Unit 2 Reflection

     In this unit, we learned about basic chemistry, macromolecules, and enzymes.  An example of basic chemistry we learned were atoms and how they behave.  We also learned that the four main macromolecules are carbohydrates, lipids, protein, and nucleic acids.  Lastly, we learned about how enzymes function.  For example, the productivity of an enzyme may be because of pH or temperature.  The unit question was "How does increasing molecular complexity serve as the building blocks for life?"  The main theme for Unit 2 was for biologists to get a good understanding about what is happening to molecules on a molecular level.

 

     In this unit, we completed two labs: the Sweetness Lab and the Cheese Lab.  The two labs tested the concepts we learned in our vodcasts.  The labs are a good way to understand how the concept works because it provides a good example about the concept and we can see the concept happen.  Only learning the concepts will not help as much as if we did hands-on activities and get involved with how the concepts really work.  During this unit, many of the strengths I had includes learning the material from the vodcast and apply them by conducting labs.  A weakness I had in this unit is that I did not understand the concept clearly, so when the lab was running, I did not understand how everything was working.  During the labs which tested the concepts I did not understand clearly, I did not learn as much as if I fully understood the concept so I could think about how the lab would proceed.

     From the experiments from Unit 2, I could have changed many things to make the next unit run smoother.  The first thing is that I could review each nights vodcast before coming to class so I understand the material well enough to run an experiment on that topic.  Then, the next day I could prepare questions for Mr. Orre.  I could prepare questions about anything I do not understand such as concepts and specific details.  If I come to class more prepared and knowing about the topic about the vodcast better, I can fully understand or understand the lab that is conducted because I know the material.  I think that I am a better student today because I know how to prepare for the next unit.

     In Unit 2, we learned about many topics and we only spent a little bit of time for only a little bit of the concept.  Instead of learning about specific things only such as enzymes, I would like to know more about the bigger picture so it could be more relatable to life instead of just a concept I learned in biology class.  I am interested in how enzymes and proteins work.  Since I am a boy, I would like the have a good amount of muscle mass during my young age.  I would like to know more about how proteins work when you do a workout such as weightlifting or just doing workouts with your body weight.  I would like to know what happens to your muscles during a workout and how do they replenish to make more muscle.

Sweetness Lab Conclusion

     The purpose of this lab was to test if the structure of the carbohydrate affects the taste (sweetness).  Based on my prior knowledge to this experiment, I can form a hypothesis "If monosaccharide have greater sweetness than disaccharides and polysaccharides, then fructose will be the sweetest carbohydrate.  After our group ran the lab, the data suggested that fructose was the sweetest carbohydrate.  On a scale of 1-200, fructose ranked the highest out of all the carbohydrates our group tested.  Fructose was the sweetest with a rating of 185, glucose with 150, sucrose with 100, maltose with 90, galactose with 75, lactose with 50, starch with 5, and cellulose with 0.  From collecting information in step two, our group made an assumption that fructose would be the sweetest because of the function.  Fructose is commonly added into foods and drinks for palatablity, taste enhancements, and improved browning on different foods.  After collecting information about different carbohydrates in step two and conducting the Sweetness Lab, our evidence strongly suggested that the fructose is the sweetest carbohydrates.  Before the experiment, our group collected information about each carbohydrate.  The information includes what type of carbohydrate it is, what it looks like, and the function of each carbohydrate.  After collecting information, I guessed that fructose would be the sweetest carbohydrate because the function of the carbohydrate was the make food palatable and to enhance the taste of the food.  After collecting data from our lab, the evidence suggested that fructose is the sweetest because it ranked the highest on the scale of 1-200.  Fructose ranked the highest with a rank of 185 and glucose ranked second with a rank of 150.

     There are three different types of carbohydrates.  The three carbohydrates are monosaccharide, disaccharide, and polysaccharide.  All three types of carbohydrates have the word saccharide.  The prefix in front of the saccharide are mono, di, and poly.  All three of these prefixes have different meanings.  Mono, means one, di means two, and poly means many or multiple.  From this given information, you can tell the definitions of the three carbohydrates.  Monosaccharide means one ring, disaccaride means two rings, and polysaccharide means three or more rings.  From the lab, the monosaccharides held higher scores, the disaccharides held the middle scores, and the polysaccharides held the lowest scores.  I can conclude from this that one ring of carbohydrates are the sweetest.  Also, I can conclude that more rings will equal to less sweet or more bland.  For example, starch held a low score of 50.  Starch can be found in potatoes and potatoes are not sweet.  The structure of the carbohydrate matters because the less rings there are, the more sweet the carbohydrate will be.

     The testers in my group did not give all the same scores.  There are three reasons why our group varied scores.  The first reason could be the amount of the carbohydrate the person tasted.  One person could of tasted a lot and another person could taste a little bit.  The second reason could be the order of the carbohydrates that are tasted.  If we tested the carbohydrates in the sweetest first, the starch would be lower that it should be.  The third reason could be that each person has a different opinion of how sweet something.  Each person has tried different things and could be use to sweets so they would give a lesser score.

     According to PudMed Health, the reason why humans taste sweetness is because of the derivatives of sugar such as fructose or lactose.  Also, other things could activate the sensory cells that responds to sweetness.  This includes protein building blocks such as amino acids.  Different people in my group varied their scores because each person might have more or less sensory cells to trigger the sensation of sweetness.

What is Biology? Collage

Jean Lab Conclusion Essay

     In this lab we asked the question "What concentration of bleach is the best to fade the color out of new denim material in ten minutes without visible damage to the fabric?"  Our group found out that the solution with 100% bleach removed the most color without fading much of the denim jeans.  During our groups experiment, we rated the color removal and fabric damage from a scale to 0-10, zero being the least and ten being the most.  The following data will show how much color was removed from the denim jeans: the 100% bleach solution had an average of an 8.5, the 50% bleach solution had an average of 6.67, the 25% solution had an average of 5.83, the 12.5% bleach solution had an average of 2, and the solution containing only water did 0, no color removal.  Now that our group knows how much color was removed, we can now see how badly the denim jeans we damaged.

The following data shows the averages of fabric damage: the 100% bleach solution was rated 3.67, the 50% bleach solution was rated the same 3.67, the 25% bleach solution was rated 3.33, and the only water solution did 0, no fabric damage.  This data supports our claim because our hypothesis matched up with the data from the experiment.  Our groups hypothesis was "If bleach breaks down color, then the blue color from the denim jeans will fade."  Our hypothesis stated that the bleach will fade the jean color the most.  From our experiment, the 100% bleach solution faded the most without damaging much of the denim.  In conclusion from our lab, the data supported our hypothesis because our group thought that the solution with 100% bleach would remove the most color and from the lab, the 100% bleach did remove most color without much fabric damage.

     While our hypothesis was supported by our data, there could have been errors in our lab due to equal amounts of time for each jean in bleach and the type of denim for each trial.  The time that the jeans were actually in the bleach were not 100% accurate throughout the whole experiment.  Some jeans would stay in the solution for a minute and a few seconds over because the person taking out the jeans did not take out all three of the denim squares exactly when the time ended.  Also, the person putting the denim squares did not put in the jeans in the solution exactly when the timer started.  The other problem with our experiment was that from the start, our group did not cut out exactly the same piece of denim for all 25 jean squares.

Our group started out with one pair of jeans and cut out 25 5x5 cm squares from different parts of the jeans.  Some of the squares we from the ankle part and some other ones could be from the pocket area of the jeans.  The 5x5 cm denim squares were not all the same piece of denim, so this problem could of altered our experiment results.  Putting the jeans in the bleach solution in the exact time would change the results because if all the jeans were in the solution for one minute exactly, it would be one result.  However, our denim squares were in the solution for around one minute and five seconds.  The difference of five seconds could of changed the outcome of the results.  Also, the jeans being the same exact denim would alter the results because with the same kind of denim, the denim would react the same way versus different parts of the jeans acting in all kinds of ways.  Due to these errors, in future experiments I would recommend having better coordination with time keeper and the person putting the jeans in the bleach.  I would also recommend buying similar types of jeans from one brands such as Levi's.

   

This lab was done to demonstrate how to properly conduct an experiment.  This lab was also to determine if bleach would make jeans a different color.  From this lab I learned how to apply the experiment part of the scientific method.  Conducting a real experiment helped me understood the concept of the scientific method more than just learning it from the teacher and the textbook because it the experiment provided a real reason for why a scientist would use the scientific method.  Based on my experience from this lab, I will have a better idea of how to conduct an experiment properly.  Conducting an experiment properly is a vital part of the scientific method because all the data must be accurate to draw reasonable conclusions.