Below you'll find a list of all posts that have been categorized as “genetics”
Oh my am I loving this lecture from the royal institute and Daniel Dennett. It is bringing to life so many of the thoughts and ideas I have had over the years of learning how humans work. How the brain works is just such a fascinating topic and Daniel has taken a unique and engaging approach to presenting his ideas. …
Just WOW!!! After reading this article Scientists Discover That Chromosomes Are Fluid I cannot see genes and chromosomes the same again. Through these experiments, the scientists were able to see that the range of forces exerted naturally in the nucleus – for example by enzymes replicating DNA – is sufficient to substantially alter the conformation of a chromosome. This major …
Here is another approach to exploring horizontal gene transfer If you have created some simple bacteria in a virtual world like Unity3d. They don’t have to be complex, just cells or even just spheres. Get them to move around a petri dish. They could have a nucleus and inside that they have genes as scripts. Each script has an effect like: glow in …
My interest in biology runs so deep I enjoy coming up with my own theories. If you’ve read my blog you’ll find many. Of course what is most exciting is when I find that a theory I have developed from my own experience and logic turns out to be real. The process of horizontal gene transfer is just that and is becoming more …
Just had to log this nugget. Exercise actually produces immediate changes to DNA. The amount of detail in this article is fascinating. Recording the epigenetic changes to muscle after exercise. Learn more about the effect of physical inactivity on disease worldwide References
I’ve had this idea floating in my head for weeks now. So I’m finally getting round to putting down into words. I’m excited to finally express it but I hope I do it justice. Here goes. We’re all aware of the theory of evolution. It makes perfect sense to me how pressure for resources has lead to so much diversity in …
I’m passing this link on because it gives an explanation for the effects of ageing down to the mitochondrial and dna level. It’s a positive message that explains my faith that as I age I can keep my vitality. The findings need to be confirmed but they fit wider research. Just wanted to provide a reference so I don’t forget …
I have been carrying in my head for a while this possible explanation for instincts and how they’re passed on. Thought I’d better note it down. The premise being that DNA is a code much like computer code and so the principles used in passing information between computers may be relevant. The idea revolves around the concept of serializing information which …
Not sure if I’ve made this point clear before so here goes. As I see things there’s a strong possibility that aging and its symptoms could be largely related to levels of activity and the balance it has with nutrition and recovery. The link I see is that old age is linked with both reduced activity and reduced levels of human growth hormone (HGH). HGH encourages …
This talk is a god send for me because it links genetics, what we’re born with, to lifestyle, what we do with what we’ve got, and makes some positive points. I like to push the idea of having fun while being healthy. The idea that we all enjoying doing healthy things we just don’t all know what healthy things we …
I’ve always had an issue with the concept of using identical twins separated at birth as evidence to support any idea that genes determine our personalities. I couldn’t lay my finger on it exactly but just because a bunch of people with identical, or very similar genes seem to end up being similar in some ways. It’s assumed that must …
Sometimes I think we forget that the human gene pool is pretty diverse. Until relatively recently we have survived in many different extremes, desserts, ice belts, tropics, temperate climates. Places where food is scarce, places it’s everywhere. Thus our gene pool should contain abilities to survive on many different diets. In fact I think it’s more likely that many different …
I just feel I’ve made a small break through in my understanding of health and disease and the role DNA plays in it. It’s probably something really obvious that was explained to me years ago but I feel like noting it all the same. It’s really inspired by all the info that I’ve heard over the years and I just …
I just came across a fascinating article which implies that ageing could be primarily controlled by our genes. The only thing we can do about it is control how much we eat. That’s the initial findings anyway. Whether this pans out we’ll see. A good explanation of how this all connects is given.
One thing that does really bug me when science, particularly health science, is reported in the press is that correlations are so often consider evidence of fact. I just read an article titled ‘Vitamins in foods may protect brain‘. Now I do accept the concept that vitamins are likely to help with brain function but I’ object to the way …
In a previous post I put forth the idea that viruses or other organisms that have the ability to inject their DNA into cells may do some good for their hosts and not just bad. Maybe we only hear about the bad ones for example. I then went on to suggest this may help us evolve because it could be …
Ok, heres’s another thing that amazed me when I found it out. I probably learnt it years agon cos I just checked http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/DNA and found it called complementary base pairing which rings a bell to me. Going back over it I see that it’s effectively a binary code. Just like the code that runs in computers. What’s the point then. Well it’s …