plant (leaves, roots, stem)  The oil is of course allot more potent when the plant has been ripped open, allowing more of it to get on you.  So, don't go pulling at the poison ivy plant, because this of course will allow more urushoil to get onto you. 
   Everywhere in the US and southern Canada, or pretty much just the orange on the map is where the plant grows.  The only exeption is most all of the state of California.  So, leading to my conclusion, if you don't live in California, I would be cautious in heavily wooded areas.  The plant isn't running rapid or anything, but it's there, and should be avoided as much as possible.  That is, unless your crazy and you like pain, then have yourself a hayday in it.  But count me out.  I'll pass on the Ivy rash.   

 

SOURCES:

http://www.poison-ivy.org/html/faq.htm

The Dry Lab

From the observations list I came up with these Procedures:
1. Mix water, and BTB, record observations
2. Mix water, BTB, and Snail in different beaker, record observations
3. Mix water, BTB, Elodia, and an aquarium plant in seperate beaker, record observations.
4. Mix water, BTB, Snail, Elodia in seperate beaker, leave in dark for 3 hours, then record observations

Explainations:
1. Mixing the water and BTB lead to blue/green because there wasn't any thing Acidic added to it.
2. the #2 mixture lead to a yellow discoloration because the snail added an acidic touch to the mixture.
3. the #3 mixture stayed blue because of the additive of elodia, and the plant must of been a basic sort of ingredient that didn't react with the BTB.
4. the #4 mixture stayed blue/green in the light because i don't think that the snails acidity had enough time to counter act the elodia.  But when the sample was left in the dark for 3 hours, I believe that the amount of time was enough to let the snail do its thing and let its' acidy take over the elodias' basic properties and thats why the end result was a yellow colored mixture.

Questions:
1.  Would the samples be different if all of them were left in the dark for three hours, not just sample #4?
2. What other items of acidic quality would we be able to use besides a snail?  And also, what if we had tried to put more of the elodia or plant inside the beaker in order to bring up a mixture so strong that the snail couldn't over power, no matter how much time.
3. If the mixture comes out strait blue is it more of a basic Ph?  Is yellow more of an acidic Ph?

At first i thought "man, this lab doesn't make sense!"  But now after looking at the list of FACTS on the front, I have a better understanding of how things are. 

Phenylketonuria (PKU)

Phenylketonuria is a genetic mutation that is passed to infants and is also one of the first things tested to see if a new born baby has it.  It is caused when there is too much Phenylalanine in the brain.  The condition that the babies get is a protein overload pretty much.  There is too much protein in the cells, brain cells specifically.  Cake, large sums of meat, sweets and even fuits are limited in there diet.  If having eatin to much protien it sends the cells inside the body into a shock of some sort.  It has been a while since i've been fresh on the subject, but what i do know that is for little kids it is hard life style they live.  At birthday parties, they must stay disciplined about there diet becuase of their diet they have to stick too.  They can mix and match certain foods like Wheat bread with some egg, or maybe just a little beef or chicken.  To much of the foods with high protein such as eggs, milk, cheese, soy beans, nuts, chocolate, fish, chicken, steak will make the incompitant enzymes work to hard and the protiens in those foods will build up.  But corn, most all fruits, bread low in protein, potatoes, pastas, Juices, and vegatables are freely aveuble to eat. 
       From the day that the baby with PKU is born, they take a test to see if they have it.  Thats how comin that desease is.  From that point on, the baby will take a formula the rest of their life that regulates the enzymes ability to breakdown phylalinine in the blood.  With out the formula, the enzymes aren't as capable to break down the protiens that they ingest, thus leading to a Phylalinine build up/ clot.  PKU is a disease that can be looked at as good or bad.  Living without mental retardation or autism is a great thing becuase certain cases, people with PKU have been left mentally reatarded and must stick to the diet set forth.  But for most, they have been blessed with being able to live physically normal and sticking to a formula that allows their insides to do what they need to do.  Keeps things in prospective, and on the bright side for certain sufferers of PKU.