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The symbols created by Eliot show that Prufrock is affected by his immutability. The eternal Footman is a symbol which may represent the grim reaper. Prufrock says that “[he has] seen the moment of [his] greatness flicker, / and [he has] seen the eternal Footman hold [his] coat, and snicker, / and in short, [he] was afraid” (Eliot). Prufrock is afraid because he is not ready to die. The life that Prufrock has lived thus far has not been satisfying and that his due to his chronic procrastination. Instead of partaking in things that would make him happy, he instead thinks about them and continues on in his old ways. People that have a clear conscious and enjoyed the ways that their days were spent know that death is just an inevitable symptom of life. Eliot uses dark symbols to show that Prufrock is choosing his own dark and pathetic life through procrastination and his inability to change and grow as a person. 

To begin our experiment, we had to isolate the chloroplasts. First, we took the spinach leaves and ground them in a mixture of 20 mL of grinding buffer and a pinch of sand. Once thoroughly ground we used cheesecloth to sift the liquid from the mixture into a beaker. This liquid then went into tube A. Tube A was then placed in the centrifuge for 3 minutes at 200 X G. Next the supernatant from this was put into tube B which was then placed into the centrifuge for 10 minutes at 1000 X G. This formed a hard pellet that containing thylakoids which is what we used for the experiment. We then resuspended the pellet in 5.5 mL of grinding buffer. Once suspended the solution was then placed into another beaker, so we could use it in the next part of the experiment. 

The Cyclostomata are split into Myxinodiea and Petromyzontiformes. The Myxinodiea, or hagfish, are boneless fish that live exclusively in marine environments. Some live along the continental shelf, while others live in the deeper regions. Hagfish lack true teeth and jaws. Rather they have a keratinized teeth and tongue. This keratinized acts in a pully-like fashion, where one muscle contracts to pull it one way, then relaxes and another muscle contracts to pull it the opposite way. This causes a sliding motion which the hagfish uses to scrape away at other organisms skins and tear holes into them. Hagfish are also isosmotic, and thus have unusual kidney function as they generally do not need to do much in the way of regulation. Their eyes are small, and are largely just used for detecting light and not true eyes for visual processing. While they have no bones, they do possess a cartilage plate underneath their brain. Additionally hagfish have a lateral line system which allows them to detect the movement of water around them, or if they themselves are moving.

Petromyzontiformes, or lamprey, are similar to hagfish. Like the hagfish, lamprey’s do not have any bones and a nostril on the top of their head. However unlike the hagfish, lamprey have true eyes and one pineal eye used for light detection. Additionally they have a circular mouth which is used to suck on and attach to either prey or various objects, such as rocks. Lamprey are parasitic and survive by sucking the fluid out of other fish. As adults, lamprey live in a marine environment, though they migrate back to freshwater to spawn. Lamprey larva are known as ammocoets and live as filter feeders. These ammocoets tend to pile up into structures known as redds. Surprisingly this larval stage is the primary lifestage for lamprey. Ammocoetes live for seven to eight years before maturing into an adult lamprey. At this time the lamprey will migrate to a marine environment.

Neurons communicate in a fascinating way. All neurons have a resting state of -70 mv. When the dendrite is stimulated, positive ions flow into the cell which raises the charge to -65 mv. After this threshold is reached, an action potential is triggered and is sent as a wave down the axon of the neuron. Once the wave reaches the axon terminals, the neurotransmitters are releasd in the synapse. The synapse is the space inbetween one cell's axons and another cell's dendrites. The neurotransmitters will then bind to the receptor sites of the next neuron where the whole process can then start over. However, before starting a new action potential, the neuron must go through a refractory period, that is, a period where the neuron cannot fire again. This allows for the axon to return to it's resting state of -70 mv. 
          A few important neurotransmitters are acetylcholine and serotonin. Acetylcholine is responsible for things such as movement, learning and memory. Having an inbalance of acetylcholine can result in horrible diseases such as Alzheimer's or dementia. Serotonin is also extremely important for one's mood, hunger levels and sleep patterns. Having a shortage of serotonin can result in depression. However, scientists have found different drugs that can mimic seratonin; these can be used as a medication for those who suffer from depression. 

Edward Drinker Cope is name that may be unfamiliar to most people. I myself have only just recently learned about him. This man was a paleontologist from a very wealthy family in the Americas who has spent most of his time focusing on the reptilians in North America specifically. Cope also dabbled in ichthyology and comparative anatomy where he made a name for himself after publishing over 1500 pieces of literature and scientific journals. It was in my very own Comparative Anatomy class that I learned about the workings of Cope and he was truly a remarkable scientist. It was said that he had a photographic memory and would often observe procedures of fellow herpetologists, run back to his lab, and draw the whole organism from memory and publish his work to beat out the competition and take credit for it. Cope’s most famous competitor was a man by the name of Othniel Charles Marsh. Now these two men worked out of different labs. Cope was based at the Academy of Natural Sciences of Philadelphia where as Marsh was based out of Yale. These two paleontologists were rumored to steal each other’s fossils and findings and use it for their own good. The best story my professor told me was of a whale carcass that drifted ashore off Cape Cod. Now, being that it is the 1800’s, they only method of rapid transportation was train and so Marsh was at an advantage. In fact, Marsh did get to the whale first, broke it down and boxed the remains for shipping to Yale. When Cope finally arrived, all be it a little too late, he switched the shipping labels on the box and so the remains of the whale were sent to his lab instead! Say what you will about Cope but he was a tenacious man who would do anything to be the best. Unfortunately, he died in his fifties and had his remains stored away that the Academy in Philadelphia for scientific purposes.

This isn’t the end of Cope’s story though. Every species on earth, but one, has a type organism that is the baseline for comparison in order to classify and define new organisms. The one and only species without a type organism is us, Homo sapiens. That changed for about four years when Edward Drinker Cope himself, now dead for hundreds of years, was named the type organism for humans. Unfortunately, this was overturned shortly after the work was published as it was found in a European science journal that it was impossible to have a type organism for humans as we are all so different and unique to begin with thus ending the reign of Cope once and for all. As you can see, Edward Cope was an extremely capable scientist. He published more records than anyone else in his time, he classified all the reptilians and amphibians in North America, and he was a renowned paleontologist. He lived on even after his death and redefined the way we look at the fields of herpetology and ichthyology.

The replication of DNA in the cell is a vital process to life. Many enzymes and molecules are involved that not only copy a complete set of genetic information, but also double-check for errors along the way. The first step in this replication process is to unravel the DNA with the help of an enzyme known as helicase. This unwinding and separating of the two DNA strands produces what is known as a replication fork, where new DNA can be synthesized. Another enzyme, topoisomerase, allows the DNA to rotate during replication and helps relieve some of the physical strain on the double helix. Single stranded binding protein helps hold the two parent DNA strands apart during this time.

A primase adds an RNA primer to the strand of DNA available for replication so the next enzyme, DNA polymerase III, can carry out synthesis. DNA polymerase III works along both strands of parent DNA, adding base pairs off of the initial primers that were placed. While synthesizing, DNA polymerase III also checks for errors along the way, removing incorrectly paired bases and replacing them with correct ones. Once both strands have been replicated, DNA polymerase I replaces the initial RNA primers with the correct DNA sequence. Finally, DNA ligase seals the gaps between the bases.

In the study of mineralogy, it is important to first understand the characteristics of an atom. Atoms are the smallest particles that still retain the characteristics of the elements on the periodic table. The nucleus, composed of protons and neutrons at the center of the atom, has a high mass and is surrounded by a much larger volume filled with electrons, which makes up the electron cloud. 

In early models of the atom, electrons were shown to populate the cloud in orbitals or shells around the nucleus. The shells are defined by the quantum number n, which tells the number of electron shells in the cloud. This is the principal quantum number and describes the energy levels. Other quantum numbers are azimuthal quantum number, l, and the magnetic quantum number, m. The azimuthal number specifies the subshells that make up the orbitals. These subshells, determine the shape of the orbital. These subshells are referred to as s, p, d, f, etc., and are given a number, l, starting at 0 for subshell s. This then pairs with the magnetic quantum number. The number references the orbitaks within a subshell and restricts the orientation of each orbital. The interger values of m range from -l to +l. 

Additionally, atoms of the same element can differ in the amount of neutrons they possess in the nucleus. These are called isotopes and while they do not affect the electrical charge of the atom, they do affect the mass. Different isotopes of elements are more common than others and some isotopes lead to radioactive decay, which can be used to date rocks or organic matter, depending on the element that is being used.

Mitosis is the process of cell division found in eukaryotic organisms. Mitosis first begins it's process in prophase where chromosomes condense and form bonds at the centromere. Next begins the metaphase where microtubles arrange chromosomes along the center of the cell, the centromeres begin to prepare seperation of sister chromatids. After seperation anaphase begins and microtubules attach the kintochores contract pulling sister chromatids apart and towards the opposite ends of the cell. Lastly there is telephase where the newly seperated chromosomes gather and create miotic spindle the nuclear membrane begins to seperate down the middle of the cell, cleavage. the cytoplasma completely divides and then there are two new identical cells

As mentioned earlier, the typical stereotype of a Native American usually involves a traditional skirts with tunics, moccasins, beads, feathers, and braids. With this image plastered in many American heads, they often do not recognize or acknowledge the Native Americans that may be present in their everyday lives. Native Americans in this era wear normal clothing, go to work, have a family, and live in a house, like the majority of the population. In the short film, “I’m not the Indian you had in mind” by Thomas King, it was displayed that stereotypes of an average Native American prevented Americans from noticing Native Americans in their everyday lives (King). The short film continuously referred to well known cartoons and movies that portrayed Native American stereotypes. Those displays lead many to believe that savage behavior and traditional attire was how one can recognize a Native American. The Native American actors challenge the stereotype because they are dressed in casual or work apparel and describe their normal everyday lives (King). This proves that in addition to the negligence of Native American history, the stereotype of Indigenous peoples continues to ostracize and dilute their presence in modern society.

Of all of the labs available for me to apply to, I believe this lab best aligns with my personal interests and knowledge. The inner machinations of cellular function, including motility, is an extremely fascinating facet of biology. Uncovering new cellular behaviors and mechanisms is something that cannot be taught in a lecture, as well as something that I truly strive to be a part of.

I have completed a wide number of relevant courses and gained valuable knowledge as a result. I will continue to learn more about biological systems as I complete my dual degree in biology and neuroscience in May of next year. In addition, I’m planning on taking at least one gap year between my application to medical school and the completion of undergrad.  I would be thrilled to continue research past my graduation date.