Analysis Of Scientific c Essay Example for Free

Analysis Of Scientific c Essay The first step in the scientific method is to perform some background research and in the news article (â€Å"Engineers Create New,† 2008). It is implied that this step had been followed because it mentions that other researchers have already made several studies and experiments and have been doing it for several years. It is obvious that the scientists in the current study have performed a background analysis of previous efforts to develop other adhesives. The second step is the formulation of the hypothesis and in this particular news, the hypothesis is whether it is possible to formulate an adhesive that emulates the capability of the hairs on the toes of the gecko lizard that are able to clean themselves without having to use water or chemicals. This would be an interesting result because normally, dirt would stick to an adhesive and it would lose its stickiness in the process. Fearing explains that the ultimate goal is to develop an all-terrain robot that can emulate the gecko lizard that could walk on dirty surfaces along walls and ceilings (â€Å"Engineers Create New,† 2008). The next step in the scientific method is to conduct several experiments to test the hypothesis and the news article provides a rough sketch of the experiments that the engineers had conducted, where they use microfibers made from stiff polymers to represent the toe hairs and microspheres with diameters ranging from three to 10 microns to simulate dirt (â€Å"Engineers Create New,† 2008). After the experiments, an analysis of the results was made, and it was mentioned that it was indeed possible for the microfibers to get rid of some of the dirt after every simulated step of a gecko lizard. As a conclusion, it is indicated that it is possible to make an adhesive that cleans itself but further studies have to be made with other kinds of surfaces because in these experiments, only glass was used. Looking at the scientific soundness of the news article, we can see that there is no mention of the sample size, which is quite common in such kinds of articles. As we can see, this article is lacking in this respect but it could be assumed that this is mentioned in the actual report made by the scientists. As for the control group, there is no specific mention of the researchers actually performing an experiment where common adhesive materials are used instead of the microfibers being studied. The news report is also lacking in this respect but it could have been assumed that it is the common knowledge of the reader that with the usual adhesive, dirt accumulates until it is no longer sticky. In the study, the independent variables are the range of the sizes of the microspheres and the characteristics of the glass surface and the microfibers. The dependent variable is the quantity of microspheres that get deposited on the glass surface every time the simulated step of a gecko is performed on it. Another dependent variable is the adhesion strength of the new adhesive material after several steps have been done. There would be some suspicion of bias in the part of the researchers if a particular result would serve to benefit them. Taken in this light, almost everyone could be suspected of bias but in this study, the scientists are scholars who appear to be genuine in their desires to create something useful for humanity. References University of California Berkeley (2008, September 10). Engineers Create New Gecko-like Adhesive That Shakes Off Dirt. ScienceDaily. Retrieved June 23, 2009, from http://www. sciencedaily. com/releases/2008/09/080910090610. htm

Microbial Health of the Rhizosphere :: Biology Bacteria Science Essays Papers

Microbial Health of the Rhizosphere Works Cited Missing The importance of the interactions between microorganisms, plants and the rhizosphere was realized as early as 1904 by Soil Bacteriologist and Professor of Agronomy at the Technical College of Munich, Lorenz Hiltner. â€Å"The term rhizosphere was introduced by Hiltner in 1904.† (Gobran, 2001) Hiltner â€Å"emphasized the critical role of microbial activities in the ‘rhizosphere’ in the nutrition and general health of plants.† (Curl, 1986) The term rhizosphere was used to â€Å"describe specifically the interaction between bacteria and legume roots.† (Lynch, 1990) Today there is debate among microbiologists and plant scientists regarding the definition of rhizosphere (Curl, 1986). â€Å"Rhizo† is derived from the Greek word â€Å"rhiza,† meaing â€Å"root†. â€Å"Sphere† is â€Å"one’s field of action, influence, or existence: one’s natural surroundings.† (Lynch, 1990 â€Å"Rhizosphere is the zone where root activity significantly influences biological properties.† (Manthey, 1994) There are three main areas of research that are done on the rhizosphere. The first one is the â€Å"influence of roots on microorganisms.† The second is â€Å"influence of microorganisms on plant growth,† and the third is â€Å"rhizosphere influence on soil-borne pathogens and plant disease.† (Curl, 1986) When Hiltner first talked about the rhizosphere in 1904, he stated, â€Å"The nutrition of plant in general certainly depends upon the composition of the soil flora in the rhizosphere†¦If plants have the tendency to attract useful bacteria by their root excretions, it would not be surprising if they would also attract uninvited guests which, like the useful organisms, adapt to specific root excretions.† This speech identified two of the main topics of rhizosphere research: â€Å"(1) the relation of the rhizosphere to plant nutrition, growth, and development, and (2) the influence of rhizosphere phenomena on pathogens and pathogenesis.† (Curl, 1986) It was realized as early as 1904 that rhizosphere microorganisms can cause disease or transmit viruses as well as benefit the plant. There are microorganisms in the bulk soil as well as in the rhizosphere. The microorganisms in the soil include bacteria, fungi, protists, actinomycetes, and nematodes. These microorganisms are not distributed uniformly around the soil; they are congregated around nutrient sources. A nutrient source for these microorganisms is organic matter. (Curl, 1986) In the rhizosphere there are different amounts and types of microorganisms than there are in the bulk soil due to different substrate, or â€Å"the surface on which an organism grows or is attached.† Other factors that vary from rhizosphere to bulk soil are the acidity, moisture, nutrients, electrical conductivity, and redox potential (Lynch, 1990).

The Desert Island Problem

The ss Minnow was a little cruise ship manned by a small crew and several groups of passengers. It was caught in a tropical cyclone which blew it thousands of miles off course for several days. In the second day of the storm, the radio and all communication means were destroyed after the ship had sent out a distress call, expressing the fear that the ship would go down. Many days later, after the ship had been tossed through the South Pacific, the ship ran aground on an island which the Captain realised was a remote and uncharted and probably undiscovered new volcanic island.The implication of all this is that eventual rescue is remote but cannot be ruled out if they survive long enough: search and rescue would be based on the last plotted position thousands of miles away on the belief that the ship may have sunk at that point; the island is not near any trade route. This is before the days of GPS and satellite tracking. The Hapsburg family (a group of six) has lots of money, gold, j ewellery, and are willing to offer these for anything they want. The Doonesbury clan (all twenty of them) brought their own canned food, which will last them a couple of weeks with careful hoarding.The dozen Klungs have, upon coming aground and realizing their situation, enterprisingly gathered all the coconuts on the very small island, and now hold the monopoly on them. The ten Corleone brothers broke into the ship’s store and grabbed all the ship’s food, which will last them two week if they do not share them. The Rotweilers (husband and wife) have a shotgun between them, which can be used to hunt birds for food but which they are threatening to use to hold up the others if they do not get the lion’s share of the available food.They have enough buckshot for three dozen rounds which means that they can kill many of the others but not even half of them. The Clements are the largest group, equal to everyone else put together, but have nothing. The Captain and his trusty First Mate, Gilligan, have fishing tackle from the ship, which hold the key to long term survival by fishing and some flares which will be crucial for getting attention if a plane or ship comes near.They have hidden these in a spot on the island which only they know about. There is a freshwater spring on the island which is the source of drinking water but food shortage will fast put an end to them unless they are rescued (in which case the flares may be crucial), or they use the Captain’s fishing tackle. If all the current food is put together, they may have enough for one, may be two weeks, with a bleak chance of rescue in that time.If some group manages to buy, extort or steal the bulk of the food, they may last longer, five to six weeks with a far greater chance of being found and rescued. The Captain and Gilligan figure they can use their hidden fishing tackle and flares as leverage, but they must persuade the others to cooperate in a scheme that gives them a bes t chance of survival. What is this scheme, and what reasons would you give for adopting it, if you were the Captain and Gilligan? Is moral appeal at all relevant?

Is Child Obesity Child Abuse - 892 Words

Is Child Obesity Child Abuse? The rate of childhood obesity has become a progressive problem. According to A. Jansen, Mulkens, and E. Jansen (2011), neuroscience professors, â€Å"In the United States, about 17% of all children and adolescents are overweight, where as an additional 16.5% are at the risk of becoming overweight† (p. 501). Child obesity has increased drastically in the last few years. A person is considered obese if they posses an abnormally large amount of body fat. Lawyer Sciarani (2010) notes that, if a child is obese, it means that their body mass index is above or at the ninety-fifth percentile for children of the same age and sex. A current arising issue involves child obesity and child abuse. Lang (2010), a bioethics and medical humanities professor, summarizes that child abuse is physical or mental maltreatment of a child. The idea of obesity being child abuse has many different views regarding the medical, parental, and the legal opinion. It is evident t hat different opinions exist in reference to the issue. An analysis of how child obesity is linked to child abuse proposes two issues: is child obesity neglect or is obesity influenced by other factors that individuals are unable to escape, such as genetics. Child obesity is an everyday, societal problem. Some of the medical field views child obesity as neglect; others believe it is not abuse. The medical field believes this issue is abuse, because they face the health related problems these childrenShow MoreRelatedWhat Affects Child Obesity? Essay1397 Words   |  6 PagesWhat Impacts Child Obesity?   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Child obesity is fast growing epidemic throughout the United States, and is becoming a major health concern for the children of today’s society. A child with a BMI (body mass index) greater than 95 percent is considered obese; however, if a child has a BMI of 85, but still less than 95, they are only considered overweight. 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Danielewski, April 11th, 2014. The issue of child abuse dates all the way back to colonial times in 1809 before organized child protection began. Back in this time child abuse wasn’t recognized by people as a serious issue so many people were able to kill children withoutRead MoreResults of Advancements in Technology Essay811 Words   |  4 Pagesbenefit the lives of mankind; thus re-enforcing the positive connotation of technology. However, in long term it may not be beneficial; such as, education, work and leisure are all becoming dependent on technology; cyberspace is dangerous and child obesity is increasing. Education, work and leisure are all progressively becoming dependent on being able to interact with technology. In society today, technology is appreciated and considered to be a valuable addition to civilization. It affects theRead MoreOverweight, and Obesity are Results of Calorie Imbalance779 Words   |  3 Pagesfrom water, bones, muscles, fat or a mixture of them all. Obesity is defined as having excess body fat, they both are results of calorie imbalance. Within the last 30 years adult as well as childhood obesity has increased significantly. Pediatric obesity has become an epidemic within the last 20 years. At the present time 31% of adults and 18% of children are obese. Body Mass Index is used to diagnose a child as being obese. Most often obesity represents an improper balance in calories ingested andRead MoreParenting Styles Have Impact On Society1096 Words   |  5 Pagesmessages, body language, conversations, actions and the different styles of parenting. Various parent ing styles continue to reflect the different patterns in parental behaviours. These are influenced in their family environments in which both parents and child live in. Individuals who come from families of a single - parent are more acceptable to responsibility, decision making and independence than an individual that resides in a dual-parent home (Pearson, 2009). Researchers continue to support the assumptionRead MoreArgumentative Research Paper On Childhood Obesity1555 Words   |  7 Pages Argumentative Research Paper: Childhood Obesity Issac Jones ECPI University ENG 120 Advanced Composition M. Barnes June 11, 2017 Health has become a very popular topic in today’s society; how to lose weight, healthy body mass index, proper foods to eat to give your body nutrition, certain exercises to help lose weight here or gain muscle there, lower prices for a gym memberships, it seems to be a topic we are hearing about all the time now. However,