Homeostasis:
For this project, our task was to explain homeostasis and find a proveable axample of homeostasis in action, backed by scientific evidence.
Project Summary:
Sleep is considered a very important part of maintaining one’s health. Sleep deprivation has been linked to heart problems, glucose intolerance, a lack of attention, etc. In order to prevent the problems above, the body requires a certain amount of sleep every night, varying from person to person. In adolescents, the amount of sleep the body requires is around 8.5 to 9.5 hours every night. We tested the correlation between sleep and tiredness during the following day, with the amount of sleep each night varying by test subject. We found that when an insufficient amount of sleep is received on a given night, a person is more likely to get tired earlier, so as to make a person fall asleep earlier and, thus, enable the body to restore itself to homeostasis.
Procedure and evidence:
Procedure:
1. Assign subjects to 1 of two groups: Group 1 will be the control, their sleep schedule will include at least 8-9 hours of sleep per day, whereas group 2 will receive 9-10 hours of sleep per day. The Experiment will last 3 nights (Friday, Saturday, Sunday)
2. Each day during the experiment, subjects will record the amount of sleep they got, what time they got up, went to bed, and started to feel tired, which is characterized by at least 2 of the following criteria: difficulty keeping eyes open, distraction, difficulty remembering things, impaired brain function, and yawning.
3. Subjects will record all symptoms of sleep deprivation listed.
1. Assign subjects to 1 of two groups: Group 1 will be the control, their sleep schedule will include at least 8-9 hours of sleep per day, whereas group 2 will receive 9-10 hours of sleep per day. The Experiment will last 3 nights (Friday, Saturday, Sunday)
2. Each day during the experiment, subjects will record the amount of sleep they got, what time they got up, went to bed, and started to feel tired, which is characterized by at least 2 of the following criteria: difficulty keeping eyes open, distraction, difficulty remembering things, impaired brain function, and yawning.
3. Subjects will record all symptoms of sleep deprivation listed.
CONCLUSION:
Our experiment evaluated whether a person who received more sleep got tired later and for less time compared to a person who got less sleep. Our results have confirmed this. Although there are some upticks, particularly in the 8 hour to 8.5 hour section, which we attribute to experimental error, the length of time person felt tired during the day following sleep declined as the amount of sleep received increased. This proves that the body will make someone feel tired earlier when they do not get a sufficient amount of sleep in order for there to be more time for sleep, so as to maintain homeostasis.
Protein Synthesis:
In this project, our job was to explain the way a certain protien is formed. In this case, we had Keratin. We found this information by researching the protien and all of the steps of the formation of a protien.
Keratin and It's Genetic code:
In the body, Keratin has 2 main uses. The first of which is Keratin's role in the skin and it's cells. In the skin, Keratin forms long filament strands that keep cells together. It also forms an outer barrier to protect the skin. Its second main purpose is to be a structural component of hair. Keratin has a structure resembling
Keratin has a long, coiled structure.
Keratin has a long, coiled structure.
Genetic code of Keratin:
RNA code of Keratin:
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Protien Synthesis:
STEP 1: Transciption
Protein Code of Keratin:
- Takes place in the nucleus
- Helicase unwinds the DNA
- RNA polymerase binds to the DNA and matches it to RNA
- mRNA that is patterned after the DNA is created
- Polymerase detaches when it reaches a termination signal
- mRNA moves out of the nucleus
- In DNA, Adenine pairs with Thymine and Guanine pairs with Cytosine
- In RNA, Thymine is replaced with Uracil
- In transcription, the enzymes split the DNA strand and synthesize base pairs complementary to the ones of the DNA
- This reduces mutations by making sure DNA is transcribed to RNA correctly
- Takes place in ribosomes
- mRNA moves to ribosomes and is “read” by tRNA
- tRNA analyzes the codons (sets of three nucleotides) on the mRNA and brings the right amino acid into the polypeptide chain that is being made
- Amino acids combine in the correct sequence
- Polypeptide chain folds in the way that is coded by the amino acids
- Now we have a protein!
Protein Code of Keratin:
CONCEPTS:
Homeostasis Project:
Homeostasis: A set of processes that help the body maintain a state of equilibrium Melatonin: A hormone secreted by the pineal gland that regulates sleep Equilibrium: A state in which opposing forces or influences are balanced. |
Protien Synthesis Project:
Central Dogma: -Describes the flow of genetic info of the cells from DNA, to mRNA, to a protein. DNA: Contains genetic information. It is also a self-replicating and shows up in almost all living organisms as the main component of chromosomes. RNA: Present in all living cells.Acts as a messenger for instructions from DNA for controlling protein synthesis. Protein: Organic compounds that are an essential part of all living organisms. Composed of one or more long chains of linked amino acids. Transcription: DNA unzips and RNA polymerase adds an mrna strand from base pairing. Translation: RNA codes for a codon to match with the anticodon of the trna. Protein Synthesis: Process in which a protein is made. |
REFLECTION:
Throughout both of these projects, I thought I had excellent group members and our projects turned out well, but there were definitely things that we could improve on. For example, in the homeostasis project, while we had good evidence and a solid project composition, we lacked a complete explanation of how our experiment directly displayed homeostasis. Another thing that we could have done better was to include more information with our protien synthesis project. We had a nice presentation, but having more bulk information would have helped us fully explain the protien synthesis process. There are also some things that I could improve on myself. For example, I could be more active when participating in a group, and show more interest instead of waiting around for someone to tell me to do something.
In conclusion, I think I acheived success with these group projects, although I know I can improve more in the future. Instead of waiting around, I can be the one finding more information for the group. Instead waiting for orders from others, I can do more things myself and look for tasks that I can do. I really enjoyed these projects, and I am excited to do more in the future.
In conclusion, I think I acheived success with these group projects, although I know I can improve more in the future. Instead of waiting around, I can be the one finding more information for the group. Instead waiting for orders from others, I can do more things myself and look for tasks that I can do. I really enjoyed these projects, and I am excited to do more in the future.