Today’s Popular Posts
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Popular Posts
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Tag Archives: biology
Confirmation: Quantum entanglement in photosynthesis
The discovery that every-day, ‘normal temperature’, biological systems – plants – use quantum effects in the process of photosynthesis has been advancing for several years. For physicists and biologists this is becoming something of a revelation. Physicists in particular, accustomed to observing quantum effects only at extreme cold (approaching absolute zero), find the idea that [...]
Posted in News: Quantum Physics Also tagged entanglement, high temperature quantum effects, photosynthesis, plants, quantum coherence, quantum mechanics Comments closed
Biology punishment
- What did the microbiologist give his biologist girlfriend for her birthday? Designer genes, of course. You were expecting flowers? - An English major taking his biology exam referred to a microtome as an ‘itsy bitsy book.’
Can culture change the genome?
Almost from the beginning of our knowledge of genetics, it’s been asked, “Can the way we (humans) live change our genetics?” These days this is much the same as asking if culture can change the genome. It’s actually a relatively old question. The question got its biggest boost from one who is now a boogeyman [...]
Posted in Impact: Genetic Modification Also tagged culture, DNA, EDAR, epigenetics, evolution, genes, genetic modification, genetics, genome, Lamarck, molecular biology, RNA 1 Comment
Quantum mechanics in photosynthesis, oh my.
Just when biologists thought they were getting a handle on some of the molecular behavior in cells, along come other scientists to reveal that at least in photosynthesis the ‘crazy’ world of quantum mechanics has been put to work. Oh my, indeed. Not that this comes as a huge surprise. Quantum physics underlies everything in [...]
Posted in News: Cell Biology Also tagged algae, chemistry, light-harvesting, photosynthesis, quantum biology, quantum mechanics Leave a comment
Is it goodbye to “Primordial soup?”
Over the years how many times have you encountered the term ‘primordial soup’ to explain the ferment in which life originated on Earth? The idea of a kind of organic broth in Earth’s early waters, struck by lightning, ultraviolet light, or some other catalyst, and producing slowly but surely the various compounds that eventually take [...]
Posted in Impact: Origin of Life Also tagged biochemistry, cell, chemiosmosis, geochemistry, ions, LUCA, membrane, origin of life, proton gradient Leave a comment
New report: Ocean acidification worsens
The good news for the climate is that the oceans can absorb an enormous amount of carbon dioxide, a huge buffer against global warming. The bad news is for the oceans. When sea water absorbs CO2 it has the nasty habit of turning some of it into acid. This has been going on for decades [...]
Posted in News: Degrading Oceans Also tagged acid, acid seas, acidification, carbon dioxide, degrading oceans, global warming Leave a comment
Forming the double helix – learning more about hybridization
Our knowledge of cell biology, of genetics, indeed of life itself has centered on the role of DNA. Yet since the structure of DNA was first elucidated by Watson and Crick more than fifty years ago, we are still attempting to explain the intricate processes involving DNA. One of these processes, DNA hybridization, is the [...]
Posted in News: Cell Biology Also tagged biochemistry, cell biology, DNA, double-helix, genes, hybridization, RNA Leave a comment
Shaping DNA on demand
Scientists at the Technische Universitaet Muenchen (TUM) and Harvard University have thrown the lid off a new toolbox for building nanoscale structures out of DNA, with complex twisting and curving shapes. In the August 7 issue of the journal Science, they report a series of experiments in which they folded DNA, origami-like, into three dimensional [...]
Tern paper
There once was an undergrad biology student who was studying the coordinated flight patterns of sea birds, focusing specifically on terns. For his research paper, he proposed to give terns measured doses of THC (he studied where researchers could obtain marijuana legally), and then to observe their flight patterns. He hoped to gain insight into their ability to maintain communication [...]
Hedgehogs over time – a new model
Researchers at the California Institute of Technology (Caltech) have proposed a novel model that differs from a widely held hypothesis about the mechanisms by which developing animals pattern their tissues and structures. [Reference] Admittedly “Hedgehogs over time – a new model” is a catchy (if cryptic) headline; yet it’s reasonably accurate. Hedgehogs in this instance [...]
Making a start on a synthetic liver