Drafts

Overall I felt this class taught me a variety of useful skills that I can apply in a variety of different ways in the future. For instance proper time management and planning when it comes to writing drafts, editing as well as constructing projects. Also the use of various software programs such as R, Scribus, Inkscape, and text formatting. I also learned various writing skills and how to critically analyze my own as well as other peoples writing. One thing I wish I knew earlier in the class was how valuable it was to ask for help from the professor in terms of receiving feedback. I think I could have done much better on my Methods project if I had done so.

    The final project, creating the poster yet again provided its own challenges in regards to data collection, data representation, and effectively using various softwares. I quickly learned that data collection often does not go as according to plan and methods often have to be tweaked and improved. In addition, creating useful and valuable graphs and charts proved challenging. Learning how to input data into R however was one of the skills I am glad I learned and I know I will use in the future. I also found it more difficult than expected to effectively create the poster. Using Scribus taught me a lot about how proper planning can save time in the long run. This includes helpful formatting tips like creating different standard header types for fonts. Also organizing and accumulating all the elements prior to inputting them into the poster helped tremendously. It also taught me how to use concise language and including only vital information in the form of text.

The Proposal Project presented unique challenges as well. I felt the main challenge in constructing the proposal was effective planning. Coming up with a research proposal with a credible research design as well as feasibility was difficult. Also finding background research on related topics presented challenges. In regards to the research design, coming up with specific criteria in regards to my specific project, tree management, was difficult because it is not an area of expertise for me. Because of this, it proved challenging and required more background research then initially thought to come up with the right design. As a whole, I think the project taught me important lessons about creating a proper research proposal with specific aims and repeatability.

Beginning with the Methods Project, I felt as though I learned a lot about structure and scientific writing. One of the biggest challenges I faced was structuring each section of the project correctly and including the correct elements in the abstract and introduction. What I learned, that I feel is just as important is what not to include in each section, and to keep each section separate in their purpose and what they provided to the project as a whole. For instance, actually including specific results and main points of discussion in the abstract. Also not including portions of the methods in the introduction. I would say that another challenge was using the correct type of writing. Although I felt that I was using descriptive language, I learned that a lot of what I wrote was vague and contained judgements as opposed to facts and observations. Also not writing in conversational speech or as a narrative was a big challenge. Overall, I felt the learning curve for this project was steep given my lack of exposure and experience but I thought it helped greatly with future projects.

    Before enrolling in the Biology 312, pretty much my entire career as a Biology major here at UMass - Amherst has consisted of sitting in lecture, taking notes, and taking exams. This class was much different in its format and the information and skills that were taught. Learning to write in a different way than I have been taught my entire life was a challenge, but one that I believe will prove useful in the future.

• First we counted the live arthropods, dead arthropods, webs, and cracks present on each window sill in two separate trials and created a table to quantify our data. The first trial took place on Tuesday, April 17th, and the second trial took place exactly one week later on Tuesday, April 24th.

• With the help of Professor Brewer, we were able to obtain the distance from all four window sills to the reptile room using Google Earth Pro. This program produced a 3D model of the Morrill II and Morrill IV South building.

• Using the arrows and ruler tool, the distance was measured. Because the reptile room was on the 5th floor, we had to take distance from all 4 different floors (1st, 2nd, 3rd, and 4th).

• Next we created four line graphs comparing Trial 1 and Trial 2. These graphs, Figures 1-4, respectively, are called Dead Bugs Versus Distance from Reptiles, Live Bugs Versus Distance from Reptiles, Floor Number Versus Distance from Reptiles, and Spider Webs Versus Distance from Reptiles. Figure 5 was created to put all the data together in one table.

FIG 1 - before the actual experiment, they needed to make sure that the tau_lacZ would be transported down the OSN axons and be visualized
- replace the exon OMP (unknown function) with tau_lacZ during homologous recombination
- use cre Recombinase to cut at the loxP sites to removes tkneo
- before they began this experiment, what was known? what kind of topographic mapping? the unknown?
- receptor activation in the bulb evidence derives from ISH experiments that detect the presence of specific receptor mRNAs at
convergent loci in the OB, but this doesn’t permit the visualization of the projection pathways but only identifies sites of axonal
convergence, also w/ this technique, can’t see single axons
FIG 2 – since OMP is expressed in all OSNs, you see intense X-gal staining in OSN axons and in OB glomeruli
- conclusion = tau_lacZ fusion protein is efficiently transported down axons
FIG3 – generate P2 tau_lacZ mice, restrict tau_lacZ to subset of OSNs and use those that express the P2 receptor
- if you just replaced P2 coding sequence w/ tau_lacZ then P2 expression would be eliminated from the modified allele but OSNs express a receptor from only one of the 2 alleles therefore cells expressing the modified P2 allele would express tau_lacZ but not the receptor and cells expressing the WT P2 allele would express the receptor but not tau_lacZ
- to assure that cells expressing tau_lacZ also express a fnuctional P2 receptor, they designed a targeting vector that would result in a
bicistronic mRNA
FIG 4 - see expression of lacZ in P2-IRES-tau_lacZ mice as early as E12.5, also no wandering axons (they saw that these results matched w/ the ISH experiment mentioned above), only a subset of OSNs express tau_lacZ = two distinct glomeruli receive projections from P2-tau_lacZ OSNs
FIG 5 – do P2-tau_lacZ OSNs project to the same glomeruli as WT P2 neurons?
- b/c in the P2-tau_lacZ mouse the other allele is WT
- 50% of P2 OSNs express the WT and the P2-tau_lacZ = monoallelic
FIG 7 – Receptor Swap replace P2 w/ M12 receptor (into P2 locus)
- model 1: OR is sole determinant of axon targeting therefore replacing P2 w/ M12 should target these OSN axons to the “M12 glomeruli”
- model 2: OR plays no role in targeting therefore replacing P2 w/ M12 won’t effect OSN targeting and the axons will go to “P2 glomeruli”
Results: project v. close to P2 (not M12) glomeruli (true in heter- and homo-)
- M12 to P2 projections about 200 micrometers posterior to WT P2 projections
- this suggest that OR is not the sole determinant of axonal targeting but OR is an important factor
So what is the role of OR in axon targeting? - data suggest that OR plays an instructive role in guidance process
- OR expressed in noth axons and OR may recognize guidances cues presented by OB cells independently of cilia OR activation
- activity is important – synchronous firing of subset of OSN expressing a specific OR could result in the segregation of M12P2
OSNs at sites close to but distant from P2 OSNs

source: (Mombaerts, Peter et al. "Visualizing an Olfactory Sensory Map." Cell, Vol. 87, 675–686, 15 Nov. 1996.)

Dan and I both believe that the parents should have the right to test their daughter. Although the hospital is correct in saying the daughter will have her own choice once she turns 18. The fact that she is seven means that under the current conditions the parents have control over medical decisions in her life. Not to mention that by testing her the parents can make more informed decisions on what is best for their daughter and family, such as moving out a polluted environment. Jala believes that because of the personal effects of the genome screening and the fact that typically the disease doesn’t arise until the age of 20 that the hospital is correct in denying the parents request. She believes that the daughter will be able to make an informed decision at the age of 18 without major risks because the disease typically doesn’t arise till age 20 and because it is only 80% penetrant.

Proposal

      This was an interesting project because it made me think outside the box in terms of the entire scientific publication and writing process. I was excited to do this particular group project because it felt as if I was writing an actual research proposal for a grant. Reflecting back on this project, I learned a lot of new things. Even though this was a “simulation,” I still got an idea of what it would be like to work with other colleagues on a research project, the various protocols required beforehand and how to construct a proposal that will hopefully be accepted.

Poster Project

        This was not only an enjoyable project, but it was also very educational. Before starting this project, I was nervous because I didn’t know where to begin. For the most part, this was because other groups chose the same hypothesis (but different variables) as us, therefore we had to communicate with them to make sure we all had to the same goal and ideas in mind. This project required the combination of everything we’ve learned in the semester. The Writing in the Biological Sciences textbook was the most helpful for me. It was also an exciting challenge to create the posters using Scribus however once I saw the posters, I was very proud of our group as well as the other groups. In regards to the future, this project has especially spiked my interest in the scientific research field and I hope to one day use the knowledge from this class in a clinical lab setting.

Drafts
When first introduced to this assignment, I thought about how much of a strain it would put on my week. I began with expectation that the weekly drafts would be something I looked forward to doing in order to improve my writing skills. Certain hectic weeks prevented me from building up this ability and accomplishing my goals. However, reflecting back on this and thinking about how I wasn’t the only one that shared these worries, has moved me in the right direction towards improvement. It has taught me how to gather my thoughts about a certain subject and write them down in other classes and I can see a difference in my writing from the beginning of the semester compared to my current writing skills.

Perfect Paragraphs
I was excited to write erfect paragraphs each week. It seemed very easy and not as time-consuming. However, I did not think that I would learn anything from it. Creating perfect paragraphs was a very interesting assignment because it included input from other students. This is important to me because when I write, I always wonder if other people (especially my peers) can understand what I am trying to express. With this assignment and the integration of the draft assignment, I now pay more attention to spelling and sentence structure. I used to struggle with tenses in my writing but I feel I have a better understanding of it now.