Blog Archives
E3 Innate and Learned Behaviour
Class Presentation:
Essential Biology E3: Innate and Learned Behaviour
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Animations and Tutorials:
Collection from The Animated Brain
Classical Conditioning from NobelPrize.org
Indiana Univerity Song Learning in Cowbirds: Social effect on birdsong:
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TOK:
To what extent is human behaviour innate in nature?
Watch this video from the California Academy of Sciences’ Science in Action series: Facial Expressions
What is the effect of the observer on human behaviour when they know they are being observed?
Why do the blind olympians provide a good sample population for the study?
What conclusions could be drawn from the investigation? Why?
E2 Perception of Stimuli
Class presentation:
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Essential Biology: E2 Perception of Stimuli
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- Hermann Grid Illusion
Sight:
Collection of animations from North Harris College
Eye structure tutorial from Sumanas
Simple how-the-eye-works from BiologyMad
The Sense of Sight from Wisconsin Online
How many megapixels is the human eye? from Brainiac.
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Hearing:
How the Ear Works, from NobelPrize.org
The Sense of Hearing from Wisconsin Online
Neat Ear Tutorial from University of Alaska Fairbanks
McGraw Hill Effect of Sound Waves on Cochlear Structures
Test your hearing range (carefully) from the University of New South Wales
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- Mantis Shrimp: Awesome Vision
Interesting reading:
The peer-iodic table of illusions, from NewScientist.com
The Mantis Shrimp’s amazing visual capabilities, from NotExactlyRocketScience
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The eye is not irreducably complex – it is the product of natural selection
Evolution of vertebrate eyes from Pharyngula
Owl monkey example of eye evolution, from NotExactlyRocketScience
Video, The Evolution of the Eye, from PBS:
E1 Stimulus and Response
Class Presentation:
Essential Biology: E1 Stimulus and Response
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For Reflex Arcs (including the pain reflex):
Start with this tutorial from Sumanas
And this animation from the University of Minnesota
Lots more CNS animations from North Harris College
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Some good readers from Not Exactly Rocket Science for the effect of natural selection on response to stimulus:
E4: Neurotransmitters and Synapses
Review Nerves content from the Core before completing this topic.
Class presentation:
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Essential Biology E4: Neurotransmitters and Synapses
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The New Science of Addiction: Genetics and The Brain
From Learn.Genetics
Fantastic resources available from Utah, including the mouse party, neuron and synapse animations and an interactive involving pedigree charts and the role of genetics in addiction.
Spend some time here to really read around the subject of drugs and addiction – you’ll be glad you did and it really helps answer the ‘discuss the causes of addiction’ question!
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Drugs and The Brain
Jellinek is a Dutch drugs education website that has some great, accessible resources for neurobiology of drugs and the brain. Animations are available in multiple languages – why can’t more organisations be as internationally-minded as this?
Be patient though -it needs a lot of bandwidth.
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Neurotransmitters and Drugs:
Good powerpoint from HHMI
Excellent overview of effects of drugs (Harvard)
Amphetamines, Cocaine, Nicotine as excitatory psychoactives (McGill ‘The Brain’)
Benzodiazepines, Cannabis, Alcohol as inhibitory psychoactives (McGill ‘The Brain’)
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TOK and Biology: The Nutt-Sack Affair
Leader of advisory panel on drug safety sacked for disagreeing with UK government:
http://www.badscience.net/2009/11/the-nutt-sack-affair-part-493/
Read around the topic, and then answer these questions:
Nutt's Scale of Drugs
- How does this story show the conflict between science and politics?
- What do you feel the respective roles of science and politics should be in the government of a country?
- Suggest reasons why some drugs which are clearly very harmful, such as tobacco and alcohol, are still legal in many countries.
- If you were to form a new country and write a whole new set of drug laws, which would you make illegal or legal and why? Upon which sources of evidence would you rely in order to make your decisions? How would you balance political pressures with scientific evidence?
Find out more about drug laws and the rationale behind them in your own country and the countries you visit or live in.
Remember – regardless of your own opinion on drug laws, if you are caught breaking the law wherever you are, penalties can be very severe.
Rediscovering Biology – web-based Bio course
Rediscovering Biology is a comprehensive free learning resource that covers 13 different topics- mostly with an emphasis on Biochemistry and Genetics.
Each topic has an introductory video, downloadable texbook, course outline, learning activities and a selection of images and animations in quicktime, which are high-quality. One of the highlights of the site is the selection of immersive case studies. There is also a useful pop-up glossary.
Topics: Genomics, Proteins and Proteomics, Evolution and Phylogenetics, Microbial Diversity, Emerging Infectious Disease, HIV and AIDS, Genetics of Development, Cell Biology and Cancer, Human Evolution, Neurobiology, Biology of Sex and Gender, Biodoversity, Genetically Modified Organisms.
i-Biology 