Emina+Jupic

Post #1 - Genetics
=__Tetrachromacy__=

====Can you imagine seeing more colors than the normal human being can? No, of course you can't. We can't even begin to wrap our brain around the thought that there are more colors than we can see with our eyes, because we have only seen the ones that are possible to us, but there are more. Depending on the number of cones we have in our eyes, it may cause us to see more colors than we previously thought was possible. ====

====Tetrachromacy, among people, is a mutation that is seen as "the opposite of colorblindness." Tetrachromats are generally women. They can see four distinct ranges of color, instead of the three that most of us only see, this is because it is a condition in which a person is born with four cones in their eyes, instead of usual three. ==== 

==== Each cone is triggered by a different wavelength of light which sends signals to the brain to perceive the specific colors. The fourth cone gives people the ability to see colors even more accurately. ====



Trichromacy (three cones)
 ====Most people have these three cones, blue, green and red. The fourth cone would lie between the red and green ones, somewhere in the orange range. ====

====Many people with tetrachromacy may not even know they have it because seeing colors is not something that is easily explained. They were born with this and the colors they see, they have always seen. Just like some people don't know they are colorblind because it is what they are used to. ====



Simulated example of tetrachromatic vision.
media type="custom" key="21926676"

This video explains the basics of color and how we can see it, it also mentions tetrachromacy at 2:40.
Further Reading: http://www.post-gazette.com/stories/news/health/some-women-may-see-100-million-colors-thanks-to-their-genes-450179/ - Talks about how many different possible colors they can see, and specific womens' experiences, <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">http://voices.yahoo.com/tetrachromacy-super-human-eyesight-mutation-1987836.html <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">- Gives many statistics and <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">http://discovermagazine.com/2012/jul-aug/06-humans-with-super-human-vision#.UPWOyG_ok6U <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">- General information on how we found out about this mutation, who has it, why some have it. <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">http://news.softpedia.com/news/Half-of-the-Women-See-More-Colors-than-the-Rest-of-the-People-58351.shtml <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">- Why women have it, how it works

<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Sources: <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">http://www.colourlovers.com/blog/2010/03/18/tetrachromacy-in-humans-you-may-have-super-color-vision <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">http://www.colormatters.com/color-and-vision/how-the-eye-sees-color <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">http://discovermagazine.com/2012/jul-aug/06-humans-with-super-human-vision#.UPWOyG_ok6U <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">http://voices.yahoo.com/tetrachromacy-super-human-eyesight-mutation-1987836.html <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">http://news.softpedia.com/news/Half-of-the-Women-See-More-Colors-than-the-Rest-of-the-People-58351.shtml <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">http://www.post-gazette.com/stories/news/health/some-women-may-see-100-million-colors-thanks-to-their-genes-450179/ <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">http://www.reddit.com/r/science/comments/vahzo/researchers_have_found_a_woman_with_4_types_of/

<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Post #2 - Evolution
=__Fruit flies evolve counting ability__=

<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Geneticists have evolved fruit flies that have the ability to count. Fruit fly.

====<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">A team made up of members from the University of California and Wilfrid Laurier University in Canada geneticists have bred a group of fruit flies that have the ability to count to four. This experiment became successful after 40 generations of the fruit flies. The two reasons for this project was to understand the way our brains process numbers more, and to find out more information about the learning disability dyscalculia. This disability disrupts the brain's performance and ability with basic counting actions. media type="youtube" key="HVf_OHK2hHQ?rel=0" height="315" width="560"==== An explanation of the disability that started this experiment, in order to learn more about it.

<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 1.066em; line-height: 1.5;">A variety of other studies have proved that other species such as salamanders, bees and fish, also have some sort of numerical skills. But until this experiment, no one has tried to enhance their abilities.

====<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; line-height: 1.5;">Their process in teaching the fruit flies to count included 20 minute training sessions where the flies were repeatedly shown flashes of light. These flashes came in either twos, threes, or fours. ====

====<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">After they were shown either two or four flashes, they would shake the container that the flies were kept in. Then, there would be a pause before they were once again exposed to the flashes. During these experiments at first, the flies did not prepare for their containers to be shaken, but after the 40 generations of this fruit flies involved in this experiment, if the flashes were an even amount, they began to prepare for the shakes beforehand. ==== ====<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 1.066em; line-height: 1.5;">The flies did not react in preparation for the shakes whatsoever before this experiment, which shows they had evolved and learned how, taking a total of 40 generations. ====

====<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 1.066em; line-height: 1.5;">The results these scientists have found appear to back up the theory that “numerical skills such as mental arithmetic are ancient constructs” ====

<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Further Reading:

[] - Explains experiment, what was done and who was involved.

[]

[]

[] - Talks about the fruit flies behaviors before and after.

Sources: [] [] [] [] http://korpisworld.blogspot.ca/2008/03/memory-mental-arithmetic-mathematics.html http://www.dyscalculiaforum.com/viewpage.php?page_id=18

Post # 3 - Body Systems
=__The Endocrine System__=

====<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">The endocrine system is a group of glands and organs that make and balance hormones in the bloodstream in order to control the many functions of the body. This system works closely with other systems of the body such as the nervous system and exocrine system. The endocrine system is in charge of almost all organs, cells, and functions of our bodies. It is used for reproductive processes, growth and development, metabolism, sexual function, tissue function, and regulating mood. ====

====<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">A gland is a group of cells that make and give off chemicals. The gland is in charge of choosing which materials to remove from the blood, processes them and gives off the final chemicals to utilize somewhere in the body. ==== ====<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Glands such as the sweat and salivary glands, release secretions in the skin or inside the mouth. But endocrine glands are different. They release more than 20 different major hormones into the bloodstream. They are then moved to cells in different locations of the body. ====

> ==== (brain) ==== > ==== (neck) ==== > ==== (abdomen) ==== > ==== (lower abdomen) ====
 * ==== hypothalamus ====
 * ==== pineal body ====
 * ==== pituitary gland ====
 * ==== thyroid ====
 * ==== parathyroids ====
 * ==== adrenal glands ====
 * ==== pancreas ====
 * ==== reproductive glands (which include the ovaries and testes) ====

The make-up of the pineal body/gland.



The endocrine system according to gender.

====The hormones that are made in the glands of the endocrine system work somewhat like messages, or signals. The right signal must be sent out to the right destination in order to work. Because of this, certain hormones are made to only go to certain cells- “target cells."====

====<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">One of the major roles of the endocrine system is the regulate the cycles we go through on a daily basis. It determines cycles such as our sleep cycles, nutrition cycles, and our reproductive cycles. This is to ensure that our bodies have the right amount of energy and levels of hormones. It's job is to take care of short term and long term cycles, from hunger and digestion, to growth. ==== media type="youtube" key="xKkKOBd0fT0?rel=0" height="315" width="560" A very cheesy video describing the different glands of the endocrine system and their roles in our bodies.

Further Reading: [] Tells you all about the system and what each glands role is. [] Goes into detail about the glands, and talks about specific hormones. [] Talks about glands, hormones, and cycle regulation. [] Talks about the roles of the system and why we need it.

Sources: [] [] [] [] http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/medical/IM00643 http://kidshealth.org/kid/talk/qa/glands.html http://www.mhhe.com/biosci/ap/histology_mh/glands.html