The Human Body By Khushi Agarwal

Human body
By KHUSHI B AGARWAL

Human body! Human body is you, your organs, your brain, your face etc. A whole package in one. But have you seen the human body from the inside? No right. I will describe some of the organs of the body that makes you, you! So to know more dive in an informative journey and know how your body is different from a machine.

CIRCULATORY SYSTEM

Heart, the heart is an important part of the circulatory system. It supplies blood to the body. It’s divided into four sections, the upper two are called ‘Auricles ‘and the lower two are the ‘Ventricles’. The heart is as big as the owner`s fist. The cells have a big role in the circulatory system, they are the basic unit of life. They contain a nucleus, cytoplasm and membrane around the outside. There are two types of cells, prokaryotic cells and eukaryotic cells. Next comes the arteries, veins and capillaries.

Arteries are red in color and are located below the veins. All arteries connect to the right side of the heart and carry oxygenated blood. The pulmonary artery is connected to the left side as it carries deoxygenated blood. Next are the veins, they are blue in color and carry deoxygenated blood. All veins join to the left side except the pulmonary vein. Veins are located above the arteries as they aren`t delicate. Last but the least capillaries, they join the arteries and the veins and have a web like structure.

RESPIRATORY SYSTEM

The respiratory system is a biological system consisting of organs and structures used for the process of respiration in an organism. The respiratory system includes many organs like the nose, mouth, windpipe etc. First comes the nose, it contains small hairs called Cilla, they prevent the dust going inside. Next is the nasal cavity, this is a continuation of the two nostrils. It contains WBC (white blood cells) to fight against germs.

Wind pipe, its takes the air to the bronchi and bronchioles, when the air reaches to bronchi, it gets sent to the bronchioles and then gets sent to the lungs. The lungs consist about thousand alveoies.

DIFFERENCE AND SIMILARITY BETWEEN A HUMAN AND A MACHINE

 

HUMAN	MACHINE
Have emotions.	Don`t have emotions.
Own intelligence.	Man-made intelligence.
It has life.	It is mechanical.
Original.	Non original

SIMILARITIES

If one part stops, the whole system will not work.

By now you would have known about the human body and its functions and would be quiet informative and interesting to share this information with your friends.

Thank you for reading.

Niagra falls by Sonali Senthil

INTRODUCTION

Imagine you’re standing, leaning over a metal railing, absent-mindedly staring at the beautiful thing in front of you, drinking it all in, while the guide goes on and on.  The only thing you’ve caught is, “some people think Niagara Falls is a boring old waterfall.”  You’re thinking, “How could they!” “But it is not” says the guide, going on and on.  “Because it stretches over two countries, has two power plants and lots of stunts done on it.”

This is the Niagara Falls.  Want to find out more?  Read on.  (Don’t worry, I’m not as boring as the guide.)

All Falls:

-       Horseshoe Falls

-       American Falls

-       Bridal Veil Falls

BUT WHERE IS NIAGARA FALLS?

Niagara Falls is amazing.  It stretches over two countries and begins on the humongous Niagara River.

The Niagara Falls begin on the Niagara River (picture above).  The Niagara River, is a massive river that flows from Lake Erie to Lake Ontario.

The Niagara Falls are on the border of Canada and the United States of America.  The falls are 27 km NNW from Buffalo, New York and 21 km SSE of Toronto.

The Niagara River, after it reaches the falls goes in to the Saint Lawrence River and finally drains into the Atlantic Ocean.

The Niagara Falls is the fastest moving waterfalls.  It has moved back 11 cms in 12,500 years.  Seems like a little?  But it is a lot for a waterfall!

THE AMAZING SIZE OF NIAGARA

Many people think Niagara Falls is one big waterfall.  But it is not.  Its three little ones.

All of the waterfalls start from the same river, the Niagara River.  The Niagara River is a massive river that is not very deep but very, very long.  Near the falls, its depth is 57m.  Its length is 58 kms.  The Niagara River actually has islands in it!  The biggest islands are Grand Island and Navy Island.  The Niagara River also has a whirlpool.

  The Whirlpool (picture left), known as the Niagara Whirlpool is located in the Niagara Gorge and its greatest depth is 38m.  That’s pretty deep for a whirlpool that was formed 4,200 years ago.  It usually spins counterclockwise but when the powerplants take in more water, it reverses.  Amazing, isn’t it?

The three waterfalls are the:

-       Horseshoe falls on the Canadian side

-       American falls on the American side

-       Bridal Veil falls on the American side

The falls are not very high, but very wide.  This means that they have a lot of water coming down but its not crashing down. 

 Horseshoe Falls (picture left) is 57m high but 790m long and is the biggest.

  The American Falls (picture left) are only 25m tall, but 320m high and are the second biggest

  The smallest fall is the Bridal Veil Falls (picture left), with only a 24m height and only 17m wide.

But the combined falls have the highest flow rate in the world  .  At high flow , 1,68,000 cubic metres of water come over.  That’s enough water for 1.5 billion people. 

On average, it is 1,10,000 cubic metres of water.

POWER PLANTS ON THE NIAGARA

There are two main power plants on the Niagara River.  The Sir Adam Beck power plant and the Robert Moses power plant.

 The Sir Adam Beck power plant (picture left) is a big power plant but it is not as big as the Robert Moses power plant.  It produces a large number of Megawatts (MW).  Megawatts is the way to measure electricity.  The full name of the power plant is Sir Adam Beck Hydroelectric Power Plant.  That is a long name but suitable for a power plant that produces 1,997 MW.

This amazing power plant was built in 1954 and it is still standing today. 

But if that’s not enough, it makes enough power to power 19 lakh homes in India.  This power plant supplies power to Canada.

  The even bigger power plant is the Robert Moses power plant (picture above).  This is also a hydroelectric power plant.  This means that both power plants use the force of the water to produce electricity and that’s what they do!  It produces 2,525 MW per day.

One of the reasons this power plant produces more because it was built in a later day.  It was built in a later day in 1961.

This amazing power plant produces enough electricity to supply 25 lakh homes in India.  This power plant is in America.

But the most amazing thing is how both work. 

In order not to spoil the natural beauty of the Niagara Falls, they divert water from the Niagara River, use it to produce power and let the water back into the River.

AMAZING STUNTS ON THE NIAGARA

Did you know you could fry an egg on a tightrope?  Well, the Great Blondin did just that and Nathan Boya went over the falls and came back alive.  Annie Taylor was the first person to go over the falls.

Ever seen a cat in a barrel?  Well, the barrel that Annie Taylor used to go over the falls was tested by a cat and it came back alive. 

  Annie Taylor (picture left) was a 63-year old schoolteacher who went over the falls in search of fame and fortune.

On October 24^th 1901, Annie Taylor went into her barrel, which had been tested by a cat.  She went into the barrel with only herself and her heart shaped pillow.  17 minutes after the plunge she came close enough to shore to be pulled back to land and she was actually alive.  She said, “If it was with my dying breath, I would caution anyone against attempting the feat.”  She meant, if she dies, nobody else will try to do what she did because she died doing it.  She didn’t get the money she hoped for.  She died poor and penniless.

Jean Francois Gralid, also known as the Great Blondin was a tightrope walker who first walked over the Niagara Falls in 1857.  On June 30^th, 1859, he did his first tightrope walk across the Niagara Falls and after that, many others.

This great man also crossed on a bicycle, blindfolded, cooking an omelet and pushed a wheelbarrow with his hands and feet tied.

  But by far his greatest feat was when he crossed carrying his manager on his back (picture above).  This was his hardest feat.

 Nathan Boya(picture left) went over the falls on July 15^th, 1961.  He managed this by going in a sphere covered with steel and rubber.  He made sure to have enough oxygen for 30 hours.  But he was fined $100 for illegal stunting. 

Stunting is now illegal on the Niagara so nobody does it anymore.

CONCLUSION

So now you know why Niagara Falls isn’t a boring old waterfall.  Now you realize why I’ve told you so much stuff like where it is, how big it is, power plants and dare devils.  BRILLIANT DEDUCTION!  I want you to visit Niagara Falls.  So, hop into a plane and get there right now!

But I wonder if Niagara Falls will become a victim of pollution?

DÉJÀ VU-“Already seen” by DIvya Vishwanath

DÉJÀ VU-“Already seen” 

Introduction
I stepped out of the car with an excited smile painted on my face. I straightened my crinkled shirt, adjusting my flyaway hair as my brother pushed me. I glared at him, sticking my tongue out. My mother gave us both the death stare, enough to frighten even the devil. I gulped, straightening my back. We were dining with my mom’s boss and his wife, expected to be on our best behavior. I internally laughed. “Hah, like that’s going to happen”. Big, bold letters lined the front and hedges surrounded the neat, brick walkway. “So nice to try out new restaurants, a break from the fast food the children are always munching on” my mother remarked trying to ease the thick tension. She relayed the booking details to the waiter as we were engulfed in a sophisticated and elegant ambience. Suddenly a strange feeling washed over me. I had definitely been here before. Everything seemed strangely familiar from the framed paintings on the wall to the couple in the corner arguing loudly. What?! The familiarity was overwhelming. My mother had insisted while we were at home that we must go to a new fancier restaurant, a greasy, smelly burger place wouldn’t cut it this time. Why did I feel like I had eaten here before? And why did I seem to recognize everything?
This is déjà vu, a feeling of remembrance without awareness. It is a strange phenomenon that almost 75% of the total population has experienced at least once. But how does it occur? And why? Read on to find out.

What is déjà vu?
Is there more to déjà vu than you think?
Déjà vu is a French word meaning “already seen”. It is an extremely mysterious phenomenon puzzling even the best neuroscientists. It is the overpowering sensation that an event currently happening has already occurred in the past. It is described to be something “unfamiliarly familiar” as you can remember having lived the event but not when, where or how. Many individuals have described déjà vu as something that shouldn’t be familiar at all being familiar. Confusing, right? So, is it magic or some form of voodoo or is there some sort of rationale behind it?

Types of déjà vu
Why are there many types of déjà vu? Déjà vu all falls under one broad category but though it seems strange yes, there are several categories that it can grouped under.
Déjà vu


Deja Deja
Vecu Senti

Deja
Visite

The first classification is
 Deja Vecu: is where you have been in an almost identical situation and you seem to know the order of events. The literal French meaning is “already experienced’. This complex form of déjà vu is based off of processes and situations and connected to very normal everyday events. It is felt using primary senses such as taste, smell, hearing, sight etc. This sensation usually lasts for a fraction of a minute to several minutes. It is almost a visual and mental warping where there is an illusion that everything happening now had happening before.
 Deja senti: “Already felt”. It is a feeling of recollection after gaining long-sought after information. It is the satisfactory feeling of retrieving memories. You feel as if you have felt a certain feeling caused by a certain event before.

 Deja Visite: “already visited”. It is the rarest type of déjà vu where you visit a new place and it seems like you have been there before or strangely familiar. It is based on patterns of the location and environmental factors.

The second classification on déjà vu:
1. Associative déjà vu: It is defined as memory-based déjà vu that are caused by the memory centers of the brain. It is the most common type of déjà vu that stirs the unsettling feeling of having experienced something that you probably haven’t before.


2. Biological déjà vu: While déjà vu is nothing serious often it can be associated with people having temporal lobe epilepsy. So is déjà vu really something to brush off? Don’t worry this is rare however scientists have studied that before seizures a strong sensation of déjà vu is felt that may cause patients to believe an event has actually happened rather than being a feeling that passes.
So, is there more to déjà vu. Yes, it has been told to be extreme in patients suffering from anxiety, depression and several other medical symptoms. Dun dun Dunn. Never fear; déjà vu is entirely common especially in those from the ages of 15-25.

Chapter 2-How does it occur-déjà vu in all its ambiguity
Is déjà vu real?
Déjà vu has proved to be an extremely difficult case to study. The effects last for a short time and are deleterious. There are several explanations for this perplexing phenomenon.


So, exactly how does it happen? Well, there are many theories and possible explanations and hear they are.
• A split second delay in the transfer of information from one side of the brain to the other. One side of the brain gets information twice (directly and once from the in-charge side) causing a relay or looping of info. In turn, it feels as if the event has happened before or twice.
• A mismatch between the sensory inputs. Déjà vu may be a malfunctioning between the long- and short-term circuits in the brain. The information our brain takes in about its surroundings may "shortcut" its way straight to long-term memory, bypassing typical storage transfer mechanisms, so when we have a moment of déjà vu, it feels as though we're experiencing something from our distant past or something that is older because it gets transported to the memory storage of long term memory.

This theory proves that déjà vu is not real but a fantastical image our brain conquers. We feel as if it actually happened and that sense of familiarity is so real that it causes us to believe that we have lived that moment before. The power of the brain and its ability to manipulate thoughts and moments will never cease to amaze me.
• Now this possible cause will put all the science people out there at ease. Déjà vu occurrences are said to occur a lot with people suffering from temporal lobe epilepsy in seizure moments yet that doesn’t mean you have this form of epilepsy as there are many other causes and reasons. Temporal lobe is the part of the brain that controls short term memories and emotions so when that part malfunctions an eerie and fleeting sense of déjà vu occurs.

• There is a strange theory that states déjà vu is caused by the occurrence and aligning of parallel universes. A physicist Michio kaku suggests a theory that déjà vu is caused by the ability to flip from different universes. He and Nobel laureate Steven Weinberg says there are an infinite number of realities parallel to us in the very room we are in yet we cannot “tune into them”. Each of these universes have a difference in energy consisting of trillions and trillions of atoms yet we cannot coexist with them as they are all existing in different frequencies. Thus, they and many others believe déjà vu is when you vibrate in unison with another parallel universe.

Do you believe it? Some do and some believe it is purely caused by the brain. However, all these theories point away from the possibility that déjà vu is an actual happening of that moment before.

• Another theory is having dreamt about a certain situation yet forgetting it until you are faced with one very similar.
• Another illusion is the fact that maybe one eye sends the information and dispatches it faster than the other. However this theory has been dismissed as blind people too suffer with déjà vu but usually much less.

Is it real? No, more something conjured up by the depths of our brain. Some believe in several theories, which one do you think rings true.

Chapter 3- Tales of déjà vu
Here is the proof that déjà vu exists

Shocking tales about people who have experienced déjà vu are heard showing people that déjà vu does occur and the sensation of déjà vu is not only familiar but almost spooky.
1. Now some of these stories you may think are exaggerated or fake yet you cannot say the same about this one as it is a legitimate news headline.
The headline reads “Terrifying time loop, man stuck in déjà vu”.
The article states that a 23-yr old British man had chronic déjà vu triggered by anxiety. He was constantly under the illusion that his mind was playing tricks on him. The man was traumatized and extremely frightened, his condition so persistent that he avoided doing activities like watching TV and reading the news because he already knew it all.
He said he was always reliving experiences and couldn’t tell if something was real or a déjà vu moment. There was a moment in which he had gone to get a haircut. As he entered the salon, he had a déjà vu moment as if he had just got a haircut. Then he had déjà vu of the déjà vu. His doctor says he was trapped in a terrifying 8 year time loop that led him to insanity.
2. Several people state that they have dreams and only weeks later the dreams happen in real life as a feeling of premonition almost which creates a strong déjà vu sensation. They also say the real life moment is almost exactly the way they dreamt it. It is eerily weird how people say that they can now due to déjà vu theories predict the future.


Conclusion
I conclude by saying that déjà vu is such an interesting phenomenon that still stuns people. There is almost no lasting proof which makes it such an unpredictably vast topic to analyze. I thoroughly enjoyed researching on a subject so practical in all our lives that leaves all of us incredibly puzzled and realizing the phenomenal rational or science behind it. Now we know the culprit!  It is our very own brain yet there are several theories that aren’t fully proved yet. Thank you and I hope you enjoyed/learnt.

THANK YOU



    Bibliography:
http://science.howstuffworks.com/science-vs-myth/extrasensory-perceptions/question657.htm
http://www.sciencemuseum.org.uk/whoami/findoutmore/yourbrain/whyisyourmemorysoimportant/whatisdejavu/whatcausesdejavu
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2016/04/160413113530.htm

Sir Alex by Kian Menon

Index

·      Introduction

·      Knighthood

·      The reasons for his success

·      Famous quotes by Ferguson

·      CONCLUSION

·      BIBLIOGRAPHY

Sir Alex Chapman Ferguson

Introduction

I think Sir Alex Chapman Ferguson was the greatest manager the game has ever seen. Many footballers learn from his theories and try to put it into their plans when they finally become a manager. He started of as a player and then went on from a player to become the greatest manager of all time. He made his mark as the greatest manager at Manchester united. In my opinion, any club manager who has guided the club to several domestic titles and five European championship titles is a great manager. He also taught the players discipline, which is to me the most important lesson in football and it is also the hardest lesson to learn.

Born in 1937 in Glasgow, Scotland, Sir Alex Chapman Ferguson was a great Scottish manager in the Barclays premiere league.

Before he made his mark in the English premiere league he was playing for Scottish football clubs such as Aberdeen and Celtic. He made countless appearances for his country as well, before becoming manager of Aberdeen in 1972. He then moved to Manchester united in 1982. He made them the greatest team the English league has ever seen. However, he also made a few mistakes. He almost got fired for a poor season as he guided the club to an eleventh place finish.

KNIGHTHOOD

The title “Sir” is given to a person who does great things in his or her lifetime. This title was given to Ferguson in 2007 after he took charge of Manchester United. He was granted knight hood 6 years before his retirement in 2013. The reason for this is because of his over whelming success during his time at Manchester United. One of his achievements was guiding the club to many league titles. All his peers felt that he truly deserved his knighthood for his achievements at Manchester United.

THE REASONS FOR HIS SUCCESS

There were three main reasons for his success.

1.        Open to others opinions

2.        Value discipline

3.        Be present.

1 He listened to what the players had to say.  He asked his staff for ideas and tried to use the ideas given into his plans. He also valued the opinions of the fans. He told a famous Television network CNBC that god had given everyone two ears, two eyes and one mouth. He told them that some people don’t use these three organs to the full potential. He said that in a game your ears work more than your mouth. You can talk a lot but your listening will always be greater.    

2 Sir Alex Ferguson valued discipline a lot. He demanded a lot of discipline from his players. Whoever did not have that kind of discipline was immediately sold. Even the most important players for the club were sold if they were undisciplined. Once you bid farewell to discipline you say goodbye to success and set the stage for anarchy. He told CNBC weed out players who are disruptive or undermine unity, even if they are induvigually talented. Players who still did not learn discipline were not part of his plans at the club. These such players either had there contract terminated or were sold to other clubs. 

3. Sir Alex always said that you should always be present in the game. What he meant by this is, that a player is always supposed to be alert on a pitch as if they are not alert they will make mistakes. He told CNBC that even the great leaders still do not know how important their presence can be. He said that there are only eleven players on the pitch. The captain plays only one position and hence cannot communicate to the other players in different position. “The manager” he said is always the twelfth man of the team. He can see everyone and can tell the players what needs to be done. I think what he was trying to teach his players is that you have to be involved in every minute of the game  to do well on the field. 

FAMOUS QUOTES BY SIR ALEX FERGUSON.

“I've never played for a draw in my life.”

“If I have my health I can carry on. There will be a point when I do quit but I have absolutely no idea when that is.”

“I feel sympathy for the working class lad. I've always championed about ticket prices and try to equate that to people's salaries.”

Conclusion

Sir Alex Ferguson can go down as the greatest manager the world. He changed the history of Manchester united. With his 38 titles at England, Manchester united overtook Liverpool to become England’s most successful domestic club. Ferguson was in Manchester for around 27 years. Many managers get sacked or they even quit after three seasons. Till his retirement in 2013 every single player that played under him had a lot of respect for him. After his retirement, in present times Manchester united have not been the same Manchester united. They have not qualified for the champion’s league in the last three seasons. They have also sacked two managers in the last three years. So we can say that Alex Ferguson was the catalyst for the success of Manchester United and the club is struggling to fill the void left by Sir Alex.

 

BIBLIOGRAPHY

·       WIKIPEDIA

·       BUSINESS INSIDER

·       BRAINY QUOTES

·       THE MANAGER(MIKE CARSON)

Genetics and DNA by Varun Shirhatti

    Genetics and DNA

DNA is the genetic material of all plants and animals. It resides in the nucleus of every cell of every plant, animal and, actually, every organism with a nucleus in the first place.

DNA stands for DeoxyriboNucleic Acid. The ‘De-oxy-ribo’ part of its name is from the sides of the DNA ‘ladder’, which are composed of a sugar called ribose, but with one less oxygen atom-Deoxyribose. The ‘nucleic’ is because it’s found in the nucleus. ‘Acid’ sort of explains itself.

Most people think of DNA as just a ‘twisty ladder’ shape. Actually, it’s a bit more complex than that. See the rest of the article for confirmation.

DNA has a shape known as a ‘double helix’, which is like a twisted rope ladder. The ‘rungs’ of the ladder are comprised of four bases: Adenine, Cytosine, Guanine and Thymine. These are abbreviated as A,C,G and T. A always pairs with T and C always pairs with G. Two bases form one ‘rung’.

RNA

DNA takes all the credit for making us who we are, but in fact, it does practically nothing. All the real work is done by RNA and proteins.

RNA is a molecule similar to DNA. However, there are some major differences between the two. First, the name. RNA stands for ribonucleic acid as opposed to deoxyribonucleic acid. This is because the base sugar for RNA is ribose, which I mentioned earlier. Second, RNA isn’t a ‘ladder’ like DNA is, just a sort of floppy noodle with bases tacked onto it.

Also, in RNA, the base Thymine is replaced by the base Uracil, or U.

When RNA is being made, the DNA ‘unzips’ itself, splitting into two strands. Then, extra bases come swooping in, connect themselves with ribose and make strands of RNA: C and G pair up, T and A pair up, but instead of T, U pairs up with A. The RNA made, the DNA  quickly ‘zips’ itself back up.

The newly made RNA then leaves the nucleus to perform its most important function: It is read by proteins called ribosomes to make amino acids, which combine to make proteins.

AMINO ACIDS AND PROTEINS

Proteins are what make you who you are. Literally. Your hair? Protein. Your eyes and eye colour? Protein. Your muscles? Protein. Even the male/female hormones are protein. Having said that, imagine what would happen if just one of those thousands of proteins were wrong somehow.  For example, your body could stop  making hair all over your body and start making nails instead; both of them are proteins. And that is only one possibility.

Proteins are composed of long chains of amino acids. These are the molecules that RNA is used to make. There are a total of 20 different types of amino acids. Out of these, 9 are not able to be made by the body and must be taken in through the diet. Because of this, the environment in which an organism lives affects its growth and development, not genetics alone. This is a debate that has been going on for years: is it primarily genetics that determines the sort of person we are, or is it the environment?

My stance on the matter is that both contribute equally to a person’s development. If a person has genes that say they are going to be 6 feet tall, and the person is wildly malnourished, they probably won’t grow to 6 feet tall.

But back to proteins. RNA is used to build proteins through a process called translation.

During translation. a ribosome goes along the length of the RNA, ‘reading’ the bases in chunks of 3 called codons. Each codon stands for an amino acid, except for ‘start’ and ‘stop’ codons. A start codon tells the ribosome to start making amino acids and stringing them together. A stop codon tells the ribosome to stop making amino acids. Every amino acid has a specific combination of bases. This is why single-base mutations (where one base is changed into another) aren’t as bad as mutations are inserted or removed entirely.

For example:

ORIGINAL                                                                                      EXTRA BASE

RNA SEQUENCE                                                                           RNA SEQUENCE

AUGUAUGACCGUCGCUGA                                                     AUGUAUAGACCGUCGCUGA

CODON SEQUENCE                                                                   CODON SEQUENCE

AUG, UAU, GAC, CGU, CGC, UGA                                            AUG, UAU,AGA,CCG,UCG,CUG

AMINO ACID SEQUENCE                                                          AMINO ACID SEQUENCE

Start, Tyrosine, Aspartic Acid,                                                Start,Tyrosine,Arginine,Proline,

Arginine,Arginine, Stop                                                          Serine,Leucine

OBSERVATION:The sequence from the third base onwards has been changed completely and the protein will be larger than necessary, as the ‘stop’ codon has been removed.

MUTATIONS

You’re a mutant.Yes,you.

To most people, the word ‘mutation’ means either bad things like extra eyes or no fingers, or  X-Men-esque superpowers. However, a mutation isn’t necessarily a bad thing. Case in point: A long time ago, all humans were lactose intolerant. This meant that beyond a certain age, their bodies stopped making a milk-digesting enzyme called lactase. Eventually, a mutation arose: lactose tolerance. People with this new mutation were more biologically successful than people without it. This mutation spread until, today, lactose tolerance is part of practically the whole world’s genomes.

Mutations can be detrimental to health and even survival, it’s true.  But some, like blue eyes or curly hair, are perfectly harmless.

Most mutations occur naturally: a base is removed, added or changed into another. Some mutations, though, can be caused by exposure to radioactivity and other harmful substances.

EPIGENETICS

This is one of the most intriguing parts of the study of genetics. Epigenetics is the study of how the environment affects the genome. Because of this, it closely ties in to the Nature vs Nurture debate.

Not all the parts of the genome are read at once. Some parts of it are ‘blocked off’ by methyl markers, rendering them unreadable. Different kinds of food, like sesame seeds and broccoli can cause methyl markers to lift or land on genes. This can cause serious problems- for example if a gene to prevent cancer is suppressed. In this event, cells would start multiplying madly and cause problems across the body.

This, however, can also be used to our advantage. Epigenetics can be used to stop the growth of a cancer tumour so that it can be safely removed.  This method is much safer than chemotherapy and radiation therapy and has much fewer side effects.

This is another piece of evidence that the environment plays a part in making us who we are.

Bibliography

‘What’s In Your Genes?’ by Katie McKissick