Thursday, December 13, 2012

Clouded Cubs!


Riki-san
http://news.yahoo.com/baby-leopard-brothers-come-san-diego-zoo-233141949.html
The San Diego Zoo has just received two new additions! This week the zoo introduced two clouded leopard cubs that just happen to be brothers. They are 14 weeks old and their names are Riki-san and Haui-san. The cubs came from the National Zoo at Grassmere which has a special breeding program for clouded leopards because they are vulnerable to extinction. The reason these efforts are being made is because there are believed to be about 10,000 clouded leopards left in the wild, but they face deadly threats such as deforestation and poaching. Of course the leopards coat is beautiful, but people take advantage of that and kill these animals just to keep the fur for themselves; this has caused a major problem. Riki-san and Haui-san are two of many leopards that have been breed to help replenish the amount of their species in the world. While these two are held in quarantine for at least 30 days, they can be seen playing just like any leopard would do. The largest cub, Riki-san at 13 pounds is more timid; his brother Haui-san is 11.5 pounds and very rambunctious. I'm sure the zoo can’t wait to show off these cute additions to the zoo and start a long relationship with them!  
Haui-san
http://news.yahoo.com/baby-leopard-brothers-come-san-diego-zoo-233141949.html


Source:http://news.yahoo.com/baby-leopard-brothers-come-san-diego-zoo-233141949.html;_ylt=Am0qdiY3XsjhhlxDx86HS1APLBIF;_ylu=X3oDMTNmY3VsYm9nBG1pdAMEcGtnAzdhNGY0NTZhLWU3YTUtMzE3Ni1hMTI4LTg0ZGVlMGU1OWRiNwRwb3MDNQRzZWMDbG5fQW5pbWFsc19nYWwEdmVyAzc2ZmM0NTExLTQwYzctMTFlMi1iY2ZmLTk3NjhiZDQyYzE4Nw--;_ylv=3

It's All in the Pine Cone

http://theartfulamoeba.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/06/bristlecone_pine_cones_flickr_ccnc_mcsboulder.jpg
One of the planet's most amazing plants is the pine tree. Why? The pine tree itself is a sporophyte, but it has gametophytes in its cones. The tree's reproductive stages can also be found in the pine cone: the spores, eggs, sperm, zygotes, and embryos. Each of the tiny scales of the cone contains is made up of sporangia that help produce the spores by meiosis. Those spores then produce gametophytes inside the cone. The male gametophyte, the pollen grain, breaks away from the pollen and is carried by the wind to the female cones. Each of the female cones carry two ovules on each scale-each ovule being surrounded by an integument. Once pollination has occurred, the scales then grow together which seals up the cone and within that cone the gametophytes continue to produce gametes. About a year after pollination, fertilization occurs and the ovule becomes a seed. In other words, the pine cone is an essential part of how pine trees reproduce!
http://thumbs.dreamstime.com/thumblarge_492/127025355381fjbt.jpg
Source: Class Notes-Chapter 17: Plants, Fungi, and the Colonization of Land

Life-Saving Foam


http://news.yahoo.com/foam-injection-could-stop-soldiers-bleeding-172533140.html
The United States soldiers are made up of extremely brave people that are willing to fight for us and our country. Unfortunately, while in battle many these men and women are put in very deadly situations which sometimes have fatal consequences. The medical technology we have today is very advanced, but we still do not have all the answers to treating extensive battle wounds. But as of this year, 2012, a new innovation has been discovered in the medical field that can help control the most difficult wound to heal-internal bleeding. Internal bleeding is considered one of the leading causes of death on the battlefield because it is so hard to treat in the little time the wound gives its victims to live. The U.S Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency has introduced foam that can be inserted into the abdominal cavity of a wounded soldier that can stop internal bleeding for up to an hour, giving them enough time to be rushed to a medical facility that can take better care of them. DARPA has tested the foam on pigs and is quite sure that the same effects will be for humans. The foam consists of two phases that are inserted-when they are mixed the foam expands to 30 times its original size and safely encases the internal organs. DARPA's testing also showed that a surgeon can remove the foam in less than one minute. Who knew foam could actually be used to save the inside of our bodies instead of the outside?
http://ctovision.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/08/darpa.png
Source:http://news.yahoo.com/foam-injection-could-stop-soldiers-bleeding-172533140.html

Monday, December 10, 2012

Prokaryotes!

http://dr282zn36sxxg.cloudfront.net/datastreams/f-d%3A7b37bb61737e5c46c822a4d5a30d0dd59e384c30f7d29e8997867795%2BIMAGE%2BIMAGE.1

Prokaryotes are the most numerous organisms on Earth today. They lived on Earth by themselves for over 1 billion years-before any other organism. They have the ability to live in habitats that are cold, hot, salty, acidic, and alkaline. No wonder they thrived in the harsh conditions of early Earth! Prokaryotes are typically around 1-5 micrometers in diameter, but some vary in size. Because they are so small, it is very easy for them to live just about anywhere. It is said that there are more prokaryotes found in a person’s mouth than the number of humans that have ever lived on Earth! That’s pretty gross if you think about it, right? We all know there is a vast amount of cells in our body. Well, guess what? The number of prokaryotes living ON your body is about 10 times more than the number of cells INSIDE your body! There are two domains of prokaryotes which are bacteria and archaea. The most common domain is bacteria of course because we know the many ways that they can help or harm us. Most bacteria are beneficial to us, but some can be deadly and cause sickness. So no matter where you go, prokaryotes will always be there with you!

http://www.scienceprofonline.com/publishImages/cell-biology~prokaryotic-and-eukaryotic-two-types-of-biological-cells~~element156.jpg
 Source: Class Notes:Chapter 16-The Origin and Evolution of Microbial Life: Prokaryotes and Protists

Wednesday, December 5, 2012

Live Happy, Live Long

http://media.npr.org/assets/img/2012/09/13/Congo+Gorilla+1_wide-8f2905a9fe1585e313c5c3c5f187f50e711407a7.jpg?s=6
A new study published today, December 5th, shows evidence that more outgoing gorillas live longer than shy gorillas. 298 gorillas were chosen to study and followed for over 18 years. By recording the life span of these animals we now have the evidence that the happier a gorillas is, the longer it may live. Just as we as humans live longer as extroverts, gorillas have the same results. This shows us that living a happy life really can affect how many years we live. Considering we are very closely related to apes and primates, this statement has only been proven even more after today. The old saying says, “Laughter makes you live longer” so now, why can’t it be “Spontaneity makes you live longer”? Next time you are faced with the question, “Is it better to be shy or outgoing?” just remember, shyness may decrease the years in your life. Even the gorillas say so!
Source: http://news.yahoo.com/outgoing-gorillas-live-longer-shy-ones-175139001.html
http://www.silverbackers.org/images/gorilla-photo-1.jpg

Life on Earth & Extinction

http://images.nationalgeographic.com/wpf/media-live/photos/000/010/cache/mass-extinction_1077_600x450.jpg
Life on Earth has been around for millions of years, but not without imperfection. As long as there is life on Earth, extinction will always be a determining factor. It is considered the fate of all species eventually. As scientists continue to study Earth and its history they continue to find evidence that there is a steady background extinction rate. Many episodes of mass extinction were also present. Evidence (fossils) shows that over the last 600 million years, at least 5 mass extinctions have occurred that scientists can prove actually happened. During these extinctions, at least 50% of the Earth’s population was wiped out. Talk about counting your losses..2 of the most extreme were the Permian and Cretaceous extinctions. An unsettled Earth is what caused the Permian extinction. By unsettled Earth I mean: volcanoes everywhere, extremely hot climate, mixing of oceans, and reduced oxygen levels. No wonder 96% of shallow water species died! The Cretaceous extinction is the more commonly known extinction that occurred. Remember when your teacher taught you that an asteroid crashing into Earth caused the extinction of all dinosaurs? Well, they were right. And the Cretaceous extinction is exactly what they were referring to. The asteroid that struck Earth 65 million years ago blocked sunlight and disrupted the climate which caused 50% of all animals to perish (including dinosaurs). Now, we have to carefully observe what is going on around us because scientists believe that a 6th mass extinction may be under way! :/
http://blogs.discovery.com/.a/6a00d8341bf67c53ef017742dbaf86970d-800wi


Source: Class Notes-Chapter 15-Tracing Evolutionary History

Pinocchio is Real?!

http://www.imaging1.com/gallery/images/human%20eye%20and%20nose%20thermal%20infrared%20image.jpg
In 1883, a writer named Carlo Collodi wrote one of the most famous children’s books of all time. The story was of a peddler that wanted a son SO bad that he made a puppet which came to life and so he adopted him as his son and called him Pinocchio. But enough of that! My point lies in the real moral of this story. Never tell a lie. In the story, every time Pinocchio lied his nose grew larger; this eventually taught him a valuable lesson. Wouldn’t it be nice to be able to tell if someone was lying just by looking at their nose? Of course it would! Researchers from the University of Granada in Spain recently discovered that your nose actually can show whether or not you’re lying. Of course a lie can’t make a person’s nose grow like Pinocchio’s did but it definitely can make it heat up. Heat up? Yes! Those psychology researchers in Spain have found that when a person lies, the temperature around their nose and inner corner of their eye increases. Crazy, right? Maybe we should all consider investing in a thermal imaging camera..just to play it safe!

https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgmZFMa3KcFofv2csbYlSjMmmjf46uSKSrXZ0l5RO6KrAUPXHCiFJYypBxv2zVPQEEhWe8mC0SkNFFP1YJjK7_ONykAnBdxWsknDwrSckCUPksq8BhfLnV2cywbE8jS0tml_BoLvdXInXBz/s1600/disney-fond-ecran-pinocchio3-1.jpg
Sources: http://news.yahoo.com/pinocchio-nose-shows-lie-152611943.html;_ylt=ArkC5jnbKnTT9nt51DCNhzoPLBIF;_ylu=X3oDMTNzYzZnc3ZuBG1pdANUb3BTdG9yeSBTY2llbmNlU0YEcGtnA2NlM2FhMzIwLTljMzEtMzM0Yi1iYjc3LTc4YTU1MTVkOGRkZQRwb3MDOQRzZWMDdG9wX3N0b3J5BHZlcgM4NTZiODkwMS0zZTI3LTExZTItYjliZi1jNGU3YjE1ZWY1ZDQ-;_ylg=X3oDMTFsMmxkdGs2BGludGwDdXMEbGFuZwNlbi11cwRwc3RhaWQDBHBzdGNhdANzY2llbmNlBHB0A3NlY3Rpb25z;_ylv=3