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Developmental Psychology of Transgender Children

Submitted by afeltrin on Wed, 04/24/2019 - 08:19

A compelling argument against leaving it completely up to children to determine their gender identity is the potential presence of psychological issues. The doctor goes on to tell the extreme story of a young girl who witnessed her mother being murdered. Right after, the girl was then convinced she wanted to be a boy. In this case, the child seemingly would benefit most from therapy as opposed to going through gender reassignment. The video of Alex, who said for 5-6 years that she wanted to be a boy, aids in this argument against letting children decide. After that block of years, she found other girls like her that enjoyed the stereotypical 'boy’s' sports and that awakened her into self-acceptance. If her parents had let her decide that, then what would her life be like now? Would she be happy or be filled with regret?

Week 14/ draft 2

Submitted by scasimir on Wed, 04/24/2019 - 07:56

Birds have a special organ called the syrinx, that allow them to sing the way they sound. It is located on the trachea to produce sound. It is similar to the mammalian larynx but the way air is used is different. In the syrinx, 100% of the air is converted to sound where the larynx only uses 2%. The vibrated air passes through the syringeal passageway to project on the tympaniform membrane. This vibration is the result of how birds can vocalize. The syrinx is a complex organ itself but the muscle attached around it is also complex. There are layers of muscle structures to create fine adjustment of vibration. The sound produced by the syrinx can be filtered to change the loudness and the pitch. The experiment was done to prove that sound travels faster than helium atmosphere showed sound produced in such atmosphere had different pitch and frequency than the sound produced in our normal atmosphere. The understanding of syrinx and physics of sound helped scientists to learn more about vocalization.

 

Inflammation causes Schizophrenia

Submitted by alanhu on Tue, 04/23/2019 - 22:26

Researchers tested a hypothesis that an inflammation in a chemical pathway would cause schizophrenia. Researchers targets tryptophan, which is a precursor for the development of kynurenic acid. Therefore, it blocks a key glutamate receptor in the brain. What was found was that  the astrocytes were providing nutrients to neurons with elevated of kynurenic acid. The elevated levels of kynurenic acid causes inflammation which is a major part of schizophrenic symptoms.

Glucose susceptibility

Submitted by cnwokemodoih on Tue, 04/23/2019 - 22:03

Glucose growth condition is typically a form of osmotic stress. When a gene, SFAR4, was knocked out in Arabidopsis, the mutant plant was susceptible to glucose osmotic conditions and had lower germination rates than overexpression transgenic lines and wild-type. Under mannitol osmotic stress conditions, germination rates in mutant plants were not significantly lower than those in overexpression transgenic lines and wild-type. This indicates that the susceptibility to glucose is not due to osmotic stress but due to the mutated gene.

Structural Inequality in Haiti

Submitted by afeltrin on Tue, 04/23/2019 - 21:04

Structural inequality is particularly sustained in rural Haiti, as displayed in “Culture, Poverty, and HIV Transmission: The Case of Rural Haiti.” In rural Haiti, there is a greater likelihood that the people living there are under tiring poverty. Unable to really escape in their rural village, people will travel to the larger city and attempt to find work. There is then clear gender inequality, especially concerning sexual unions. Women have weakened abilities to negotiate safe sex, thereby leaving them exposed to potential diseases. Once they’ve contracted HIV or any other STDs, there is a glaring lack of public health systems offering access to treatment. Without the necessary treatment and prevention and the structural inequality faced, many people end up dying due to typically treatable ailments.

Discussion Esterification Lab

Submitted by kwarny on Tue, 04/23/2019 - 20:57

In this lab, several chemical tests and MP determination were performed on an unknown compound to determine the structure and the identity of the unknown. Also, an HNMR of the unknown was analyzed to confirm the identity. In the first test, unknown #36 was mixed in 2,4-DNP in a test tube. Two drops of the unknown were mixed. A yellow-orange precipitate formed, indicating the carbonyl group is not conjugated. Schiff's test was then performed where unknown #36 (1 drop) was added to the schiff's reagent (0.7 mL). A pale pink color was observed, indicating that unknown must be a ketone. The final test was the iodoform, where the unknown (1 drop) was dissolved in 1,2-dimethoxy ethane (0.5 mL), 3M NaOH (0.5 mL) and iodine solution (0.75 mL) and mixed thoroughly. A yellow precipitate formed, indicating it was a ketone. 

Proposal Methods

Submitted by ncarbone on Tue, 04/23/2019 - 19:12

We conducted a survey for students at UMass Amherst to collect their thoughts about how gene editing should be used and regulated in the medical field pertaining to the ethics. Survey options consisted of 4 options: strongly agree, somewhat agree, somewhat disagree, and strongly disagree. We used a Likert-scale for the data to be easily analyzed via a median or mode and displayed in a bar graph. It is the most widely used approach in survey research. A survey pertaining to 3 different scenarios regarding germline gene editing was sent out to 40 UMass students. Each scenario included 3 survey questions. We analyzed how students believe gene editing should be controlled and therefore what regulations need to be executed. Visual representations of data from surveys demonstrated these conclusions. The data collected regarding the ethics of the 3 scenarios will be pooled together as a consensus overview of germline gene editing and displayed via a pie chart.

 

Proposal Intro

Submitted by ncarbone on Tue, 04/23/2019 - 19:12

Modern gene editing tools have the potential to treat diseases from a new perspective. A commonly popular technique used frequently to achieve gene editing is a CRISPR-Cas9 protein complex. With the use of CRISPR-Cas9, specific genes are targeted and the DNA sequence is then modified. Researchers are currently practicing gene editing in various subjects and performing the techniques in experimental research. On the other hand, scientists are delaying the use of gene editing for safety concerns and regulations. For our project, we will be discussing the ethics and various applications of germline gene editing. Germline editing changes the human embryo genome at an early stage. Germline editing also can have an affect on every cell including sperm and egg cells and also may potentially be passed onto future generations.

 

Week13 Draft2

Submitted by mqpham on Tue, 04/23/2019 - 17:41

Evolutionary development is a branch of study that began about 20 years go. Since then, two lines of research have diverged. One focuses on typological, focusing on descrete and qualitative changes in phenotype. The other is research done through investigating complex phenotypes by quantitative developmental phenomena. However, there is potential for the two to be used in explaining processes and mechanisms for evolutionary development over time. In recent years, evolutionary development offers insight on specific molecular connections between genotype and morphology. Still, the importance of how the morphology interacts with the environment will make the final determination on the fitness of the genotype. Therefore, evolutionary development has a greater potential if it is broadened from the fine details of the genotype all the way to how those genotypes affect resource use (Irschick, Albertson et al, 2013).

Disease versus Culturally Bound Syndrome

Submitted by afeltrin on Tue, 04/23/2019 - 16:58
When comparing a disease versus a culturally bound syndrome, it’s imperative to note that a disease has an actual biological/genetic basis. A culturally bound syndrome results from widespread cultural values and institutional factors. Try comparing cancer to the falling out. Cancer is a disease that results from unregulated, rapid cell proliferation in the body and a failure in the function of tumor suppressor genes. It is a genetic disease that has a biological basis. Falling out is a culturally bound syndrome that particularly affects those living in the Caribbean and the southern United States. It is experiencing seizure-like symptoms, like a sudden collapse, dizziness, and being able to hear and understand what’s going on around them. Falling out is a psychological response to certain stressors and it can be a response to anxiety. It’s not a disease because it’s basically manifested psychosomatic effects due to their culture. Culturally bound syndromes seem to occur more in other countries, I think, due to religious beliefs held and superstitions that our society doesn’t really believe in.

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