Plasticity Lab

In science class we learned about the property of plasticity that is most prominent in the Earth's Mantle. To simulate plasticity we mixed water with corn starch. This new mixture which had the property of plasticity was liquid in appearance however force is applied to it, it acts like a solid. When pushed our fingers in fast the mixture acted more solidified. On the contrary when we pushed our hands in slowly the mixture acted moire like a liquid. Not unlike the Earth"s Mantle, the mixture had the property of plasticity. I think this activity was educational and enjoyable. It was a hands on activity which I enjoyed very much. I hope there will be more activities like this one in the future.

October Sky

    In school I watched an inspirational movie known as October sky. The synopsis is that the main character homer witnesses a Russian space craft orbit the Earth. He is then inspired to build rockets, a pursuit he follows until the end.It had many of the character education traits we are learning about. Respect- Homer respected his fathers ideals and way of life though they both have different goals in mind. Responsibility-Homer took his fathers job at the coal mine when he was injured in order to insure that his family would keep all its belongings. Caring-in order to allow his brother to go to college on a football scholarship which he will have to stay in school to validate Homer took his fathers job in the coal mine instead of allowing his brother to work in the coal mine. Along with the character education traits that were so prevalent in the film October sky also had many connections to earth science. One such connections is that Homer's father was a coal miner. Coal mines are located underground.

Duchene muscular distrophy

Duchene muscular distrophy is a disease weakens muscles. The symptoms for this disorder can be identified at young age, around the age of three unusual walking and running patterns can be identified as Duchene muscular distrophy. Also there are general weaknesses hips, pelvis, thighs and shoulders. There is no known cure for the disease however by undergoing physical therapy the subject can remain fit. Most children identified with the disease die before they reach their thirties. This disease is not that common as only 1 in 3600 inherit the disorder. I believe that those with this disorder are very unfortunate as they will no be able to engadge in normal physical activty as a "normal" human can.

Information found here http://darknightxv1.blogspot.com/

Color Blindness

Color blindness is a genetic disordor that occurs in 8% of men and .5% of women in the U.S. The symptom of color blindness is that the subject will not be able to see all shades of color. Color blindness can not kill the subject and therefore the mortality rate is zero. Inherited color blindness cannot be treated except by wearing special glasses, however if a cataract is causing the disorder surgery can treat the problem.The male population is more vulnerable to the disease because the trait that causes the disordor is carried on the X chromosome and unlike females, males only have one X chromosone, therefore if a female has an X chromosone withe the trait and one without the trait the female will be a carrier of the trait however they will not be affected. On the other hand if a males single X chromosone has the trait the male will definately have the disease. In order to understand the principles of color blindness and develop new treatments you would need to understand the limits of each individuals color blindness.

Information found here and here