Dissection Project Reflection
For this project we dissected dead animals to gain a better understanding of the structure of their body. I decided to dissect a cat with my partner for the reason that I do not care for cats, excluding kittens, and they were already dead before. Through dissection I learned how disgusting the inside of an animal is, also how unique it is. Such a small mammal compared to us but yet they function just as well or better. They have a tiny heart and yet it is still able to function well in most cases. It is so amazing, and yet disgusting, how the kidneys filter blood and produce urine to be transported out of the body. What I learned about myself during dissection is that dead thing that are cut open are very interesting but at the same time gross. Being able to look inside of a dead cat and knowing that a lot of the things in there are in you as well.
Honey Bee Project Reflection
Honey bees are a really important species that are a big part in what food we eat. They pollinate the plants as they are still growing and help them to grow. Without honey bees we would lose a large portion of the types of foods in our diet due to the fact that they are the main way we pollinate our crops. We should be concerned about our honey bees because without them we would not be able to grow many crops. Today, honey bees are slowly dying off due to CCD (Colony Collapse Disorder). Each day we lose more and more of our honey bees due to the use of GMO seeds and pesticides poisoning the bees. We need to stop this if we want to keep our bees alive and well.
For this project I chose to focus on the jobs and caste system of the bees. From research I learned that the jobs or caste of each bee, for the most part, depends on the age of the bee. Also that the Queen bee is only different from the worker bees because they are on a strict diet of royal jelly that apparently allows the reproduction system of the bee to fully develop. Another thing I learned is that all worker bees are female and, besides mating with the Queen bee, drones are useless. Drones only purpose in life is to mate with the Queen bee and dies when it does. For exhibition my partner and I produced a board game that shows how a bee finds a flower by its scent. If a flower has not been pollinated it is hard to find and when it is found the bee returns to the nest and does a little dance to inform the hive. For this project I am most proud of the work effort I put into the making of the board game. Although I worked hard on the game itself I wish I could have spent more time on the idea when we first start to make the final product more refined and interesting.
For this project I chose to focus on the jobs and caste system of the bees. From research I learned that the jobs or caste of each bee, for the most part, depends on the age of the bee. Also that the Queen bee is only different from the worker bees because they are on a strict diet of royal jelly that apparently allows the reproduction system of the bee to fully develop. Another thing I learned is that all worker bees are female and, besides mating with the Queen bee, drones are useless. Drones only purpose in life is to mate with the Queen bee and dies when it does. For exhibition my partner and I produced a board game that shows how a bee finds a flower by its scent. If a flower has not been pollinated it is hard to find and when it is found the bee returns to the nest and does a little dance to inform the hive. For this project I am most proud of the work effort I put into the making of the board game. Although I worked hard on the game itself I wish I could have spent more time on the idea when we first start to make the final product more refined and interesting.
Research Notes:
Topic: Jobs/castes of the bees
Skylar:
#1
Citation: Spannhoff, Astrid, Yong Kee Kim, Noel JM Raynal, Vazganush Gharibyan, Ming-Bo Su, Yue-Yang Zhou, Jia Li, Sabrina Castellano, Gianluca Sbardella, Jean-Pierre J. Issa, and Mark T. Bedford. "Histone Deacetylase Inhibitor Activity in Royal Jelly Might Facilitate Caste Switching in Bees." - Spannhoff. 18 Feb. 2011. Web. 17 Apr. 2015.
Summary:
Evaluation:
Evidence:
“The queen larva, however, remains on a royal-jelly diet and is fed it in abundance.”, “This diet results in a queen bee that is morphologically, behaviourally and physiologically distinct from her worker-bee counterparts, and also has a prolonged lifespan; at least 20 times longer than a regular worker-bee (Winston, 1987).”, and “ In other social insects such as ants, termites and some wasps, it is less clear how a selective diet or the environment leads to caste determination (Schwander et al, 2010).” (paragraph 1).
#2
Citation: "Honey Bee Castes." West Mountain Apiary. WMA, Web. 4 Apr. 2015.
Summary:
Evaluation:
Evidence:
“Technically that means they have a grandfather, but no father. Since all sperm cells produced by any one drone are genetically identical, sisters (known as super sisters) are more closely related than full sisters of other animals where every sperm is genetically not identical.” “Drones are not able to mate until about 16 days of age.” “All bees, including the drones, will work to bring the hive temperature back within normal hive limits when they sense a deviation in temperature. Another side benefit is the varroa mite prefers the larger drone brood as it guarantees a longer development period for its own offspring. The number of varroa mites can be kept in check by removing the capped drone brood and destroying it either through freezing or heating the brood comb.” “Workers, like the queen, have 2 sets of chromosomes (32), one set (16) from their mother and one set (16) from their father.”
#3
Citation: Cassino, Mark. "Honey Bee Apis Mellifera." Honey Bee. Web. 21 Apr. 2015.
Summary:
Evaluation:
Evidence:
“A single hive can have up to 80,000 bees, mostly workers.” “Honey Bees eat nectar and pollen from flowers. Nectar is the liquid in a flower, and pollen is a powdery substance which must be transferred from one flower to another to make more flowers. Larvae eat honey.” “After she makes new queens, she will leave the nest with some workers to start a new hive.” “When a bee finds a good place with lots of flowers, she marks the spot with a scent.”
Skylar:
#1
Citation: Spannhoff, Astrid, Yong Kee Kim, Noel JM Raynal, Vazganush Gharibyan, Ming-Bo Su, Yue-Yang Zhou, Jia Li, Sabrina Castellano, Gianluca Sbardella, Jean-Pierre J. Issa, and Mark T. Bedford. "Histone Deacetylase Inhibitor Activity in Royal Jelly Might Facilitate Caste Switching in Bees." - Spannhoff. 18 Feb. 2011. Web. 17 Apr. 2015.
Summary:
- Queen bees and worker bees are genetically indistinguishable. Queen bees are larger, more fertile, and have a longer lifespan.
- Larvae are fed royal jelly the first 3 days of their life. Queen bees are fed royal jelly throughout their life.
- Royal jelly has a direct influence on gene expression and development.
Evaluation:
- Some interesting information that I learned is that all larvae are fed royal jelly for the first three days of their life. According to the article “Histone deacetylase inhibitor activity in royal jelly might facilitate caste switching in bees”, all larvae are fed royal jelly for the first three days of their lives and queen bees are fed royal jelly throughout their lives because it has a direct influence on gene expression and development. This is also true for mammals (paragraph 2)
- This article gives really good information that will help us develop our project, such as how the caste system starts at early ages for the bees. “For the first 3 days of life, all larvae are fed royal jelly, a substance composed of a mixture of hypopharyngeal and mandibular-gland secretions that is made by nurse bees.” (paragraph 1). Meaning that all bees are fed royal jelly at the start of their lives and that if a female bee is fed royal jelly for its whole life it will surely become a queen bee and pick up all the traits of one. Also that the caste system of each hive only continues because it is self sustaining.
Evidence:
“The queen larva, however, remains on a royal-jelly diet and is fed it in abundance.”, “This diet results in a queen bee that is morphologically, behaviourally and physiologically distinct from her worker-bee counterparts, and also has a prolonged lifespan; at least 20 times longer than a regular worker-bee (Winston, 1987).”, and “ In other social insects such as ants, termites and some wasps, it is less clear how a selective diet or the environment leads to caste determination (Schwander et al, 2010).” (paragraph 1).
#2
Citation: "Honey Bee Castes." West Mountain Apiary. WMA, Web. 4 Apr. 2015.
Summary:
- Stages of a queen and what exactly it does.
- Each castes’ job and how at a certain age worker bees can do any job but normally do the one that it fits its age.
- Seasons in which things are ran differently.
- What every bee does and how the queen bee is the most important.
- Reproduction of bees.
Evaluation:
- This source will definitely help us with our project because it gives more information on how the caste system works and what happens to each type of bee at each age of the bees. Also what happens during different seasons. Some interesting information that I learned was that when fall comes the drones are driven out of the hive to die because they are pretty much useless (paragraph 5 section Drones).
- Another thing that this source gives is new ideas for this project. “Queens can live for 5 years, though they are generally replaced in managed hives every other year as their egg laying capability diminishes over time due to depletion of their sperm bank. Due to pesticide use, she may live as little as 6 months, necessitating vigilance on the beekeepers part.” From this passage I came up with some new ideas/rules for a boardgame. Such as after about a year (in game) the queen bee loses the amount of possible eggs to be produced each turn or so. The queen after six months (in game) would also have a higher chance of dying. This would increase the reasons of preparing a younger queen to replace the older one.
Evidence:
“Technically that means they have a grandfather, but no father. Since all sperm cells produced by any one drone are genetically identical, sisters (known as super sisters) are more closely related than full sisters of other animals where every sperm is genetically not identical.” “Drones are not able to mate until about 16 days of age.” “All bees, including the drones, will work to bring the hive temperature back within normal hive limits when they sense a deviation in temperature. Another side benefit is the varroa mite prefers the larger drone brood as it guarantees a longer development period for its own offspring. The number of varroa mites can be kept in check by removing the capped drone brood and destroying it either through freezing or heating the brood comb.” “Workers, like the queen, have 2 sets of chromosomes (32), one set (16) from their mother and one set (16) from their father.”
#3
Citation: Cassino, Mark. "Honey Bee Apis Mellifera." Honey Bee. Web. 21 Apr. 2015.
Summary:
- Description of bees and what they look like.
- How and where they get their food.
- Each type and job of bee.
- How the bees have a mutual relationship with flowers (both benefit).
- Traveling and Defense of bee.
Evaluation:
- This source was helpful in that it gave basic information about bees that I did not know and is important to add to our project. “When a bee finds a good place with lots of flowers, she marks the spot with a scent.” (Cassino). This will help us develop our board game to be much more of a learning experience that you enjoy. It will be a game that you don’t think you learn anything from it but learn a lot.
- For this project I have new ideas that sprouted through reading this. “Honey Bees eat nectar and pollen from flowers. Nectar is the liquid in a flower, and pollen is a powdery substance which must be transferred from one flower to another to make more flowers. Larvae eat honey.” This quote gives me the idea to add currency to the board game in a way. You would need to search for flowers and when you find them you could assign bees to collect pollen and nectar from them. If only one flower is assigned to a bee the flower could not grow back or spread its pollen to other places, decreasing growth of flowers. Also since the bees eat honey in the winter when there is no food and the larvae eat honey, honey would also be a factor in ‘currency’.
Evidence:
“A single hive can have up to 80,000 bees, mostly workers.” “Honey Bees eat nectar and pollen from flowers. Nectar is the liquid in a flower, and pollen is a powdery substance which must be transferred from one flower to another to make more flowers. Larvae eat honey.” “After she makes new queens, she will leave the nest with some workers to start a new hive.” “When a bee finds a good place with lots of flowers, she marks the spot with a scent.”