Drafts

Religious forms of knowledge are more of the exaggerated ways in which people give explanations to what goes on in the world. This is why different religions started in different parts of the world, but seem to have somewhat similar beliefs in a way. This reminds of of convergent evolution, but in the form of religion. Despite living and growing up in different parts of the world, we still manage to come up with a certain religion in which we believe in. 

Scientific forms of knowledge are more of the evidential ways in which people give explanations to what goes on in the world. Science is for the most part, able to be proven true or not true. This is why I think scientists lean more towards to scientific explanations instead of religion explanations. Regardless there are still some knowledgeable people such as that MD in the video who uses the ways of religion to live his life. There are also popes like the one in the video who try to explain religion by using science. 

In the end I believe it's just what is said in Chapter 3 Evolution vs. Creationism is true. We humans always try to find explanations for everything that go on in this world. We believe whatever we hear or see for the most part. We can be skeptical but sometimes the need to want to know the reason for something outweighs the skepticism. 

There have been many proposed solutions to the educational, maternal and social influences affecting women’s wages, however, implementation of these policies has not corrected the wage gap as predicted. In fact, further education has been shown to negatively impact the wage gap as women who have graduated college, on average, make 75.2 cents on the dollar compared to their male counterparts. This value is argued to be secondary to the majors that are predominantly by females such as the humanitaires or education as these majors, when compared to the STEM (science, technologies, engineering and mathematics) majors pay less on average. Movements have been implemented to increase the female presence in these majors, however, data also supports that females within even these majors are also subject to inequality that accounts for up to 68% of the occupational wage gap.  Despite the persistent issues, education can partially reduce the disparity between men and women, however, there are secondary post graduate circumstances that further inhibit equal treatment.

Plants species are known to grow continuously throughout the year. In this biome there are also emergent trees that rise above the other trees that make up the canopy of the forest. The canopy being made up primarily by evergreen tree leaves, that make a constant layer about 30-40 meters above ground (Cain et al. 2014). Woody vines and the plants species that grow on the branches of the trees draped or clinging over the canopy and emergent trees There are also shrubs and forbs present that make up a majority of the forest floor (Cain et al. 2014). I first spotted this creature hanging from one of the evergreen trees and that’s when it all started. It caught my attention   

As I examined the diet of this animal, I found that the species diet consisted of grass. I looked at the structure of the teeth, and observed hypsodont teeth. These teeth were also occulusal, lophodont teeth consistent with the diet of grazer such as horses. The digestive system also pointed in the direction of a grazers’ diet. The esophagus was 5-7 feet long. The stomach was could hold between 10-22 quarts. The small intestine was around feet and could hold 72 quarts. The cecum was around 6 feet long and could hold 30-38 quarts

The first glance of this new unique species occurred as I was looking for the dens of prairie dogs. At first I had thought I found a newly colored horses, although, while looking more closely at this majestic animal, I had realized this animal was significantly larger than an average horse. I would say this animal was about 10 feet high off the ground and weighed between 600-1500 pounds. The structure of the face of the animal looked similar to that of a giraffe. The coloring of this animal was brown with large spots of orange. The animal had pointed ears, although, what caught my eye was the projections next to the ears. These projections were ossicones which I had only seen on the family of Giraffidae. As I continued to look at this animal, I realized that the structure of the animal’s legs were most similar to that of the family of Equidae. The foot of this animal was very much elongated. The calcaneum was located on the posterior of the hind limbs. The animal had a single pulley astragalus, which is common of the order Perissodactyla. The most intriguing was the mesaxonic foot that this animal had. The animals had cursorial locomotion, and was aided by the fact that the animal contained a cannon bone, therefore, this animal is able to run as efficient as the horses, which are known as the more cursorial perissodactyl. After this first encounter with this new species I decided I would tag the animal and examine it further.

As I was exploring the Great Plains of North America, I stumbled upon the most important discovery of my career, a new animal species. I had come to the Great Plains to record the behavior of the local prairie dogs in the area, although, instead I found a different type of animal. The Great Plains are part of the Temperate Grassland Biome. In this environment the average temperature is 9.1^oC, although there is great variations of seasonal changes including wet summers and dry winters. The total amount of precipitation in this environment is 727 mm of rain fall per year. The high precipitation is perfect for grasses to grow on this flat region. In this biome, one would not be able to find trees due to frequent fires and the herbivorous diet of the animals that inhabit this area.  

    Devil face tumor disease or DFTD is exterminating populations of Tasmanian devils throughout Tasmania due to its ability to be transmitted between individuals. The cancer is able to do this not through the use of a virus but instead, the cancer cell itself is able to bypass the devil’s immune system and colonize the host's tissue. This study looked into the mechanics of how this happens and how it can be treated. The cancer cells go undetected by the host's immune system due to the low genetic diversity of the MHC gene and overall poor genetic diversity, and inbreeding of the populations of Tasmanian devils throughout the island. MHC gene helps the body create T-cells and immune responses to tumors. The cancer cells express this gene allowing it to evade the host's immune system because it recognizes it as its own cell due to the poor genetic diversity of this gene. Methods to help stop this have been attempting to develop a vaccine, keeping healthy populations of Tasmanian devils in captivity, and introducing new Tasmanian devils into areas with very low genetic diversity in hope of creating resistant individuals.

The fact that a type of cancer can be transmissible is very scary and somewhat intimidating. Many populations of Tasmanian Devils don’t stand a chance against this cancer and their future is looking very bleak. The one bright side to this disease is that we can study transmissible cancer. These cancers are extremely rare with only a few other cases in the entire world. Understanding how these cancers work will help us develop new methods of treatment in case more diseases like this develop in the future. Transmissible cancers are extremely dangerous and have shown that they can obliterate a species in no time at all. I believe that studying this cancer and finding a cure for it is going to be incredibly beneficial for humans and the Tasmanian devils.

Semiarid deserts are primarily found in Europe, Northern Asia, and the western states of the United States and are significantly less harsh as dry deserts. Semiarid deserts have two main seasons, summer and winter. The semiarid desert has an average temperature of 23° C during the summer, though it can reach 38° C during the day and 10° C at night. During the winter, temperatures can reach as low as -3° C. Average rainfall is very low, at 2-4 cm a year (The Desert Biome).

Although rainfall is minimal, dew accumulates on vegetation during the night, which can equal or even surpass the total annual rainfall. The terrain is comprised of relatively flat land surrounded by large rocky mountains. The soil found in semiarid deserts consists of loose innutritious rock underneath a layer of fine sand. This type of soil composition makes it hard for large vegetation to survive, leaving only small trees, shrubs, and durable cacti to grow. Animals use the shade from this vegetation as protection from the sun. Because of the limited vegetation and food sources, animal populations are dispersed. The animals that have managed to survive in this climate are small and include lizards, snakes, and insects (Major Types of Deserts on Earth). These organisms, including the newly discovered Bradyrhinus gironi, or the American Rhingon, have been able to survive in this environment because they have adapted to the harsh conditions.

While women are more likely to graduate college on average, they have a higher concentration in majors such as humanities or education, and when compared to their male dominated counterparts such as computer science or engineering there is a clear variance in pay scale. This concept, known as the “between occupation” wage gap, is thought to be multifactorial, involving cultural barriers that inadvertently coerce women away from male-dominated fields.  Furthermore, there is evidence which suggests that maternal care and stereotypical gender roles at home have unintentional consequences regarding pay. Dueto the social stigma and innate desire to raise young, women typically work fewer hours or are only able to work part-time, which can affect merit based promotions or company favor. Additionally women, on average, have less experience due to career interruptions secondary to social events such as having children.