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In class observations. More Comparing figures #29

Submitted by mtracy on Fri, 09/28/2018 - 14:28

The labeling between each of the figures is consistent, with a black square in the upper left of each image and white lettering. However, the font seems to differ, which is especially visible when comparing the "C" labels. The placment of the images themsleves also differs slightly. In the second figure, images are spaced apart further, while they are closer together in the first figure.

The framing of the pictures taken seems to be different. In the second figure, photographs look to be taken at more of an angle, with much more of the surrounding area visible. Images in the first figure are taken closer up and show much less of the surrounding area. The number of flowers visible in the images is also different when comparing the two figures. This brings into question whether or not the exact same flowers are being photographed in the exact same area.

The angle of the ruler differs between figures too, although this may be a consequence of the different camera angles used. Distance at which the ruler was held is not consistent between figures either. The second figure in particular seems to have the ruler held at varying distances, while the first image is more consistnent in its distance. There are fingers visible in the first figure, while there is an absence of fingers in the second.

Overall lighting in the first figure looks to be much better and brighter. However in the second figure the lighting is dimmer, which may suggest overcast skys. The lighting and time of day at which the photographswere taken should have been controlled. The first figure has overall clearer images than the second, which is somewhat blurry. This may be due to a difference in the photographic device used to take the pictures, although it may be a stability and zoom/focus problem while taking the picture itself.

In class observations. Comparing figures #29

Submitted by mtracy on Fri, 09/28/2018 - 14:04

Labeling is consistent in both images, with a dark square in the upper left of each image and white lettering. The font of this lettering does some somewhat different however. This difference is particularly noticeable when comparing the “C” labels. The framing of the flowers in the photo differs between the two figures, that is, in the second figure the images seem to be taken at an angle, and more of the surrounding area is visible in them. The original first image has close ups, and shows little of the surrounding area. Also the direction of the ruler is different, although this may be due to the angle the picture was taken at. Distance between ruler and flower may differ as well and the second figure seems less consistent with the distance at which the ruler was held. It is unclear if these are the exact same flowers in the exact same area. It is unlikely this is the case due to the differing number of flowers in each image when comparing the figures. Additionally, the images are much brighter in the original first figure, while it seems like weather is overcast in the second figure. Overall the original first figure has clearer images, the second figure is blurry. This may be due to different photographic devices being used. The sizing of the images are consistent, though the placement is not. In the second image the images are further apart, leaving larger gaps between them. The second figure also lacks the presence of fingers, unlike the first.

Protein Structures

Submitted by mtracy on Wed, 09/26/2018 - 15:40

Proteins are made up of monomers called amino acids, which are organized into polypeptide chains. When a polypeptide chain is very long, it is called a protein. Proteins have 4 structures to them. The primary strucutre is the sequence of amino acids. This sequence has directionality, which is determined by the free amino group at the start, and the free carboxyl group at the end. The primary structure of a protein is linked by covalent peptide bonds, formed through dehydration reactions between indavidual amino acids.

The secondary strucutre of protein is made of alpha-helicies and beta-sheets. Each of these is stabilized by hydrogen bonds between the atoms of the backbone of the peptide chain, with no interaction between R-groups. The R-groups will however fan out of an alpha-helix and point above and below a beta-sheet.

Tertiary stucture is the folded shape of a single protein subunit. This structure is stabilized by all noncovalent bonds and disulfide bonds. The tertiary strucutre is also where R-groups will interact. The hydrophillic and hydrophobic effect acts heavily here as the protein will fold to create a hydrophobic core, leaving its surface hydrophillic. That is because in a cell, the environment is mostly aqueous, thus the increase entropy hydrophobic regions will aggragate together. Tertiary structure is very similar to quaternary structure, with the exception that quaternary includes all subunits of a protein, from multiple polypeptide chains and domains.

Shark Electroreception

Submitted by mtracy on Tue, 09/25/2018 - 10:44

Sharks have tiny pores on their snout which are used to detect electric fields. These pores, called ampullae of Lorenzini, go down into a canal filled with mucus and is full of glucopolysaccharides which helps to direct signals to a particular receptor cell at the base of the canal. Electroreceptor cells are similar to that of the lateral line system, used by many fishes to detect current flow, in that it is inervated at cranial nerve 7.

These pores were once thought to detect salinity, since when salt was poured onto them, they caused sporadic movement in the sharks. Stefano Lorenzini later discovered that rather than salinity, these were detecting electrc fields. Later tests by Ad Kalmijin later confirmed this discovery. The actual sensitivity of this electroreception sense is very important. A common idea is that the shark uses this to sense muscle contractions. While this is true, a shark can sense muscle contractions as the cells depolarize and contract, a shark can sense an even more sensitive mechanism. Ampullae of Lorenzini are actually fine tuned to detect the ions passing through the gills of other fish. Thus, when a shark is up close to a fish and unable to see it due to the position of its eyes, the shark can still "sense" the fish and eat it.

Shark Thermoregulation

Submitted by mtracy on Mon, 09/24/2018 - 20:02

Lamid sharks, such as the great white and mako, actively regulate their internal temperature and can even reach 20 degrees higher than their surrounding enviornment. They do this through a special arrangemnt of blood vessels. Cold oxygenated blood enters through the gills and passes by warm deoxygenated blood vessels. The warmth of the deoxygenated blood is transfered to the cold blood in this way. This mechanism is called counter currency. Heat is generated in large red muscle masses found at the midline of the shark. Red muscle is used for relatively slow, long duration periods of activity and will generate a lot of heat through its aeorbic metabolism. This differs from white mucsle, which is used for quick bursts of activity. Unfortunately white muscle tires very quickly. Thermoregulation is important for a shark due to its predatory nature. When an organism is cold, chemical reactions slow down. By maintaining a warm body, the shark is able to also maintain a rate of chemical reactions. This also improves the sharks awareness and its overall agility.

RK and Sharks

Submitted by mtracy on Sat, 09/22/2018 - 21:46

 

The R-K Selection theory postulates that organisms reproduce using either R or K selected mechanisms and behaviors. When an organism is R selected, it will generally produce a lot of offspring and invest very little energy, if any at all, into rearing them. Due to the large amount of young, offspring are smaller at birth and thus less viable. Many will die before maturity, though since there are so many, the idea is that at least some will survive. When an organism is K selected, it produces fewer offspring throughout its lifetime and invests large amounts of energy into rearing them. These offspring will be larger and have a higher chance of living until maturity.

An example of a K selected organism is the spiney dogfish, a species of shark. Female dogfish are pregnant for 2 years and thus will reproduce quite slowly. Recently there has been concerns about the population of sharks. While dogfish are technically a threatened species, they are still susceptible to bycatching while fishing for other fish. This is especially bad considering that dogfish sexually segregate when not mating. That is to say, males and females will form separate schools. This means that when caught, either a large haul of females or males are being caught, which will further reduce the chance of successfully mating and producing offspring as the populations of either sex decreases.

Shark Osmoregulation

Submitted by mtracy on Fri, 09/21/2018 - 23:58

 

Sharks are osmoconformers. That is, they actively regulate their internal salinity to match the salinity of their outside environment. In most organisms the kidney regulates internal salt levels. While sharks have kidney’s there is an additional organ which aids in their salt regulation, the rectal gland. The rectal gland receives hormonal inputs, mainly from Angiotensin-II and 1-a-hydrxicorticosterone (1a-OHB), the latter of which is only found in Elasmobranchs such as sharks and rays. When receiving these signals, the rectal gland will shut off blood flow and retain osmolytes, which contain solutes. Through this process, a shark may match its environments salinity, perhaps even exceed it which allows it to take in water easier when in a salty environment. This also means a shark may enter fresh water, though it will need time to accumulate since regulation takes time and does not occur immediately. Due to this ability to osmoconform, sharks can populate a variety of environments. On several occasions, sharks have even swam up a large rivers such as the Amazon or the Mississippi river. Sharks have even been spotted as far up as Chicago, a long way from the ocean.

Figure Legend Practice

Submitted by mtracy on Fri, 09/21/2018 - 14:14

Jumping spider banding

Figure 1. Banding pattern on jumping spider.

The legs of the spider has five dark colored bands spaced fairly equally over each one. Additional dark bands reach horizontally across the abdomen of the spider.

"Don't Blink I'll Jump" fkickr photo by Mike Keeling https://www.flickr.com/photos/pachytime/3195623214 shared under a Creative Commons (BY) license

PP - Chondrichtyes information

Submitted by mtracy on Thu, 09/20/2018 - 17:49

 

Chondrichtyes are a class of cartilaginous fish which contains Holocephali and Elasmobronchii. There are about 40 extant species of Holocephali, one example being the ratfish. Female Holocephali are oviparous and will lay 1-2 eggs as a time. Males may be identified by the presence of claspers as well as a frontal tenaculum. The defining feature of the Holocephali is that they have a holostylic jaw suspension, meaning their upper jaw is fused with their braincase.

Elasmobrochii includes fish such as sharks, rays and skates. Although rays and skates are often placed into their own group known as the Batoids. This distinction is based on presence of gills on the sides of sharks, while rays and skates have gills located on their underside. All Elasmobrachi have placoid scales, that are similar to teeth in structure. Like teeth they have a pulp cavity, an enamel like substance that coats them and are even made of dentin. This has lead to the hypothesis that teeth are modified placoid scales, that migrated to the interior of the mouth. Of course, the opposite may also be true.

Methods Draft

Submitted by mtracy on Thu, 09/20/2018 - 16:57

 

The spider web was located under a small light post outside the stairwell to Morill 1, between the two Morill buildings. The photograph was taken with a camera phone as the sun was setting, when the light post had just turned on. This allowed the spiderweb to be seen much more easily than it would have been in complete daylight. Additional light from the light post aided visibility. Several photographs were taken from differing angles until a clear photo was taken where the spiderweb was mostly visible. Additional photos were taken, and were later reviewed for which was the best representation of the web. Some of these pictures included a ruler, which was held just below or to the side of the web. One picture was taken exclusively of the ruler against the light post, to give a measurement of the width of the light post and a scale of how large the web was. In order to give a sense of the environment the web was found in, and reference points as to were it was located; another photograph was taken of the light post as a whole, its general area and the door to the stairwell which lead up to Morill 1.

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