Midterm Evaluation

During this term in Biology 11, I learned many things about the different topics that we talked about. Here is evidence of my learning about the topic of:

Classification:
My Classification Project:

I chose this as evidence because it was a pretty big assignment and I think I did well on it, so it shows my understanding of classification well.

My Classification Quiz:

I chose this as evidence because it is the final thing for the classification unit and i got 100% on it! This clearly shows that I understood this unit well.

Taxonomy:
My Scientific Names blog post:
http://shanvirsblog.blogspot.ca/2013/09/scientific-names.html

I chose this blog post as evidence because it shows that I know the different categories of taxonomy (Kingdom, Phylum, Class, Order, Family, Genus, Species), and your comment on this blog post proves that I did good on it.

Evolution:
My Adaptation and Speciation Poster:

I chose this project as evidence because it was a big and quite difficult project, but I still managed to get 100% on it. I believe this is a good example for evidence of my learning in this subject.

Viruses:
My Viruses- Part 1 blog post:
http://shanvirsblog.blogspot.ca/2013/10/viruses-part-1.html

I chose this as evidence because in this post I talk about viruses a lot, and it shows that I know a lot about them.

My Viruses Quiz:

I chose this as evidence because it is a big part of the viruses unit, and I did really good on it, so it is a good piece of evidence.

Bacteria:
My Bacteria and Protist Quiz:

I chose this as evidence because it is a big part of bacteria and I got 100% on it.

My Types of Bacteria and Organelle Functions blog post:
http://shanvirsblog.blogspot.ca/2013/10/types-of-bacteria-and-organelle.html

I chose this as evidence because in this post is displayed most of what I know about bacteria. It really helps to show what I learned.

Protists:
My Bacteria and Protist Quiz:

I chose this as evidence because it is the final assessment of the protist unit, and I did well on this quiz.

In this course I have completed all the given assignments properly, and on time. My level of assignment completion is very good. Every single required blog post is on my blog too. I even did extra posts with pictures from our labs. Personally, I think my overall quality of work is very good.

My most powerful learning experience so far in Biology 11 was when people were sharing their weird, unique animals that they researched. That was really cool.

Now, as for my grade, I think I deserve a high A, somewhere around 97%, preferably more, because I did every single assignment required for this class, handed it in on time, I did every blog post along with extras, and I did exceptionally well on everything we've done. For example, all my projects and quizzes. My blog posts are well done too.

Phialella Zappai

A Philella Zappai is a jellyfish that a jellyfish expert named after a famous musician, named Frank Zappa.  It was named by Ferdinando "Nando" Boero, a jellyfish expert from Genova, Italy. He named it after this musician simply because he admired him and he wanted to meet him. When Frank found out about this, he said, “There is nothing I would like better than having a jellyfish with my name,” Then he invited Ferdinando to his house to spend a couple days with him.

Links: 

http://blogs.static.mentalfloss.com/blogs/archives/25388.html

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Phialella_zappai

What I Found Under My Microscope Today

Green Algae, from green algae slide:

Blue Green Algae, from blue green algae slide:

And I found this from one of those samples of water in the beakers, not quite sure if it is actually an algae, or anything:

Amazing Creature

 This bizzare animal shown here is called a Pacu Fish. I found this animal interesting because it is a fish with teeth that look very similar to human teeth. Since when are there fish with human teeth? When i think of fish i usually imagine them either with no teeth, or sharp teeth. These strange looking fish are actually considered to be cousins of piranhas. The weird thing is that piranhas have sharp, pointy teeth, while Pacus have flat teeth.These fish have a strange diet. They are actually fruit-eaters,and they use their human-like teeth to crack fruits, as well as nuts! I don't think I've ever heard of a fish that eats fruits and nuts. Another strange, and disgusting, thing about these fish is that they have a liking for human testacles! Their have been many reports of men bleeding to death after having their testacles bitten off by Pacu Fish. Other than this, these fish are actually supposed to be less dangerous than their cousins.

Video of a Pacu Fish:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5SOgstsCV6o
   

My Protist Under My Microscope

Incase you can't find it in this photo, it is just left of the tip of the needle.

Types of Bacteria and Organelle Functions

These are the three different shapes of bacteria, and the two arrangements of bacteria. From left to right in order the bacteria type is: spirillum, bacillus, coccus, streptobacillus, staphlobacillus, staphlococcus, and streptococcus.

In these pictures the structure of a bacteria is shown, as well as the different organelles. The functions of these organelles are:

Flagellum- the thing that the bacteria uses to move.

Capsule- is a storehouse for nutrients, a depot for cellular waste products, and a protective shield against dehydration and potentially harmful changes in the environment.

Cell Wall- provides a rigid framework for the organism and helps determine it shape.

Plasma Membrane- is a boundary layer and it acts as a transport for material that goes in and out of the cell. 

Pilus- used to help a bacteria anchor itself to a surface, and it also exchanges genetic material between bacterial cells.

Mesosome- serves as a sight for attachment of DNA during replication in bacterial reproduction.

Nucleoid- the region of cytoplasm occupied by the chromosome in a bacteria. This chromosome has no membrane or covering. It is folded over many times.

Plasmid- a smaller molecule of DNA that forms closed loops in the cytoplasm apart from chromosomes.

Cytoplasm- a gelatinous mass of proteins, carbohydrates, and other organic and inorganic chemical substances. 

Ribosomes- the sites of protein synthesis.

Endospore- an organelle used fr survival in harsh conditions.

My Second Bacteria Plate

For my second bacteria plate I used bacteria from a lock from a locker, and I covered the whole plate with it. Except in the first quadrant the bacteria is controlled, nothing was done to affect it, but in the second quadrant I added a piece of paper towel soaked in vinegar. In the third quadrant I added a piece of paper towel soaked in bleach, and in the fourth quadrant I added a piece of paper towel soaked in soap. The purpose of this is to see what kind of liquids stop bacteria from growing. As you can see from the picture of my plate, the controlled bacteria obviously grew and in the second, third, and fourth quadrant, no bacteria grew. So, the vinegar, bleach, and soap works. These liquids kill bacteria. I think this experiment can be done with viruses too.