The "Kangaroo Question"

"Answer, in your own words, the "kangaroo question."  Why do some species only live in one part of the world, even though there are other environments which could be suitable?"

     The answers to this question are actually quite simple.  They might stay in the place that they live because a behavioral pattern keeps them there.  For instance, some animals might prefer to eat a certain kind of food that can only be found in a certain area.

     Another reason is that they might not be able to thrive in any other environment.  Yes, they might be able to live there, but they might not be able to thrive there.  Thriving entails their offspring being able to survive in the environment, the animals being able to avoid particular parasites or predators, etc.

     Another reason is that they might only be able to travel a very short distance in their lifetime.  For example, some bugs might be able to do just fine in multiple places of the world, but these bugs can't get there.  Unless the bug has some help from us humans of Earth, it won't live long enough to see the "land across the sea".

      Thanks for reading, and please let me know what you think!

The Libation Bearers (Orestes)

"What would have been Orestes' proper course of action had he been living today?  Why?"

     In the Libation Bearers, we see a man named Orestes attempting to avenge his father's death by killing his mother and her lover.  Orestes' mother, Clytemnestra, had killed his father to avenge the death of her daughter.  Orestes' father, Agamemnon, had killed the girl in hope of appeasing the gods.

     Well, if this was today, all these people would be in prison.  The proper course of action would be to go to the court system.  More likely, the court system would come to you if they knew of a murder that you were involved in.  They would not just stand around like a Dodo bird and do nothing.  (I mean no deceased Dodo birds offence by this statement.)

     His course of action would have been to report the murder of his father, testify in court, and see his mother go to prison.  Then, and only then, could he live a happy, regret-free, and worry-free life.

     Today, the proper course of action would be to not go into "serial killer mode".  If you did this, then you would be no better than the people/person that had committed the gruesome act that brought upon another's doom.

     Thanks for reading, and please let me know what you think!      

Biotechnology and DNA

                                                Biotechnology

     In this section of my essay I will be talking about my thoughts and questions pertaining to biotechnology.  

     Biotechnology has always been a part of our lives in one way or another.  Cheese making, beer brewing, and antibiotics are all examples of things where biotechnology is used.   

     To make you a little more familiar with this extremely useful tool in life, I will give you the definition of biotechnology.

"1. the exploitation of biological processes for industrial and other purposes, esp. the genetic manipulation of microorganisms for the production of antibiotics, hormones, etc."

     For the moment I will talk a bit about it's role in food making.  

  

    In about 6000 BCE the Sumerians and Babylonians would use yeast in order to make beer, in 1300 CE the Aztecs discovered that the algae in lakes could be a potential food source, in 1852 cross-fertilization is discovered in corn, and in 2000 Australia created its first cloned cows.  

     Of course there were other discoveries but I am only going to list these ones right now.  

     If we have been using biotechnology for this long and it took so many years to discover cross-fertilization in corn of all things; how long will it take to make some of the far more advanced discoveries?  That is one question that I ask myself when learning about biotechnology.

                                 DNA

     Am I the only one who has wondered if perhaps one day we will be able to bring the dinosaurs into existence again or create a real superhero?  I guess that this is something that I have always been fascinated with.  It probably sprouts from my love of science fiction.  Star Trek, Spider Man, The Avengers, etc., are most likely the culprits.  

     Since Friedrich Miescher discovered DNA in 1869, and Watson and Cricks' discovery of the double-helix stucture in 1953, we have made many advances in the way that we use DNA.  From using it to find criminals, the making of insulin, and finding a specific person in mass-war graves, DNA is becoming more and more useful!   

   
     It really does make you think about the possibility that science, using DNA, could actually turn some science fiction tales into a reality.  

     I wonder how far away these discoveries in DNA are?  If they are ever made, I wonder how they will be used?  

     Perhaps they would be used purely for scientific purposes, but most likely they wouldn't be.  Seriously, let's just think about this for a minute.  If these discoveries were made, how would governments try to use them?  They have created atomic bombs, machine guns, fighter jets, etc., using the discoveries that have been made in science.  What would happen if real super heroes were created using DNA?  What would happen if human cloning was made successful and legal?  Would the government perhaps try and use these things to their advantage?  Of course they would!  They would be stupid not to.  

     The idea of these things happening is quite frightening to me, but then again, I don't think that we will have to worry about this for quite a long time.  I mean, we cloned Dolly, (the first cloned sheep from an adult somatic cell) in only 1996. 

I hope that you have enjoyed this essay, and please let me know what you think!       

Biology Essay 1

    As you probably know, the earth gets a huge amount of energy from the sun.  We are not able to get all of it though.  What does reach the earth's surface is obtained by organisms called producers.  Producers are able to use this energy to help them make their food.
    Now we come to consumers.  Consumers are creatures that need to consume the producers to get energy because they are not able to make their own food.

    Here is an important little bit of information.  When one creature eats another one, it does not get the same amount of energy that the other had.  It gains about ten percent of the energy.  Many animals starve for this reason.  When the energy is diminishing, it eventually runs out, and the animals are not able to use it.  If there is a change in primary producers or consumers, then bye bye animals that used to feed on them.  This is an example of how delicate our lives are.  One simple change, and our world can be turned upside down.  

    Thanks for reading, and please let me know what you think!

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Cite for this report:  Lesson One      

Ethics in the Story of Noah and the Flood

    In the story of Noah and the Flood we see that man had become wicked.  God was sad that he had created man, and made an ethical decision based on man's wickedness, to destroy mankind.  There was one man who was good in the eyes of the Lord.  His name was Noah.  God spared him and his family, as well as some animals.
   
    We see that God sent the flood because of man's wickedness.  This was an ethical decision.  Without ethics, there would be no point in sending the flood.  If he had no basis for destroying the earth, it would make no sense to do so.
   
    After the flood, God sent a rainbow as a sign that he would never again destroy the earth in a flood.  This was also an ethical decision.  He had a reason for making this covenant and thus, makes this an ethical decision.
   
    Later we come to Noah and Ham.  Noah had become drunk and lay in his tent.  Ham goes into the tent and sees that his father is naked.  He goes and tells his brothers and they go in and cover their father.  When Noah awakens from being drunk, he punishes Ham.  This was a case of family ethics.  Ham had disrespected his father and so, Noah made an ethical decision to punish his son.
   
    Thanks for reading, and please let me know what you think!