A Genetics Problem Waiting to Happen

So, if you're following my other blog you'll know that I just finished reading Genesis. Now I realize that what I'm about to write about will give you an unfair advantage on my quiz I just posted, but hey . . .  .  followers of both deserve an edge right? (More like I couldn't wait to share this.) 

So as I was reading, I couldn't help but sketch some geneology charts to help me figure out what was going on. And now that I'm looking at it, I wonder why this never came up in my genetics homework. This stuff is just dying to be a genetics problem.

Look at this tree!

So now my question is . . . how inbred are Jacob's sons? Let's pick Joseph for example. So throw Joseph in there and let's start calculating paths.

Path 1: 9 Steps

Path #2: 9 Steps

Path #3: 10 Steps

Path #4 = 10 Steps

Path #5 = 6 steps

Path #6: 6 steps

Alright, now assuming I got all the paths (which might be a faulty conclusion since I got tired of looking for paths and hoped that was good), here's the math:

Ta-da! Okay . . . So I may have got it wrong 'cause it's been a long time since I had genetics . . . but I think I did well. (Obviously if I made a mistake, please tell me so I can learn.) Also there's apparently harder equations to calculate that inbreeding coefficient, but I decided to stick with the easy one I learned in class.

Also, as a side note Heather at Women in the Scriptures re-posted my post on her blog. It's the article up right now . . . so you could check that out, just to see how awesome that is for me! Plus I finally wrote a small bio about myself. *Cheese*

Birds! Oh the Difficulties.

Let me just say I admire anyone who is a birder. Mr. Webb, I respect you so much. For some reason identifying plants comes way easier to me than identifying birds. I'm getting there I promise. I have over 28 birds to learn by "next week". I've broken them up and here's my first seven:

1) Snow Goose Chen caerulescens (Anseriformes Anatidae)

As far as I can tell, I should look for the white body, orange beak with the black "tooth" line, the black wing tips, and the bigger body.

I need to identify the call of this one too. If anyone has tips on that . . well let me know.

2) Ross's Goose Chen rossii (Anseriformes Anatidae)

This one looks a lot like a snow goose - white with black wing tips, orange legs and bill - but it's smaller and has a shortened beak and more of a squashed head. It's easier to identify when they're side-by-side.






3) Canada Goose Branta canadensis (Anseriformes Anatidae)

Everyone seems to know this bird but me. I know I've seen it, but I'd never be able to tell you that's what it is. It has a black head and bill and a brown body and has the white "stripe" under the eye and head.

I have to know this bird by call too.


4) Greater White-fronted Goose Anser albifrons (Anseriformes Anatidae)

Ok. A small picture, I know. This goose has an orange bill with white right above it. It also has something called mottling - which I honestly don't . . . .  know about yet.

5) Brant Branta bernicla (Anseriformes Anatidae)

A brant has a brown head and top of body with a white neck ring. The bottom of the body is white.

6) Tundra Swan Cygnus colombianus (Anseriformes Anatidae)

So a Tundra Swan is a large bird that I can only describe as "graceful" looking. It has a long black beak with a yellow patch (hard to see in this picture) under the eye.

7) Wood Duck Aix sponsa (Anseriformes Anatidae)

I honestly think this bird is pretty. It has a brown chest with white spots. The male has a green head and a bright red eye. I think the male has some blue on the wing too but I'm not really sure. There's some pretty white stripes dividing clear areas of color.

My Step Into Controversy

So I usually avoid topics that I think are controversial. Not because I'm scared to proclaim my beliefs. I just don't enjoy how angry people can get when they come up. Anyway, this is me dipping my toe in the ice cold water. I won't summarize the podcast. Maybe then whoever reads this will actually listen to the podcast. The Science of Violence Now, I wish I could say I went into this and had my mind changed, but let's be honest. He basically just provides the science that backs my previous beliefs. Not gonna lie, I was worried I'd go into this and have to change some of my ideas. No such thing. Turns out I'm "right". 3 points he covers: Gun control, Disabilities, and Violence in Media. Controversial? Yes? Am I finally right about something? Yup.

The Science of Christmas: Poem

'Twas the night before Christmas, when all through the house

We were surfing the internet, by clicking our mouse;

We found lots of articles posted on there,

About the star of Christmas, St. Nick, and his reindeer;

 

Some scientists think the new star had gone supernova,

While others said comets must have flown over,

Some scientists believe ‘twas a conjunction most propitious,

While others claim it was simply fictitious,

 

As for that sleigh driver known as St. Nick,

To visit every house on earth must be quite a trick.

If we start with the houses in just the U.S.,

We can do some quick estimates and make a best guess.

 

There were 115 million homes on the census last year,

And in each of these houses St. Nick must appear.

If we assume that for just five minutes in and out he does hop,

That’s over 1,000 years of deliveries non-stop.

 

Perhaps by stopping time he can get out of his plight,

Maybe the answer is to travel at the speed of light.

Or perhaps he tunnels through space-time like a mole,

Using a tesseract, hyperspace, or even a wormhole.

 

"Now, DASHER! now, DANCER! now, PRANCER and VIXEN!

On, COMET! on CUPID! on, DONNER and BLITZEN!”

We’ve heard that in winter a male’s antlers do fall,

So are those pulling the sleigh, females one and all?

 

While some males lose antlers in winter it’s true,

Other factors like age, health, and stress determine which do.

So while females likely make up most of the crew,

There are probably some young bucks mixed in with them too.

 

Now finally what about that Rudolph’s red nose?

Could there be science behind the way that it glows?

There are plenty of things that bioluminesce,

But a glow in the dark nose must be quite a mess.

 

There are glowing bacteria, beetles, and fish,

And all of them glow through bioluminescence.

These creatures light up the night thanks to luciferase,

An enzyme that has nothing to do with the devil’s sly ways.

 

It oxidizes the luciferin molecule, charging it up keen,

Which then give off energy, as light that’s blue-green.

But what about red glows, do such things exist?

Can red light be found coming from bugs or from fish?

 

Yes! There are fish and beetles that can glow bright red,

The color depends on the structure of luciferase, it’s said.

Scientists can even make new things that glow,

Something that won them a Nobel prize for their show.

 

So maybe it’s not hard to believe in a nose that shone,

Maybe Santa’s reindeer are all engineered clones?

Could it all be true, perhaps it just might,

Merry Christmas to all, and to all a good night.

~Poem from Everyday Einstein (a podcast I'm trying out) 

Doing the Impossible

So I meant to post this yesterday, but due to working so hard (as will be explained in this post) I had no time to put it up. Yesterday, I did 48 tubes of MONTTIA. So what, you say? Let me explain that normally 24 takes a full day to do. And even that's considered good for a lab assistant. I didn't realize how good till a different professor started training their lab assistant and they're only doing 8 a day. Now, I restate: yesterday I did 48 tubes.

Why, you ask, would someone seek to do so much? Normally I wouldn't. However, yesterday my coworker informed me that he had already maxed out his hours for the week and would need to go home early thus leaving his tubes undone. Well, I couldn't have that. That would set us behind a day, and I may or may not *shifty eyes* be looking forward to being done with the MONTTIA. Thus I turned on the Hooked on Classics (listen to it and you'll see why I picked it) and taught myself to be ambidextrous.

Thus I accomplished the impossible by pipetting with both hands at once. *bows* I know, I know my ingenuity (and humility) are endless. Need to do twice the work in the same amount of time? The answer is obvious: give yourself twice the hands. My left hand is just as steady as my right hand now with a pipette, but it wears out a lot faster. Anyway, I needed to share my accomplishment. And as an after note, I should add that I did not compromise our data at all with my speedy work. I only worked as fast as I knew I could do safely. Boom baby. Kenzie wins.

Scriptures: Insight on Joy, Faith, and Science

So today for family scriptures and prayer we were reading in 2 Nephi - good chapter. It's one where Lehi is talking to his sons. And I thought of one of my favorite scriptures: verse 25 -  "Adam fell that men might be; and men are, that they might have joy." This is my bad day scripture. Whenever I'm feeling like a sourpuss (which if you ask my family is more often than I'd like to admit), this scripture reminds me that Heavenly Father didn't send us here on earth to be miserable. We're supposed to be happy. It's like a commandment! Anyway, maybe that'll perk your day up too.

Also there was this other verse that got me thinking: verse 13 - "And if ye shall say there is no law, ye shall also say there is no sin. If ye shall say there is no sin, ye shall also say there is no righteousness. And if there be no righteousness there be no happiness. And if there be no righteousness nor happiness there be no punishment nor misery. And if these things are not there is no God. And if there is no God we are not, neither the earth; for there could have been no creation of things, neither to act nor to be acted upon; wherefore, all things must have vanished away."

This is a common argument in our world right now - there is no God thus I can do whatever I want. But I think they stop with there is no God. Because of science people think they can explain away how the world is made. For me, science builds my testimony. As I learn about all of the complicated workings of the world around me I can't help but think that God is amazing! My God not only understands all of the laws of nature but uses them to build. My God knows more than we know now, can explain things we can't, and understands the intricacies of the things we do. My God uses the laws of nature to create. And to me, this is amazing. Anyway, just my thought. I wish I could say I came up with all of this on my own, but Dad was the one who sparked this thought. However, this really is my testimony. Science is a basic building block of my faith.

Have a good day! Remember, you're here to be happy!

Science: Lab Work

So during the summer, I've been working as a lab assistant for the professor I normally TA for doing DNA extractions. It makes me feel super smart to be handling all of this expensive equipment and chemicals. Unfortunately, it really is just that. As of yet, I don't understand most of what I'm doing. Oh don't get me wrong, I've got the processes down. The pipette technique is second nature and I know every step of the protocol for both Monttia and Calceolaria perfectly. I've even helped run the DNA tests afterward, but really I have no idea how to read and interpret the DNA smears that come out. (Although honestly watching them glow orange is SUPER cool.) I feel like smacking my forehead because I know I learned about this stuff in MMBIO 240 but true to typical student nature, I've already forgot most of it. I could recite to you half asleep every step of the protocol with the exact amounts and little tips for getting stuff right, but I couldn't tell you for the life of me what each chemical is used for. The professor is nice and stops to explain it to me - when he's around. Which to be honest is almost never. If I were to be more honest about my job, I'd say I'm a personal assistant. As soon as I finish the Monttia in here, I'll move up to herbarium and start cataloguing some stuff for him. Really I'm just the hands to finish the work he has absolutely no time to do. It's a good job, but despite how smart I sound I really feel like an idiot. Someday I'll sit down and google the stuff I work with and find out exactly what I'm doing . . . Nah. I'll just blog instead. :)

Photos of work: