My last blog: Chapter 7-11

Chapter 7: The title of this chapter caught my attention and I became very eager to learn more about what Shubin had to say about our body. Shubin compares our body with a house that is coming together spontaneously from informatino from bricksa where as our bodies come together with cells. I really liked this comparison becaue it allows the readers to get a clear view of how our body is made. Shubin later in the chpater goes more in depth with how our cells and the glue that keeps them attached interact with each other and "talk" to each other, and the molecules make up our cells. Shubin explains that Precambrian literally means "before life" showing us that they too have a biological organziation as explained in chapter 6. What really cuaght my attention was when Shubin explained about the collagen and streptococcus bacteria which is common in our mouths. Shubin even goes in depth to explain that our bodies need energy to grow and collegan needs oxygen and because the oxygen level was very low for billions of years, microbes learned to eat each other.

Chapter 8: The title of this chapter was very interesting to me and extremely unique. I enjoyed reading this chapter becuase i was able to get an insight about the functions of the nose. Well, is a nose jsut an organ or something more. Without breath its claustrophobic but, to find out how the organ works was very educational. I have more respect for my body now. My memories take me back when I had experienced the Body Works exhibit and learnt about our nose. Reading this chapter has helped me connect the dots. I found it very interesting that "eacg smell is composed of many different molecules attaching to differnt receptors" and our brain perceives them as one smell. Of course, Shubin will connect our nose to the nose of a fish, and explain how smelll gets connected with tissues to later connect with neurons. The history of dormant genes in a dolphin, transition from no longer necessary to perform the function of being able to smell and are replaced by a blowhole is extremely suprising.

Chapter 9: The chapter was very self explanatory which the information presented. Shubin explains how light travels through cornear that covers our lens. Much of the process of the images happens inside the brain, the eye merely catches light. The amount of light that can enter is controlled by the iris then allowing the light to pass through tiny muscles that contract and change the lens's shape to focus. Monkey's have a very detailed kind of color vision that allows them to view different kinds of lights, however, other mammals have only a specific kind of light that their eyes are tuned to see in. I was in awe to learn that Polychaets have two kinds of sensing organs. The amazing recipe of construction of the eye helps us understand commonalities and differences in comparing species as well as gentic facts.

Chapter 10: To me learning aobut ears was not as interesting as learning about eyes, however, Shubin managed to keep me engaged throughout the chapter. I was intrigued by learning aobut mammals and their three ear bones, when Shubin explained that having this feature they are able to hear at a higher-frequency sounds where as other animals that only have one ear bone, can only hear so much. Shubin also explained that the staples is a second arch bone along with hyomandibula. There are tiny hairlike projections and specialized nerve cells inside our ear that help us perceive sound. The image of a snow globe was extermely helpful in being able to visualize the accelaration that occurs in our ears and also helps us balance. This concept was interesting to me because the whole system is connected to our eye muscles. Of course, Shubin will connect our ear to the ear of a fish, in the sense that Pax 2 is active in the head and the neuromasts.

Chapter 11: I could connect to Shubin and the fact that everything had parents. Meaning that everything derieved from somthing else and I enjoyed reading the example, that you are standing in a room filled with unknown people, how would you determine their relation. Also if you were to walk through a zoo you would find that you are in some way connected or resemble each animal there. It was extermely eye opening to learn that talking is not cheap. In the sense that human larynx is made up of mostly gill arch cartilages adn therefore our throats are very complex features in our body. I was shocked to learn that a men are more likely to get a hernia rather than women because in a female's body wallg through pregnancy and childbirth. Also the fact that diseases are bacteria was really something different to me, but it made sense through the exsistence of mitrochondria in our cells. This book has truely been very educational and interesting to learn from. At first, I was uncertain how Shubin will be able to connect our human body to a fish, but as I read the book I was able to learn.