What the World Needs Now is C-E-R (and a little love wouldn't hurt)

Approximately two years ago, I was asked if I was interested in teaching AP Biology at MHS. And although it was a longterm goal of mine and an honor to be considered, my stomach still sank. In fact, I dreaded it. It's a beast of a course--to see why, just look at the curriculum--but I did not hesitate a moment to say yes.

Blowing off some steam during my first year teaching AP Bio

I said yes because I knew that AP Bio is an excellent course and I predicted that teaching it would bring about much professional growth. My prediction was spot-on--nothing has even come close. Most (all?) students that enroll in the course have had to adjust and one of the aspects I like the least about teaching AP Biology is seeing my students stressed out and overwhelmed. But I know that it's worth it (I couldn't do it otherwise) because it is, of course, doable, and more importantly, the class revolves around a philosophy that I think the world needs a lot more of: to make a claim, you need sound evidence and reasoning. In the AP Bio world, we call that CER, thus the title of my post.

I found this perfect image on the following blog

It would be easy for me to quickly politicize this post by showing side-by-side images of the inauguration crowds from the 2008 and 2016 presidential elections to illustrate that evidence is required to make a claim. But I think that defeats my purpose: I'm calling for all of us to be more reflective and I don't want to lose readers by making this a partisan post. Science, by nature, is supposed to be objective and thus non-partisan. But we all know that is not the case in several fields of science, namely evolution, climate change, the safety of GMOs and the efficacy of alternative medical treatments such as homeopathy. My intent is not to self-righteously point fingers at others atop my soapbox because I have been guilty of letting my own biases color my judgment. We all need to be more introspective because no matter what political party one belongs to, we have a strong tendency to accept evidence that aligns with our values and ideology. We also are not very good at understanding the natural world because it's complex and oftentimes counterintuitive. Psychologists have been studying our misconceptions of the natural world for decades, as described in this article from NPR. Unfortunately, learning more facts does not lead to less science denialism; in fact, some research has found just the opposite.

So, what are we to do? It sounds rather dismal. Well, I have hope and it rests upon an understanding of science as a process (there's the CER approach again!) as opposed to a collection of facts, along with a willingness to look inward and recognize our biases. As the great Richard Feynman said, and this quote is hanging in my classroom,

"Science is a way of trying not to fool yourself. The principle is that you must not fool yourself, and you are the easiest person to fool." 

The great physicist Richard Feynman

My 49 AP Biology students and I have spent a year applying this philosophy in class every day, from our discussions to the inquiry labs that lasted weeks. I hope my students extend this approach to their everyday lives, not just to an academic setting. I can tell you that they have certainly applied CER to their blog posts! Students chose a topic that interested them and can back up their claims with evidence and reasoning. So, whether you are reading about why people don't accept evolution and climate change, if we actually only use 10% of our brain, why whales breach, why it looks like there is a waterfall of blood in Antarctica, (I could go on and on--these posts are fantastic), I hope you reflect on how much better off society would be if the CER approach is the norm, not just something we do in an AP Biology classroom.

For those youngins reading this, here's something to help you make sense of the blogpost title.

Autism Spectrum Disorder: Solving the Riddle

Autism Spectrum Disorder, more commonly known and diagnosed as ASD, has become more and more prevalent in the last decade. It has gone from 1 in 110 in 2006, to 1 in 68 by 2012. It's important to understand and recognize that this prevalence has nothing to do with a higher rate of children with autism, but rather the diagnostic criteria being changed. As time has gone on, the symptoms and signs have grown, as scientists have begun to understand the disorder more and more, and correctly diagnose people who have gone for years without diagnosis. Both PDD-NOS and Asperger's Syndrome were combined as ASD, which is an umbrella term for anyone on the autism spectrum.

A photo depicting the areas of the brain that autism affects

Recent studies have shown that a very common indicator of a child that will grow to have autism is early brain growth between the ages of 6 to 24 months. It's found that an increase in brain growth in this time period can be critical in a child developing autism and being diagnosed later on in life. For the most part, these were indicative of social setbacks, such as with early developmental milestones. 

A photo depicting the change in diagnoses

As time has continued, there has been a larger and larger fight on deciding whether or not autism requires a cure, more awareness, or simply acceptance. With a long disproven and ongoing fight with vaccines and other sciences as of late, the debate has become more heated. With fewer disability rights being seen in the near future, it's questionable on what is the best decision to make for people with autism and those who support them. Some charities such as Autism Speaks make the argument that such a "debilitating" disorder should require a cure, and that any individuals affected by it shouldn't have to "suffer" through the pains of having an autistic friend or relative.

However, many families don't see their loved ones as burdens, and call for more awareness on the disorder, and more acceptance from the larger communities. Many high functioning autistic people are people you've befriended, as many will go undiagnosed for years due to shifts in criteria and lack of resources to be properly diagnosed. On top of that, a lot of the key symptoms for ASD don't vary too much from heightened social awkwardness, anxiety, and ADHD.

A photo of Nikola Tesla, serbian scientist and inventor of the alternating current

In the scientific community, there are many prevalent autistic people, or at least people estimated to be autistic, such as the brilliant and misunderstood Nikola Tesla, or Albert Einstein. There are some suspicions that even people such as Thomas Jefferson were autistic. These people with eccentricities had gifts widely renowned by the public eye, and only further the idea that autism is a misunderstood gift that society needs to recognize. Until then, it seems that the only talk about autism will be the correlation, or lack thereof, of getting your children vaccinated.

If you'd like to learn more, feel free to visit the following links:

Psychology Today: Autism

Mayo Clinic - Autism

APA: Autism

Climate Change Crisis

What is Climate Change?

Climate is the usual weather of a place and is incredibly important in shaping natural ecosystems and human economies that depend on climate.  Climate change is a change in global climate.  The Earth's climate is constantly changing, however, the majority of scientist agree that the climate is getting warmer but not from natural causes.  The earth's greenhouse effect is created by gasses in the atmosphere that traps the sun's radiation and makes the earth suitable for life.  One of the major greenhouse gasses is carbon dioxide.  CO2 naturally gets into the atmosphere through respiration of organisms but, humans have significantly increased the amount of CO2 in the atmosphere which is the main cause of global warming. Humans burning fossil fuels, such as gas, coal, and oil, causes more CO2 to build up in the atmosphere.  The more greenhouse gasses the more heat is held in. Since the industrial revolution, the burning of coal, oil, and natural gas has emitted roughly 500 billion tons of CO2 and about half has remained in the atmosphere.

How Does Climate Change Affect Us?

There are many ways climate change affects us.The change in climate is causing a lot of problems on earth such as extreme weather, drought, and flooding. Many people don't believe that this will affect them. Refugees are a big controversy in the world today but many people don't talk- or do not know- about climate refugees.  Thousands of people are being displaced from their homes due to ocean levels rising, extreme weather, and drought. Soon the refugee crisis will reach an "unimaginable scale."

Climate change is a major threat to agriculture. When and how we grow our food is connected to having normal climate patterns.  All over the world farmers are having a difficult time with unpredictable weather and water supply.

Warm, polluted air affects our health.  More people are likely to die during extreme heatwaves and polluted air irritates lungs and triggers asthma attacks. 

Why do People Deny Climate Change?

Although 97% of scientists agree that climate change is real and there is incredible evidence proving it, many people still deny it.  Leaders and Big corporations deny it for financial reasons.  Major corporations have a big influence in government and it is in their best interest to have no change in how they are run even though big changes, such as a carbon tax or switching to renewable energy, could help solve the issue.  Cognitive dissonance and motivated reasoning play a big role in climate change and you can click here to learn more about what that is.  People seek out information that confirms their preexisting beliefs.  People do not like to be wrong and have a natural tendency to seek facts that support their beliefs and ignore anything that challenges them.  People distrust scientists. Because the topic of climate change is really controversial at the moment between scientists who believe and do not believe that it is happening, people tend not to listen to them and instead listen to the people in their community and high-profile skeptics.

Why do People who do Believe Choose Not to Act?

I found a really awesome video that goes into more depth and you can watch it here.

Many people view climate change as a future problem and are therefore are not as motivated to do anything.  People feel powerless and think that what they do won't have any effect.  If everyone thinks like this, then there will be no change. It's hard to break a habit.  People may want to help but they have a hard time committing or breaking the habit that harms the environment.

What Can You Do?

Some great ways to get involved can be found here 

Few Ways I Got Involved

I helped organize an art workshop with the Montclair Co-op and the Montclair Film Festival to help bring awareness to the effects of climate change on the ocean.  The art was all made out of plastic water bottles and plastic bags.

I also went to the march for science in NYC.

And my family and I grow a lot of our own food.  Buying locally grown food and growing your own food is a great way to minimize your 

ADHD 101

ADHD: Myth or Real?

     With ADHD being the most common mental disorder among children, you are bound to know at least one person with it! ADHD or Attention Deficit Hyperactive Disorder is mental disorder that is most prevelant amount children and young adults. 6.4 million children between the ages of 4 and 17 in the United States have ADHD, and of those 6.4 million only 6.1% are being treated with medication. Symptoms of ADHD typically first appear between the ages of 3 and 6; and the average age of diagnosis is 7 years old. ADHD is not just a childhood disorder, over 4% of Americans over the age of 18 have ADHD. During their lifetimes, 12.9% of men will be diagnosed with an attention disorder and 4.9% of women will be diagnosed.

 

Symptoms 
     ADHD has a range of symptoms most commonly including:

• Hyperactivity 
• Trouble focusing 
• Trouble staying organized 
• Trouble remembering details 
• Impulsivity 
• Physical agression 
• Inattentiveness or "daydreaming" 
• Verbal agression 

New Discoveries 
      Recently researchers have found when using an fMRI, or functional MRI, that children with ADHD have shown abnornal connectivity patterns in their especially in their frontal cortex region. The prefrontal lobes of the brain seperately are nonfunctional, thus why they work togther with other parts of the brain to allow it to function properly. Researches have observed a lack of communication and connection stimulation between specific parts of the brain that lead to the symptoms we see in ADHD: Ventrolateral Prefrontal Cortex where emotional sympoms are found, Anterior Cingulate Cortex which holds a person's selective attention, the Motor Cortex which holds motor functions and the Orbitofrontal Cortex which is the part of the brain responsible for impulsive behavior. Miscommunication of lack of communication between these parts of the brain are what neuroscientists believe is the reasoning for ADHD. This new information is helping doctors try and find alternative methods to treating ADHD without medication.

The left brain is a healthy brain with increased brain function and activity in comparison to the right brain of someone with ADHD. 

 

fMRIs of brains comparing the efficency of brain pathways (on the left) and amount of activity, connectivity and communicaton (on the right)

Controversey 
     Many people believe that doctors and psychiatrists are overmedicating children, especially when it comes to ADHD. There is also a significant amount of people that think ADHD isn't real and it is just something doctors use to prescribe medication. Although it is true that some medical professionals do think that prescription drugs are a one pill fix all and occassionally overprescribe, the idea that kids with ADHD don't need medication is in some cases absurd. I myself do have severe ADHD, I'm on the highest dose of medication you can be on. I can honestly say that this medication has changed my life. Before this mediation I was not able to focus, I was bouncing off the walls (something that drove my family insane!), I was overly impulsive and had way too much energy. It was so hard for me to not be able to focus on one thing at a time, especially being a high school student trying to prepare for college. I could be sitting doing my homework and then want a glass of water, then I would think oh maybe I'm hungry, then I would think maybe I should make dinner, then I would look up recipies and then I would go look for the ingredients. I could give a million examples but you get the point. With medication I am so much calmer and I'm able to accomplish all of my work without distraction. 2 hours of homework no longer took 6 hours. Medication made me feel normal and not bad about myself becuase I couldn't focus on one task at a time. I can understad why some people would think that medication isn't good becuase they don't like all the chemicals, but for someone like me who has really bad ADHD, I don't know how I could live without it.



     

Your Body Attacking Itself: Multiple Sclerosis

In the United States of America, it has been computed that nearly 20 percent of the population suffers from autoimmune diseases, and the majority of the population does not know what these grave diseases are.  So what are autoimmune diseases?  They occur when your body's immune system begins attacking healthy cells by mistake.  One of the most puzzling autoimmune diseases that we know of is multiple sclerosis (MS).

Multiple sclerosis involves an immune-mediated process in which an abnormal response of the body's immune system is directed against the central nervous system (CNS).  Autoimmune diseases are a subset of immune-mediated responses, which occur when the immune system is changed in some way.  Multiple sclerosis is basically a disease that affects the working capability of your brain, spinal cord, and optic nerves.  The central nervous system is extremely important in performing daily functions and people with multiple sclerosis have problems with vision, balance, muscle control, and other basic bodily functions.  It's hard to imagine not being able to do basic things that come as second nature to us, but this is the reality of people with multiple sclerosis.

The Body's Central Nervous System

You're probably wondering, what is going on in the brain that causes this to happen to people!  Well, nerve fibers, or axons, within the brain are important because they transmit information.  In Mrs. Eckert's Biology class, we learned about the electrical impulses, or action potentials, in these nerve fibers that triggered responses within the body.  Multiple sclerosis is extremely damaging because it affects myelin, a fatty substance that surrounds and insulates the nerve fibers, and oligodendrocytes, cells that produce myelin in the CNS.  The abnormal immune reaction produces inflammation in the central nervous system, which leads to damage of the nerve fibers exposed from demyelination.  When any part of the myelin sheath or nerve fiber is damaged or destroyed, nerve impulses traveling to and from the brain are distorted or interrupted.  Neurons in the spinal cord also become demyelinated and signals from the brain to the spinal cord may become disrupted, which leads to the decreased ability of many motor functions.  While learning about the nervous system in class, I was completely entranced by the fact that one's entire nervous system could shut down because of a lack of myelin sheaths covering their nerve fibers.  I instantly knew I wanted to learn more about how a complex, intricate body system could deteriorate just from damaged fatty substances.

A Nerve Fiber: How your body receives information

MRI Scan of a multiple sclerosis patient

Multiple sclerosis and autoimmune diseases are thought to be triggered by both genetics and outside environmental factors.  This leads us into an entirely different section in the science world: nature versus nurture.  "Nature versus nurture summarizes a long-running debate on whether human behavior is determined by the environment, whether prenatal or during a person's life, or by their genes."  Some scientists believe that people can be more susceptible to certain diseases because of the environment that they were brought up in, rather than from their genetic makeup.  There is increasing evidence that a number of environmental factors are important in the development and course of multiple sclerosis.  There is a global latitude gradient in MS prevalence, and instances of MS are increasing in the female population.  Scientists have reviewed the evidence and potential mechanisms of action for three exposures:  vitamin D, Epstein Barr virus, and cigarette smoking.  However, there is support for the debate that heredity has a large effect on people contracting MS.  Studies based upon familial aggregation and twin pairs have found increased risk to relatives with the disease.  There is evidence for both sides of the debate and as a biology student, it's interesting to learn about how the environment that one has grown up in can make them more susceptible for certain diseases.  You can read more about the complicated topic of nature versus nurture here.  

The Heavily Debated Nature vs Nurture Question

Scientists are learning more and more about science every day, including the nature of multiple sclerosis, so there is currently no cure but new possibilities are found every day.  For example, a major breakthrough in MS research was when scientists recently discovered that transcription factor T-Bet may trigger multiple sclerosis and other autoimmune diseases.  Through genetic manipulation, scientists found that "age associated B cells drive autoimmune diseases."  As our technology is becoming increasingly advanced, we can expect that scientists will ultimately find the causes of multiple sclerosis and a cure for the disease altogether.

Blood Doping: The secret steroid

Athletes have always done their best to gain an edge over their opponents, but the ways in which they have attempted to do so has changed over time. There are of course the non biological forms of cheating, for example in baseball the use of pine tar has served as a way of cheating for pitchers to get a better grip on the ball, and batters have sometimes put cork in their bats for extra power on their hits. Yet the most threatening form of cheating to athletics nowadays deals with the actual biology and makeup of an athletes body. In the most recent Olympics Russian athletes of many different sports were caught "doping," which can mean the use of anabolic steroids, stimulants, and even the act of altering an athletes blood composition in order to increase performance. These findings sparked an investigation that led to Russia being stripped of 37 Olympic medals, and Russian trainers and anti-doping officials to admit that it was a high scale operation across the country that included tampering of urine samples across the world's most prestigious athletic events throughout many years. As the talent in the athletic world improves athletes are forced to find ways to cheat their way to success, and currently one of the most relevant ways is through blood doping.

There are various different ways to take part in "blood doping," but essentially it is the use of certain techniques or substances to increase the amount of red blood cells in someone, or increase oxygen transport to muscles. These techniques are able to increase an athlete's stamina and their strength during workouts and competition because of the increased oxygen in their muscles. The first and least complicated way is through blood transfusions. Blood is removed from the individual resulting, and the athlete continues their usual training. Red blood cells only live for approximately 120 days until they are broken down and no longer work, so new red blood cells are continuously being made. The athlete gets used to training with a minimal amount of red blood cells which in turn results in less oxygen being brought to their muscles.  The oxygen in muscles are used for the process of cellular respiration which is responsible for the production of ATP and allowing a muscle to function. Therefore as athletes work out with the same intensity but with less energy for muscle usage they gain a familiarity with the amount of low energy needed to get a high amount of performance. Then just before the athletic event these athletes who do this form of cheating inject their own oxygenated blood back into the body, resulting in a abnormally high amount of red blood cells. The new amount of red blood cells increases oxygen transport, and the amount of ATP produced. Athletes are able to use this science to compete in their games or events and have their muscles continue to work even when fatigue sets in because of the greatly increased amount of oxygen going to their working muscles.

The second way in which the athletes alter their blood in order to gain a competitive advantage is through EPO injections. EPO is a peptide hormone produced in the body that is produced by bone marrow and released by the kidneys with the function of stimulating red blood cell production, and initiating hemoglobin synthesis, which is the actual molecule that carries oxygen. The EPO injection stimulates a feedback loop resulting in the increase of the quantity of red blood cells and hemoglobin to carry oxygen to muscles that need it. Like stated previously this greater oxygen transport and more ATP allows for an athlete to perform in a way they wouldn't have been able to before. This includes the athlete having greater stamina and greater muscle endurance.

\There is no doubt in the athletic community this new science increases performance, and world class athletes including Lance Armstrong and Tyson Gay have been caught and punished for using this banned method of improved performance. Yet there are side effects that can be costly to a person the first of which includes the thickening of the blood due to the increased amount of red blood cells. This results in the heart having to work much harder than it should, introducing the user to risk of blood clot, heart attack, and stroke. Also needles are used and reused to draw and inject blood from different people. This puts the blood doping athletes at risk of HIV and hepatitis.

Some may argue "It's still just blood being injected into the body, what's so bad with it?" This form of cheating is a danger to all forms of athletics as we know it. With the exception of golf essentially a player of any other sport would benefit from blood doping. Pitchers would have better arm endurance, cyclists could pedal harder, soccer players could run longer, offensive lineman wouldn't have to sub out of football games; the list goes on and on. In my own opinion as a avid sports fan and student athlete I feel very strongly against blood doping. If you want better endurance... run. If you want to get stronger... lift. If you want to be the best athlete you have to put in the work, and injecting extra red blood cells into your body at the right time is not the kind of work that should give someone the opportunity to win.

Lance Armstrong is the most famous athlete to be caught of cheating through blood doping. He was a seven time Tour de France champion, bronze medalist in the 2010 Olympic Games, and was considered the best cyclist to ever live. This all came crashing down when the U.S. Anti-Doping Agency released more than 1,000 pages of evidence in doping allegations against Armstrong and his teammates, and all of his titles were stripped. The world had their first major introduction to the new form of cheating by biologically altering the body. The new steroid. The cycling world was shocked that their hero and face of the sport had been cheating nearly his whole career. Armstrong would inject the EPO hormone into his blood and would get an increased amount of red blood cells as a result. He admitted to the deed, allegedly realized what he did was wrong, and has become an avid speaker of cleaning up the sport of cycling. In my opinion that's just a publicity stunt and dishonest. He can try and improve his image if he wants because he will always be the most famous cyclist of all time... because he's a cheater.



In order to learn more for this topic please fell free to visit the following links...
http://www.livescience.com/32388-what-is-blood-doping.html
http://www.menshealth.co.uk/fitness/blood-doping-in-sport
http://www.menshealth.com/fitness/the-science-of-blood-doping
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G7KZxIR1t-o

Myth-Busters: The Human Brain

Myth-busters: The Human Brain

I would like you to take a moment, and imagine a man, we'll call him Peter, who is sitting on his couch mindlessly watching television--a diet soda in one hand, the remote in the other, and an oversized bag of chips in his lap. Can you picture it? How much of his brain do you think he is actually using? If you said little to none, you are dead wrong. Peter needs to activate several areas of his brain in order to watch television, eat, and even breathe! 

The human brain: one of the most fascinating wonders that is still leaving scientist scratching their heads. Consisting of over 100 billion neurons, the brain is responsible for just about everything we experience in our lives, and it plays a major role in keeping us alive. For example, our cerebral cortex is what allows us to be able to perform higher level thinking, and our brain stem is responsible for our involuntary functions, such as breathing. Unfortunately, there is a myth that still exists that claims that humans only use about 10% of their brain. The myth originated long ago from an unknown source, and has been lingering ever since. The myth made a reappearance on a movie called Lucy, where they claim that humans only use 10% of their brain, and if they were able to control their entire brain, they would have supernatural powers. I'm here to explain to you why that is simply one of the most outrageous claims ever made.

This image shows the complexity of neurons in the human brain

First off, the human brain weighs about 3 pounds, which makes up roughly only 2.5% of an average person's normal mass. That being said, the human brain also uses nearly 20% of our calories to function. These calories serve as energy for the neurons in the brain to be able to function. Now, with all of this information in mind, why would such a large chunk of our calories go towards an organ that only uses 10% of itself? In terms of conserving energy, it would not make sense for the body to exert so much energy on an organ that is hardly put to use. 

Secondly, there is very convincing scientific evidence that much of the brain is being used all the time. Tests such as MRAs (magnetic resonance angiography) can be used to prove that much of the brain is being used at all times. MRAs accomplish this by providing images of blood vessels to the brain. This is important because when a certain area of the brain is being used, blood is supplied to that area. It has been shown time and time again, using these magnetic resonance tests, that many areas of the brain are being used at the same time, well over 10%. 

This is an image of an MRA of the human brain

On the other hand, we also do not use all of our brain at the same time. If every neuron in the brain was firing at the same time, too much information would be processed and your brain would seize. The actual percentage of how much of our brain we use varies, depending on the situation. For example, if we feel threatened, we use more of our brain, and more blood is transported to certain areas of the brain in order to be able to process more information. 

So as for the myth that we only use 10% of our brain: BUSTED