Biology 103

To people all over the world cocaine is viewed as a taboo drug. It is the cause of addiction and death among other things, but is, nonetheless, used by people of all social classes. Models and celebrities make it seem glamorous but those who have been sucked in by cocaine’s addictive properties or have seen a loved one hit rock bottom because of it know that it can ruin lives. It seems as though something this detrimental could only be manufactured by humans, but is it? Where on Earth does this horribly addictive drug come from? Is there more than one form of ingestion? How does it integrate itself into and react with our brains? And finally, what makes it so great that one would want to use it again and again, even to a point where it is life-threatening?

There is a great deal of emphasis on love, especially in terms of romantic relationships, in our society. The so called “falling in love”, the wanting to be “in love”, and ending a relationship that once contained love are important phases for us, and ones that we spend a great deal of time talking and thinking about. Romantic relationships are an interesting phenomenon in society, as the pathway to one involving love is long and complicated, and so we may say “falling” or “ instantly fell” in love to avoid thinking about this long route. The associations with love, and all that the word brings to mind, makes it nearly, if not impossible, to define. While much research is still being done, there have been discoveries on the neurobiological basis for romantic love, involving an increase in specific chemicals, such as dopamine, which plays a major role in the reward system of the brain. Following these recent findings may make us better able to understand the effects of “love” on the brain, which has confused and baffled us through much, if not all, of human history.

Much of Pale Blue Dot, by Carl Sagan, deals with looking at the Earth from a new perspective. In this perspective, we are, like in a lab we completed, new to this planet, in search of life or intelligence without any prior knowledge. Sagan discusses why this planet is so unusual, and the many oddities associated with it that can we see simply from looking and using basic measuring tools. This book overlaps with much of what we’ve discussed in the course, challenging what we’ve learned and accepted as basic knowledge. It’s a new kind of science that I was able to better understand with the idea of science as a story-telling, making this book particularly more useful to me now than it had been in the past.

I read At the Water’s Edge Fish with Fingers, Whales with Legs, and How Life Came Ashore but Then Went Back to Sea by Carl Zimmer. This book focuses on evolution and in addition to providing facts and charts showing how evolution works also tells a story. It tells the stories of other scientists that have long been forgotten by high school biology books (including my AP Biology Text Book by Campbell Reese and Mitchell). This book shows how all of these scientists stories intertwine creating the the next chapter of the story of evolution which is then in turn studied by the next generation of scientists who further evolve the story of evolution.

The Unabridged Story of Pearl Formation (and Categorization)

by Kali Noble

Did you ever, as a child wonder where pearls came from and then how they were made? Later on did you wonder if the oysters that provided pearls survived, or were at least eaten? Was pearl formation explained to you in way that ran as follows (or at least contains this information):

Once upon a time there was an oyster, let's call him Oliver, Oliver O. Oyster, and he lived in a shell at the bottom of the Ocean. One day, Oliver O. Oyster got a grain of sand stuck in his shell. Oliver, irritated by the sand secreted a liquid around the sand to alleviate the itch. After a period of time the secretions built up forming a shiny pearl. Our Oliver O. Oyster remained at the bottom of the Ocean for several more years doing what oysters do until one day a diver happened to spot him. The diver then picked him from the Ocean floor and brought him to the surface. Once back on his boat the diver opened up Oliver Oyster and removed his pearl and throwing him back into the ocean. And that is how we get pearls. The end.

As someone who has always had an interest in the social sciences, especially those dealing with addiction and compulsive behavior, I am intrigued by the role that the brain plays in substance abuse, especially alcoholism. While it has been discussed in class that most characteristics are influenced by both genes and the environment, I still wonder which plays the larger part in alcoholism, a person’s surroundings or their genetic information. Specifically in this paper, however, I plan to focus on how alcoholism affects the brain, and conversely, what role the brain plays in the disease.

It is difficult to compare the part of the textbook that I have read, which deals with evolution in relation to adaptation, with specific concepts that were discussed in class, due to the different styles of teaching that the book and the class utilize. The class discussions were normally overview of the subjects, because there was not enough time to delve into the nuances of each discussion topic; conversely, the book has the liberty to take more time to explain difficult concepts somewhat more in depth, which is not possible in class. The scope of the book helped explain the topics that were minimally discussed in class; however, the book failed to portray science as it was discussed in class, as a means of discovery instead of a definite body of facts and laws.

Have you ever watched that scene from [insert movie or discovery channel] where a bunch of elephants are standing together, going about their normal elephant activities, and then suddenly, they stop and run away together?  When I first saw this scene, I was puzzled as to why this happened.  It was quite strange to see these large but peaceful animals just instantaneously disperse for no good reason.  In actuality, however, the elephants did have a reason for running off.  They responded to a message sent to them by another elephant through infrasound. [1] Elephants are able to detect and send infrasound.  Humans, on the other hand, cannot pick up or produce infrasound the same way elephants can.  For any noise that is between the ranges of 20 to 20,000 Hz, we have no problem audibly hearing these sounds.  Anything that is higher or lower than that range will not be heard by humans.  Infrasound has a frequency that is below 20 Hz and usually, humans cannot detect audible infrasound. [2] However, although we cannot audibly hear infrasound, we are still able to feel the effects of this low frequency.  What are the impacts of infrasound on humans?  And how it is that if we are unable to hear it, it still has an impact on us?
 
Infrasound is found in two forms, it can be ‘man-made’ or created by ‘nature’.  Extreme examples human productions of infrasound include aircraft and fireworks.  The noise from factories and engines also attribute to making these low frequencies. [3] Natural productions of infrasound basically occur all the time.  Weather disasters such as earthquakes, tsunamis, and volcanic eruptions emit infrasound.  Phenomena like meteor impacts and aurora also create this low frequency.  On a less extreme and more relatable scale, anyone who has ever been in a thunderstorm or very strong winds is likely to have experienced infrasound. [3] Instruments can also create these low frequencies.  Organs pipes and bass instruments can produce infrasound as well. [4] As mentioned before, elephants are able to create and detect infrasound.  They are the not the only species who have this trait.  Pigeons, squid and rhinos are just a few among the many other animals who can participate in infrasonic communications. [3] And although many animals can use infrasound to speak, humans still cannot communicate through these low vibrations.