HUMAN body project
This our first and only project during this unit. We chose an organ in the human body and researched it. I was drawn to the Nervous System because of its incredible role in the body; It controls all your thoughts and actions. The brain has always fascinated me. The fact that your brain can be read, understood, and tweaked always made me look at my future in Neuroscience. In this project we created a presentation and model of the nervous system including examples of its functions in a simulated environment. Our plan is to use a red-board, Arduino code, and lights/wiring to indicate the affected areas of the nervous system during our representation.
Preliminary presentation
Finalized presentation
MAterials
- Skeleton Model
- Arduino Kit
- Wires
- Pre-programmed LED strip
- Computer
vocabulary
Neuron - A cell that processes and transmits information through electrical and chemical signals
Axon - Is an extension in a neuron that conducts electrical impulses away from the neuron's cell body
Synapse - Is a junction that authorizes communications and signals to other neurons.
Brain - Is the coordinating center of all intellectual, sensational, and nervous activity
Spinal Cord - Slender bundle of nervous tissue that connects from the brain to peripheral nerves
Peripheral System(PNS) - A network of sensory and motor nerves that link the Brain and Spinal Cord to the whole body
Autonomic System(ANS) - Division of the PNS that influences and regulates the subconscious bodily functions
Sensory Neuron - Transmits and conveys sensory information (sight, sound, feeling etc.) to the Brain
Interneuron - Transmits signals between other neurons, most used as part of the Reflex Arc
Motor Neuron - A nerve cell forming a pathway to convey impulses from the Brain or Spinal Cord to effectors
Axon - Is an extension in a neuron that conducts electrical impulses away from the neuron's cell body
Synapse - Is a junction that authorizes communications and signals to other neurons.
Brain - Is the coordinating center of all intellectual, sensational, and nervous activity
Spinal Cord - Slender bundle of nervous tissue that connects from the brain to peripheral nerves
Peripheral System(PNS) - A network of sensory and motor nerves that link the Brain and Spinal Cord to the whole body
Autonomic System(ANS) - Division of the PNS that influences and regulates the subconscious bodily functions
Sensory Neuron - Transmits and conveys sensory information (sight, sound, feeling etc.) to the Brain
Interneuron - Transmits signals between other neurons, most used as part of the Reflex Arc
Motor Neuron - A nerve cell forming a pathway to convey impulses from the Brain or Spinal Cord to effectors
Medicine plant lab
This project was supposed to be a fun experiment giving us the chance to use many different types of lab equipment. I was personally very excited and looking forward to my second biotech experiment. Our class prepared for this experiment by watching educational videos, and receiving a lecture about the significance and history of medicine. This was a rare type of project where we got to emulate a real world problem without any abstract concepts and unanswered questions. Testing plant materials for e-coli is very specific and had distinct variables, controls, and data values to work with. But due to insufficient information, overall confusion, absence of professional lab equipment, and extreme inexperience made it a lot more intimidating and broad.
materials
- Orange leaves
- Bunsen Burner
- Maches
- Alcohol
- Agar plate
- Mortar and Pestle
- Filter paper disks
- Plastic funnels
- 10 mL syringe
- Reaction tubes
- Methanol
- Ampicillin
- Glass spreader
- Distilled water
procedure
Grind up 2 grams of plant tissue from leaves or bark with your mortar and pestle with 10 mL of de-ionized water. Then filter the sample through the 11 cm filter paper funnel. With a syringe filter, sterilize the sample extract. Get 1 mL of the extract into a 1.7 mL microbe. Do step 4 again, but replaced the deionized water with methanol. After you extract the methanol, place the 1.7 mL tube with the extract in a 65˚C heat block and to evaporate the methanol.
Sterilization: Attach pre-filter to syringe and rinse with water. Take to Laminar Hood. Attach sterile filter to pre-filter. Load 1.7 ml of extract into syringe using pipet. Depress plunger- at least 1 ml. Snap on cap without touching inside. For the rest of your samples, do steps 4 and 5 again, making sure to label all samples. There should be 2 tubes in total.
Evaporate methanol from methanol extract by placing tube, with cap open, on a 65 C heat block overnight.
Reconstitute methanol extract with 1.0 ml sterile deionized water. With sterilized forceps that have been flamed in alcohol, drop 3 filter paper disks into every tube of filtered extract.
Make the negative control disks: three each of only the methanol and only the distilled water. Make 2 positive control disks of the ampicillin solution.
Let the disks soak up enough extract to be saturated. This may have to happen overnight.
Sterile disks were added to microfuge tubes containing 1 mL sterile water and 1 mL ampicillin.
10-20 mL of warmed nutrient agar was poured into 2 petri dishes using sterile technique. Close all the tubes, and leave the samples at 4˚C.
With a sterile pipet, transfer 1 mL of the prepared e-coli broth to the middle of the Petri dish. Sterilize the spreader with alcohol and flame, then spread the broth evenly across the dish.
With sterile forceps, place one disk into the middle of each quadrant. Keep the methanol-extracted samples separated from the water samples.
Incubate the petri dish at 37˚C overnight. Next day: look at each quadrant for effected areas. Record results
Sterilization: Attach pre-filter to syringe and rinse with water. Take to Laminar Hood. Attach sterile filter to pre-filter. Load 1.7 ml of extract into syringe using pipet. Depress plunger- at least 1 ml. Snap on cap without touching inside. For the rest of your samples, do steps 4 and 5 again, making sure to label all samples. There should be 2 tubes in total.
Evaporate methanol from methanol extract by placing tube, with cap open, on a 65 C heat block overnight.
Reconstitute methanol extract with 1.0 ml sterile deionized water. With sterilized forceps that have been flamed in alcohol, drop 3 filter paper disks into every tube of filtered extract.
Make the negative control disks: three each of only the methanol and only the distilled water. Make 2 positive control disks of the ampicillin solution.
Let the disks soak up enough extract to be saturated. This may have to happen overnight.
Sterile disks were added to microfuge tubes containing 1 mL sterile water and 1 mL ampicillin.
10-20 mL of warmed nutrient agar was poured into 2 petri dishes using sterile technique. Close all the tubes, and leave the samples at 4˚C.
With a sterile pipet, transfer 1 mL of the prepared e-coli broth to the middle of the Petri dish. Sterilize the spreader with alcohol and flame, then spread the broth evenly across the dish.
With sterile forceps, place one disk into the middle of each quadrant. Keep the methanol-extracted samples separated from the water samples.
Incubate the petri dish at 37˚C overnight. Next day: look at each quadrant for effected areas. Record results
Result: Evidence
Analysis
Our group succeeded somewhat and received sufficient results to observe. However, many groups had inconclusive results due to much confusion and interfering variables that altered the result. These things could have been easily avoided if everyone had taken the project more seriously. Overall I felt as if I had squandered a perfectly good opportunity, but I realize the importance of learning from you and your peer's past mistakes.
Conclusion
This project was very hard to do in my opinion because of its sophisticated procedure and length. This was our longest project by far and many steps had to be repeated. Even though we prepared for this type of project, the final result was very confusing and it was a bit difficult to analyze everything, and observe the important parts. As a class, we missed the big picture of the project. Even though this project emphasized one of the low points in the year, I learned a lot about preliminary preparation, in depth analysis, and some helpful observational skills. I learned time management is a very crucial part of my high school (and post high school) career, but especially vital in big projects/presentations.