Drafts

Today I wanted to explore how to slow down the growth of he Drophilia flies. They grow and reproduce very rapidly, in even 24 hours you can see an entire reproductive cycle between male and female, of course unlike humans, where it takes a female 9 months to conceive. The Juvenile Hormone Inhibitor slows down the growth and development of the Drosophila flies, in both males and females. This indicates that the JH Inhibitor is correlated to the growth and development of Drosophila flies, although more testing would need to be done in order for this to be fully conclusive. I am also not a professional, nor a qualified scientistm but the Juvenile Hormone is necessary in the instar stages, so by adding an inhibitor, we delay this growth, which explains why the fly count decreases once the inhibitor increases, as well as the size of the fruit fly. More precisely, Juvenile Hormone supports the instar stages, which is the stage between the eggs and the pupa stage. Once the eggs hatch, there will be a decrease in the quantity of larvae that wil later on develop into pupae. This also effects their length. This shows how the Juvenile Hormone was able to delay and disrupt the developmental stages of fruit flies. 

In dogs, coat colors are controlled by many variations in gene expressions and alleles. In a simplified analysis of these changes, three main genes produce obvious and predictable traits in dog phenotypes for coat colors and patterns. The TYPR1, MC1R, MSH, and ASIP genes all have complex involvment in the pathways to produce color and pattern of color in dogs. The MC1R allele codes for a receptor protein on the membrane of melanocyte cells, which are cells that are responsible for the expression of the color genes in dogs, and therefore control the color pigments produced in the hair follicles. When this allele is precent in the genome in the wildtype, the receptor protein interacts with all the molecules it is meant to and successfully passes the message from the extracellular matrix. Once received the signal causes the transcription of the TYPR1 gene which produces the pigments required to make black colors. If TYPR1 is the only mutated gene and is homozygous recessive (AARRbb) then the color will be brown. ASIP genes code for a molecule that also get received by the MCIR receptor. If ASIP is the only signaling molecule present, the pigment becomes red by a different mechanism. MSH is the other molecule (in the simplified model) that is recepted by MC1R, and if this molecule is present it is dominant in reception to ASIP, and the transcription for black/brown color does occur. If MC1R is mutated (rr) then there is no transcription of the pigment genes and the hair will lack color and appear yellow or white. However, MC1R is only vital for HAIR pigmentation, therefore other parts of the dog will be colored black if the B gene is present even if the R gene is not present, giving the possibility for a yellow dog with black nose. A brown dog cannot have a black nose because the hair color determined that the black gene was already missing in the dog, and the receptor is wildtype. 

Changing the phenology of flowering times in cranberries not only affects cultivators but it also affects species that closely interact with the cranberries. Lycaena epixanthe, bog copper butterflies, are affected by earlier flowering times of cranberries. Adult bog copper butterflies consume flower nectar while the developing caterpillars consume shoots and leaves. Two major issues occur when the phenology of the cranberry changes. First, the phenology of the bog copper butterfly may not match up with its food source the cranberry. Second, if the cranberry flowers earlier and cultivators spray herbicide earlier, then the bog copper butterflies may come after the cultivators have sprayed rather than before. Cultivators may find it easier to yield a crop that is not consumed by the bog copper butterfly caterpillars, however, they still need the butterfly as a pollinator for the crop. This process has been studied with bees as pollinators (Bartomeus et al.). Understanding this process is important as it may clarify the process of earlier flowering times and pollination for both agricultural purposes as well as in the wild.

The effects of temperature on insect activity have been researched across taxa ranging from Diptera (Bowler & Terblanche, 2008) through Coleoptera and Lepidoptera (Briere et al., 1999) to Hymenoptera (Abou-Shaara, 2014). Throughout these orders, insects demonstrate the ability to detect temperature, which can help them perform tasks from determining foraging window timing (Vicens & Bosch, 2000) to finding the warmest location in a stack of wheat (Flinn & Hagstrum, 1998). Understanding the factors that influence insect behaviour is critical to advances in sustainable agriculture practices and conservation management. In this study, we analysed the effect of environmental temperature on the foraging behaviour of the large milkweed bug (Oncopeltus fasciatus). In order to better preserve the Apocynaceae and Asclepiadaceae plant families (here collectively termed "milkweed") that are integral to the survival of many species including the monarch butterfly (Danaus plexippus) (Flockhart et al., 2014) it is important to understand the foraging behaviour of the milkweed plant’s primary predators.

Life on earth is so complex and interconnected it makes little sense to study any individual species when trying to understand the bigger picture. On a daily basis, any given species across the globe interacts with other species within its surrounding habitat. These sorts of interactions are broadly classified as symbiosis, which can then be separated into subcategories of specific interaction types. Some of these interactions observed by scientists include predation, parasitism, commensalism, mutualism, and competition. Every individual, regardless of species, does their best to survive and reproduce by any means necessary and these five relationships are a testament to that. Overall in each case either both, one, or neither species involved in the interaction benefit. In mutualistic relationships, one species provides another with a resource and vice versa, competitive relationships tend to harm both species as neither can reach their full potential resource claim, and predation benefits one species at the complete expense of another.

The human eye is very much like the lens and screen you used in lab. When you look at an object the rays of light from the object are refracted through the lens cortex of the eye and an image is formed on the retina (screen) at the back of the eye. But for many people the image that is formed may not be clear. For nearsighted (myopic) people the image forms in front of the retina. For farsighted (hyperopic) people the image forms behind the retina. Fortunately there are many ways to correct vision problems so images form correctly on the retina. Essentially all methods involve changing the focal length of the eye by either adding another lens (eyeglasses or contact lenses) or directly changing the lens’s focal length through techniques like laser surgery.

Species that interact in a given time and place can be defined as a community. Ecologists across the globe study these communities, specifically the type of species, physical environment, and the interaction between them to better understand how these communities work. In order to study a community, a scientist defines the parameters of inclusion. Scientists ask specific questions when looking at a community and including absolutely every organism would be impractical. Therefore parameters are set so only the most important species are included to conduct appropriate research. The subsequent naming of the community is decided by the biological and physical characteristics present. A community found on a mountain may be considered a mountainous community while a coral reef is defined by the biological organism coral. Within a community, every species has a role or niche and can then become grouped further by what it consumes and what consumes it. A group of species who use the same resources is known as a guild and a functional group is a group of species that perform similar tasks. These labels allow ecologists to produce food webs or interaction webs to easily understand the types of relationships found in a community. 

There are many hormones plants release to stimulate growth, defense and other mechanisms needed for a plant to survive and reproduce. The main hormone resposible for growth is gibberllin. This hormone is produced in the plant cells plastids, where they are then transported to the endoplasmic reticulum. The receptor responsible for recognizing this hormone to be able to transport it into the endoplasmic reticulum is DELLA. With gibberellin located in the endoplasmic reticulum, this allows for gene transcription to be turned on, resulting in the elongation of a plant. The gibberellin hormone was important during the green revolution which is thought to have saved over a billion lives worldwide. 

Our modern era of the anthropocene has had a hand in many of the ecological changes in the biosphere of the earth. Many of those changes are notably damaging to the environment based on the standards for pollution, genetic and species diversity, and gloabal climate change. People are very people-centric in the concerns about and research of these impactful and virulent changes. Often, the first things we notice are the ones that affect us the most, which is sensible considering that to notice changes that don't affect us, we have to be actively searching for the affects in the environment, which we might not do unless we have already seen that changes are occurring. This however is a very irresponsible way to gage humanity's impacts on the world. We have the specialization and resources to actively seak the effects of environmental degredation and climate change, and when we use them, the severity of the changes are revealed. Specifically when it comes to extinction rates and species diversity, the changes are astronomical. We have seen two major mass extinctions in the world so far, and now we are entering into a third. 

I find it interesting how Roman rulers follow a similar, cyclical pattern over time. A strong, diplomatic ruler will be in command and have complete trust of the Empire, like Augustus or Trajan. These rulers create buildings and events that benefit the public in addition to having a healthy relationship with the senate. In the case of Trajan and many other Roman rulers, when it came to pick an heir he never quite fully endorsed an individual. Hadrian rose to power nonetheless and fell into the downfalls of princeps that previously followed great rulers. Like Tiberius, Hadrian attacked the senate and any insubordinate military officers. He also separated himself from Rome, residing in a  "massive villa he built for himself at Tivoli". Again, Hadrian follows all the steps of a reckless and apathetic princep that passed poor rulers took. By ignoring the senate and the people of Rome Hadrian intensified his bad reputation.