Beetles

Beetles make up nearly 1/5 of the worlds living species. There are about 800,000 insect species on Earth and a little over half of them are beetles. Beetles have a pair of protective wings that help them fly and protect there bodies from their prey, these wings are called elytra. Beetles come in different shapes and sizes and range from ladybugs to June bugs. They also range in size from a little over a millimeter to over six inches long. The earliest beetles date back to over 23o million years ago. The word beetle comes from the Latin word "scarabaeus" literally meaning beetle. Beetles and other insects are part of the anthropod family. There is so much information I didn't include in my blog about beetles that you can check out on http://waynesword.palomar.edu/ww0502.htm.

Are we causing extinction?

I agree with what Peter Ward comments on in the discussion board. I feel that we are currently in a mass extinction, but it isn't just humans alone that are causing it I simply feel it is just nature running it's course. I think that we definately are speeding up the process of extinction though through all of the mass building productions and by tearing down the rainforest. By building as much as we are we are taking away natural habitats for certain animals causing them to die out. We aren't seeing a bunch of animals dead all over the place because extinction is not a quick process by any means. I think that the ratio of new animals being born to the ones who die has dramatically decreased over the past 15,000 or so years.

Evolution

We call evolution a theory because there is not enough evidence to call it a law. Many people tend to be almost afraid of evolution due to their religious beliefs. Religion is based upon faith so when you take that factor out of the equation what is there to look forward to? Our society needs something to believe in and some higher power, evolution challenges their beliefs so they don't want to believe it's true. Personally I do believe in a higher power, but I also think that we evolve. Evolution has produced physical evidence over the years, but the emotional proof lies in faith. People say there are two sides to every coin and I think that is the case when it comes to evolution!

Pet cloning...

I do like animals don't get me wrong I have a cat that lives with my parents, but I think cloning an animal is a little extreme! The technology we have acquired over the years is absolutely amazing. I think it is wonderful we are almost at the point where people have the option to clone a pet, but I think the actual cloning itself is just weird. Many people, like the one's mentioned in the article, refer to their pets as their "children" and I feel that if people are trying to replace a dead child that's really odd. I think that people should hold onto the memories of their deceased animals, but they should learn to cope and move on. A life is not easily replaced and just by cloning something doesn't mean it will have the same connection that your previous animal did. I think this may sound a little harsh, but why not just get a new pet and save your money?

Genetics

I am working on problems 3 and 6 and am not getting very far! If anyone has any help to offer that would be greatly appreciated! This stuff is tough! I will continue to work my problems out and try to help as many people as possible!

Genetics

I feel that knowing whether or not you are a "high risk" for diseases should really be none of your insurance companies business. I feel that if a patient needs treatment they should not be denied by their insurance companies because isn't the reason we have insurance to cover you when things happen? I think insurance companies make it much to difficult to get health insurance and that is absurd especially with our economy the way it is! I do not agree that socialized health care is the way to go but I do feel that our genetic make up should not be made public!

"Designer Babies"

This topic is almost disturbing to me and hits very close to home. I have an uncle who is mentally retarded and through him I have learned compassion, patience, and acceptance. I feel that it is peoples imperfections that tend to out shine their perfect characteristics making each individual unique. Although I think it would be good to know whether or not your child has a certain disease or abnormality before they are born many of us need to stop and think, would you really love them any less? I am not saying I would want to bring an unhealthy baby into the world just to make them suffer; but for my own religious belief's I would not terminate the baby. Not to mention there is always a chance that the genetic tests could be flawed and you could possibly terminate an embryo that is perfectly healthy. As far as creating the "perfect" child through genetically altering the genes I think it is absolutely ridiculous honestly it makes me think of the book "A Brave New World" are we trying to create a Utopian society? I know this is a science class and I am absolutely in awe of what scientists are able to do, but I think this is a little much and is definitely pushing the limit. If you would like to read about the "designer babies" I have listed a link below:
http://www.cnn.com/2008/TECH/science/10/30/designer.babies/index.html