Earth Worm Dissection

Here is the anatomy of an earthworm, click to enlarge.

On a less serious note Reproduction!

Which leads to cocoons!  

 

Now about dissecting the worm....Watch the video!

Life on Earth Video Warning! 10 Minutes

Life on Earth Con.

• Small changes is evolution
• all systems evole together 
• heart is pump in open and closed
• all cells have to be surrounded by water
• animals started running faster and needed more oxygen
• Amphibian-cold blooded, not very big or active, heart works well-3 chambers
• Four chambers-Birds and mammals
• Veins can grow-cells do not fit together
• Lymphatic system-lymph baths every cell-lymph tissue=blood plasma
• We developed from protists
• Small animals could breather through skin
• Gills evolved early on, not only fish have
• Tracheal tubes have spiracles in insect
• Gases exchanged rapidly, lungs inflate gills
• Air pushs over gills which are extensions of blood vessels
• Lungs have branches with air sacs called the Alvelus
• Branched allows for more surface area to be covered
• Excretory Systems
• Chyme is thrown up food, which the somach adds water to
• Digestion chemically rots food
• Villi increase the surface area, they are filled with blood vessels
• Large intestine absorbs water
• Diffusion=microorganism
• Flame cells fill u and contract moving waste to a excretory tubule
• Malpighian tubes-Kidneys, extract waste
• Nephridia serve the same functions because they are kidneys

Life on Earth

Here are some class notes from this week,

• We have muscle tissue and nervous tissue 
• We take in resources (food) then process, then synthesize and eliminate it
• Early lifeforms digest on inside
• Takes food in gizzard, transports, and then eliminates
• All life has that in common, anatomy and physiology
• one celled protists~not animal; fungus or plant
• It can achieve all of this because it lives in H2O
• Sponge has cells that are all in contact with H2O
• They cannot eat because they do not have mouths.
• Cridenians->hydras, corals,->hunt,process...ect
• Extracellular digestion->out of cell in stomach
• Tube within a tube, lines levels of complexity
• Compartalization~digest different things
• From aquatic~to terrestial we needed support.
• Chordata-all animals with abackbone
• You need breathing apparatus
• Need to be able to sense, sense organs->brain, eyes, ect..
• We still have our reptile brain
• Open pumps blood through vessels, many hearts, short life span, and just randomly moves around
• Closed circulatory systems have veins which are better, faster and warmer. Veins move the blood faster.
• Body Symmetry-Amorphic->Sponges, Radial Symmetry->Starfish, Bilateral->cuts at one spot.
• Circulatory-->
• 2 chambered heart-Arteries away from heart-fish
• When they blend~amphibian=O2 rich and O2 poor blood mix
• You're breathing just like a one celled creature, it never changes its just made things more complex.
• Eat=mouth, or can be observed (sponge)
• Process=sack (hydra) stomach or vacoules
• Synthesize= Endoplasmic R., large intestine, or just a digestive system
• Eliminate=back through mouth (hydra), an anus, or a vacoule like object called the anal pore 

Cladogram and Dichotomous Key

Cladists group organisms based on shared derived characters, not the overall similarity of potential group members.



Dichotomous keys are the most common keys encountered. They may be laid out in various ways, but usually form a series of numbered questions arranged in “couplets” as shown below:

1. Bark on trunk smooth .......................... 2
Bark on trunk rough ............................ 3

2. Bark mostly white ............................... 4
Bark other colours .............................. 7
Each time a question is answered, the user is directed to the number of a new question-couplet. This continues until, instead of a number, the name of the species (or other taxon) is given. This type of key is called a “dichotomous” key because the meaning of the word is "two branching", although in practice dichotomous keys often have questions with more than two choices. The structure of the key is such that each question is actually like a tree branch that has smaller branches proceeding from it, as demonstrated below for keying out four "egg-laying animals".

Short Video on Evidence for Evolution

Evolution Themed Notes

Abiogenesis, or origin of life, is the study of how life on Earth emerged from inanimate organic and inorganic molecules.

Biogenesis is the process of lifeforms producing other lifeforms.

Similar embryos- common ancestor

Homologous structures- similar structures

Competition has to exist for evolution to occur

To survive a species needs to fill niches and decrease competition

Evolution- Tree of life

Sympatric- Speciation within a population

Allopatric- Isolated population's speciation

Parapatric- Speciation two populations barely overlap 

Allopatric is the fastest while sympatric is the slowest form of evolution

Stabilizing selection- culls extreme variants from the population

Directional selection- shifts the overall makeup of a population

Diversifying selection- favors variants of opposite extremes over intermediate individuals

Gradual change- Even change over life, not many changes, and little evolution occurs

Divergent Evolution- Started the same, but is experiencing a different environment and different pressures

Adaptive Radiation or niche- Different ways of life (Founder effect), needed to survive

Convergent evolution- Coming together from a common ancestor

Finally Gradualism- gradual change

Punctuated Equilibrium- rapid change causes change in organisms immediately

Bottleneck effect- diversity->event->a few surviving population

Kingdom Video

The Classification System

The Classification System

Taxonomists group living things into a hierarchy that moves from general to specific. Organisms found in the same Kingdom are related, but not closely related. Presently, scientists accept that there are five Kingdoms of living organisms: Animalia, Plantae, Protoctista, Fungi, and Monera. The Animalia, Plantae, Fungi and Protoctista are part of the Domain Eukarya. The Kingdom Monera contains two Domains: the Eubacteria and Archea. Currently, there is some of debate among scientists with respect to the Kingdom level of classification because the use of DNA-based technology has allowed us to look more closely at the genetic relationships between organisms.

Each Kingdom is divided into smaller groups called Phyla (singular Phylum) that contain more closely related organisms. Each Phylum, in turn, is subdivided into smaller groups called Classes. A Class is composed of many Orders, which contain a number of Families. A Family of living things is made up of Genera (singular Genus). Finally, each Genus is divided into the smallest and most closely related group of organisms called the species.

The smallest grouping in the taxonomy hierarchy is the species, which contains organisms that are very closely related. In order to be classified in the same species, the organisms must be able to produce viable (fertile) offspring. The species level is the most reliable and useful to scientists.

The following diagram illustrates the taxonomic relationships accepted by many scientists today:

Classification

Classification 

As a result of the confusion using common names, scientists have designed a system to classify or group living organisms. Today, the modern science of grouping living things is called Taxonomy. Taxonomists put all living things into arbitrarily selected groupings or categories that lump the organisms together with other living things based on:

• Structural similarities and differences
• Genetic similarities and differences
• Biochemical similarities and differences
• Cellular organization
• Evidence from evolutionary relationships

Hardy-Weinberg

The Hardy-Weinberg Theorem states that the allele frequencies of a gene in a population will remain constant, as long as evolutionary forces are not acting. H-W therefore provides a baseline (a null expectation) for a population that is not evolving. For a population to be in H-W equilibrium, the following conditions or assumptions must be met:

1. The population is very large; there is no genetic drift
2. Matings are random
3. There is no mutation
4. There is no migration
5. There is no selection

If one of these conditions is broken, an evolutionary force is acting to change allele frequencies, and the population may not be in H-W equilibrium. Natural populations probably seldom meet all of these conditions; H-W provides a nice model to study evolution via deviations from H-W equilibrium.

Hardy Weinberg Equation

Basic Relations

A = dominant allele
a = recessive allele

p + q = 1
Where p = frequency of A allele
q = frequency of a allele

p2 + 2pq + q2 = 1
Where p2 = frequency of AA genotype
2pq = frequency of Aa genotype
q2 = frequency of aa genotype

Week of 11/3-7

Monday- Continued from last week

Tuesday-Also continued from last week by playing Biology themed trouble.

Wednesday- Continued from Tuesday

Thursday- Today we were supposed to have a Test: Evolution and Taxonomy but it was delayed because we were behind. Instead we had lecture today.

Friday: Today we assessed, described and explained adaptations affecting survival and reproductive success, such as: Structural adaptations in plants and animals (form to function), disease-causing viruses and microorganisms, and co-evolution.

Main ideas today included:

• Feeding adaptations.
• Adaptations to ensure successful reproduction.
• Adaptations to life on land.
• Structure of viruses.
  
• Mutation of viruses and other microorganisms.
  
• Variety of disease causing (pathogenic) agents (viruses, bacteria) including: 
  
• HIV
  
• Influenza
  
• Smallpox
  
• Streptococcus (strep throat)
  

Week of 10/27-31

Monday- Today we learned how to use dichotomous keys to identify and classify organisms.

Tuesday- We discussed similarities and differences between eukaryotic and prokaryotic organisms, and similarities and differences among the eukaryotic kingdoms: Protists, Fungi, Plants, and Animals.

A few notes include:

• Membrane bound organelles - none in prokaryotes.
• Ribosomes in both.
• Contrasts in chromosome structure.
• Contrasts in size.
• Cellular structures.
• Unicellular vs. Multicellular.
• Methods of making/getting food and breaking down food to get energy.
• Reproduction.

Wednesday- Today we analyzed the process by which organisms representative of the following groups accomplish essential life functions including: Unicellular protists, annelid worms, insects, amphibians, mammals, non-vascular plants, gymnosperms and angiosperms. The functions are transport, excretion, respiration, regulation, nutrition, synthesis, reproduction, and growth and development.

The functions are described as:

• Transport- how organisms get what they need to cells; how they move waste from cells to organs of excretion.
• Excretion- how organisms get rid of their waste and balance their fluids (pH, salt concentration, water).
• Regulation- how organisms control body processes - hormones, nervous system.
• Respiration- how organisms get oxygen from the environment get oxygen from the environment and release carbon dioxide back to the environment and how plants exchange gases.
• Nutrition- how organisms break down and absorb foods.
• Synthesis- how organisms build necessary molecules.
• Reproduction- sexual versus asexual, eggs, seeds, spores, placental, types of fertilization.
• Growth and development- metamorphosis, development in egg or in uterus, growth from seed or spore.

Thursday- Today we had a sub and completed our chart using the textbook.

Friday- Today we watched the "March of the Penguins" and analyzed the movie to determine how Penguins accomplish essential life functions including: transport, excretion, respiration, regulation, nutrition, synthesis, reproduction, and growth and development. 

10/20-24/08

Monday- Another repeat day, we turned our labs in today.

Tuesday- Today we included the topic of the origin and history of life.

In today's lesson we talked about:

• Biogenesis in contrast to abiogenesis with emphasis on the experiments used to support both ideas.
• Early atmosphere hypotheses and experiments.
• How the early conditions affected the type of organism that developed (anaerobic and prokaryotic).
• Evolution of eukaryotic and aerobic organisms.
• The importance of the environment in selecting adaptations.

Wednesday- Today we examined the development of the theory of evolution by natural selection including: fossil and biochemical evidence.

We talked about:

• Historical development of the theory of evolution by natural selection.
• Fossils-relative and absolute dating methods
• A discussion of what can be inferred from patterns in the fossil record.
• Biochemical similarities.

Thursday- The only differences today was that we learned about the mechanisms of evolution and the applications (pesticide and antibiotic resistance).

We discussed: 

• How variations provide material for natural selection.
• The role of geographic isolation inspeciation.
• Discuss the evolutionary selection of resistance to antibiotics and pesticides in various species.

Friday- Today we analyzed the classification of organisms according to their evolutionary relationships, and the historical development and changing nature of classification systems.

Notes today were:

• Originally two kingdoms (plants and animals). More kingdoms added as knowledge of the diversity of organisms increased.
• Development of the seven level classification system (KPCOFGS) and binomial nomenclature
• Evolutionary phylogeny, DNA and biochemical analysis, embryology, morphology
• Interpret phylogenetic trees

Week of 10/13-10/17

Monday- Continuation of last Friday

Tuesday- Today we started lab which would model if evolution occurs and if the Hardy Weinberg equilibrium holds true. 

Wednesday- Today we basically collected data through a survey.

Thursday- We finished the lab and started our lab write ups which trust me is a tedious process.

Friday- Today we had a sub and a lot of textbook work.

Week of 10/6-10/10

Monday- We assessed the impacts of genomics on individuals and society by reviewing the human genome project and by looking at the applications of biotechnology.

We discussed:

• The reaons for establishing the human genome project.
• Recognition that the project is useful in determining whether individuals may carry genes for genetic conditions and in developing gene therapy.
• Gel electrophoresis as a technique to separate molecul;es based on size.
• Uses of DNA fingerprinting
• Apllications of transgenic organisms (plants, animals, and bacteria) in agriculture and industry including pharameutial applications such as the production of human insulin.
• Ethical issues and implications of genomics and biotechnology. (Stem cell research and genetically modified organisms)

Tuesday- Same as Monday

Wednesday- Same as Monday

Thursday- Today we had a Biology Benchmark

Friday- Today we examined the development of the theory of evolution by natural selection including: development of the theory and mechanism of evolution.

A few notes were: How variations provide material for natural selection, the role of geographic isolation in speciation, and the importance of the environment in selecting adaptations.