Gattaca Questions

Questions about GATTACA!

Choose several of the following questions to discuss in a blog post reflection on the movie GATTACA. This reflection will become an artifact on your portfolio page 2 as part of your awareness of the effects of science upon society.

1. The following terms were used in the movie. How do they relate to the words we use: degenerate and invalid?
        De-gene-erate
        In-valid
        Borrowed Ladder

2. Why do you think Vincent left his family, tearing his picture out of the family photo, after winning the swimming race against his brother?
He wanted to prove a point to his family that he wasn’t a loser.

3. Describe the relationship between Vincent and Anton.
Vincent didn’t like Anton because Anton was a perfect child and Vincent had alot of problems

4. When Jerome Morrow said to Vincent/Jerome, “They’re not looking for you. When they look at you, they only see me,” what did he mean? Can you find any parallels to this type of situation in real life? Because he is using Jermones DNA so people think of him as Jerome not Vincent.
When you are watching a movie you don’t think of the actor as himself but as the person who he is characterizing

5. Choose your favorite character from the film. Explain why you choose that person. Would you want to be that person? Why? Why not? I enjoyed the real Jerome Marrow because he was funny in some parts. I would not enjoy being him though because he wasn’t able to walk.

6. At the end of the film, you are told that the Doctor knew about Vincent all along. Why did the Doctor go along with the fraud? What would you have done if you were the Doctor?
The Doctor knew that it was Vincents dream. I would have let Vincent follow his dream.

7. The technology to do what was done in the movie is definitely possible within the next fifty years. Do you think that Vincent’s world could eventually happen in America? Why?
I believe that people will probably be desperate enough to go that far.

8. What do you think is wrong with the society portrayed in "GATTACA"? What is right?
People judging people because of ways there going to die is ridiculous.   

9. What were the screenwriters trying to tell us through the episode of the 12-fingered pianist? Is anything wrong with engineering children to have 12 fingers if, as a result, they will be able to make extraordinarily beautiful music?
Its telling us that people who are different should be recognised.  
10. You and your spouse are having a child and are at the Genetic Clinic pictured in the movie. What characteristics would you want for your child and what would you ask to be excluded? Why would you make those choices?
 
11. Picture yourself as either Vincent, Jerome, or Anton. Would you have acted the same or done things differently if you were in the same world as them?

12. How does the society in GATTACA resemble the type of society America was during the height of the eugenics movement?

DNA Blog

Two weeks of analyzing DNA is interesting. First off what is DNA? This is what makes us as humans different, what makes animals different, what even makes flowers, trees, or any type of plant different from anything else. Every living thing in this world has a different set of DNA. What are some terms to learn when we are thinking about it?

Dioxyribose- Sugar in the side links of DNA.

Phosophate- Salt on the outside of the DNA.

Base Pair- When A and T combine by a hydrogen pair or when G and C combine by a hydrogen pair.

Graig and Olga Pedigree Project

Questions

1.Do autosomal dominant disorders skip generation? No because you have to get it form your parents genes. You can't passing it down unless you carry it.

2.Could Greg or his mother be carriers of the gene that causes myotonic dystrophy? Myotonic Dystrophy is a dominant gene so no.

3. Is there a possibility that Greg’s aunt or uncle is homozygous for the myotonic dystrophy (MD) gene? Both of them have it so no.

4.Symptoms of myotonic dystrophy sometimes don’t show up until after age fifty. What is the possibility that Greg’s cousin has inherited the MD gene? Graig's cousin has 50% chance of having it.

5.What is the possibility that Greg and Olga’s children could inherit the MD gene? The children can't get it becauseit is dominant. 

6.What are the hallmarks of an autosomal recessive trait? Skips generations and happens in both females and males.

7.What does consanguineous mean? Why is this concept especially important when discussing recessive genetic disorders? Consanguineous means you have relation with a past relative. Recessive skips generations and its important to know if you could have the trait or not.

8.What is it about the inheritance pattern of factor VIII deficiency seen in Greg and Olga’s pedigree that point toward it not being an autosomal recessive trait? It has only happened to 2 people in two different generations. The one before Greg and Greg’s brother in the next Generation.

Breast Cancer

Breast Cancer
 Ductal and Lobular carcinomas are the main two types of breast cancer. They are start very different but, typically end the same. Ductal is started in the place that moves milk to the edge of the nipple called a duct. Lobular is started in the place in the breast that produces milk. The causes of Breast Cancer are essentially Age, Gender, family history, physical strain, and/or genes. In age the risk of breast cancer is immensely increased because the ducts are starting to wear off which in turn typically causes the cancer. When people in your family have had breast cancer you are 20-30% at a greater risk of inheriting it. The defects of the genes that can usually hold the cancer are BRCA1 and BRCA2 genes. If your parent has that gene you have a 80% chance that you will get the same gene. Woman have an increased risk of breast cancer if they have their period before age 12 or after the age of 55. Other risks include Alcoholism, childbirth, DES, hormone replacement therapy, and radiation. 85% of people with this cancer have at least one mutated gene. Two inherited genes that are sometimes mutated are BRCA1 and BRCA2 and if you have them you have an 80% chance of getting breast cancer. Ways you can prevent breast cancer or any cancer for that matter are limited alcohol, stay healthy, exercise more, and detect cancer in a early stage.



There are many symptoms of breast cancer which include...
Lump or thickening in or near the breast or in the underarm that persists through the menstrual cycle.
A mass or lump, which may feel as small as a pea.
A change in the size, shape, or contour of the breast.
A blood-stained or clear fluid discharge from the nipple.
A change in the feel or appearance of the skin on the breast or nipple (dimpled, puckered, scaly, or inflamed).
Redness of the skin on the breast or nipple.
A change in shape or position of the nipple
An area that is distinctly different from any other area on either breast.
A marble-like hardened area under the skin.

Did you know...
-Men can get breast cancer.
-More women carry the BRCA1 and BRCA2 genes then men.
-Typically more Hispanic women get it than any other race.
-Preventions are very helpful so use them to your advantage.

Eugenics Project

This is information on Eugenics and the links below is where I wrote everything. They are the same thong just in different forms.

https://docs.google.com/document/pub?id=1SUasHRzp8lcHd15qIMKKaKO5J9Xk3UoLMtJMNiO8_rQ

https://docs.google.com/a/lajunta.k12.co.us/document/d/1SUasHRzp8lcHd15qIMKKaKO5J9Xk3UoLMtJMNiO8_rQ/edit

Stem Cell Webquest

What are stem cells and why are they important? Stem cells have a amazing rate of growing into a lot of different cell types during early life and growth. The are used as sort of a defensive/repair system in the body that they live in. They do not have a limit of helping the body while it is still alive. Every stem cell can create either two stem cells, two specialized cells, or one specialized and stem cell. By specialized cell I mean any cell that helps or destroys things in the body. Such as a lung cell or a liver cell that goes and helps the organs.

Webquest Key Terms

Cell-based therapies- Treatment in which stem cells are induced to differentiate into the specific cell type required to repair damaged or destroyed cells or tissues.

Differentiation- The process whereby an unspecialized embryonic cell acquires the features of a specialized cell such as a heart, liver, or muscle cell. Differentiation is controlled by the interaction of a cell's genes with the physical and chemical conditions outside the cell, usually through signaling pathways involving proteins embedded in the cell surface.

Embryonic stem cell line-Embryonic stem cells, which have been cultured under in vitro conditions that allow proliferation without differentiation for months to years.

Proliferation- Expansion of the number of cells by the continuous division of single cells into two identical daughter cells.

Plasticity- The capacity of organisms with the same genotype to vary in developmental pattern, in phenotype, or in behavior according to varying environmental conditions.

Pluripotent- Not fixed as to developmental potentialities, capable of differentiating into one of many cell types.

Did my questions on the link below

https://docs.google.com/document/pub?id=1W7QyyyXwecn4TaEynD81k4OxoWiyCPjeeR0VGN7Wxvs

Meiosis

In Meiosis there are alot of certain things that are different than Mitosis. Mitosis is for cell reproduction and each cell is made exactly the same. In Meiosis genes and traits are the difference. No two things created by Meiosis are exactly the same and this is very interesting. It makes sure that nothing is the same. That makes flowers the way they are, people the way we are, and animals the way they are. There are also 5 main steps in Meiosis but you'll see the difference is my explanations and diagram below.

Prophase I
Nuclear division is about to occur in the first phase. A spindle forms as centrosomes move away from each other. The nucleolus disappears and so do the nuclear envelope fragments. Homologous chromosomes both have two sister chromatids and have to go through synapsis to make bivalents. The exchange of color may occur over the nonsister chromatids After this happens the sister chromotids are no longer identical.

Metaphase I
The bivalents held together by chiasmata have moved towards the equator of the spindle. This is determined by a fully formed spindle and alignment of the bivalents at the equator of the spindle.Protein complexes on the outside of the centromeres are called Kinetochores and should be seen by now. These are attached to spindle fibers. The bivalents align themselves at the equator of the spindle. Then the maternal and paternal homologues may be oriented on either pole. This means that all possible combinations can occur in the daughter cells.

Anaphase I
The homologues of each bivalent seperate and move to opposite poles. Each chromosome still has two chromatids.

Telophase I
Creates divisions so that each daughter cell has one chromosome from each homologous pair. Each parent has two pairs of homologous pairs of chromosomes. After telophase we get into Interkinesis. This is when mitotic division is similar to Interphase except DNA replication does not occur because chromosomes are already duplicated.

Mitosis

There are two main ways of cell reproduction which are very different from each other. Mitosis uses 5 different phases to make an exact copy of the cell. For example if you tear a muscle then your brains tells the cells to start reproducing so the tear will heal. I'm sure you don't want bone cells where the muscle needs fixed. Meiosis is a completely different thing with having 7 steps instead of 5. Meiosis can only be used in one thing and that is sexual reproduction. Anything living uses this to make more of it. In Meiosis no two things are exactly the same and that is the beauty of it. I will talk about Meiosis in my next blog.

Mitosis is made up of 5 different steps and here is more detail about them.

Interphase
This is the starting phase when the cell is doing its normal job. New DNA is split up so that each chromosome has equal amount of DNA. The two chromosomes are called duplicated or replicated chromosomes and attach in a structure called the centromere. After time the cell gets ready to start Mitosis by putting together much of the things needed to move chromosomes around. Although interphase really isn't a part of Mitosis it is something important to know about.
Prophase
This is the first step in Mitosis and involves the chromosome to become visible. This is done by paired centrioles (centrosomes) moving to opposite ends of the cell. To tell that its no longer interphase the nucleoli disappear and inside the nucleus is grainy like spaghetti. As the centrosomes move apart the mitotic spindle forms. Some of the fibers of the mitotic spindle attach to chromosomes pulling them towards the center of the cell.


Metaphase
In metaphase the centromeres are now in the center of the cell. Many nonattached spindle fibers are visible in metaphase. Some of these fibers reach beyond the metaphase plate and overlap.

Anaphase
Sister chromatids part and become daughter chromosomes that move toward the spindle poles. Each daughter cell has a centromere and a single chromatid that appear to move to opposite poles. Each pole receives the same number and kinds of chromosomes. This cell is called the parent cell.

Telophase 
During this phase daughter cells that have the same chromosomes as the parent cell form as nuclear envelopes and nucleoli reappear. Chromosome will become indistinct chromatin.

In this experiment I had to choose which phase each picture was in out of 36 pictures. The highest # of pictures was Interphase with 20 pictures. Going from highest to lowest the next # of pictures were Prophase with 10 pictures. Next down was Metaphase with 3 pictures. After Metaphase was Anaphase with 2 pictures. Finally with 1 picture was Telophase. I think it was funny that the phases went in order with the last phase as the lowest # of pictures and Interphase with the highest # of pictures.

The questions from the lab are in the link below

https://docs.google.com/document/pub?id=1VkdM64evQlortXHTTNlCBvAcCc9M8rvkUzkyooWDe2E