sharrath's blog

Our results yield an outcome that refutes the prior hypothesis we had made. Because a lower Shannon Index results in a higher species diversity, we would have expected that the Sylvan area would have a lower number than Orchard Hill. Our results give us a Shannon Index for Sylvan that is higher than that of Orchard Hill, telling us that the area around the Hill has a higher species diversity than Sylvan. While these results don’t match our expectations, there are a few explanations as to why. First of all, the area around Orchard Hill may be more ideal for plant life (ex. less predators, easy access to rain). From the blind eye, we pointed the stream in Sylvan out as a huge factor favoring species diversity- yet other factors may have also been in effect. Another reason for our results can be due to the method and how the experiment was conducted. This experiment was very open to human error, and the results may not have been completely correct. Identifying, counting, and making sure to stay in the area allotted was difficult to do; and it was hard to collect data without injuring the environment around us by trampling over everything. We had originally set out to get at least 15 different species from each area, which ended up being tough to do.

Our results yield an outcome that refutes the prior hypothesis we had made. Because a lower Shannon Index results in a higher species diversity, we would have expected that the Sylvan area would have a lower number than Orchard Hill. Our results give us a Shannon Index for Sylvan that is higher than that of Orchard Hill, telling us that the area around the Hill has a higher species diversity than Sylvan. While these results don’t match our expectations, there are a few explanations as to why. First of all, the area around Orchard Hill may be more ideal for plant life (ex. Less predators, easy access to rain). From the blind eye, we pointed the stream in Sylvan out as a huge factor favoring species diversity- yet other factors may have also been in effect. Another reason for our results can be due to the method and how the experiment was conducted. This experiment was very open to human error, and the results may not have been completely correct. Identifying, counting, and making sure to stay in the area allotted was difficult to do; and it was hard to collect data without injuring the environment around us by trampling over everything. We had originally set out to get at least 15 different species from each area, which ended up being tough to do.

In this experiment, our goal was to test the differences in species diversity in two different environments. Species diversity is the abundance of, not only many organisms, but many different species in a given area. Greater diversity gives us greater variety, something that has been crucial to life as we know it today. There are a variety of different factors that contribute to species diversity, and include but are not limited to environmental factors such as pollution and weather. We selected Orchard Hill and Sylvan as our test grounds because we were driven to have two diverse and unique areas compared to other lab groups. In the environments we observed groundcover plants, vines and shrubs the spanned across the forests. It was our prediction that the test grounds around the Sylvan residential area would have the highest species diversity as opposed to orchard hill. The environmental factors surrounding Sylvan lead to our formal hypothesis; The more abundant resources and healthy environment is in an area, the higher the species diversity of that area will be- particularly as opposed to another area of lesser quality. Measuring our results on the Shannon Index, we expected to see that Sylvan had a lower Index number that Orchard Hill.

"What is your biggest weakness?" Tends to be a question I've been getting a lot within the past few weeks as I interview for a variety of summer internships. I've come to realize that I've got plenty of weaknesses as does any other individual, but a weakness that I've been struggling the most with ever since the beginning of my college career has to be time management. Being the kind of person that I am, I tend to take on plenty of responsibilities and end up juggling them all at once. Thankfully, I've been able to pin point what exactly it was that needed to be changed. I dont think I've fully tackled the issue itself, but have definitly gotten control of it as I have been planning out my schedules in advance. By doing this, I have about 2 planners and a calander up in my room with reminders. Being able to keep track of assignments, meetings and exams have certainly helped with my time management this junior year. 

Glycolysis is the catabolic process of breaking down glucose molecules. Glucose is an essential energy source and occurs in mostly all cells of all organisms as  this break down results in the production of ATP. There are two phases in glycolysis which include; energy investment and energy payoff. The purpose of the energy investment phase is to create molecules with a high phosphoryl group transfer potential, the energy payoff is used to generate a small amount of ATP from molecules with a high phosphoryl group transfer potential than ATP. Glycolysis consists of a total of 10 reactions. Reactions from 1-5 all occur once however, all the other reactions occur twice for each glucose molecule. 

Narcolepsy is a chronic sleep disorder that causes an individual to experience excessive uncontrollable daytime sleepiness. Symptoms for narcolepsy begin between the ages of 15-25 and could significantly become worse as time goes on. People with this disorder often find it difficult to stay awake for long periods of time and often experience sudden attacks of sleep. This disorder unfortunately does not have a cure, but there are certain medications that those who do experience this excessive uncontrollable sleepiness can take to help manage the drowsiness. REM sleep is typically when most dreaming occurs and usually happens after the first 90 minutes of falling asleep. For those with narcolepsy, REM occurs immediately or within 15 minutes of falling asleep. The cause of this disorder is still unknown, but scientists have come to a conclusion that people with type 1 narcolepsy often have low levels of hypcretin which is a neurochemical in our brains that help control and regulate wakefullness. With low levels of this neurochemical, regulation of REM sleep is being altered and causing those with this disorder to experience excessive daytime sleepiness. 

Chronic Obstructive Pulmenary Disease is a term used to describe a group of diseases that essentially block airflow and make it difficult to breathe. This disease is characterized by the increase of breathlessness and includes emphysema, chronic bronchitis and refractory asthma. COPD is caused by the constant and long term exposure to irratating gasses and matter. Individuals diagnosed with COPD are at a high risk of developing heart disease, lung cancer and other severe conditions. COPD symptoms arent diagnosable until a significant amount of damage has been done to an individuals lungs and the disease is treatable. Many people who are diagnosed are able to live and manage the symptoms and live a good quality life. 

Intermittent fasting(IF) is an eating pattern that cycles between periods of both eating and fasting. The idea behind this plan is for individuals to essentially lose weight however, partnered with working out you will exceedingly begin to build muscle. IF is aimed for individuals to fast between 12-36 hours essentially lowering the amount of time your gut is actively breaking down molecules for energy. Studies have shown that intermittent fasting is a great way to lose and manage weight while providing a vast amount of health benefits. These benefits include; reduced risk of chronic heart conditions, improved brain health, reduced insulin resistance (which lowers your risk of type 2 diabetes) and reduced oxidative stress within your body. Although you are fasting for a majority of your day, individuals must ensure that they are receiving enough nutrients to nourish ones body. 

The diversity of organisms in soil is critical to all environments as these organisms play an important role in the cycling of ecosystem nutrients. Biodiversity within soil helps create a stable ecosystem by offering protection and regulation to these crops. However, it is not well understood the effects that pesticides and the management of orchards have on these living organisms. In this proposal, we aim to collect and analyze soil samples that will aid us in investigating the correlation between active and inactive orchards within 50 miles of Amherst, Massachusetts. Effectively gathering an even distribution sample of the different orchards and filtering out the living organisms from the soil are fundamental steps in beginning to evaluate the sample. The organisms extracted will be observed through a microscope and identified based on the number of species. While many chemical treatments are used for pest control in modern day farming, these pesticides could have threatening impacts to our ecosystem. These pesticides are not only killing off many of the essential living organisms, but could affect the longevity of these orchards. pose a threat to the health and safety of our ecosystem. 

Hypothyroidism is a condition in which the thyroid gland doesn't produce enough thyroid hormone. Hypothyroidism may not be noticable in the beginning however, if left untreated could cause a numerous amount of health issues including; joint pain, obesity and heart disease. The symptoms of hypothyroidism vary depending on the severity in the lack of hormones. Some common symptoms include; weight gain, fatigue, and increased sensitivity to cold. Most of the causes that are related to hypothyroidism are due to autoimmune disease. Autoimmune disease is when your immune system begins to produce antibodies that attack ones own tissues. Hypothyroidism like other autoimminue diseases is not ideal and is not something an individual wants to live with as there are medications that must be taken to produce a sufficient amount of thyroid hormone.