What are some of the mistakes the scientists mad in the Hot Zone? Why are they disturbing?

The mistakes made in the Hot Zone were really disturbing. There was a part of where to people sniffed the culture they were examining. It was a MYSTERIOUS culture. How could they been so careless! If it was a virus, (it was a virus) they could have got it and killed themselves. It is really disturbing that they actually careless did sniffed the culture. Another mistake made in hot zone was shipping dead monkey out of state. The monkeys were incased in several bags but what if there was a in rip in one of the bags. There was some quick inspection but it was still careless. They are lucky they did not get infected then and there.

Compare one of the organisms you dissected to man. How are the systems similar and different?

A grasshopper and man are certainly different but somewhat similar. Both have a stomach and are separate in sexes. Both also have ovalries that produce eggs for reproduction. Unlike humans who have one heart, grasshoppers have one main heart and many small hearts. Another difference between man and grasshopper is that grasshoppers go through incomplete metamorphisis. To think that having a human child that looks exactly like their parents! But if humans go through incomplete metamorphisis wouldn't all humans look alike? That would be very out of the ordinary compared to how humans really are.

Compare two of the animals you dissected. How were they alike? How were they different? Which was more evolved? Why do you think so?

There are similarities and differences in worms and squids. Worms and squids both developed digestive systems. Not only do they have developed digestive systems they also both have closed circulation. These are some of the few similarities. Even so, their differences are great. A worm does not really have a heart. Its heart is basically very big veins. Squids have three hearts. The defenses a worm uses is have slippery skin that makes it hard to catch. The well known squid's defense is shooting its ink to blind it predator and escape with is big eyes. Through all of these similarities and differences, a squid is more evolved than a worm. This and be concluded by a few reasons. For example, a worm and squid's digestive system are both develop. But, a worm's digestive system is a gizzard while the squid has a stomach. Stomaches are more developed than gizzards. Squids are truly more developed.

How is mankind contributing to the emergence of new diseases?

There are many factors of which man is contributing to the emergence of new diseases. The trees that are cut down in the forests destroys various homes for different animals. Some of these animals could have transfered the disease to humans. With the jump of host, the disease amplifies. Also, there are factories that release a lot of smoke. This smoke contributes to global warming. Now that everything is hotter than before, animals such as mosquitoes are able to reach more areas. This allows the West Nile Virus to spread faster than a previous speed. This is not good.

What in your opinion is the greatest ecological threat currently facing mankind? How would you solve it?

The greatest ecological threat as of today on Earth is global warming. With global warming, there is an increasing in carbon and the melting of ice. Ice melting in Greenland and Antartica is not good. This is because the ocean level will increase. With the increase of ocean level, lands that are not high above sea level will be underwater. To solve this matter, I would try to be more efficient. This includes use energy saving lights and buy a hybrid car if i can. I would also try to plant more trees or grow some fruit and vegatables.

What is the "Catch 22" of ecology? Which way do you think America is currently leaning? why?

Global warming is the "Catch 22" of ecology today. This is because the build up of global warming is biting us in the butt super hard. First of all, we today have contributed to the rise of carbon. This includes polution. The result of these actions all sums up to global warming. Global warming is actually causing the ice in Greeland and Antartica to melt. In fact, these are not the only place of where ice or glaciers are melting. Places like Mt. Fuji are melting. There is not as nearly as much ice or snow in those areas as there were before. Ice melting is a sign of Earth being hot. Is America doing anything to help? Yes but unfortunately only those who know and care about this are doing something. President Bush has not done anything. Without high influence, the rest of America is bound to fall into destruction. Prepare to die! Muahahahahaha!

How He Got It?(Hot Zone Ch1)

Fifty-six year old Monet, an amateur naturalist is fond of animals. He got a virus that destroyed him. How in the world did he get the virus? There are a number of possiblities. Being fond of animals, Monet fed wild monkeys. The saliva from the monkeys could have gotten in to his system. He also carried a sick bird into his home. It died, probably in his hands. That bird probably died of the virus Monet got afterwards. While exploring a cave, ooze of digested insects was found. He might have touched the ooze. The ooze could have also gotten into his system. There are many possiblities.

The Change of Hominids

Over time, Hominids have changed dramatically. This did not happen spontaneously but through evolution. Through a skull lab I completed in school, I saw the changes occuring through the lab. The bone ridge on the top of the cranium of the skulls. Some of the ridges were really large, yet others were not even there. The fang teeth or the canine teeth also varied in size and length. Some like the chimpanzees, have longer canine teeth than Homo Sapiens do. One peculiar trait that I like is the Foramen Magnum (the hole of where the spinal cord links to the brain). Some of the skulls have the Foramen Magnum underneath. Others like Homo Sapiens have it towards the rear. that is why Homo Sapiens can lift their heads higher.

Microevolution

There are big changes and little changes in DNA. Mutations are the big changes and small gene cross overs are the little changes. Based on a pedigree we did in biology class, I discovered that some traits change going from one generation to another. In this case, it is not something that has to do with dominant or recessive traits. It involves trait variations such as being able to bare the cold more then your parents. The point is, is that the change in the genes you get from your parents varies but does not vary that much. These changes are small but over time leads to microevolution.

Genscope

In the program Genscope I was able to fool around with chromosomes of a dragon. In a female dragon, her chromosomes where X and Y. In a guy, his chromosome was just X. There were recessive and dominant traits in a dragon. For example, the traits for horns was HH or Hh. Other traits such as wings, was ww. When I manually changed the chromosomes, I discovered that if you had a small a and a small b together for a color trait, the dragon would end up dead. The dominances of dragon legs was very interesting. If a dragon was homozygous for the trait, the dragon would have 4 legs. I a dragon was heterozygous for the trait, the dragon would have 2 legs. Usually its homozygous and heterozygous look the same in the phenotypes. I guess its different in dragons.