My Learning Perception in Biological Science in Relation to Health and the Environment

            For the last four months, we have been discussing about the different systems, the cell, biotechnology, and many other things, and being a future teacher, I must know how I can apply these lessons to our everyday life and how I can use these lessons in helping others.

            Our first lesson in biology is biotechnology. Biotechnology can help us in many aspects because it can provide us different things like having the genetically modified organisms. GMOs can help the people because it can give bigger crops or insects and plant parasites will less affect plants. Next is the characteristics of life here we can know that a living organism has the capability to grow, ability to reproduce, everyone of us has a definite period of existence, and we respond to stimuli. Although other people criticize GMOs like the BTcorn, it is good thing to know that we can produce better quality of our products that we can use in times of need. The basic unit of life is cell, thus, knowing the ways in taking care of our cell and even the processes and its structure is very important because when we have the learning about the basic unit of life, we can have a broader view of our life. Robert Hooke discovered the cell and our cell are made up of nucleus, cytoplasm, cell membrane, and cytoplasmic organelles. The cytoplasm is a fluid surrounding the contents of a cell, and the cell membrane is the outer layer of the cell and it is a semi permeable membrane. The cytoplasmic organelles are the endoplasmic reticulum, the golgi apparatus which is responsible for repairing of the cells, the mitochondrion or the power house, lysosome for breaking down and fighting the free radicals, the centrosomes and centrioles responsible for cell division, peroxisomes rid off toxins, vacuole or the “cell sap” that contains fluid. The nucleus is the brain of the cell and it contains genetic information. There is genetic information because of the RNA, DNA present in the nucleus and this genetic information in a human for example are the combined characteristics of parents, and to determine what will be the outcome of the offspring the Punnett Square is used. When the parents have sexual intercourse the genetical information of the male is combined with that of the female, each parents have 23 chromosomes but sometimes two parents can not always produce a healthy offspring because there are cases that there are abnormalities in the number of chromosomes and one example is the trisomy of the chromosome 21 or also called as the down syndrome. To know whether the offspring has Down syndrome there are some manifestations to be observed like having muscle hypotonia, microgenia, epicantic fold, protruding tongue, abnormal teeth, flat face, malformed ear, short neck, short sature, and short fingers. During pregnancy the mother should stay away from alcohol, drugs, and she must quit smoking so that she can have a healthy baby because having abnormalities in her baby can all be blamed to her because she is the one primarily taking care of the baby while it is still inside her womb. Proper education must also be given to the parents if ever their child has abnormalities so that they can handle their children’s condition in the best way possible. This condition only involves abnormality in the chromosomes, in only shows that our body is very fragile because once we do not take care of it even if it only damaged the smallest part of our body it can result to abnormalities.

  Going back to the structure of the cells, plants cells also contain plastids for light absorption and the cell wall that contains cellulose. Aside from the vitamins and nutrients that we can get from the vegetables that we eat, we can also have a regular bowel movement because of the cell wall present in plants.  We, humans are made up of millions of cells but there are also some organisms that are unicellular and one example is the bacteria. Bacteria can give us harmful effects like they act as pathogens they can bring sickness like syphilis, cholera, tuberculosis, typhoid fever and botulism. Most of these are air borne and in order to avoid these kind of sickness, we must make our surroundings clean and we must avoid going to crowded places. Most of us thought that bacteria is always “bad” but in contrary, bacteria also offers helpful effects like nitrogen fixation, eradicating harmful bacteria, and breaking down lactose in the digestion tract. Going back to the cell, once we combine the cells it will form tissues, then organs, and then the organ system. Our body is composed of 12 systems and these are the integumentary system, skeletal system, muscular system, endocrine system, nervous system, cardiovascular system, respiratory system, digestive system, excretory system, lymphatic system, male reproductive system, and female reproductive system.

The integumentary system is the most noticeable system of all because it is the outer most body system and it is the body covering. The integumentary system serves as our protection or barrier, it also eliminates waste products, regulates our body temperature, support body structure, and also help doctors diagnose our sickness by looking at our skin, nails, or hair. The major components of the integumentary system are the skin, which is also the largest organ of the body, the hair, nails, and glands. The skin has three layers the epidermis and it is the outermost layer of the skin, the dermis, and the hypodermis. The epidermis also has layers and the outermost is the stratum corneum and the deepest layer that is also responsible for regeneration, mitosis and tissue repair is the stratum basale. The dermis is 1.5-4 mm thick, the tensile strength of the skin, under the dermis is the macrophages, adipocytes, melanocytes that produce melanin that affects the color of our skin and lastly is the erector pili, and it is the one responsible for goose bumps. The hypodermis is the lowermost layer of the skin and the storage site of fat. When we will not take proper care of our skin like leaving it dirty or going to dump places and not cleaning our skin, our body may acquire illnesses like having ascariasis or having round worms. We must always make sure that are Integumentary system is clean because it is the system that is exposed to the different toxins and sicknesses in our environment. The next major component of the integumentary system are the nails, these are the hard,flat structure on the tip of the hands and toes and it is used for grasping and scratching. We must always keep our nails short because dirt might stay in leading to infection and other illnesses. Next is the hair, these are threads of cells that developed from the skin. The hair passes through growth cycle and the first phase is the anagen phase this phase is when the hair is actively growing, next is the catagen phase or the transition stage and the last phase is the telogen phae or the resting stage. Our hair gives warmth, gives warnings, protect us, and as a sensory function. The last components are the glands, the sweat glands and the sebaceous glands. There are three kinds of sweat glands and these are the eccrine that are found throughout the body, the apocrine that is found in the armpit, axilla, areola of nipples, genitals, and anus, and the merocrine that are found in the soles of the feet and palms. The sebaceous gland produces sebum that protects us from abrasion. It is very important to clean our integumentary system because this system is prone to bacteria and can cause to skin problems like having acne. The common bacteria in acne are the propioni bacterium acne, staphylococcus epidermidis, and staphylococcus aureus. The causes of having acne can be psychological, the person might be so stressed or it is in his or her genes, maybe because of make up, or it can be because a person is undergoing the adolescent period. Acnes can be prevented by making our face cleansed, scrubbed, and moisturized. We must also put our hair in place because our hairs are dirty because of its exposure to dirt, hydration is also important, we must not also touch our skin that is affected by acne and the most important thing is having proper education and awareness on how to make our integumentary system clean and healthy. Next is our skeletal system, it is responsible for supporting and protecting our body organs like the brain, the skeletal system also assists in movement and the production of blood cells. Taking care of the skeletal system is very important because when our bones are weak we are more prone to injuring our internal organs. To maintain having strong bones we must exercise regularly, intake of calcium, exposure to vitamin D, avoid falls, and have a proper education and awareness in taking care of our body. The muscular system is the body system that is responsible for movement, heat production, posture and stability, blood and lymph circulation, mobility, and digestion. Muscles are classified into two, voluntary and involuntary muscles, and there are three types of muscles the cardiac that can be found in the heart, smooth muscles that can be found in linings of uterus, linings of kidneys, intestinal walls, lining of vessels, and walls of stomach, and skeletal muscles which are found all trough out the body. When we experienced sprain or strain, we must always remember RICE, R for rest, I for ice, C for compress, and E is for elevation. Next is the endocrine system its functions are homeostasis, growth and development, metabolism, and uterine contractions. The pituitary gland is also known as the master gland and this gland controls our growth when the pituitary gland did not function correctly a person might experience dwarfism or gigantism. Our nervous system is responsible for our mental activities, emotions, reflexes, and coordination of the body, there is a coordination of the body because of the presence of the central and peripheral nervous system. The brain controls our entire body, the brain processes the signals sent to it and then the brain will reply to these signals. We can take care of our nervous system by eating foods that is low in fats and oils, having our brain exercised by solving logic problems, having adequate sleep, and having good education about our nervous system. The next system is the cardiovascular system, it regulates blood pressure, regulates flow of blood, deliver nutrients, and excrete waste products. Next is the respiratory system, it is responsible for gas exchange, adjusting breathing rate, protects us from foreign agents that may get in through the nose and the cilia in our nose will filter the air that we are breathing. If a person continued neglecting the health of he’s respiratory system, like for example he is a smoker, he will develop serious respiratory ailments like lung cancer. Lung cancer consists of uncontrolled or abnormal cell growth in tissues of the lungs. Aside from smoking, the other causes of lung cancer are age, genetic factors, air pollution, residential radon, and environmental factors. If a person continues his smoking, it can lead to surgeries, chemotherapies, and if not well treated it can cause death. To make our respiratory system healthy we must all have proper awareness, proper diet, aerobic exercises, proper hygiene, and we must not smoke. Next is the Digestive system, the function of this system is ingestion, absorption, digestion, and defecation. Like any other system, we must also take a good care of our digestive system. We must eat on regular schedule; we must not skip meals because skipping of meals can lead to ulcer, we must drink water, chew our foods well, we must not swallow big chunks of food because it can lead to choking, and we must eat foods that are rich in fiber. Urinary system is the body system that stores and eliminates waste, maintain normal blood pressure, and maintain fluid homeostasis. If we will not have good hygiene, our urinary system can have Urinary Tract Infection. UTI is a bacterial infection that affects any part of the urinary system and a person having UTI can experience dysuria, frequent urination, abdominal pain, cloudy and foul smelling urine, hematuria, and flank pains. To prevent these things and other urinary system ailments to happen, we must drink plenty of water, use cotton made underwear, quit smoking and stop drinking, we must urinate if we feel so and we must have proper education and awareness. The last systems are the male and female reproductive system. The male reproductive system is responsible for the transport of sperm, secretes testosterone, spermatogenesis, and secrete waste product – urine, while the female reproductive system is responsible for the production of egg cells, maintain menstruation, and provides nutrients for the fetus. Next to the reproductive system is family planning. Family planning is a program that regulates the number and spacing of children. There are two methods of family planning, natural and artificial. If two persons are unaware of things like this they will not have any control in having a child and if their family grows bigger and bigger, then the tendency is they cannot give the needs of their children.

            These topics did not just gave us a preview to biology but it also shows that all the systems have a common thing and that is how we can take care of our body and that is through having proper education. Being a future educator, it is very important to consider that we will all have the chance to share and teach the people how to take care of their selves, so studying biology did not just help us but it will also help other people to have a pure healthy life if they can intelligently apply these into their lives.

catcher in the rye synopsis

CATCHER IN THE RYE

Holden Caulfield is a teenager who always shows rebellion and torment. He was kicked out from his school, Pencey Prep and this is not the first time that he experienced expulsion.

Holden always show unstable attitude, and he change his mind easily and very often, he is also resisting the idea of growing older.

Always looking troubled, Holden also calls himself dumb but he shows a great potential in writing just like his brothers D.B. and Allie.

Holden may look like insensitive, but he actually dreamt of being a “catcher in the rye”, he wants to save children that may fall of the cliff while playing; thus saving them from the troubles of maturity, he thinks that he can protect children’s innocence.

HOLDEN wandered in New York City after he was kicked out from Pencey Prep because he failed four subjects. Holden will leave that school full of crook even though it is full of wealthy men and having a high academic ratings, it is still full of unwanted people. One of them is ROBERT ACKLEY, Holden’s neighbor at the dorm, Ackley has very bad teeth hygiene, his teeth were mossy and terrible, his face is full of pimples and he also has an awful personality, Ackley tends to look up at other people’s personal stuff and he is just very bothersome. Another kid in Pencey is STRADLATER. He’s Holden’s roommate and Stradlater happens to date Holden’s ex girlfriend JANE GALLAGHER they had a fight because Stradlater did not appreciate what Holden did for Stradlater’s composition. It is all about the baseball gloves of his departed brother ALLIE. Allie died because of leukemia. He is the most intelligent and nicest person in Holden’s family. He is also a very good writer; he puts his poems in his baseball mitts which Holden copied for Stradlater’s composition. Holden was also pissed off because Stradlater is not telling him what happened between him and Jane. Holden suddenly punched him and they started a fight, Holden kept telling him that his a moron, that made Stradlater really angry. Holden lose the fight like he always do, upon returning to his senses, he cleaned up the blood on his face and went to Ackley’s room. He asked Ackley to let him sleep in one of his roommate’s bed. He somewhat refused and that annoyed Holden. Holden just looked outside the window and felt lonesome and wished he was dead. Holden lay down to the bed anyways and started a conversation with Ackley; he is still thinking that maybe Stradlater had given Jane “the time”. Holden just then decided to leave Pencey.

Supposed to be, Holden will leave Pencey on Wednesday since he wanted to let his parents absorb the bad news, him being expelled in Pencey, but because of his fight with his roommate Stradlater, he immediately left Pencey. With his red hunting hat on, he took a train and went to New York and he planned to stay there until Wednesday. He first stayed in Edmont Hotel, he talked with three tourist women, he thought two of the girls as not good-looking but the other one is just alright so he danced with her and he also danced with the other two but ending up paying the bills. He then went to Ernie’s Nightclub where he’s brother D.B. usually hang out. He rode a taxi going to Ernie’s and he asked the driver about the ducks in the lagoon. He wanted to know where the ducks go if the pond started to freeze. Holden is just crazy about the ducks in the lagoon and the driver is so touchy that he gets sore every time Holden will tell him something. They finally arrived at Ernie’s. The place is jampacked with students. Holden just sat alone and listen to the boring conversation of the guys with their dates beside him. All he ended up doing is smoking and drinking. He felt bored so he walked all the way back to the hotel. In the elevator, the operator asked him if he wants to have a good time with a girl, because of depression, Holden said yes but ended up doing nothing because he thought the prostitute, SUNNY, is just in his age group and felt sorry for her. Sunny left but Holden can’t just go to sleep. After consuming cigarettes, he then heard a knock. It was MAURICE, the elevator operator and Sunny. They are asking for five more bucks. Holden refused but Sunny already have his wallet and Maurice smacked him down. Holden again didn’t win the fight and when his senses come back, he cleaned the blood and then called SALLY HAYES, a girl she used to hang around and asked her if she wants to go to Biltmore to watch a show. She agreed to Holden’s invitations and while he is waiting, he took a long walk. He first went to the Broadway to get a record for her little sister PHOEBE entitled “Little Shirley Beans”, it was a very hard record to find and he thought of giving it to Phoebe in case she is skating in the park. While walking he saw a poor family, and their kid is singing, “If a body catch a body coming through the rye”. The song made Holden feel better and less depressed.

Holden finally arrived where he and Sally will meet. Sally came ten minutes late but in the minute Holden saw her, he felt like marrying her but he really didn’t like her much, he just felt crazy about it. The two went to the show and while on the cab, they started horsing around, Holden being seductive and all. After the show, they decided to go skating and have a drink. Holden suddenly had the idea of running away with Sally but she hated the plan. She said their just children and they can’t do things like that. They started hating each other and Holden called Sally a pain in the ass which made her cry. Holden just left Sally feeling sorry for what he had said and done. 

Holden then decided to go to their house and upon reaching their apartment; he sneaked quietly not to wake up his parents and their maid. He went to D.B.’s room where Phoebe sleeps when their brother is away. After reading Phoebe’s notebook and lighting his last cigarette he woke up Phoebe. Phoebe was so excited seeing her brother and she told Holden that their parents are not around and will be back very late. Holden stopped worrying for a while and the two of them talked. Phoebe just then figured it out that Holden was again kicked out because he is out quite early for the Christmas vacation. She kept on saying that their father will kill him. Holden answered back, he said that he will probably go away and find a job in a ranch in Colorado and he explained to Phoebe why he got expelled in the school again. Phoebe then said that Holden does not like everything that is happening, that made Holden more depressed. He is trying to defend his self and Phoebe demanded Holden to say something he really liked. It took a long time for Holden to answer. He finally said that he liked Allie and talking to Phoebe a lot. Phoebe also asked him to tell what he liked to be. Holden answered he wanted to be a catcher in the rye. He will catch the abandoned children playing in the cliff and save them from the evils of adulthood.

Holden left their apartment and went to his teacher’s house Mr. ANTOLINI. His teacher is nice to him and he also shared his idea of becoming a catcher in the rye. Mr. Antolini offered their house for a place to sleep. Holden just woke up that night and he saw Mr. Antolini making flirty gestures on him. Holden jumped out of the bed and hurriedly left the house.

Holden decided to live in the west as a deaf-mute. He told Phoebe his plans, but Phoebe just gets disappointed by Holden’s decision and the when Holden refused the idea of Phoebe coming with him. Holden then said that he will not leave so that her sister will not be upset. He let Phoebe ride the carousel and he started realizing all the things that he had done when he saw Phoebe going around in the carousel. Holden just felt happy, really happy, Phoebe is just so nice to look at going around and around.

            Holden will go to a new school next September, and he refused telling all the other details and mentioned not to tell anybody anything, because we’ll just start missing everybody.