Caroline

=Week Four: = =Bacteria Make Diesel Molecules = =In biology class, it always seemed like the uses for E-Coli were endless. A team of British researchers has just developed yet another use for this species of bacteria. The scientists genetically modified the bacterial cells to convert sugar and yeast extract into long-chained hydrocarbons. These hydrocarbons are very similar to the diesel molecules we use for fuel. = = = =To perform this genetic modification, the scientists spliced DNA into the bacteria's genome from several sources, including an insect pathogen, a cyanobacterium, a soil microbe, and the camphor tree. However, the precise process by which these bacteria produce hydrocarbons is unknown. = = =



= = =Currently, the bacteria consume sugar and yeast extract, but ideally, scientists would adapt the bacteria so that they would be able to consume organic waste or even sewage. If this is achieved, these genetically modified organisms would essentially have the ability to convert waste into fuel. = = = =In the age of today, where the issue of fuel shortage is looming on the horizon, discoveries such as this one that provide sustainable fuel sources are growing in importance. This biofuel, identical to conventional diesel fuel in composition, would be able to replace fossil fuels for the automobile industry, currently an enormous source of fuel consumption. =



= = = = =The main challenge, of course, is finding a way to use E-Coli to make fuel in a cost-effective and efficient manner. Right now, it takes 100 liters of E-Coli to produce one teaspoon of fuel, so the process would obviously need to be streamlined in order to provide a viable alternative to fossil fuel. This discovery is not the solution to all of our energy problems, but it certainly is a step in the right direction. = = = =In class this week, we performed analysis of our own DNA. The fact that PCR and gel electrophoresis are available for biology classrooms is amazing, and means that biotechnology is a rapidly growing field. It makes sense, therefore, to integrate the fields of biotechnology and sustainability, as was done in the discovery described above, to promote a greener future. = = = =media type="youtube" key="RkiKZ--c3sg" width="560" height="315" = = = =Resources: =

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=Week Three: = =Sunscreen for the Earth = =For years, humans have been utilizing sunscreen to protect themselves from the damaging rays of the sun. Recently, scientists have asked a question that may finally lead to reducing damage of global warming: why can't we do the same thing with the earth?= = = =The concept may sound ridiculous, but an innovative idea has been developed to combat global warming that essentially does just that. Titanium dioxide, a nontoxic substance found in many substances, may be deposited in large amounts into the atmosphere. One deposited, the titanium dioxide particles would be able to reflect some of the sun's rays, therefore reducing the amount of heat that enters the atmosphere and leads to global warming.= = =



=Approximately three million tons of titanium dioxide (seen in photo above), spread out in a layer one millionth of a millimeter thick, would supposedly be enough to reduce the effects of heat entering the atmosphere by 50 percent. To deposit the titanium dioxide into the atmosphere, unmanned balloons would be sent around 20 kilometers above ground to spew the substance into the atmosphere, in the form of fine particles.= = = =Although this idea is being seriously considered as a way to combat global warming, the most debilitating drawback is the cost of developing, transporting, and dispersing three million tons of titanium dioxide. (Between 800 and 950 million a year, plus an annual 2 to 3 billion for the titanium dioxide.)=

=Other than this issue, there are relatively few risks associated with this endeavor. Titanium dioxide has been shown in several tests to be a harmless substance.=



= = =In terms of sustainability, this idea would obviously have a positive environmental impact if implemented. Besides the obvious effect of reducing global warming, such a large-scale project could have a great deal of influence in other ways. The media coverage and hype that would certainly come with spraying three million tons of a material into the air from balloons in the sky could potentially raise people's awareness of the environmental issues that the world is currently dealing with. The inherent "coolness" of the project could also inspire students to consider environmental science as a career, adding more young minds to a rapidly growing field.= = = =Resource:= =[]=

=- = =Week Two: = =A Bug's Eye View =

=<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Scientists have recently developed a digital camera that operates in the same manner as the eye of an arthropod. The camera looks promising, with several important applications in the real world. = = = =<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">As opposed to the human eye, which has a relatively limited field of vision, the eye of an insect is called a "compound eye" and has an extremely wide field of vision. Covered with hundreds of tiny light-sensing structures called ommatidia, each pointing in a slightly different direction, an insect's eye is able to see objects equally well directly in front of the eye and in the peripheral range. = = =



= = =<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Where previous cameras have typically used flat electronic chips as image sensors, these new "bug's-eye" cameras utilize several small image sensors arranged in a hemispheric shape, imitating the ocular structure of a bug in order to achieve its superior visual range. = = = =<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">The first camera of this kind was recently developed by researchers at the University of California - Berkeley. Although the current model is only able to see images in black and white, a model that is able to see in color is likely to be developed soon. = = = =<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">media type="youtube" key="q-IhDvsK05w" width="560" height="315" = = = =<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">This new technology is likely to have a great deal of relevance in the real world. One example is surveillance devices: cameras with such a wide field of vision may be able to pick up on more activity than an ordinary camera would be. Additionally, this technology would be a useful innovation in endoscopy. = = = =<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">In the realm of sustainability, such a camera could be used as a surveillance device to monitor people's activity and ensure that it is environmentally sound. A slightly less creepy alternative would be to insert this camera into a robotic bug in order explore a certain environment that is dangerous for humans to penetrate but necessary for scientists to observe, such as a volcano. = = = =<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Resource: = =<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">http://www.macroevolution.net/new-digital-camera.html#.UaF6-6I3uSo = =-= =<span style="color: #bb80f4; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS',Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 150%;"> Week One = =<span style="color: #bb80f4; font-family: 'Trebuchet MS',Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 150%;"> FOLDIT: A Game For Science = = = =<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Who says biology can't be fun? Game scientists at the University of Washington have developed an online interactive game that allows players to virtually fold proteins. This game, called "Foldit," has become very popular, gaining over 100,000 users in the past few years. = = = = = =<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 1.4em; line-height: 0px; overflow: hidden;"> = = = =<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Foldit requires players to intuitively assemble complex structures of proteins from simple amino acid chains. Scores are given based on how well the proteins have been folded. Although some computers have the ability to determine these complex folding patterns, the process is very long and requires very expensive equipment. Interestingly, it has been shown that human predictive powers are often able to develop the correct structure of a folded protein, even without any knowledge of biochemistry. Foldit has been described as "three-dimensional Tetris" and requires players to use their three-dimensional spatial intelligence and matching abilities. = = = =<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">A high score for a protein created through Foldit means that it has been built similarly to a lab-created model that catalyzes a certain reaction, adheres to a certain part of a virus, or adheres to itself. When such proteins have been successfully developed, they are sent to scientists for analysis. If they seem promising, they are synthesized in the lab. = = = =<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 1.4em; line-height: 0px; overflow: hidden;"> = = = =<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Thus, Foldit has provided scientists with unique hypotheses for various protein structures through a simple and fun computer game. Players have gotten more advanced, developing algorithms to figure out the best solution to certain protein puzzles. The researchers who developed Foldit are looking into a similar game that allows players to build structures out of DNA fragments. = = = =<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">This technology can obviously be applied to many of the biology-related problems that exist today. For example, in trying to develop sustainable solutions to everyday issues, Foldit could be used as a cheap and efficient way to construct complex proteins, rather than the expensive and energy-consuming computers that are typically used for such endeavors. = = = =<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 1.4em; line-height: 1.5;"> media type="youtube" key="va92d9Ei1QM" width="420" height="315" align="center" = =<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Resources: = = = =<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">[] = =<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">[] = =<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">[] =

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