tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14027873403732805972024-02-22T05:06:33.600-08:00Biology Blog EducationThis site is about Biology and Environment education and issues related to Sciences in general and biology in particular.nforcehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01005688162981394306noreply@blogger.comBlogger1006125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1402787340373280597.post-2804439980961854782011-03-24T04:47:00.000-07:002011-03-27T20:12:22.534-07:00Living with Invasive SpeciesWhat should be done when non-native species introduced into an ecosystem begin to outcompete native species? Should such invasive species, as they are called, be eradicated before they do serious damage to an ecosystem and lead to a loss of biodiversity? The traditional answer is yes, according to many conservationists. But the sad fact is that that most invasive species eradication efforts nforcehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01005688162981394306noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1402787340373280597.post-35043588116440571962011-03-11T21:28:00.000-08:002011-03-27T20:13:05.566-07:00The Simeons Therapy Diet FadThe New York Times published an article this week on the latest diet fad; a daily food intake of just 500 calories a day combined with daily injections of human chorionic gonadotropin (hCG). It’s known as the Simeons therapy, and it’s been around since 1964.Frankly, the New York Times article stirs up an old “controversy” that shouldn’t still exist. Anyone who can stick to a 500 calorie-per-daynforcehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01005688162981394306noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1402787340373280597.post-66004684136950919662011-03-10T14:40:00.000-08:002011-03-26T07:07:51.817-07:00StorytellingThank you to everyone for an interesting end to the quarter. I really do enjoy seeing what has grabbed your imagination.As well as a (relatively) unstressful opportunity to practice public speaking, this is also a fantastic opportunity for you to see almost 30 brief talks in rapid succession. Which ones did you find most memorable? Why? Think about that for a moment.Good luck with your finals. nforcehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01005688162981394306noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1402787340373280597.post-79188804114904284332011-03-10T00:53:00.000-08:002011-03-26T07:07:51.821-07:00New breakthrough in fighting malariaMalaria affects hundreds of millions of people every year. It is spread by mosquitoes carrying a parasite that, once introduced to your body, multiplies by manipulating signaling pathways in your liver and red blood cells. The parasite's ability to quickly develop resistance to drugs has hindered attempts to find an effective treatment for the disease. However, it was recently discovered that nforcehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01005688162981394306noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1402787340373280597.post-23750093972368560092011-03-09T23:18:00.000-08:002011-03-26T07:07:51.826-07:00More dates for your calendarGoing to the Extremes -- from the Blue Holes of the Bahamas to Parasitic Ecosystems to Edge of the Universe -- at the Santa Barbara Museum of Natural History Santa Barbara, CA -- Explore the extremes through the eyes of scientific explorers at the Santa Barbara Museum of Natural History. This lecture series brings Dr. Kenneth Broad (environmental anthropologist), Dr. Kevin Lafferty (nforcehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01005688162981394306noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1402787340373280597.post-66565178871384319602011-03-09T00:02:00.000-08:002011-03-26T07:07:51.832-07:00Great research opportunityAndrea, a grad student in my wife's lab is looking for good undergrads to help with summer research (and possibly to pair up with to apply for a grant for grad-undergrad research teams). This is a fantastic opportunity to get involved in a very exciting research project. The Briggs lab works on a number of research areas but much of the current focus is on the frog-killing Chytrid Fungus innforcehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01005688162981394306noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1402787340373280597.post-48315632737358570502011-03-08T13:52:00.000-08:002011-03-26T07:07:51.836-07:00Zombie taxaThe dinosaurs all died out at the end of the Mesozoic, about 60 million years earlier. Or did they...Numerous dinosaur teeth have actually been found in much more recent rock formations, well into the Paeleogene. There are a number of explanations for this.One explanation is that we are entirely wrong about the extinction of the dinosaurs. They did not go extinct at the end of the nforcehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01005688162981394306noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1402787340373280597.post-2249390220766827992011-03-07T23:24:00.000-08:002011-03-27T20:13:05.568-07:00Redefining Evolutionary RelationshipsThe evolutionary tree of life may undergo a makeover in the next decade or so.In the past, the primary sources of information about the evolutionary relationships between organisms came from the fossil record or from comparative anatomy, physiology, or biochemistry. But now a new scientific field called phylogenomics (the study of the evolutionary history of organisms based on genetics) has nforcehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01005688162981394306noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1402787340373280597.post-33302807314262850722011-03-07T21:41:00.000-08:002011-03-26T07:07:51.841-07:00Save the dateThe Department of Molecular, Cellular and Developmental Biology at UCSB cordially invites all faculty, staff and students to attend: MORSE SYMPOSIUM Honoring Dan Morse and his ongoing contributions to the UCSB campus and the at-large research community Friday, April 15, 2011 100 PM - 530 PM Loma Pelona Center, UCSB Campus DRAFT SCHEDULE (speakers confirmed): 100 PM -- coffee/tea/cookies 115nforcehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01005688162981394306noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1402787340373280597.post-58382960064751647912011-03-06T15:05:00.000-08:002011-03-26T07:07:51.845-07:00Career opportunitiesWho knew that panda impersonator was even a valid career option?From a Time Photo-story: Giant Panda People - scientists don costumes for good cause.In 1980, the Chinese government teamed up with the World Wildlife Fund to establish the China Conservation and Research Center for giant pandas. Since then, with 100,000 visitors a year, it has become the most popular place on the planet to see giantnforcehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01005688162981394306noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1402787340373280597.post-72135480969670865592011-03-05T14:38:00.000-08:002011-03-26T07:07:51.849-07:00DilemmaThe world’s largest set of shark jaws is going up for auction. The jaws, which once belonged to a megalodon, will be placed up for bid in Dallas, Texas in June at the Heritage Auction Galleries. The asking price is set at $625,000. The previous owner, the late Vito Bertucci, spent 16 years gathering the right shaped teeth to fit the jaw. So paleontologically this may be a specimen of many partsnforcehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01005688162981394306noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1402787340373280597.post-17452689951191035692011-03-04T22:03:00.000-08:002011-03-27T20:13:05.570-07:00The Sixth Mass ExtinctionOver about 3.5 billion years, evolution (descent of species over time, with genetic modification) has produced the astonishing variety and number of life forms found on Earth today. Punctuating this natural evolutionary process of speciation have been five mass extinctions – periods characterized by the rapid (compared to evolutionary processes) loss of over 75% of all species. Past causes of nforcehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01005688162981394306noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1402787340373280597.post-15812031280059249952011-03-04T18:54:00.000-08:002011-03-26T07:07:51.853-07:00Lotusland 2011Unlike last year when it rained we had beautiful weather this year. The rain did lead to some great pictures last year though. Check out the posts here and here for some photos of the gardens last year in the sun and rain.Post some pictures from this year if you took some good ones (when you click the photo icon in the posting screen this will give you the option to upload a photo).Here are two nforcehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01005688162981394306noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1402787340373280597.post-21535968231501894852011-03-03T14:07:00.000-08:002011-03-26T07:07:51.856-07:00Early earth tectonicsThis National Geographic video showing plate tectonics during the early earth covers a surprisingly large number of topics we have mentioned in this class - from the surprisingly early appearance of life before the end of the massive asteroid bombardment, to the generation of heat via radioactivity within the earth and the movement of the continents. Notice that they go much further back than nforcehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01005688162981394306noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1402787340373280597.post-28880263888920682382011-03-02T22:20:00.000-08:002011-03-27T20:13:05.572-07:00Repairing Damaged Heart MuscleAfter a heart attack, the best one can generally hope for is that the area of damage becomes scar tissue that is sufficiently strong to withstand the high blood pressures generated in the heart. That’s because in adult mammals, cardiac muscle does not rebuild or repair itself after an injury. And yet, adult frogs, newts, and some fish still do have the ability to rebuild functional heart tissue nforcehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01005688162981394306noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1402787340373280597.post-69278640439168774072011-03-02T21:17:00.000-08:002011-03-26T07:07:51.860-07:00Biomimicry for the FutureThis is an amazing short talk on how biomimicry could be utilized to reduce waste products and carbon footprints in modern designs.Also, this is the Eden Project he references and the seawater greenhouse.nforcehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01005688162981394306noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1402787340373280597.post-39988888386469189542011-03-02T12:22:00.000-08:002011-03-26T07:07:51.864-07:00Research Ethics TalkAnd now for something completely different.*Date and location*: Mon, March 7, 4-6pm, Girvetz 1004 *Speaker*: Prof. Herbert Kroemer *Abstract*: In early 2002, Bell Labs physicist Hendrick Schoen was considered a rising star in the field of molecular electronics. A little older than 30, Schoen had already authored 90 publications and received a series of prestigious awards. In April 2002, he was nforcehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01005688162981394306noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1402787340373280597.post-32420536015788000772011-03-01T20:22:00.000-08:002011-03-26T07:07:51.868-07:00CUTTLEFISH!!!!Cuttlefish are amazing animals! They can change their color faster than a chameleon because they have chromatophores which are special cells. They can change their pigment to complicated shapes to fit their background, and amazingly enough most cuttlefish are color blind!Cuttlefish are color blind and yet they are masters of camouflage. Scientists don't know how they read colors, which they can nforcehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01005688162981394306noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1402787340373280597.post-49131819081879438282011-03-01T14:24:00.000-08:002011-03-26T07:07:51.879-07:00More epigeneticsThe Scientist magazine (the magazine of the Life Sciences) March issue has a special Focus on epigenetics.I haven't had time to read these yet but there's a whole bunch of interesting looking articles:Epigenetics - A primerEpigenetic Changes in Cancer Environmental ImpactEpigenetics and Societyand, in case you thought this wasn't relevant to today's lecture: The Footprints of Winter nforcehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01005688162981394306noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1402787340373280597.post-63785713457561982942011-03-01T11:10:00.000-08:002011-03-26T07:07:51.887-07:00Cactus Walking On 20 Legs Found In ChinaCactus Walking On 20 Legs Found In Chinahttp://www.npr.org/blogs/krulwich/2011/03/01/134138005/cactus-walking-on-20-legs-found-in-chinaThere was a wild period — roughly 520 million years ago — when life, for no obvious reason, burst into a crazy display of weird new fantastic forms — producing creatures in shapes never seen before or since. Consider this animal, the newest fossil discovery from nforcehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01005688162981394306noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1402787340373280597.post-34213870451238462012011-02-28T23:34:00.000-08:002011-03-26T07:07:51.893-07:00Pitcher PlantsThe usual stunning photography reveals the complex ecology of a pitcher plant.nforcehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01005688162981394306noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1402787340373280597.post-79302001820511625422011-02-27T21:56:00.000-08:002011-03-26T07:07:51.898-07:00It's not just the genes...Increasingly we are realizing that it isn't just the genes that are important but how those genes are expressed.This was nicely illustrated in a Science paper this week where they looked at the role of the Agouti gene in pattern development: The Developmental Role of Agouti in Color Pattern Evolution.Agouti, ... governs color patterns in deer mice, the most widespread mammal in North America. nforcehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01005688162981394306noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1402787340373280597.post-60761832876396434512011-02-26T23:44:00.000-08:002011-03-26T07:07:51.904-07:00Competing sinks?Just because two plants are sufficiently closely related to graft them together doesn't necessarily mean it's a good idea to graft them together.I must confess that, beyond the novelty value, I don't quite get the amazing tomato-potato.It seems more sensible from a plant physiology point of view to just plant a tomato next to a potato and have two sets of leaves each providing for one sink rathernforcehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01005688162981394306noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1402787340373280597.post-46633645434565528562011-02-26T22:41:00.000-08:002011-03-27T20:13:05.574-07:00Taxol and Repair of Spinal Cord InjuriesOne of the challenges in facilitating repair of the spinal cord after spinal cord injuries has been to get axons to re-grow through the damaged area. Usually the process of axonal re-growth is inhibited by the formation of scar tissue. But now researchers have discovered a potential new weapon in the treatment of spinal cord injuries – taxol, the same drug that is currently used to inhibit the nforcehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01005688162981394306noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1402787340373280597.post-91012005373826087892011-02-25T22:44:00.000-08:002011-03-26T07:07:51.909-07:00Walking with dinosaursNatasha's post below, and the topic of some forthcoming lectures, reminded me of the BBC's fondness for dinosaur simulations.I think it all started with a show called 'Walking with dinosaurs' that was , at the time, the most expensive documentary ever made. Using computer simulation and animatronics to create a 'realistic' wildlife show - but one with dinosaurs. You should check these out if you nforcehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01005688162981394306noreply@blogger.com0