Global Warming....Global Warning

Living organisms survive in an intimate relationship with their environment - EARTH

               The world’s glaciers are gradually melting while the Arctic sea ice has steadily shrunk in size. Increase ocean heat content causes ocean water to expand rising the sea level from 4-10 inches to three feet during the next 100 years. A average of 50 to 100 feet of beach is lost for every foot of sea level rise causing more coastal flooding and economic losses. Warmer seas have produced numerous stronger tropical storms and hurricanes in unusual times of the year. Water warmer than normal by two degrees in the Pacific resulted to the death of microscopic algae that feed the corals (coral bleaching). Many species have migrated to safer grounds or gone extinct because they cannot withstand the changes in their habitat. Warmer temperatures have allowed mosquitoes that carry dengue and malaria to expand and invade new habitat beyond their range, producing unusual outbreaks. As the climate heats up, droughts are expected to occur and become severe in already dry habitats with trees, crops, and other plants more prone to pests infestations. Climatologists announced that the earth's temperature has gone up between 0.6° to 0.9°C over the last 50 years. The effects of global warming are already being felt worldwide as seen by the overwhelming news articles, TV reports, and documentaries. Over the last five years, about 600 scientists have examined thousand of studies from scientific journals to industry publications related to global warming. Their thorough study of the accumulated knowledge we have of global warming made them announce that the warming of the earth is undisputable and that the warming signs are real. Global warming is not some kind of a future fear because all the warning signs are happening now.
         Global warming is a long term issue - its effect are not immediately felt many people do not pay attention. Most people respond only to immediate and catastrophy events. As a consequence it remains unchecked. The long term effects and deadly consequences of global warming pose an ethical question to each of us, "How much are we willing to sacrifice for benefits that may not be realized in our lifetimes but could greatly improve the lives of future generations of all species that share our planet with us?

ONE DROP OF BLOOD...... A Trace of Evidence

One drop of blood

                         Do you know that just one drop of blood is sufficient to convict someone of a crime. One drop of blood has enough DNA to identify a certain individual. A forensic scientist is an expert who analyses, identifies and interprets evidence connected with a crime. Aside from blood, a person's fingerprints or hair strand can be used to examine evidence from the scene of the crime. One of the newest techniques of analyzing identification evidence through a person's body samples is called DNA fingerprinting, also known as DNA profiling, is a technique to identify criminals through the analysis of the genetic material, DNA. With the exception of identical twins, the complete DNA profile of each individual is unique. The techniques based on the theory that it is extremely unlikely that two people would possess identical DNA.

                          DNA testing was originally developed for medical purposes in order to detect the presence of genetically inherited diseases. The technique is also used to settle paternity disputes -  that is, to determine the biological father of a child. The uses of DNA fingerprinting have expanded to include criminal investigation and forensic science. It was in 1987 that DNA fingerprinting was first used in criminal investigation in the United Kingdom. The most common type of DNA fingerprinting is called restriction fragment length polymorphism (RFLP). In order to obtain a DNA "fingerprint", DNA is first extracted from the body tissue and fluid, such as blood, hair strand or saliva. Technicians use a chemical called restriction enzyme to divide the DNA into fragments. The fragments are then separated according to the size by the laboratory technique called electrophoresis. The separated fragments form a pattern of dozens of parallel bonds that reflect the composition of the DNA. In principle, the pattern produced will always be the same for the same person. It is estimated that there are more than 10 billion possible patterns. Thus, many expert believe it is virtually impossible that the DNA pattern of one person would match that of another. Despite the controversy over the reliability of the method, it has become an accepted means of identification in courts. So the next time you brush your hair, think about it, you might be leaving traces of evidence behind.

OSMOSIS: A way of Preserving Food

                The term osmosis is sounds very technical at first encounter and may seem to have no practical in day to day living. But did you know that the concept of osmosis is being used by food manufacturers in the preservation of many foods? Even our mother uses it at home to preserve fruits and vegetables.

                The need to store food is important to humans for future consumption especially when food is in short supply. Preserving food is also important for food manufacturers to extend the food's shelf life. Unfortunately, microorganisms like bacteria, molds, and fungi attack stored foods causing food spoilage. The presence of moisture and warmer temperatures on stored foods are suitable conditions for microbes to grow. They absorb and utilize the substances found in the stored food for their growth.As a result, stored food attacked by these microorganisms produces undesirable taste and smell, changes color, and may cause stomach upset when eaten.

                 One way of preventing food spoilage is to store foods in strong salt solutions (brine) or in sugar solution (syrup). These solutions contain concentrated amounts of solutes (salts and sugar) and are hypertonic to the cytoplasm of microorganisms. Brine and syrup solutions can cause the removal of water from the cytoplasm resulting in dehydration  followed by death of the invading microbes. Such removal of water is involved in the process of osmosis. Pork, beef, and fish are some of the food stored in brine. Fruits are often preserved in syrup.

                  The principle behind longer shelf life of preserved food involves OSMOSIS....