sworkman's blog

People with Crohn’s disease have trouble absorbing nutrients because the inflammation of the intestine makes it difficult for the organ to digest and absorb the nutrients from food. The patients low levels of sodium and potassium due to the lack of absorption could be what is causing her diminished sense of touch. Your nerves need a certain amount of potassium to control their function along with muscle function. Potassium and sodium help your nerves send electrical signals, via the sodium potassium pump, that are necessary for nervous system function. The patient's abnormal amounts of the two is causing irregular nerve function that is affecting her sense of touch and causing numbness.

I am currently in Statistics 240 so I have only gone over a small portion of what the class will cover. The first thing we covered in this class was how to define a sample or population, whether it be quantitative, qualitative, continuous or discrete. We also learned different ways to display such data with stem and leaf charts, scatter plots, box graphs, bar graphs pie charts or linear graphs. We learned how to calculate certain values such as mean, median, mode, standard deviation, variance and the regression line. And the class covers how to asses these values with r values and such which show how much the model covers the real data. The last thing we learned was different ways to predict or estimate data and probability for different situations.

The methods section also did not specify certain details which led to differences in the panels. The exact angle of the photograph was not in the methods which is likely the cause for the different frames for the pictures; more plants to the side and seeing the ground are included because of this. The format for the panels was not specified so the letters were in different locations and different sizes, the panels were in a different order and the spacing between panels were different. The equipment used was not specified so the pictures could have different coloring from different cameras used and the ruler was not the same. The only thing specified about the map was that it was done on inkscape; the differences in map outline chosen, different red shading and red box used as a key in Fig. 1 were not in the methods. And the label in Figure 2 panel A seems to not belong to that map, possibly from the template used from the other students map.

The methods section also did not specify certain details which led to differences in the panels. The exact angle of the photograph was not in the methods which is likely the cause for the different frames for the pictures; more plants to the side and seeing the ground are included because of this. The format for the panels was not specified so the letters were in different locations and different sizes, the panels were in a different order and the spacing between panels were different. The equipment used was not specified so the pictures could have different coloring from different cameras used and the ruler was not the same. The only thing specified about the map was that it was done on inkscape; the differences in map outline chosen, different red shading and red box used as a key in Fig. 1 were not in the methods. And the label in Figure 2 panel A seems to not belong to that map, possibly from the template used from the other students map.

The Writing in Biology class at University of Massachusetts assigned a methods project to help demonstrate what is needed to make this section of a paper clear enough to replicate. In this, I photographed the Cattleya ‘War Paint’ Orchid and created a map showing the plants origin and made a figure depicting these. I wrote a methods section for this process in which another student followed so they could duplicate the figure as accurately as possible. The differences in the figures involved different items shown in the background such as other plants and the floor and different coloring of the figures and the flower. The format of the map, the letters for the panels and the panels in the figures are also different. These inconsistencies could be accounted by certain factors such as different day, time of day, equipment used and the specific details not being included in the methods.

The differences in these figures seem to be a result of not being specific enough in the methods and not having exactly the same conditions when taking the photograph. The difference in lighting could be due to different equipment or time of day so that the lighting was different. The flower in figure 2 seems to be slightly wilted compared to how it was in figure 1 because it is less vibrant and wrinkled.

    The methods section was not specific enough to get exact copies of the panels. The letter placement and format for the layout of the figures was not specified along with the exact angle of the photograph. The difference in ruler is just a difference in equipment. And the label in figure 2 panel A seems to not belong to that map, possibly from the template used.

The photographs of the full plant, panel B in figure 1 and panel C in figure 2, have differences in the lighting and what can be seen. The photographs in figure 1 are all darker or have more saturated colors than in figure 2. More of the background is visible in figure 2; it shows the entirety of the pot and more of the plants surrounding it, including one to the left, above and on the floor to the left.

    The photograph of the individual flower with the ruler horizontal is panel C in figure 1 and A in figure 2. The ruler in the figures are different; figure 1 has a ruler in mm which has more blank space on the end, while figure 2 uses a ruler with cm and in. The ruler in figure 1 is on the lower part of the flower going out to the right; there is also part of a hand shown holding the ruler. Figure 2 has the ruler at the top of the flower going out to the left. The two photographs show different backgrounds. Figure 1 shows more of the plant to the upper left while figure 2 has more of the leaf to the lower right of the flower.

    Panel D shows a close up of the flower with the ruler horizontal to the flower. The ruler in figure 2 does not touch the flower as it does in figure 1. It can also be seen in these photographs that the flower in figure 2 is slightly less vibrant in color and has more wrinkles in it compared to figure 1.

The replicate done of the original panels is of the same flower, however there are some differences in formatting and the images themselves. The letters in the original (fig. 1) are in the top right corner while the replicate (fig. 2) has them in the bottom left; the replicate has a slightly smaller font as well. Both figures have the map on top with the three photos below, but the order of the photographs are different; the photographs in figure one are right next to each other whereas figure two has space in between.

    The maps (panel A) have some differences as well. The replicate seems to be a different version of a world map with a lighter red color used to fill in the countries. There is a title at the top of figure 2 that is not present in figure 2. There is also a red box in figure 1 used as a key that does not appear in figure 2.

The methods project is meant to explore the elements needed to write a sufficient scientific paper, especially the methods section. The goal of the project is to make a multi panel figure of photographs of a flowering plant and a map displaying the plants origin, write a methods section for someone to follow and have someone else follow the methods and recreate the figure.

Human activities have increased the levels of most  greenhouse gases. Nitrous oxide is released through soil cultivation, fossil fuel combustion, nitric acid production and biomass burning. Methane is produced through decomposition of landfill waste, agriculture, and manure from livestock. And carbon dioxide is released from deforestation, land use changes and burning fossil fuels. When these gases are released there is no easy way to reverse the effects; for example, carbon dioxide can take hundreds of thousands of years to dissipate through chemical weathering or rock formation. The main way carbon dioxide leaves the atmosphere is by being absorbed into the oceans which causes many problems. Global warming is caused by greenhouse gases and is a huge issue that has huge consequences.