This document summarizes a biologist's experience studying apoptosis and his realization that the lack of a standardized language to describe biological systems contributes to increasing confusion in the field despite accumulating data. The biologist uses the analogy of trying to fix an old radio without an engineering approach to illustrate how biologists approach complex biological problems in an experimental rather than quantitative way. He argues that developing a standardized, quantitative language for biology similar to what engineers use could help overcome increasing complexity and paradoxes in rapidly advancing fields.
Evolutionary epistemology versus faith and justified true belief: Does scien...William Hall
This presentation explores the basis for scientific rationality by testing our claims about the world against nature as described by Karl Popper's evolutionary epistemology versus accepting claims based on justified true belief. The presentation is particularly concerned to show the philosophical problems with religious fundamentalism.
A Brief History of Mitochondria: The Elegant Origins of a Magnificent OrganelleJackson Reynolds
A Case Study written by Jackson David Reynolds, written in the style of the National Center for Case Study Teaching in Science (NCCSTS): http://sciencecases.lib.buffalo.edu/...
University of North Georgia, Gainesville, GA, USA
Spring 2016
April 14 2011 talk by Rosie Redfield at the University of Louisville. Title" What I learned from #arseniclife: communication and quality control in science
Essay about Sci-fI Films
Science Essay
Scientific Theory Essay
Evolution of Science Essay
My Love For Science
Essay about Life Science
My Passion For Science
Environmental Science Essay
Essay on Forensic Science
What Is Earth Science? Essay
Answer the following questions from the Article belowExercise #1..pdfarjunstores123
Answer the following questions from the Article below:
Exercise #1. Read the following article and then answer the following questions in paragraph
form.
1. How has DNA changed the study of biology over the past 50 years? Explain whether scientists
have shifted to a molecular level in the various subdisciplines of biology. Also, do you believe
any trend to the molecular level will continue far into the future?
2. Explain the role of DNA in the development of an organisms. Does DNA fully provide a
blueprint to create an individual? Can DNA by itself propagate itself or does it require other
molecular machines?
3. In modern biology, which is the role of physics in the study of organisms and their molecules?
Has physics moved to the forefront or does it play an ancillary role? As described in the article,
why are the molecular forces of very low energy in an organism?
Historians have the luxury of look- ing back at human endeavor over long periods of time, but
most scien- tists are too busy working in the present and thinking anxiously about the future and
have no time to view their work in the context of what has gone before. I once remarked that all
graduate students in biology divide history into two epochs: the past 2 years and every- thing else
before that, where Archimedes, Newton, Darwin, Mendel—even Watson and Crick—inhabit a
time-compressed universe as uneasy contemporaries. It seems remark- able that historians once
thought that science progressed by the steady addition of knowl- edge, building the edifice of
scientific truth, brick by brick. In his 1962 book The Struc- ture of Scientific Revolutions,
Thomas Kuhn argued that progress occurs in revolutionary steps by the introduction of new
paradigms, which may be new theories—new ways of looking at the world—or new technical
meth- ods that enhance observation and analysis.
Between Kuhn’s revolutions, scientif ic knowledge does advance by accretion, as there is much
to do to consolidate the new sci- ence. But then, inevitably, unsolved problems accumulate and,
in many cases, the inconsis- tencies have been put to one side and every- body hopes that they
will quietly go away. The edifice becomes rickety; some of its founda- tions are insecure and
many of the bricks have not been well-baked. This is when a new rev- olutionary wave in the
form of new ideas or new techniques appears, which allows us to condemn and demolish the
unsafe or corrupt parts of the edifice and rebuild truth. Often there is great resistance to the new
wave, but as Max Planck pointed out, it succeeds because the opponents grow old and die. The
process is then repeated: The radicals become liberals, the liberals become conservatives, the
conservatives become reactionaries, and the reactionaries disappear. Students of evolu- tion will
recognize this process in the theory of punctuated equilibrium: Organisms stay much the same
for very long periods of time; this is interrupted by bursts of change when novelty appears,
f.
Evolutionary epistemology versus faith and justified true belief: Does scien...William Hall
This presentation explores the basis for scientific rationality by testing our claims about the world against nature as described by Karl Popper's evolutionary epistemology versus accepting claims based on justified true belief. The presentation is particularly concerned to show the philosophical problems with religious fundamentalism.
A Brief History of Mitochondria: The Elegant Origins of a Magnificent OrganelleJackson Reynolds
A Case Study written by Jackson David Reynolds, written in the style of the National Center for Case Study Teaching in Science (NCCSTS): http://sciencecases.lib.buffalo.edu/...
University of North Georgia, Gainesville, GA, USA
Spring 2016
April 14 2011 talk by Rosie Redfield at the University of Louisville. Title" What I learned from #arseniclife: communication and quality control in science
Essay about Sci-fI Films
Science Essay
Scientific Theory Essay
Evolution of Science Essay
My Love For Science
Essay about Life Science
My Passion For Science
Environmental Science Essay
Essay on Forensic Science
What Is Earth Science? Essay
Answer the following questions from the Article belowExercise #1..pdfarjunstores123
Answer the following questions from the Article below:
Exercise #1. Read the following article and then answer the following questions in paragraph
form.
1. How has DNA changed the study of biology over the past 50 years? Explain whether scientists
have shifted to a molecular level in the various subdisciplines of biology. Also, do you believe
any trend to the molecular level will continue far into the future?
2. Explain the role of DNA in the development of an organisms. Does DNA fully provide a
blueprint to create an individual? Can DNA by itself propagate itself or does it require other
molecular machines?
3. In modern biology, which is the role of physics in the study of organisms and their molecules?
Has physics moved to the forefront or does it play an ancillary role? As described in the article,
why are the molecular forces of very low energy in an organism?
Historians have the luxury of look- ing back at human endeavor over long periods of time, but
most scien- tists are too busy working in the present and thinking anxiously about the future and
have no time to view their work in the context of what has gone before. I once remarked that all
graduate students in biology divide history into two epochs: the past 2 years and every- thing else
before that, where Archimedes, Newton, Darwin, Mendel—even Watson and Crick—inhabit a
time-compressed universe as uneasy contemporaries. It seems remark- able that historians once
thought that science progressed by the steady addition of knowl- edge, building the edifice of
scientific truth, brick by brick. In his 1962 book The Struc- ture of Scientific Revolutions,
Thomas Kuhn argued that progress occurs in revolutionary steps by the introduction of new
paradigms, which may be new theories—new ways of looking at the world—or new technical
meth- ods that enhance observation and analysis.
Between Kuhn’s revolutions, scientif ic knowledge does advance by accretion, as there is much
to do to consolidate the new sci- ence. But then, inevitably, unsolved problems accumulate and,
in many cases, the inconsis- tencies have been put to one side and every- body hopes that they
will quietly go away. The edifice becomes rickety; some of its founda- tions are insecure and
many of the bricks have not been well-baked. This is when a new rev- olutionary wave in the
form of new ideas or new techniques appears, which allows us to condemn and demolish the
unsafe or corrupt parts of the edifice and rebuild truth. Often there is great resistance to the new
wave, but as Max Planck pointed out, it succeeds because the opponents grow old and die. The
process is then repeated: The radicals become liberals, the liberals become conservatives, the
conservatives become reactionaries, and the reactionaries disappear. Students of evolu- tion will
recognize this process in the theory of punctuated equilibrium: Organisms stay much the same
for very long periods of time; this is interrupted by bursts of change when novelty appears,
f.
One line of escape from the maze of blind alleys is of particular relevance to our theme: a phenomenon which goes under the name of 'paedomorphosis'. It was described by Garstang in the 1920s, and taken up by several biologists; but although the existence of the phenomenon is generally accepted, it made little impact on the orthodox theory and is rarely mentioned in the textbooks. It indicates that at certain critical stages evolution can retrace its steps, as it were, along the path which led to the dead end and make a fresh start in a new, more promising direction. The crucial event in this process is the appearance at the foetal, larval or juvenile stage of some useful evolutionary novelty which is carried over into the adult stage of the organism's progeny.
Now this lowering of the age of sexual maturity is a well-known evolutionary phenomenon called neoteny. It has two aspects: the animal starts to breed while still in a larval or juvenile stage; and it never reaches the fully adult stage, which is dropped off - eliminated from its life cycle ('terminal abbreviation').
Sir Gavin de Beer compared the process to the re-winding of a biological clock when evolution is in danger of running down and coming to a standstill: 'A race may become rejuvenated by pushing the adult stage of its individuals off from the end of their ontogenies, and such a race may then radiate out in all directions.'
Paedomorphosis - or juvenilization - thus appears to play an important part in the grand strategy of evolution. It involves a retreat from specialized adult forms to earlier, less committed and more plastic stages in the development of organisms - followed by a sudden advance in a new direction. It is as if the stream of life had momentarily reversed its course, flowing uphill for a while towards its original source; then opened up a new stream-bed - leaving the koala bear stranded on his tree like a discarded hypothesis. In other words, we are faced here with the same pattern of reculer pour mieux sauter, 'step back to leap', which we have encountered at the critical turning points in the evolution of science and art. Biological evolution is to a large extent a history of escapes from the blind alleys of over-specialization, the evolution of ideas a series of escapes from the tyranny of mental habits and stagnant routines. In biological evolution the escape is brought about by a retreat from the adult to a juvenile stage as the starting-point for the new line; in mental evolution by a temporary regression to more primitive and uninhibited modes of ideation, followed by the creative forward leap (the equivalent of a sudden burst of 'adaptive radiation'). Thus these two types of progress - the emergence of evolutionary novelties and the creation of cultural novelties reflect the same undoing-redoing pattern and appear as analogous processes on different levels.
―Janus: A Summing Up by Arthur Koestler
The Impact of Modern Science and Technology Essay
Science Essay
Essay on History and Philosophy of Science
Reflection On Science And Technology
The Limits of Science Essays
Human Science And Natural Science
Scientific Theory Essay
Ethics in Science Essay
Essay on Science in Society
Essay on Teaching as an Art or a Science
Science As Product And Science
Science And Its Effect On Society Essay
Essay about The Importance of a Science Education
Value of Science Essay
Reflective Essay On Science
The Philosophy of Science Essay
Reflection Paper On Science And Science
Science: Friend or Foe? Essays
Environmental Science Essay
Evolution of Science Essay
Find six internet sources or other materials that relate to the read.docxhoundsomeminda
Find six internet sources or other materials that relate to the readings for this Unit and which you find particularly interesting. Provide complete citations for each of the six (as elsewhere required for this course) to include a 3-4 sentence annotation and your estimate of reliability. Alphabetize the list by the author's last names. You may use this assighment to assist you in Journal and Project, but researching topics that related to "Think About It" items and to your Project.
Think About It! Guiding Questions to consider as you read and explore the Internet
How and why are scientific discoveries made at the same time by different scientists who are not working together? Explain.
In the book The Double Helix, James Watson describes his role is this competitive scientific race. In essence, Watson wanted to earn a Nobel Prize, and he decided that the discovery of the structure of DNA was his best chance of doing so. Not all scientists are so very focused on recognition, but everyone wants credit for the work that they do. Discuss the differences, using specific examples, of doing science to become famous and doing science as one does art…because it is simply what you do.
In 1962, Watson, Crick, and Wilkins received the Nobel Prize in Science for the discovery of the structure of DNA. Notably absent from the podium was Rosalind Franklin, whose X-ray photographs contributed directly to the discovery of the double helix. Franklin did not receive a Nobel Prize for her work on this project because she had died in 1958. Why was she overlooked? Is science still a man’s world? Explain.
How and why is Azande Witchcraft similar to science? What can we learn from this similarity?
If a scientific paradigm is very strong, it is almost impossible to displace. It is how that particular subdiscipline of science is DONE! Paradigm shifts in science are, therefore, rare. Examine at least two known paradigm shifts in science and how they came to be.
Animal communication through ‘silent’ substrate-borne vibration signals is an ancient, wide-spread system that predates hearing even in vertebrates and has been used by insects for at least 230 million years. A conservative estimate is that as many as 150,000 species of insects use only vibrational signals in communication, and another 45,000 species use it in combination with vision, hearing, smell, etc. Vertebrate animals from mammals to fish also use vibrational signals, but we humans know very little about this communication modality. Even those who study animal communication may overlook potential evidence that vibrational signals are important in their study group. Discuss whether this lack of consideration is based on stubborn refusal to face facts, or whether people ‘see’ what they expect to see, as in an optical illusion.
.
Proposing A Solution Essay Ideas.pdfProposing A Solution Essay Ideas. 013 Pro...Ciara Hall
Proposing a Solution Essay Example Topics and Well Written Essays .... Stirring Proposing A Solution Essay Topics Thatsnotus. Topics For Propose A Solution Essay. 10 Beautiful Ideas For Problem Solution Essay 2023. 100 Problem Solution Essay Topics with Sample Essays. Proposing A Solution Essay - YouTube. Proposing a Solution to a Problem Essay Example Topics and Well .... Prewriting: Proposing a Solution Essay. 013
1. TEN MYTHS OF SCIENCE REEXAMINING WHAT WE THINK WE KNOW...W. .docxambersalomon88660
1. TEN MYTHS OF SCIENCE: REEXAMINING WHAT WE THINK WE KNOW...
W. McComas 1996
This article addresses and attempts to refute several of the most widespread and enduring misconceptions held by students regarding the enterprise of science. The ten myths discussed include the common notions that theories become laws, that hypotheses are best characterized as educated guesses, and that there is a commonly-applied scientific method. In addition, the article includes discussion of other incorrect ideas such as the view that evidence leads to sure knowledge, that science and its methods provide absolute proof, and that science is not a creative endeavor. Finally, the myths that scientists are objective, that experiments are the sole route to scientific knowledge and that scientific conclusions are continually reviewed conclude this presentation. The paper ends with a plea that instruction in and opportunities to experience the nature of science are vital in preservice and inservice teacher education programs to help unseat the myths of science.
Myths are typically defined as traditional views, fables, legends or stories. As such, myths can be entertaining and even educational since they help people make sense of the world. In fact, the explanatory role of myths most likely accounts for their development, spread and persistence. However, when fact and fiction blur, myths lose their entertainment value and serve only to block full understanding. Such is the case with the myths of science.
Scholar Joseph Campbell (1968) has proposed that the similarity among many folk myths worldwide is due to a subconscious link between all peoples, but no such link can explain the myths of science. Misconceptions about science are most likely due to the lack of philosophy of science content in teacher education programs, the failure of such programs to provide and require authentic science experiences for preservice teachers and the generally shallow treatment of the nature of science in the precollege textbooks to which teachers might turn for guidance.
As Steven Jay Gould points out in The Case of the Creeping Fox Terrier Clone (1988), science textbook writers are among the most egregious purveyors of myth and inaccuracy. The fox terrier mentioned in the title refers to the classic comparison used to express the size of the dawn horse, the tiny precursor to the modem horse. This comparison is unfortunate for two reasons. Not only was this horse ancestor much bigger than a fox terrier, but the fox terrier breed of dog is virtually unknown to American students. The major criticism leveled by Gould is that once this comparison took hold, no one bothered to check its validity or utility. Through time, one author after another simply repeated the inept comparison and continued a tradition that has made many science texts virtual clones of each other on this and countless other points.
In an attempt to provide a more realistic view of science and point out issues o.
essay- dna | Dna | Genetic Code. Dna technology essay sample from assignmentsupport.com essay writing. The discovery of DNA Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays .... Critical essay: Dna extraction how to write experiment report. 025 Essay Example On Dna Fingerprinting Juan Vucetich ~ Thatsnotus. DNA vs. RNA - Expii. ≫ Understanding of DNA Structure and Location Free Essay Sample on .... Essay About Dna. Essay Discussing the Experiments that Prove DNA is the Genetic Material ....
A project I completed for a Technical Writing course. Purpose of the assignment was to read an article which used medical or scientific terminology and interpret the language into a press release that would sum up the article for the common reader.
G e N e t i c S , t e c H N o l o G Y , A N D S o c i e t .docxShiraPrater50
G e N e t i c S , t e c H N o l o G Y , A N D S o c i e t Y 289
G e n e t i c s , t e c h n o l o G y , a n d s o c i e t y
telomeres: the Key to immortality?
Humans, like all multicellular organisms, grow old and die. As we age, our immune
systems become less efficient, wound
healing is impaired, and tissues lose re-
silience. It has always been a mystery why
we go through these age-related declines
and why each species has a characteris-
tic finite life span. Why do we grow old?
Can we reverse this march to mortality?
Some recent discoveries suggest that the
answers to these questions may lie at the
ends of our chromosomes.
The study of human aging begins with
a study of human cells growing in culture
dishes. Like the organisms from which the
cells are taken, cells in culture have a fi-
nite life span. This replicative senescence
was first noted by Leonard Hayflick in
the 1960s. He reported that normal hu-
man fibroblasts lose their ability to grow
and divide after about 50 cell divisions.
These senescent cells remain metaboli-
cally active but can no longer prolifer-
ate. Eventually, they die. Although we
don’t know whether cellular senescence
directly causes organismal aging, the evi-
dence is suggestive. For example, cells de-
rived from young people undergo more
divisions than those from older people;
cells from short-lived species stop grow-
ing after fewer divisions than those from
longer-lived species; and cells from pa-
tients with premature aging syndromes
undergo fewer divisions than those from
normal patients.
Another characteristic of aging cells
involves their telomeres. In most mam-
malian somatic cells, telomeres become
shorter with each DNA replication be-
cause DNA polymerase cannot synthe-
size new DNA at the ends of each parent
strand. However, as discussed in detail in
this chapter, cells that undergo extensive
proliferation, like embryonic cells, germ
cells, and adult stem cells, maintain their
telomere length by using telomerase—a re-
markable RNA-containing enzyme that
adds telomeric DNA sequences onto the
ends of linear chromosomes. However,
most somatic cells in adult organisms do
not proliferate and do not contain active
telomerase.
Could we gain perpetual youth and vi-
tality by increasing our telomere lengths?
Studies suggest that it may be possible to
reverse senescence by artificially increas-
ing the amount of telomerase in our cells.
When investigators introduced cloned
telomerase genes into normal human
cells in culture, telomeres lengthened,
and the cells continued to grow past their
typical senescence point. These studies
suggest that some of the atrophy of tis-
sues that accompanies old age could be
reversed by activating telomerase genes.
However, before we use telomerase to
achieve immortality, we need to consider
a potential serious side effect: cancer.
Although normal cells shorten their
telomeres and undergo senescence after
a specific num ...
One line of escape from the maze of blind alleys is of particular relevance to our theme: a phenomenon which goes under the name of 'paedomorphosis'. It was described by Garstang in the 1920s, and taken up by several biologists; but although the existence of the phenomenon is generally accepted, it made little impact on the orthodox theory and is rarely mentioned in the textbooks. It indicates that at certain critical stages evolution can retrace its steps, as it were, along the path which led to the dead end and make a fresh start in a new, more promising direction. The crucial event in this process is the appearance at the foetal, larval or juvenile stage of some useful evolutionary novelty which is carried over into the adult stage of the organism's progeny.
Now this lowering of the age of sexual maturity is a well-known evolutionary phenomenon called neoteny. It has two aspects: the animal starts to breed while still in a larval or juvenile stage; and it never reaches the fully adult stage, which is dropped off - eliminated from its life cycle ('terminal abbreviation').
Sir Gavin de Beer compared the process to the re-winding of a biological clock when evolution is in danger of running down and coming to a standstill: 'A race may become rejuvenated by pushing the adult stage of its individuals off from the end of their ontogenies, and such a race may then radiate out in all directions.'
Paedomorphosis - or juvenilization - thus appears to play an important part in the grand strategy of evolution. It involves a retreat from specialized adult forms to earlier, less committed and more plastic stages in the development of organisms - followed by a sudden advance in a new direction. It is as if the stream of life had momentarily reversed its course, flowing uphill for a while towards its original source; then opened up a new stream-bed - leaving the koala bear stranded on his tree like a discarded hypothesis. In other words, we are faced here with the same pattern of reculer pour mieux sauter, 'step back to leap', which we have encountered at the critical turning points in the evolution of science and art. Biological evolution is to a large extent a history of escapes from the blind alleys of over-specialization, the evolution of ideas a series of escapes from the tyranny of mental habits and stagnant routines. In biological evolution the escape is brought about by a retreat from the adult to a juvenile stage as the starting-point for the new line; in mental evolution by a temporary regression to more primitive and uninhibited modes of ideation, followed by the creative forward leap (the equivalent of a sudden burst of 'adaptive radiation'). Thus these two types of progress - the emergence of evolutionary novelties and the creation of cultural novelties reflect the same undoing-redoing pattern and appear as analogous processes on different levels.
―Janus: A Summing Up by Arthur Koestler
The Impact of Modern Science and Technology Essay
Science Essay
Essay on History and Philosophy of Science
Reflection On Science And Technology
The Limits of Science Essays
Human Science And Natural Science
Scientific Theory Essay
Ethics in Science Essay
Essay on Science in Society
Essay on Teaching as an Art or a Science
Science As Product And Science
Science And Its Effect On Society Essay
Essay about The Importance of a Science Education
Value of Science Essay
Reflective Essay On Science
The Philosophy of Science Essay
Reflection Paper On Science And Science
Science: Friend or Foe? Essays
Environmental Science Essay
Evolution of Science Essay
Find six internet sources or other materials that relate to the read.docxhoundsomeminda
Find six internet sources or other materials that relate to the readings for this Unit and which you find particularly interesting. Provide complete citations for each of the six (as elsewhere required for this course) to include a 3-4 sentence annotation and your estimate of reliability. Alphabetize the list by the author's last names. You may use this assighment to assist you in Journal and Project, but researching topics that related to "Think About It" items and to your Project.
Think About It! Guiding Questions to consider as you read and explore the Internet
How and why are scientific discoveries made at the same time by different scientists who are not working together? Explain.
In the book The Double Helix, James Watson describes his role is this competitive scientific race. In essence, Watson wanted to earn a Nobel Prize, and he decided that the discovery of the structure of DNA was his best chance of doing so. Not all scientists are so very focused on recognition, but everyone wants credit for the work that they do. Discuss the differences, using specific examples, of doing science to become famous and doing science as one does art…because it is simply what you do.
In 1962, Watson, Crick, and Wilkins received the Nobel Prize in Science for the discovery of the structure of DNA. Notably absent from the podium was Rosalind Franklin, whose X-ray photographs contributed directly to the discovery of the double helix. Franklin did not receive a Nobel Prize for her work on this project because she had died in 1958. Why was she overlooked? Is science still a man’s world? Explain.
How and why is Azande Witchcraft similar to science? What can we learn from this similarity?
If a scientific paradigm is very strong, it is almost impossible to displace. It is how that particular subdiscipline of science is DONE! Paradigm shifts in science are, therefore, rare. Examine at least two known paradigm shifts in science and how they came to be.
Animal communication through ‘silent’ substrate-borne vibration signals is an ancient, wide-spread system that predates hearing even in vertebrates and has been used by insects for at least 230 million years. A conservative estimate is that as many as 150,000 species of insects use only vibrational signals in communication, and another 45,000 species use it in combination with vision, hearing, smell, etc. Vertebrate animals from mammals to fish also use vibrational signals, but we humans know very little about this communication modality. Even those who study animal communication may overlook potential evidence that vibrational signals are important in their study group. Discuss whether this lack of consideration is based on stubborn refusal to face facts, or whether people ‘see’ what they expect to see, as in an optical illusion.
.
Proposing A Solution Essay Ideas.pdfProposing A Solution Essay Ideas. 013 Pro...Ciara Hall
Proposing a Solution Essay Example Topics and Well Written Essays .... Stirring Proposing A Solution Essay Topics Thatsnotus. Topics For Propose A Solution Essay. 10 Beautiful Ideas For Problem Solution Essay 2023. 100 Problem Solution Essay Topics with Sample Essays. Proposing A Solution Essay - YouTube. Proposing a Solution to a Problem Essay Example Topics and Well .... Prewriting: Proposing a Solution Essay. 013
1. TEN MYTHS OF SCIENCE REEXAMINING WHAT WE THINK WE KNOW...W. .docxambersalomon88660
1. TEN MYTHS OF SCIENCE: REEXAMINING WHAT WE THINK WE KNOW...
W. McComas 1996
This article addresses and attempts to refute several of the most widespread and enduring misconceptions held by students regarding the enterprise of science. The ten myths discussed include the common notions that theories become laws, that hypotheses are best characterized as educated guesses, and that there is a commonly-applied scientific method. In addition, the article includes discussion of other incorrect ideas such as the view that evidence leads to sure knowledge, that science and its methods provide absolute proof, and that science is not a creative endeavor. Finally, the myths that scientists are objective, that experiments are the sole route to scientific knowledge and that scientific conclusions are continually reviewed conclude this presentation. The paper ends with a plea that instruction in and opportunities to experience the nature of science are vital in preservice and inservice teacher education programs to help unseat the myths of science.
Myths are typically defined as traditional views, fables, legends or stories. As such, myths can be entertaining and even educational since they help people make sense of the world. In fact, the explanatory role of myths most likely accounts for their development, spread and persistence. However, when fact and fiction blur, myths lose their entertainment value and serve only to block full understanding. Such is the case with the myths of science.
Scholar Joseph Campbell (1968) has proposed that the similarity among many folk myths worldwide is due to a subconscious link between all peoples, but no such link can explain the myths of science. Misconceptions about science are most likely due to the lack of philosophy of science content in teacher education programs, the failure of such programs to provide and require authentic science experiences for preservice teachers and the generally shallow treatment of the nature of science in the precollege textbooks to which teachers might turn for guidance.
As Steven Jay Gould points out in The Case of the Creeping Fox Terrier Clone (1988), science textbook writers are among the most egregious purveyors of myth and inaccuracy. The fox terrier mentioned in the title refers to the classic comparison used to express the size of the dawn horse, the tiny precursor to the modem horse. This comparison is unfortunate for two reasons. Not only was this horse ancestor much bigger than a fox terrier, but the fox terrier breed of dog is virtually unknown to American students. The major criticism leveled by Gould is that once this comparison took hold, no one bothered to check its validity or utility. Through time, one author after another simply repeated the inept comparison and continued a tradition that has made many science texts virtual clones of each other on this and countless other points.
In an attempt to provide a more realistic view of science and point out issues o.
essay- dna | Dna | Genetic Code. Dna technology essay sample from assignmentsupport.com essay writing. The discovery of DNA Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays .... Critical essay: Dna extraction how to write experiment report. 025 Essay Example On Dna Fingerprinting Juan Vucetich ~ Thatsnotus. DNA vs. RNA - Expii. ≫ Understanding of DNA Structure and Location Free Essay Sample on .... Essay About Dna. Essay Discussing the Experiments that Prove DNA is the Genetic Material ....
A project I completed for a Technical Writing course. Purpose of the assignment was to read an article which used medical or scientific terminology and interpret the language into a press release that would sum up the article for the common reader.
G e N e t i c S , t e c H N o l o G Y , A N D S o c i e t .docxShiraPrater50
G e N e t i c S , t e c H N o l o G Y , A N D S o c i e t Y 289
G e n e t i c s , t e c h n o l o G y , a n d s o c i e t y
telomeres: the Key to immortality?
Humans, like all multicellular organisms, grow old and die. As we age, our immune
systems become less efficient, wound
healing is impaired, and tissues lose re-
silience. It has always been a mystery why
we go through these age-related declines
and why each species has a characteris-
tic finite life span. Why do we grow old?
Can we reverse this march to mortality?
Some recent discoveries suggest that the
answers to these questions may lie at the
ends of our chromosomes.
The study of human aging begins with
a study of human cells growing in culture
dishes. Like the organisms from which the
cells are taken, cells in culture have a fi-
nite life span. This replicative senescence
was first noted by Leonard Hayflick in
the 1960s. He reported that normal hu-
man fibroblasts lose their ability to grow
and divide after about 50 cell divisions.
These senescent cells remain metaboli-
cally active but can no longer prolifer-
ate. Eventually, they die. Although we
don’t know whether cellular senescence
directly causes organismal aging, the evi-
dence is suggestive. For example, cells de-
rived from young people undergo more
divisions than those from older people;
cells from short-lived species stop grow-
ing after fewer divisions than those from
longer-lived species; and cells from pa-
tients with premature aging syndromes
undergo fewer divisions than those from
normal patients.
Another characteristic of aging cells
involves their telomeres. In most mam-
malian somatic cells, telomeres become
shorter with each DNA replication be-
cause DNA polymerase cannot synthe-
size new DNA at the ends of each parent
strand. However, as discussed in detail in
this chapter, cells that undergo extensive
proliferation, like embryonic cells, germ
cells, and adult stem cells, maintain their
telomere length by using telomerase—a re-
markable RNA-containing enzyme that
adds telomeric DNA sequences onto the
ends of linear chromosomes. However,
most somatic cells in adult organisms do
not proliferate and do not contain active
telomerase.
Could we gain perpetual youth and vi-
tality by increasing our telomere lengths?
Studies suggest that it may be possible to
reverse senescence by artificially increas-
ing the amount of telomerase in our cells.
When investigators introduced cloned
telomerase genes into normal human
cells in culture, telomeres lengthened,
and the cells continued to grow past their
typical senescence point. These studies
suggest that some of the atrophy of tis-
sues that accompanies old age could be
reversed by activating telomerase genes.
However, before we use telomerase to
achieve immortality, we need to consider
a potential serious side effect: cancer.
Although normal cells shorten their
telomeres and undergo senescence after
a specific num ...
Richard's entangled aventures in wonderlandRichard Gill
Since the loophole-free Bell experiments of 2020 and the Nobel prizes in physics of 2022, critics of Bell's work have retreated to the fortress of super-determinism. Now, super-determinism is a derogatory word - it just means "determinism". Palmer, Hance and Hossenfelder argue that quantum mechanics and determinism are not incompatible, using a sophisticated mathematical construction based on a subtle thinning of allowed states and measurements in quantum mechanics, such that what is left appears to make Bell's argument fail, without altering the empirical predictions of quantum mechanics. I think however that it is a smoke screen, and the slogan "lost in math" comes to my mind. I will discuss some other recent disproofs of Bell's theorem using the language of causality based on causal graphs. Causal thinking is also central to law and justice. I will mention surprising connections to my work on serial killer nurse cases, in particular the Dutch case of Lucia de Berk and the current UK case of Lucy Letby.
This presentation explores a brief idea about the structural and functional attributes of nucleotides, the structure and function of genetic materials along with the impact of UV rays and pH upon them.
Cancer cell metabolism: special Reference to Lactate PathwayAADYARAJPANDEY1
Normal Cell Metabolism:
Cellular respiration describes the series of steps that cells use to break down sugar and other chemicals to get the energy we need to function.
Energy is stored in the bonds of glucose and when glucose is broken down, much of that energy is released.
Cell utilize energy in the form of ATP.
The first step of respiration is called glycolysis. In a series of steps, glycolysis breaks glucose into two smaller molecules - a chemical called pyruvate. A small amount of ATP is formed during this process.
Most healthy cells continue the breakdown in a second process, called the Kreb's cycle. The Kreb's cycle allows cells to “burn” the pyruvates made in glycolysis to get more ATP.
The last step in the breakdown of glucose is called oxidative phosphorylation (Ox-Phos).
It takes place in specialized cell structures called mitochondria. This process produces a large amount of ATP. Importantly, cells need oxygen to complete oxidative phosphorylation.
If a cell completes only glycolysis, only 2 molecules of ATP are made per glucose. However, if the cell completes the entire respiration process (glycolysis - Kreb's - oxidative phosphorylation), about 36 molecules of ATP are created, giving it much more energy to use.
IN CANCER CELL:
Unlike healthy cells that "burn" the entire molecule of sugar to capture a large amount of energy as ATP, cancer cells are wasteful.
Cancer cells only partially break down sugar molecules. They overuse the first step of respiration, glycolysis. They frequently do not complete the second step, oxidative phosphorylation.
This results in only 2 molecules of ATP per each glucose molecule instead of the 36 or so ATPs healthy cells gain. As a result, cancer cells need to use a lot more sugar molecules to get enough energy to survive.
Unlike healthy cells that "burn" the entire molecule of sugar to capture a large amount of energy as ATP, cancer cells are wasteful.
Cancer cells only partially break down sugar molecules. They overuse the first step of respiration, glycolysis. They frequently do not complete the second step, oxidative phosphorylation.
This results in only 2 molecules of ATP per each glucose molecule instead of the 36 or so ATPs healthy cells gain. As a result, cancer cells need to use a lot more sugar molecules to get enough energy to survive.
introduction to WARBERG PHENOMENA:
WARBURG EFFECT Usually, cancer cells are highly glycolytic (glucose addiction) and take up more glucose than do normal cells from outside.
Otto Heinrich Warburg (; 8 October 1883 – 1 August 1970) In 1931 was awarded the Nobel Prize in Physiology for his "discovery of the nature and mode of action of the respiratory enzyme.
WARNBURG EFFECT : cancer cells under aerobic (well-oxygenated) conditions to metabolize glucose to lactate (aerobic glycolysis) is known as the Warburg effect. Warburg made the observation that tumor slices consume glucose and secrete lactate at a higher rate than normal tissues.
Richard's aventures in two entangled wonderlandsRichard Gill
Since the loophole-free Bell experiments of 2020 and the Nobel prizes in physics of 2022, critics of Bell's work have retreated to the fortress of super-determinism. Now, super-determinism is a derogatory word - it just means "determinism". Palmer, Hance and Hossenfelder argue that quantum mechanics and determinism are not incompatible, using a sophisticated mathematical construction based on a subtle thinning of allowed states and measurements in quantum mechanics, such that what is left appears to make Bell's argument fail, without altering the empirical predictions of quantum mechanics. I think however that it is a smoke screen, and the slogan "lost in math" comes to my mind. I will discuss some other recent disproofs of Bell's theorem using the language of causality based on causal graphs. Causal thinking is also central to law and justice. I will mention surprising connections to my work on serial killer nurse cases, in particular the Dutch case of Lucia de Berk and the current UK case of Lucy Letby.
Slide 1: Title Slide
Extrachromosomal Inheritance
Slide 2: Introduction to Extrachromosomal Inheritance
Definition: Extrachromosomal inheritance refers to the transmission of genetic material that is not found within the nucleus.
Key Components: Involves genes located in mitochondria, chloroplasts, and plasmids.
Slide 3: Mitochondrial Inheritance
Mitochondria: Organelles responsible for energy production.
Mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA): Circular DNA molecule found in mitochondria.
Inheritance Pattern: Maternally inherited, meaning it is passed from mothers to all their offspring.
Diseases: Examples include Leber’s hereditary optic neuropathy (LHON) and mitochondrial myopathy.
Slide 4: Chloroplast Inheritance
Chloroplasts: Organelles responsible for photosynthesis in plants.
Chloroplast DNA (cpDNA): Circular DNA molecule found in chloroplasts.
Inheritance Pattern: Often maternally inherited in most plants, but can vary in some species.
Examples: Variegation in plants, where leaf color patterns are determined by chloroplast DNA.
Slide 5: Plasmid Inheritance
Plasmids: Small, circular DNA molecules found in bacteria and some eukaryotes.
Features: Can carry antibiotic resistance genes and can be transferred between cells through processes like conjugation.
Significance: Important in biotechnology for gene cloning and genetic engineering.
Slide 6: Mechanisms of Extrachromosomal Inheritance
Non-Mendelian Patterns: Do not follow Mendel’s laws of inheritance.
Cytoplasmic Segregation: During cell division, organelles like mitochondria and chloroplasts are randomly distributed to daughter cells.
Heteroplasmy: Presence of more than one type of organellar genome within a cell, leading to variation in expression.
Slide 7: Examples of Extrachromosomal Inheritance
Four O’clock Plant (Mirabilis jalapa): Shows variegated leaves due to different cpDNA in leaf cells.
Petite Mutants in Yeast: Result from mutations in mitochondrial DNA affecting respiration.
Slide 8: Importance of Extrachromosomal Inheritance
Evolution: Provides insight into the evolution of eukaryotic cells.
Medicine: Understanding mitochondrial inheritance helps in diagnosing and treating mitochondrial diseases.
Agriculture: Chloroplast inheritance can be used in plant breeding and genetic modification.
Slide 9: Recent Research and Advances
Gene Editing: Techniques like CRISPR-Cas9 are being used to edit mitochondrial and chloroplast DNA.
Therapies: Development of mitochondrial replacement therapy (MRT) for preventing mitochondrial diseases.
Slide 10: Conclusion
Summary: Extrachromosomal inheritance involves the transmission of genetic material outside the nucleus and plays a crucial role in genetics, medicine, and biotechnology.
Future Directions: Continued research and technological advancements hold promise for new treatments and applications.
Slide 11: Questions and Discussion
Invite Audience: Open the floor for any questions or further discussion on the topic.
Introduction:
RNA interference (RNAi) or Post-Transcriptional Gene Silencing (PTGS) is an important biological process for modulating eukaryotic gene expression.
It is highly conserved process of posttranscriptional gene silencing by which double stranded RNA (dsRNA) causes sequence-specific degradation of mRNA sequences.
dsRNA-induced gene silencing (RNAi) is reported in a wide range of eukaryotes ranging from worms, insects, mammals and plants.
This process mediates resistance to both endogenous parasitic and exogenous pathogenic nucleic acids, and regulates the expression of protein-coding genes.
What are small ncRNAs?
micro RNA (miRNA)
short interfering RNA (siRNA)
Properties of small non-coding RNA:
Involved in silencing mRNA transcripts.
Called “small” because they are usually only about 21-24 nucleotides long.
Synthesized by first cutting up longer precursor sequences (like the 61nt one that Lee discovered).
Silence an mRNA by base pairing with some sequence on the mRNA.
Discovery of siRNA?
The first small RNA:
In 1993 Rosalind Lee (Victor Ambros lab) was studying a non- coding gene in C. elegans, lin-4, that was involved in silencing of another gene, lin-14, at the appropriate time in the
development of the worm C. elegans.
Two small transcripts of lin-4 (22nt and 61nt) were found to be complementary to a sequence in the 3' UTR of lin-14.
Because lin-4 encoded no protein, she deduced that it must be these transcripts that are causing the silencing by RNA-RNA interactions.
Types of RNAi ( non coding RNA)
MiRNA
Length (23-25 nt)
Trans acting
Binds with target MRNA in mismatch
Translation inhibition
Si RNA
Length 21 nt.
Cis acting
Bind with target Mrna in perfect complementary sequence
Piwi-RNA
Length ; 25 to 36 nt.
Expressed in Germ Cells
Regulates trnasposomes activity
MECHANISM OF RNAI:
First the double-stranded RNA teams up with a protein complex named Dicer, which cuts the long RNA into short pieces.
Then another protein complex called RISC (RNA-induced silencing complex) discards one of the two RNA strands.
The RISC-docked, single-stranded RNA then pairs with the homologous mRNA and destroys it.
THE RISC COMPLEX:
RISC is large(>500kD) RNA multi- protein Binding complex which triggers MRNA degradation in response to MRNA
Unwinding of double stranded Si RNA by ATP independent Helicase
Active component of RISC is Ago proteins( ENDONUCLEASE) which cleave target MRNA.
DICER: endonuclease (RNase Family III)
Argonaute: Central Component of the RNA-Induced Silencing Complex (RISC)
One strand of the dsRNA produced by Dicer is retained in the RISC complex in association with Argonaute
ARGONAUTE PROTEIN :
1.PAZ(PIWI/Argonaute/ Zwille)- Recognition of target MRNA
2.PIWI (p-element induced wimpy Testis)- breaks Phosphodiester bond of mRNA.)RNAse H activity.
MiRNA:
The Double-stranded RNAs are naturally produced in eukaryotic cells during development, and they have a key role in regulating gene expression .
A brief information about the SCOP protein database used in bioinformatics.
The Structural Classification of Proteins (SCOP) database is a comprehensive and authoritative resource for the structural and evolutionary relationships of proteins. It provides a detailed and curated classification of protein structures, grouping them into families, superfamilies, and folds based on their structural and sequence similarities.
What is greenhouse gasses and how many gasses are there to affect the Earth.moosaasad1975
What are greenhouse gasses how they affect the earth and its environment what is the future of the environment and earth how the weather and the climate effects.
Seminar of U.V. Spectroscopy by SAMIR PANDASAMIR PANDA
Spectroscopy is a branch of science dealing the study of interaction of electromagnetic radiation with matter.
Ultraviolet-visible spectroscopy refers to absorption spectroscopy or reflect spectroscopy in the UV-VIS spectral region.
Ultraviolet-visible spectroscopy is an analytical method that can measure the amount of light received by the analyte.
(May 29th, 2024) Advancements in Intravital Microscopy- Insights for Preclini...Scintica Instrumentation
Intravital microscopy (IVM) is a powerful tool utilized to study cellular behavior over time and space in vivo. Much of our understanding of cell biology has been accomplished using various in vitro and ex vivo methods; however, these studies do not necessarily reflect the natural dynamics of biological processes. Unlike traditional cell culture or fixed tissue imaging, IVM allows for the ultra-fast high-resolution imaging of cellular processes over time and space and were studied in its natural environment. Real-time visualization of biological processes in the context of an intact organism helps maintain physiological relevance and provide insights into the progression of disease, response to treatments or developmental processes.
In this webinar we give an overview of advanced applications of the IVM system in preclinical research. IVIM technology is a provider of all-in-one intravital microscopy systems and solutions optimized for in vivo imaging of live animal models at sub-micron resolution. The system’s unique features and user-friendly software enables researchers to probe fast dynamic biological processes such as immune cell tracking, cell-cell interaction as well as vascularization and tumor metastasis with exceptional detail. This webinar will also give an overview of IVM being utilized in drug development, offering a view into the intricate interaction between drugs/nanoparticles and tissues in vivo and allows for the evaluation of therapeutic intervention in a variety of tissues and organs. This interdisciplinary collaboration continues to drive the advancements of novel therapeutic strategies.
Earliest Galaxies in the JADES Origins Field: Luminosity Function and Cosmic ...Sérgio Sacani
We characterize the earliest galaxy population in the JADES Origins Field (JOF), the deepest
imaging field observed with JWST. We make use of the ancillary Hubble optical images (5 filters
spanning 0.4−0.9µm) and novel JWST images with 14 filters spanning 0.8−5µm, including 7 mediumband filters, and reaching total exposure times of up to 46 hours per filter. We combine all our data
at > 2.3µm to construct an ultradeep image, reaching as deep as ≈ 31.4 AB mag in the stack and
30.3-31.0 AB mag (5σ, r = 0.1” circular aperture) in individual filters. We measure photometric
redshifts and use robust selection criteria to identify a sample of eight galaxy candidates at redshifts
z = 11.5 − 15. These objects show compact half-light radii of R1/2 ∼ 50 − 200pc, stellar masses of
M⋆ ∼ 107−108M⊙, and star-formation rates of SFR ∼ 0.1−1 M⊙ yr−1
. Our search finds no candidates
at 15 < z < 20, placing upper limits at these redshifts. We develop a forward modeling approach to
infer the properties of the evolving luminosity function without binning in redshift or luminosity that
marginalizes over the photometric redshift uncertainty of our candidate galaxies and incorporates the
impact of non-detections. We find a z = 12 luminosity function in good agreement with prior results,
and that the luminosity function normalization and UV luminosity density decline by a factor of ∼ 2.5
from z = 12 to z = 14. We discuss the possible implications of our results in the context of theoretical
models for evolution of the dark matter halo mass function.
Earliest Galaxies in the JADES Origins Field: Luminosity Function and Cosmic ...
Can a biologist fix a radio or what i learned while studying apoptosis
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Can a biologist fix a radio? - Or, what I learned while studying apoptosis
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can be summarized by the paradox that the more facts we
learn the less we understand the process we study.
It becomes slowly apparent that even if the anticipat-
ed gold deposits exist, finding them is not guaranteed. At
this stage, the Chinese saying that it is difficult to find a
black cat in a dark room, especially if there is no cat,
comes to mind too often. If you want to continue mean-
ingful research at this time of widespread desperation,
David said, learn how to make good tools and how to
keep your mind clear under adverse circumstances. I am
grateful to David for his advice, which gave me hope and,
eventually, helped me to enjoy my research even after my
field did reach the state he predicted.
At some point, I began to realize that David’s para-
dox has a meaning that is deeper than a survival advice.
Indeed, it was puzzling to me why this paradox manifest-
ed itself not only in studies of fundamental processes,
such as apoptosis or cell cycle, but even in studies of indi-
vidual proteins. For example, the mystery of what the
tumor suppressor p53 actually does seems only to deepen
as the number of publications about this protein rises
above 23,000.
The notion that your work will create more confu-
sion is not particularly stimulating, which made me look
for guidance again. Joe Gall at the Carnegie Institution,
who started to publish before I was born, and is an author
of an excellent series of essays on history of biology [1],
relieved my mental suffering by pointing out that a period
of stagnation is eventually interrupted by a new develop-
ment. As an example, he referred to the studies of cell
death that took place in the 19th century, faded into obliv-
ion, and re-emerged a century later with about 60,000
studies on the subject published during a single decade.
Even though a prospect of a possible surge in activity in
my field was relieving, I started to wonder whether any-
thing could be done to expedite this event, which brought
me to think about the nature of David’s paradox. The
generality of the paradox suggested some common funda-
mental flaw of how biologists approach problems.
To understand what this flaw is, I decided to follow
the advice of my high school mathematics teacher, who
recommended testing an approach by applying it to a
problem that has a known solution. To abstract from
peculiarities of biological experimental systems, I looked
for a problem that would involve a reasonably complex
but well understood system. Eventually, I thought of the
old broken transistor radio that my wife brought from
Russia (Fig. 1, see color insert). Conceptually, a radio
functions similarly to a signal transduction pathway in
that both convert a signal from one form into another (a
radio converts electromagnetic waves into sound waves).
My radio has about a hundred various components, such
as resistors, capacitors, and transistors, which is compa-
rable to the number of molecules in a reasonably complex
signal transduction pathway. I started to contemplate how
biologists would determine why my radio does not work
and how they would attempt to repair it. Because a major-
ity of biologists pay little attention to physics, I had to
assume that all we would know about the radio is that it is
a box that is supposed to play music.
How would we begin? First, we would secure funds to
obtain a large supply of identical functioning radios in
order to dissect and compare them to the one that is bro-
ken. We would eventually find how to open the radios and
will find objects of various shape, color, and size (Fig. 2,
see color insert). We would describe and classify them into
families according to their appearance. We would describe
a family of square metal objects, a family of round bright-
ly colored objects with two legs, round-shaped objects
with three legs and so on. Because the objects would vary
in color, we will investigate whether changing the colors
affects the radio’s performance. Although changing the
colors would have only attenuating effects (the music is
still playing but a trained ear of some people can discern
some distortion), this approach will produce many publi-
cations and result in a lively debate.
A more successful approach will be to remove com-
ponents one at a time or to use a variation of the method,
in which a radio is shot at a close range with metal parti-
cles. In the latter case, radios that malfunction (have a
“phenotype”) are selected to identify the component
whose damage causes the phenotype. Although removing
some components will have only an attenuating effect, a
lucky postdoc will accidentally find a wire whose defi-
ciency will stop the music completely. The jubilant fellow
will name the wire Serendipitously Recovered Compo-
nent (SRC) and then find that SRC is required because it
is the only link between a long extendable object and the
rest of the radio. The object will be appropriately named
the Most Important Component (MIC) of the radio. A
series of studies will definitively establish that MIC should
be made of metal and the longer the object is the better,
which would provide an evolutionary explanation for the
finding that the object is extendable.
However, a persistent graduate student from another
laboratory will discover another object that is required for
the radio to work. To the delight of the discoverer, and the
incredulity of the flourishing MIC field, the object will be
made of graphite and changing its length will not affect
the quality of the sound significantly. Moreover, the grad-
uate student would convincingly demonstrate that MIC is
not required for the radio to work, and will suitably name
his object the Really Important Component (RIC). The
heated controversy, as to whether MIC or RIC is more
important, will be fueled by the accumulating evidence
that some radios require MIC while other, apparently
identical ones, need RIC. The fight will continue until a
smart postdoctoral fellow will discover a switch, whose
state determines whether MIC or RIC is required for
playing music. Naturally, the switch will become the
Undoubtedly Most Important Component (U-MIC).
Inspired by these findings, an army of biologists will apply
4. RADIO REPAIR AND STUDY OF APOPTOSIS 1405
BIOCHEMISTRY (Moscow) Vol. 69 No. 12 2004
the pull-it-out approach to investigate the role of each
and every component. Another army will crush the radios
into small pieces to identify components that are on each
of the pieces, thus providing evidence for interaction
between these components. The idea that one can inves-
tigate a component by cutting its connections to other
components one at a time or in a combination (“alanine
scan mutagenesis”) will produce a wealth of information
on the role of the connections.
Eventually, all components will be catalogued, con-
nections between them will be described, and the conse-
quences of removing each component or their combina-
tions will be documented. This will be the time when the
question, previously obscured by the excitement of pro-
ductive research, would have to be asked: Can the infor-
mation that we accumulated help us to repair the radio? It
will turn out that sometimes it can, such as if a cylindrical
object that is red in a working radio is black and smells
like burnt paint in the broken radio (Fig. 2, inset, a com-
ponent indicated as a target). Replacing the burned object
with a red object will likely repair the radio.
The success of this approach explains the pharma-
ceutical industry’s mantra: “Give me a target!”. This
mantra reflects the belief in a miracle drug and assumes
that there is a miracle target whose malfunction is solely
responsible for the disease that needs to be cured.
However, if the radio has tunable components, such
as those found in my old radio (indicated by yellow
arrows in Fig. 2, inset) and in all live cells and organisms,
the outcome will not be so promising. Indeed, the radio
may not work because several components are not tuned
properly, which is not reflected in their appearance or
their connections. What is the probability that this radio
will be fixed by our biologists? I might be overly pes-
simistic, but a textbook example of the monkey that can,
in principle, type a Burns poem comes to mind. In other
words, the radio will not play music unless that lucky
chance meets a prepared mind.
Yet, we know with near certainty that an engineer, or
even a trained repairman could fix the radio. What makes
the difference? I think the languages that these two groups
use (Fig. 3, see color insert). Biologists summarize their
results with the help of all-too-well recognizable dia-
grams, in which a favorite protein is placed in the middle
and connected to everything else with two-way arrows.
Even if a diagram makes overall sense (Fig. 3a), it is usu-
ally useless for a quantitative analysis, which limits its
predictive or investigative value to a very narrow range.
The language used by biologists for verbal communica-
tions is not better and is not unlike that used by stock
market analysts. Both are vague (e.g., “a balance between
pro- and anti-apoptotic bcl-2 proteins appears to control
the cell viability, and seems to correlate in long-term with
the ability to form tumors”) and avoid clear predictions.
These description and communication tools are in a
glaring contrast with the language that has been used by
engineers (compare Figs. 3a and 3b). Because the lan-
guage (Fig. 3b) is standard (the elements and their con-
nections are described according to invariable rules), any
engineer trained in electronics would unambiguously
understand a diagram describing the radio or any other
electronic device. As a consequence, engineers can dis-
cuss the radio using terms that are understood unambigu-
ously by the parties involved. Moreover, the commonality
of the language allows engineers to identify familiar pat-
terns or modules (a trigger, an amplifier, etc.) in a dia-
gram of an unfamiliar device. Because the language is
quantitative (a description of the radio includes the key
parameters of each component, such as the capacity of a
capacitor, and not necessarily its color, shape or size) it is
suitable for a quantitative analysis, including modeling.
I would like to argue that the absence of such lan-
guage is the flaw of biological research that causes
David’s paradox. Indeed, even though the impotence of
purely experimental approaches might be a bit exaggerat-
ed in my radio metaphor, it is common knowledge that
the human brain can keep track of only so many variables.
It is also common experience that once the number of
components in a system reaches a certain threshold,
understanding the system without formal analytical tools
requires geniuses, who are so rare even outside biology. In
engineering, the scarcity of geniuses is compensated, at
least in part, by a formal language that successfully unites
the efforts of many individuals, thus achieving a desired
effect, be that design of a new aircraft or of a computer
program. In biology, we use several arguments to con-
vince ourselves that problems that require calculus can be
solved with arithmetic if one tries hard enough and does
another series of experiments.
One of these arguments postulates that the cell is too
complex to use engineering approaches. I disagree with
this argument for two reasons. First, the radio analogy
suggests that an approach that is inefficient in analyzing a
simple system is unlikely to be more useful if the system is
more complex. Second, the complexity is a term that is
inversely related to the degree of understanding. Indeed,
the insides of even my simple radio would overwhelm an
average biologist (this notion has been proven experimen-
tally), but would be an open book to an engineer. The
engineers seem to be undeterred by the complexity of the
problems they face and solve them by systematically
applying formal approaches that take advantage of the
ever-expanding computer power. As a result, such com-
plex systems as an aircraft can be designed and tested
completely in silico, and computer-simulated characters
in movies and video games can be made so eerily life-like.
Perhaps, if the effort spent on formalizing description of
biological processes would be close to that spent on
designing video games, the cells would appear less com-
plex and more accessible to therapeutic intervention.
A related argument is that engineering approaches
are not applicable to cells because these little wonders are
5. 1406 LAZEBNIK
BIOCHEMISTRY (Moscow) Vol. 69 No. 12 2004
fundamentally different from objects studied by engi-
neers. What is so special about cells is not usually speci-
fied, but it is implied that real biologists feel the differ-
ence. I consider this argument as a sign of what I call the
urea syndrome because of the shock that the scientific
community had two hundred years ago after learning that
urea can be synthesized by a chemist from inorganic
materials. It was assumed that organic chemicals could
only be produced by a vital force present in living organ-
isms. Perhaps, when we describe signal transduction
pathways properly, we would realize that their similarity to
the radio is not superficial. In fact, engineers already see
deep similarities between the systems they design and live
organisms [2].
Another argument is that we know too little to ana-
lyze cells in the way engineers analyze their systems. But,
the question is whether we would be able to understand
what we need to learn if we do not use a formal descrip-
tion. The biochemists would measure rates and concen-
trations to understand how biochemical processes work.
A discrepancy between the measured and calculated val-
ues would indicate a missing link and lead to the discov-
ery of a new enzyme, and a better understanding of the
subject of investigation. Do we know what to measure to
understand a signal transduction pathway? Are we even
convinced that we need to measure something? As
Sydney Brenner noted, it seems that biochemistry disap-
peared in the same year as communism [3]. I think that a
formal description would make the need to measure sys-
tem’s parameters obvious and would help to understand
what these parameters are.
An argument that is usually raised privately is why to
bother with all these formal languages if one can make a
living by continuing with purely experimental research
that took years to learn. There are at least two reasons.
One is that formal approaches would make our research
more meaningful, more productive and might indeed lead
to miracle drugs. A more immediate reason is that formal
approaches may become a basic part of biology sooner
than we, experimental biologists, expect. This transition
may be as rapid as that from slides to PowerPoint presen-
tations, a change that forced some graphics designers to
learn how to use a computer and put others out of work.
Of course, a plea for a formal approach in biology is
not new. The general systems theory, developed by
Ludwig von Bertalanffy because of his fascination with
the complexity of live organisms, was formulated 60 years
ago, as well as his concept of organisms as physical sys-
tems [4]. Bertalanffy’s fundamental studies have been fol-
lowed by several attempts to approach cells as systems,
the latest of which, system biology, has been rapidly
developing into an active field [5-11]. Available computer
power and advances in analysis of complex systems raise
hope that this time the system approach will change from
an esoteric tool that is considered useless by many exper-
imental biologists, to a basic and indispensable approach
of biology.
The question is how to facilitate this change, which
is not exactly welcomed by many experimental biologists,
to put it mildly [12]. Learning computer programming
was greatly facilitated by BASIC, a language that was not
very useful to solve complex problems, but was very effi-
cient in making one comfortable with using a computer
language and demonstrating its analytical power.
Similarly, a simple language that experimental scientists
can use to introduce themselves to formal descriptions of
biological processes would be very helpful in overcoming
a fear of long-forgotten mathematical symbols. Several
such languages have been suggested [13, 14] but they are
not quantitative, which limits their value. Others are
designed with modeling in mind but are too new to judge
as to whether they are user-friendly [15]. However, I hope
that it is only a question of time before a user-friendly and
flexible formal language will be taught to biology stu-
dents, as it is taught to engineers, as a basic requirement
for their future studies. My advice to experimental biolo-
gists is to be prepared.
REFERENCES
1. Gall, J. G. (1996) Views of the Cell. A Pictorial History, The
American Society of Cell Biology, Bethesda.
2. Csete, M. E., and Doyle, J. C. (2002) Science, 295, 1664-
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6. BIOCHEMISTRY (Moscow) Vol. 69 No. 12 2004
Fig. 1. The radio that has been used in this study.
Fig. 2. The insides of the radio. See text for description of the indicated components. The inset is an enlarged portion of the radio. The
horizontal arrows indicate tunable components.
LAZEBNIK
RIC
U-MIC
MIC
SRC
target?
7. BIOCHEMISTRY (Moscow) Vol. 69 No. 12 2004
Fig. 3. The tools used by biologists and engineers to describe processes of interest: a) the biologist view of a radio. See Fig. 2 and text for
description of the indicated components; b) the engineer view of a radio (please note that the circuit diagram presented is not that of the
radio used in the study; the diagram of the radio was lost, which, in part, explains why the radio remains broken).
LAZEBNIK
Signals MIC SRC U-MIC RIC Other signals
Sound expression
a
b
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