Structures of a Leaf

Today in class we started off by observing our plant of the day, which is the venus fly trap (dionaea muscipula). The venus plant is a carnivorous insectivore plant. Insects provide minerals and nutrients for the plant, mainly nitrogen. Trigger hairs inside the trap cause the "jaws" to close. Digestive enzymes break down the insects. These plants are native to North and South Carolina. They also produce white flowers and they are found in acidic soils.

After we observed the venus fly trap, we started a lab dealing with the structure of a leaf. In the lab we observed a prepared slide of lilac leaf and a walking jew leaf.

The next scribe will be Sam.

Homework:
-Finish leaf lab.
-National Parks Project

12/7-12/8 Scribe Post

12/7/10 Post

On Tuesday as we walked into class Mrs. Stein stamped our homework consisting of up 39-46. Then we discussed the homework and what everyone thought about it. Next we took some notes on pedigrees. The notes consisted of:

Pedigrees are used to trace disease through a family
Auto recessive disorders:
-Tay Sachs- degenerative nerve disease
-Death early in age
-Most common in Jewish population
Cystic Fibrosis- causes mucus build-up in the lungs, digestive system and liver problems
-Most effected in the northern European origins
Phenylketnuria (PKU)- lack of enzyme needed to break down phenylalanine, causes mental retardation
Autosomal Dominant Disorder:
-Huntington's disease- nervous system disease which causes loss of muscle function
Achondroplasia- a form of dwarfism
Codominant Disorders:
-Sickle cell disease
-Sickle cell anemia- abnormal shaped RBC's which do not carry oxygen effectively
Chromosomal Abnormalities and Non- Disjunctions:
-Non-disjunction in meiosis results in gametes with abnormal chromosomes number
-Most cases produce gametes that are not viable
Turner's Syndrome:
-Female with only one X chromosome
-Sterile
Klinefelter's Disease Syndrome:
-Male XXY, XXXY ,XXXXY
-Sterile

Taking notes and discussing the homework took up all of the class time on Tuesday.

Homework:
- up 53-56 (optional)
- up 47-52
- Quiz on Thursday

12/8/10 Post

In class today Mrs. Stein checked in our homework on pedigrees and genetic disorder problems which consisted of pages 45-52 in our unit packet. Then we went over the homework in our packets from both 12/7 and 12/8. Due to shortened periods we only had enough time to go over the homework and discuss what will be on the quiz tomorrow.

Homework:
-up 67-71
-up 53-56 (optional)
-Quiz tomorrow

The next scribe will be Alex Jackman.