Nacario's Digital Scrapbook

• Back in 1999, the Bush administration had been proposing new regulations for GM foods. The USDA also follows up with a voluntary program to separate GM and non GM seeds and crops.
• There had been tests of GM crops by independent and partisan groups to see if there are anything harmful in them. The tests back then show that GM crops have no harm but they do question of long term effects for the people.
• The trade of GM crops on Europe was also a big thing back in the day because European countries demanded labels of GM products. The big proposal of the time was to have all GM products and ingredients labeled back in 1999.
• Article ties with Genetics because of GMOs. We watched videos on GMOs and how they have become the biggest thing in the food industry. One thing we talked about was the public reactions who did not know about GMOs in their daily food.

I chose this article because of it's date and it's topic. The proposition of labels for GM products has now become a demand. Many people now still do not know GM crops are everywhere and most people want to be informed of that. Labels are great to differentiate GM crops from natural crops. But since this article is in '99 and has the same issue of labeling, have we moved forward at all? I don't think so, I think the companies who own GM seeds are trying their best to cover up this whole deal. They do not want people to know what they are eating then and now, and they are committed to that. All the people want to know is what is being used to make their food, and if we do not prefer GM foods, organic is a lot more expensive and some people cannot afford it. This article to me just shows how powerful the food industry is and tells me how long they have kept their act going.
"New Rules Proposed For GMOs » Market to Market." Iowa Public Television. 9 Aug. 2002. Web. 20 May 2010. .
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• Departments and centers like Center fr Food Safety released a report about the environmental hazards of farming with GMO crops.
• herbicide tolerant GMOs also brought HT weeds that farmers counter with strong pesticides and super weeds form as they adapt and evolve.
• GMO seeds are far more expensive than regular seeds and companies stand by it saying that farmers will require less pesticide usage. Ironically, the use of GMO seeds requires even stronger pesticides to kill the super weeds amongst the crops.
• Industries responsible for the creation of GMO seeds have had their assertions proven fale by many scientific reports.
• Saftey of GMOs are in question and one issue is pesticide residue in GMOs. These residues can lead to digestive problems, birth defects, and other side effects when digesting GMOs.
• This particular department says that Americans should demand labeling for any GMO product.
• This relates to curriculum because we saw a video about GMOs and a company called Mon Santo. This company has created GMOs and are selling it across the world. The creation of GMOs are by modifying the crop with chemicals and altering the genetics and cells of a certain crop.

I agree with this article because we have discussed and seen what GMOs can bring to the table. We see that there is significant benefits of GMOs but we may not be as aware of the consequences. Sure we can have a large tomoato or potato or what have you, but at what cost? The super weeds in this article caught my attention and I was very surprised that weeds can take in GMO ingredients. I have been informed that the amount of pesticide use is far more dangerous than what the benefits are. Birth defects, digestion problem, and other side effects from GMO residue does not make a healthy appetite to me and I feel that the entire population in America are buying tricked into thinking GMOs are natural. A label can go a long way and many Americans believe what they are seeing. I say that there should be a label telling people what GMO ingredients there are within a product


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• J. Timothy Lightfoot thinks that genetics can determine if a person is lazy or not.
• He cross bred active and inactive mice and found heredity is within 50% of mice that are active.
• He found that active-promoting genes dominate traits in 75% of the exercises mice love.
• Genes can control muscles differently so they are capable of burning more energy and reducing fatigue.
• There is a discovery that there is an inherited drive to being active or not and a hypothesis has been drawn up that chemicals in the brain are responsible for it.
• This relates to our genetics units because we discuss of how the activation of a gene can do something different in the body even if there is the same DNA.
  

I think that genes play a role in being active or not. However, for humans there are other factors that can determine laziness. Technology dominates our generation with computers, TV, video games, and the result is lack of or no exercise at all. The environment affects all of us and if we were once active and stop because of the exposure to technology, then that does not really prove that genes control laziness. Our mindset can change as well by deciding to be active or not. If we are lazy and there is prom coming up, then it is possible to make up your mind to get in shape, and that is not decided by genes. This article is thinking outside of the box and genes may affect our activeness to a certain degree. However I do think that other factors can determine laziness more than genes.

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• Scientists at Univ. Pennsylvania found a gene called TEX11 in the X chromosome that causes sterility in men.
• Men receive one X chromosome from their mothers and any mutation can lead to sterility.
• Mutations or defects during meiosis are the leading cause of infertility and birth defects. Some of these defects range from color blindness, genetic mutation, and muscle dystrophy.
• Study shows that there is a role for sex chromosomes during meiosis during it's early stages in a male, not the later stages. With TEX11, homologous chromosome fail to pair during meiosis which can result in male infertility.
• This failure during meiosis results in the elimination of spermatocytes in the later stages in meiosis.
• This relates to genetics and our reproductive units. We see in the article the interaction of chromosomes and the mutations that can occur, resulting in infertility. The reference to our reproductive unit is the spermatocytes, the creation of sperm within the testicles.
  

I think that this information can help diagnose men who cannot bear children or may be having difficulties because of a birth defect. This gene, TEX11 can be scene before birth and information like that can help the parents think of "what if" their child cannot have kids. The news may be depressing but it does give the parents time to think and plan their future. Perhaps if more tests are done, gene therapy can be done to remove TEX11 so birth defects are reduced and infertlity is decreased.

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