cwcasey's blog

Science is about imperfections and this project highlights that montra to a tee. Blindly assembling a scientific figure off of someone else's methods is a daunting task and is sure to generate interesting results  similar to those put forth later in this paper. After receiving the replicate figure, it was evident that the differences between the two figures were due to human error or natural differences. Once I was finished going through and seeing why and how these differences arose, it was important to comprise a short briefing that illustrated the explanations as to how the methods could have been vague and misunderstood. The remainder of this paper will serve as a guideline for how important attention to detail based on the differences between Figure one and Figure Two.

 

There are a multitude of reasons why there were differences between the two figures. Most of them, like the differences between Photo A in the two figures, the size of the box and labels, and the pin drop on the map are a product of poor explanation. Improper or vague instruction could have mislead Colin as he took the photographs and assembled the figure. Upon reviewing the methods submitted, it became clear to me that some aspects lacked essential details which would have proved beneficial when drafting the replicate figure. Conversely, there are some differences that arose as a result of factors that can’t be controlled. For example, In the photograph of the environment in Figure Two, the weather is entirely different than that in Figure One thus the photograph is brighter. Other factors like varying times of day also played a role in this as the angle of the sun could affect how bright the resulting photo is. All in all the resulting differences served as a valuable learning experience. Each one showed just how important details are and how attention to writing said details is even more essential.

 

Upon receiving Figure Two it was now time to compare the two figures and make note of any and all differences. I’ve noticed that the differences can be categorized into two categories, differences in the photographs and differences in the details. To start, there were multiple differences with the photographs. Picture A, the photo of the spider web itself, was taken at a different angle when replicated. Rather than the photo being taken from the side as in Figure One, the replicate was taken from a lower angle and focuses more on the bottom of the air duct. The scale used in Picture A of Figure One is more prevalent, the whole UCard is captured in the photo whereas the UCard in Figure Two is only half visible The second photographic difference is drawn form the picture of the environment in which the web is located. The replicate photo captures more of the background, it is brighter, and it appears to have been taken at a different angle thus capturing more of the alley way and its surrounding. The last photographic difference comes from the picture of the detailed map. In Figure One, there is a pin drop beinhd the Student Union building which helped guide the program to zoom in on the address. This pin drop is not located in the picture of the map within Figure Two.

    After the pictures themselves were reviewed for differences, I once again combed through Figure Two to draw out any differences within the finer details. For example, the images in Figure Two are much different than those in Figure One. The size of the circle in which the letters are placed is much larger than those in Figure One as well as the size of the lettering being larger. On the topic of the labels, the images in Figure Two are labeled differently than those in Figure One. You may notice that the labels for picture of the environment and the map are reversed in Figure Two when compared to Figure One. The last detail I noticed that was different was the red box used to highlight the location of the web within the environment. The box used for Figure Two has different dimensions thus making it more boxy and larger than that in Figure One.

The rise of our cranium came in steps, starting with basic cartilage structures to eventually the hard bone we have today. First, a chondrocranium formed in cartilaginous fishes like lampreys. A chondrocranium is essentially a brain pan; a sheet of cartilage on which the brain and associated cranial nerves rest and branch out to the body. As can be expected, there was not much protection of the vital organs in these beings and that didn’t come until the formation of a dermatocranium. A dermatocranium was the first bony skull and is also referred to as a neurocranium. Early dermatocrania consisted of just six different bones known as the parietal, post-orbital, squamosal, quadrate, jugal, and quadratojugal. The fusion of these bones articulated with jaws, vertebrate, and other bony structures to protect the vital aspects of the central nervous system like the brain and the spinal cord. A third crania arose in fishes and it is referred to as a splanchnocranium. This is the bony (or cartilaginous depending on fish) structure that supports the gills and other thoracic structures. The splanchnocranium evolved into our axial skeleton over time and is now only prevalent in fishes and marine mammals. 

 The rise of our cranium came in steps. First, a chondrocranium formed in cartilaginous fishes like lampreys and hagfishes. A chondrocranium is essentially a brain pan; a sheet of cartilage on which the brain and associated cranial nerves rests and branches out throughout the body. As can be expected, there was not much protection of the vital organs in these being and that didn’t come until the formation of a dermatocranium. A dermatocranium was the first bony skull and is also referred to as a neurocranium. Early dermatocrania consisted of just six different bones known as the parietal, post-orbital, squamosal, quadrate, jugal, and quadratojugal. The fusion of these bones articulated with jaws, vertebrate, and other bony structures to protect the vital aspects of the central nervous system like the brain and the spinal cord. A third crania arose in fishes and it is referred to as a splanchnocranium. This is the bony (or cartilaginous depending on fish) structure that supports the gills and other thoracic structures. The splanchnocranium evolved into our axial skeleton over time and is now only prevalent in fishes and marine mammals. 

Did you know that animals other than Homo sapiens can communicate via facial expressions and hand gestures? In fact, it is a common occurrence; species like dogs, cats, horse, and primates use a variety of mechanical techniques to communicate emotions and give off signals. The above groups of animals all use facial expression to signal emotion. For example, wolves position their ears to signal alertness, submissiveness, and aggression as well as barring their teeth and furrowing their brows. If you see a wolf or dog with its teeth showing, its brow furrowed, and its ears forward, you best start running because that animal is aggressive and ready to attack. This behavior is seen in horses, felines, and primates alike. Unlike the other groups, primates use a wide variety of hand gestures, 64 to be exact. Primates have 64 special hand gestures and 22 familial hand gestures that can be used to give signals about threat warnings, food source, shelter, etc. Since 22 gestures are seen throughout the primate family, it is hypothesized that different primates can communicate with each other. For example, a chimpanzee can use these gestures to communicate with an orangutan. In conclusion, animals communicate much like us.

            The two figures are similar in that they have the same focal subjects but otherwise, they are entirely different. To start, the picture of the tree is more zoomed in and focused on what appear to be the dead limbs. Following that, the aerial pictures in this figure are also zoomed in or cropped as to show the detail of the environment. Conversely, the figure on the right has a broader view. The pictures are more zoomed out and capture the whole field of view, even to the point that the two aerial view pictures are not as focused and still show the control buttons from what looks like google maps. When it comes to labeling, the figure on the left uses simple, red, uppercase letters whereas the figure on the right uses black lower-case lettering inside of a white box so that it stands out in the picture. I also noticed a difference in sizing of the pictures; the images on the left are more cohesive and rectangular whereas the images on the right are condensed and boxy. Lastly, there I a difference in picture quality. The figure on the left seems to be brighter and a little blurry as compared to its counterpart that is sharp and clear.

Just recently I learned about cancers ability to evolve and adapt to its environment. It does this by having multiple branches of highly unique sections of the tumor. Like a tree, there is a central “trunk” of cancer cells from which highly evolved cancer cells can stem from. If you were to cut a whole tumor in half, you would be able to see the distinct sections; some off colored, some highly vascularized, and others larger or smaller than the rest. These variable sections of tumors are sometimes only a few centimeters apart or on opposite sides of the tumor. This variability is why cancer is so hard to treat. A biopsy only removes a specific part of the tumor, but as we now know, there are multiple parts and different constructs of the same cancer elsewhere in the tumor. The biopsy will allude how to treat that one specific section even though a different section will not be affected by the treatment at all. Cancer is a fickle beast and one that still leaves many wondering how we are ever supposed to cure it when it appears the more we fight cancer, the more it fights back. Hopefully one day we will figure it out and hopefully its someday soon.

When categorizing animal behavior to make an ethogram, there are a few things to keep in mind.  Firstly, if a behavior happens only once or for a short duration of time it would be classified as an event. For example, if I were to do a single push up or throw a ball one time, these would be called events. However, if a behavior were to happen multiple times it would be known as a state. Let’s say I were to do 10 pushup or throw a ball five times, these would be sates since they are prolonged, repeated behaviors. The next important concept is that groups of behaviors can be brought together and called bouts. A bout is a series of movements or behaviors that ultimately reach the same goal. For example, a lion would stalk its prey, chase it down, attack it and eat it. All these behaviors are distinct and separate events, but when looking at the broad spectrum, they are all joined together to reach the goal of feeding and can therefore be classified as a bout. Lastly, it is empirical to make accurate observations and record the data thoroughly so that you can have as accurate an ethogram as possible. Programs like JWatcher allow you to enter behaviors as key codes so that the data collection process is fast and accurate.  

Across all species, there are three categories in which a fetus develops in utero. While each are different on their own accord, they can all be traced back to the original embryonic egg called microlecithal development. To be classified as microlecithal the eggs must have very little yolk, divide uniformly (2,4,8,16, etc.), be of similar size, and go through a complete division before the next stage of development can begin. Organisms that practice this mode of development belong to the amphioxi and lampreys. Mesolectihal development arose next in amphibians like frogs and salamanders. This development is characterized by the formation of two poles in an egg, one being an animal pole and the other being a vegetal pole. The animal pole is the sight of active equatorial division whereas the vegetal pole seldomly divides. Amniotes gave rise to the third and final category of development. Macrolectihal development is categorized by a very large yolk sac on which the embryo develops. The top of the egg has a very small disc of rapidly dividing cells which gives rise to the embryo. Once the embryo forms, it envelops the yolk sac and draws nutrients from it so that it can later form surrounding materials and organelles for waste and gas exchange. This process is very similar to that of placental organisms. The only difference is that placental mammals secondarily derived a microlecithal process from the macrolecithal mode of development.