THE EARTH HAS SLOPE, GRADIENT, AND TOPOGRAPHYIn mathematics, the slope or gradient of a line is a number that describes both the direction and the steepness of the line.  Topography is the study of the shape and features of land surfaces.   Watershed Vocabulary
THe structures of the land create different environmentsCreatures can fill different ecological niches within a biome. There will be differences in temperature, salinity, pH, and more. An example of a creature that lives in a very specific environment is the axolotl in the Anahuac Valley, now Mexico City. Axolotl live in brackish (semi salty) water in Xochimilco and Lake Texcoco in Mexico City, they are very endangered. They eat mollusks, worms, insect larvae, crustaceans, and some fish. There are 17 different species of Axolotl, locally they are called achoque, they are salamanders. Salamanders are a type of amphibian, creatures that have an aquatic gill-breathing larval stage followed (typically) by a terrestrial lung-breathing adult stage. Salamanders stay in water more but they may breathe through their skin or develop lungs. Axolotls stay in the water and don't go through metamorphosis, they develop functional lungs, but retain gills and generally use them to breathe.  There are restoration efforts that help protect the Axolotl.  They only live in one placeTheir home went from being a lake, to becoming the Mexica City of Tenochtitlan in 1325, to becoming one of the biggest cities in the world after the lake was drained. There are currently still aquifers under Mexico City and the people drink this aquifer water, so the city is sinking.  MEXICO CITY DURING AZTEC (Mexica) TIMES, YEARS 1324-1430  It was a tricky place to grow food: Lake Chalco and Lake Xochimilco to the south were freshwater lakes, lakes to the north, Tetzcoco, Xaltocan and Zumpango, were salty. Axolotl adapted to changing levels of salinity, when floods moved water from salty areas to freshwater areas, many plants and animals would die. There are also aquifers, underground water ways, that feed the lakes. To overcome the problems of drinking water, Aztec (Mexica or Tenochca Mexica) engineers built a system of dams to separate the salty waters of the lake from the rain water of the effluents. Aztec (Mexica) communities grew food on Chinampas, strips of land that were made from the fertile soil from the bottom of the lake. They were artificial islands. People in this region spoke Nahuatl, it is still spoken by about 1.7 million people today. The people in this region identified as Mexica or Tenochca Mexica, not as Aztec.  Spanish COnquerors drained the lakesWhen Spanish Conquistadors went to what is now Mexico City, they destroyed as much of the city as they could and drained the lakes to build a new city on top of the existing city. This video shows us why and how the region is slowly sinking: AquiferUnderground water  Efforts to protect Axolotl This conservation effort involves making cough syrup with them :(, you win some, you lose some. Axolotls are very important in medicine, we will learn more about that soon. EutrophicationAnother threat to rivers and lakes is eutrophication, when fertilizers are washed off the land and into the bodies of water. When there are too many nutrients in a lake or other body of water, generally because of runoff from the land. Excess nutrients cause a dense growth of plant life and death of animal life from lack of oxygen. The area where the axolotl lives is their habitat, the habitat is part of a biomeA biome includes many habitats and many ecosystems. A biome may be an ocean, grassland, a forest, a tundra, rainforest, desert. The Marine Biome covers about 70% of the Earth's surface and is home to more than 230 thousand known species. Marine plants provide over half of the oxygen on Earth. There are separate biomes within the ocean based on depth, temperature, and biodiversity. A coral reef is a biome. Within the coral reef there are different habitats and niches. Rivers streams, ponds and lakes, and wetlands are fresh water biomes. Polar regions have tundras, there are less plants, animals need to get food from the ocean or hunt other creatures. Forests may be full of evergreen trees in colder areas. Tropical Rainforests get more moisture and humidity, they are close to the equator and are warm, full of life. Important producers of oxygen and many medicinal plants have been discovered there. A savannah or grassland has low growing plants like grass and flowers. Deserts are dry, may be hot or cold, very little rain, may drop to below freezing at night and be very hot during the day. Have cacti, grasses, shrubs, some trees. People are reflecting on the lack of regard for the environment and are speaking upGreta Thunberg is a Swedish environmental activist who is internationally known for challenging world leaders to take immediate action against climate change. She was diagnosed with Asperger syndrome/ Autism, obsessive–compulsive disorder (OCD), and selective mutism. In one of her first speeches demanding climate action, Thunberg described the selective mutism aspect of her condition as meaning she "only speaks when necessary." She is now 18 years old. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Greta_Thunberg Welcome back to school, this is Biology semester TwoThis week we are learning about how animals and plants interact with each other and survive in their environment. This part of biology is known as population ecology. ​
The study of ecology includes:
Types of migrations, genetic exchange, and forms of symbiosis population distribution patterns, food chains, population growth pattern, why we need pollinators, and how species spread. ​
An ecosystem involves all living and non-living components in an area, how energy flows and matter cycles through an environment.
Ecology VOcabularyAtmosphere: this includes the wind speed and direction, humidity, light intensity and quality, precipitation and temperature.​ Biotic Factors: These are all the living organisms in the environment, including their interactions.
​Abiotic factors: elements that are not alive: soil, rocks, mountains, rain, clouds Soil:
Water:
Living organisms interact with each other in their habitat, they influence matter by walking around and moving things around.
Habitat: the natural environment in which a creature lives including the biotic and abiotic factors. Each organism occupies a niche, an ecological niche of an organism is their function in the ecosystem: where they live, what organisms they interact with, how they respond t changes in the health of the environment. Tolerance rage: each species has a tolerance range, this is their comfort zone, at what point they move to another environment. 
What is pH and why does it matter?
The term pH refers to the acidity or alkalinity of a solution, it stands for potential hydrogen.
Substance that release hydrogen ions when dissolved in water are acids. The more hydrogen ions they release the more acidic they are. Substances that release hydroxide ions when dissolved in water are bases. Alkalinity increases with the concentration of hydroxyl ions. Each pH unit represents a 10-fold change in concentration. 
Contaminants CONTRIBUTE to Acid RainAcid rain: rainfall made sufficiently acidic by atmospheric pollution that it causes environmental harm, typically to forests and lakes. The main cause is the industrial burning of coal and other fossil fuels, the waste gases from which contain sulfur and nitrogen oxides, which combine with atmospheric water to form acids. -Oxford 
Normal, clean rain has a pH value of between 5.0 and 5.5, which is slightly acidic.
However, when rain combines with sulfur dioxide or nitrogen oxides produced from power plants and automobiles the rain becomes much more acidic. Typical acid rain has a pH value of 4.0. 
ph and Environmentalism
In general, fish reproduction is affected at pH levels below 5.0
Fish begin to die when pH falls below 4.0 A pH change of 1 means a ten fold change in the ions. pH 9 is ten times more basic than pH 8 pH stands for potential of hydrogen, a measurement of the acidity or alkalinity of a solution 7 is neutral 1 to 6 are acids, 8 to 14 are bases Acids
Acids are substance that break apart in water to form a hydrogen ion.
Everyday Acids
Acids react with carbonates to give off carbon dioxide
BasesBases are substances that break down in water and form hydroxide ions (OH-). The greater the concentration of OH- ions the stronger the base is. Have a pH from 8 to 14 pH 9 is ten times more basic than pH 8 Bases
Everyday examples:
Interesting ph facts
​Some plants tell us the pH of their soil by expressing different colors of flowers.
Venom is Acidic
A sting from a bee may be painful for many reasons, pH of bee venom is 5.0-5.5 Formic acid in ants has a pH of 2 to 3
The pH of a river is not the same as the pH of the rain
When it rains or we use water for irrigation, water goes downhill, down the gradient of the earth
There is a connection between the water that moves across land and the pH of bodies of water such as lakes, rives, ponds, and the sea​
Water moves through a watershed, the way the surface water drains down from ridges to basins.
coral Reef HealthThrough this class we will learn to describe how environmental change affects the ecosystem of a coral reef and explain what coral bleaching is. We may then practice our language skills by reading an article, participating in a class presentation, and writing down an explanation of coral bleaching. Please write down an example of energy transferExamples of energy transfer in biology: Food web or trophic levels, sound waves, electrical currents in electric eels, photosynthesis, Trophic levels  Sound Wave Energy Transfer  Photosynthesis  Review what coral is Please read the following article: Who lives there? Coral Reef Food Web: WHat is coral bleaching?Bleaching occurs when warm ocean water stresses corals to the point that they expel the tiny algae, known as zooxanthellae, that normally live inside their tissues. The algae provide the corals with most of their food, as well as their color. If the heat stress is lessened soon enough, the coral can recover. ph Scale  coral RestorationAssignment: Please write an explanation for coral bleaching using the information from class. From the deep sea to the seashoreThe average ocean depth is 2.3 miles, or 12,100 feet, or 3,688 meters, most of the hydrothermal vents that have been studied have been more than 2000 meters below the surface of the ocean. These are some modern day deep sea creatures: Geological TIme Scale The source of genetic diversity is a mysteryIt is possible that fungal spores came from space on an asteroid or meteor, fungi spores are able to survive in the vacuum of space. The fungi were possibly eaten by Earth creatures and more genetic code was introduced. Insects and fellow land dwelling arthropods, crustaceans, and annelidsWorms are annelids, they don't have a backbone, and have many segments, no legs, and have been on land Earth about 500 million years. Worms started their existence in the ocean, the polychaetes are sea worms. Sea Scorpions might have been the first creatures to leave the ocean and adapt to land about 500 million years ago. Eurypterid scorpions, they had chitin as a protein. Ancient crustaceans, sanctacaris, seem to be related to scorpions and then much later, spiders. About 420 million years ago during the Devonian period we see land dwelling millipedes, they are some of the first land dwelling creatures along with centipedes, pillbugs/ rollie pollies (the only land dwelling crustaceans), and scorpions. 380 million years ago Ants are part of the order hymenoptera and are thought to have evolved about 210-160 million years ago before blooming plants, there are ants preserved in amber that are 190 million years old. At that time there were coniferous trees, the gymnosperms, which are wind pollinated. There were wasps before bees, though both are part of hymenoptera. Plants with flowers, the angiosperms, were first seen during the Cretaceous Period about 145 million years ago. This is when bees, moths, and butterflies emerged, moths are seen in fossil records first, more butterflies are seen during the Eocene Period about 40 million years ago. animal EvolutionCambrian explosion and Extinction Cambrian Extinction was about 488 million years ago, there have been many mass extinctions Interesting Ancient creatures: Trilobites: survived about 4 mass extinctions:
Trilobites used chitin as a protein, just like mushrooms, the shell was chitin and calcite  Ostracoderms: armoured, jawless, fishlikevertebrates that emerged during the early part of the Paleozoic Era (542–251 million years ago) Late Cambrian times had eel-like jawless fish called the conodonts, and small mostly armoured fish known as ostracoderms  When plants got bigger and absorbed more Carbon Dioxide, there was an Ice Age Devonian period was 419 million years ago (mya), there were Devonian Forests 360 mya Tiktaalik A 375-million-year old fossil. Tiktaalik roseae, better known as the "fishapod," is a 375 million year old fossil fish which was discovered in the Canadian Arctic in 2004.  Bones that show the beginning of legs   During the permian period 298 million years ago, we see stem mammals: Dimetrodon is a stem mammal, they have teeth that look more like canines. Dinosaurs Permian-Tirassic Extiction: 252 million years ago Chicxulub crater after impact, 66 million years ago, the meteor is thought to have been over 9 miles wide  Mammal- Like Reptiles (stem mammals) learned to burrow and fill ecological nichesSynapsids were transitional animals that began to behave more like mammals and survived the mass extinction that killed many large reptiles. SupercontinentsLand masses are part of tectonic plates that move and form different patterns, there was a time when animals could walk from modern day Australia to Canada without worrying about an ocean being in the way.  EoceneEach Era has Periods and Epochs:  Croc Ancestors  today's Sea to Land transitionThe shores of the Earth have coral reefs: The red areas are coral reef zones  Coral Reef ecosystems are at risk of being destroyed and many scientists are working to make things better Another ecosystem seen along shores: Mangroves World map that shows where mangroves live:  Mangroves are torn down for agriculture and shrimp farming, when the mangrove forests are destroyed, there is more land erosion and destruction of property for people along the coast, there are people working on preservation and restoration of these vital ecosystems. WHat is the oldest Species on the planet?The Sea Sponge from Phylum Porifera  Another ANcient Creature is The Comb Jelliectenophora: Comb jellie, not quite a jellyfish: Ctenophora comprise a phylum of invertebrate animals that live in marine waters worldwide. They are notable for the groups of cilia they use for swimming, and they are the largest animals to swim with the help of cilia. Cnidaria: Cnidaria is a phylum containing over 10,000 species of animals found exclusively in aquatic environments: they are a predominantly marine species  Jellyfish Biology: fertilized jellyfish eggs develop into larval planulae, they become polyps, bud into ephyrae and then transform into adult medusae.   Coral Biology: Although many corals resemble plants, they are actually members of the animal phylum Cnidaria. Most corals are colonial, which means that each coral is made up of many individual polyps connected by living tissue (the coenosarc). The first coral reefs date from the early Ordovician of about 500 million years ago, and their form at the time differed significantly from that of corals today, which, following, the mass extinction 240 million years ago at the end of the Permian period, first appeared in the middle of the Triassic period. Anemone BrachiopodsBrachiopods are marine animals belonging to their own phylum, Brachiopoda, of the animal kingdom. Modern brachiopods occupy a variety of sea-bed habitats ranging from the Tropics to the cold waters of the Arctic and, especially, Antarctic.
 Geologic Time Scale Today We get to see ancient fossilsTaxonomyThe science of naming, describing and classifying organisms and includes all plants, animals and microorganisms of the world. Every species is organized by Domain, Kingdom, Phylum, Class, Order, Family, Genus, and Species.  Phylogenetic Tree  The three Domains are Bacteria, Eukaryota, and Archaea Bacteria are prokaryotes, they do not have a nucleus Eukaryotes have a nucleus, this group includes plants, animals, fungi, and many single celled eukaryotes Archaea are very ancient, some live in environments that few living beings can thrive in StromatolitesAre about 3.5 billion years old, calcareous mound built up of layers of lime-secreting cyanobacteria and trapped sediment, found in Precambrian rocks as the earliest known fossils, and still being formed in lagoons in Australasia. Cyanobacteria are very ancient life forms, perhaps only Archaea are older.  FOssil DatingRadiometric Dating The use of radioactive isotopes as a measure for determining the age of a rock or fossil Radioactive isotope An unstable form of an element that decays into another element by radiation, that is, by emitting energetic particles Half-Life The amount of time it takes for one half of a substance to decay Uranium-238 Has a half life of 4.5 billion years Potassium-40 Has a half life of 1.3 billion years Types of lifeProkaryotes Found to have existed 3.5 billion years ago, a microscopic single-celled organism that has neither a distinct nucleus with a membrane nor other specialized organelles. Prokaryotes include the bacteria and cyanobacteria.
Bacteria and Archaea are prokaryotes  Bateria may have: Flagella whip-like appendages used to move around, like arms Pili short, hair-like appendages extending from the surface, used to stick to surfaces Capsule sticky coating, used to stick to surfaces Types of bacteriaCyanobacteria are a phylum of bacteria that obtain their energy through photosynthesis and are the only photosynthetic prokaryotes able to produce oxygen. Round bacteria are referred to as cocci (singular: coccus), an example is Streptococcus Cylindrical, capsule-shaped bacteria are named bacilli (singular: bacillus), bacteria that make yogurt: Lactobacillus bulgaricus Spiral bacteria are called spirilla (singular: spirillum) Lyme disease and syphillis are caused by this type of bacteria  Binary FissionCell division in prokaryotes is called binary fission, asexual reproduction by a separation of the body into two new bodies, cells transfer genetic information by making contact. Both Archaea and Bacteria can reproduce through binary fission.  are all bacteria bad? Some but not all bacteria are pathogens: a disease causing agent Some bacteria are purely beneficial and help with symbiosis: the relationship in which two different organisms live together, often interdependently. Nitrogen Fixation: Converting atmospheric nitrogen into a form that plants can use to grow
 ArchaeaThe other domain of prokaryotic life, tend to live in extreme environments Grouped according to where they live (pg 371):
Some Archaea live in hydrothermal ventsIn deep sea vents, heated fluids rise to the surface through openings in the seafloor. Hydrothermal fluid temperatures can reach 400°C (750°F) or more, but the archaea do not boil under the extreme pressure of the deep ocean. As they pour out of a vent, the fluids encounter cold, oxygenated seawater, causing another, more rapid series of chemical reactions to occur. Sulfur and other materials precipitate, or come out of solution, to form metal-rich towers and deposits of minerals on the seafloor. The sea floor is an anaerobic environment, no oxygen
Who lives thereIt is theorized that this is where life on Earth originatedDeep sea mining might be connected to cobalt miningCobalt is used for phones and computer batteries, some companies are interested in mining it from the deep sea. Alternatives to cobalt are needed so companies don't consider deep sea mining a viable option. Most Cobalt currently comes from Democratic Republic of Congo DR Congo produces 60% of the world's supply of cobalt. The mineral is used to produce lithium-ion batteries used to power electric cars, laptops and smartphones. However, the extraction process has been beset with concerns of illegal mining, human rights abuses and corruption. What are alternatives to cobalt?A good battery is able to store current and transfer it, conduct heat, and cool quickly. Other possibilitiesSome of the methods that are used to develop Bio techSelective breeding The ancestral form of trait selection, when people intentionally breed plants and animals to have certain characteristics. When wild plants were bred into food crops.  Corn  Genetic Modification in a LabGenetic Engineering Genetic Engineering with Agrobaterium tumefaciens  DNA samples are studied through PCR Electrophoresis to see if the target DNA is in the sample.
Results to read  Genetic Engineering of MosquitoesPCR in Crime Scene InvestigationBut it is not perfect What are some possible issues with this biotech?That applies to plants, what if we GM people?Emmanuelle Charpentier and Jennifer Doudna have been awarded the 2020 Nobel Prize in Chemistry for their development of CRISPR/Cas9 genetic editing, this video is from 2015. there are many ethical issues to considerStem Cell OrgansBiomedical Engineering includes mechanical, Biological, chemical ENGINEERING and computer softwareUpcoming issues to resolveAntibiotic Resistance Really, it's a very big deal It is better to wash your hands than use hand sanitizer, otherwise, the bacteria that survive are the ones that get to pass on their genes Genetics ContinuedChapters 11 and 12 Gregory Mendel’s research on genetics. What is a Punnett Square and how do we use it? Natural selection and adaptation: insects and plants adapting to chemicals, how organisms find ways to survive. Mutation A change in the nucleotide sequence of DNA Allele Genetic trait Recessive Allele An allele that is visible in the organism only if to copies of the allele are present Dominant Allele an allele that can mask the presence of a recessive allele Heterozygous Having two different alleles Homozygous Having two identical alleles Phenotype The visible or measureable features of an individual. Genotype The particular genetic makeup of an individual Gametes Specialized reproductive cells that carry one copy of each chromosome (they are haploid) Haploid Half the genetic information compared to most cells, one copy of every chromosome Diploid Having two copies of every chromosome Homologous chromosomes The two copies of each chromosome in a diploid cell. Meiosis A specialized type of cell division that generated genetically unique haploid gametes Recombination An early stage of development in which maternal and paternal chromosomes pair and physically exchange DNA segments  Independent Assortment The principle that alleles of different genes are distributed independently of one another during meiosis  Stem Cell Technology to help Same Sex couples reproduce: In vitro GametogenesisZygote A cell that is capable of developing into an adult organism. Embryo An early stage of development reached when a zygote undergoes cell division to form a multicellular structure. Cystic FibrosisCarrier An individual who is heterozygous for a particular gene of interest, and can pass the recessive allele to offspring.  Punnett Square A diagram used to determine the probabilities of offspring having particular genotypes b looking at the genotypes of the parents  CRISPR (/ˈkrɪspər/) (clustered regularly interspaced short palindromic repeats) Gene editing technology. The 2020 Nobel Prize in Chemistry has gone to Emmanuelle Charpentier and Jennifer A. Doudna “for the development of a method for genome editing.” That method, formally known as CRISPR-Cas9 gene editing but often called simply CRISPR, allows scientists to precisely cut any strand of DNA they wish. CF is Recessive, Huntington's Disease is Dominant With an autosomal dominant trait, if one parent has it, the children have a 50% chance of inheriting that gene, if they have that gene, they have the trait.  Pedigree Chart Hemophilia is an inherited bleeding disorder in which the blood does not clot properly Hemophilia is a sex-linked trait and recessive. The recessive gene for hemophilia is carried on the X chromosome. Males inherit one affected X chromosome from the mother and, less commonly, females inherit an affected X chromosome from both mother and father experience the disease. Females who inherit an affected X chromosome from either mother or father are carriers for the disease. More genetic complexitiesAutosomes Paired chromosomes present in both males and females; all chromosomes except the X and Y chromosomes X Linked trait a phenotype determined by an allele on an X chromosome Incomplete Dominance Heterozygotes have a phenotype that is intermediate between the dominant and the recessive genes. Wavy hair is an example Codominance Both alleles contribute equally to the phenotype An example is Blood Type The three blood types are A, B, and O The possible combinations that we inherit from parent are: OO, AO, BO, AB, AA, and BB Both parental alleles contribute equally to the phenotype O is recessive So if you are blood type A, you may be AA homozygous or AO heterozygous Different blood types have different surface markers, not every blood type is compatible:  Genes move with individualsGenetic drift a change in the frequency of an allele within a population over time  As individuals move around we can observe genetic drift Bottleneck Effect Something happens leaving only a few individuals to reproduce   Founder Effect The new population might not fully represent the ancestral population  Tasmanian devils and population bottleneck Natural Selection https://microbenotes.com/natural-vs-artificial-selection/microbenotes.com/natural-vs-artificial-selection/  |
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