Maria Gillis Assignment #9: A Matter of Selection

 The texture of the leaves of the plants are consistently the same throughout the garden. When I touched them, they felt strong and thick. I think this is because even though they are different, the all come from the Brassica oleracea species. These plants must share a common ancestor. They all have mutated and created new adaptations over time, but they all seem to have similar, veiny textures. The charctersitic that seems to be the same is the thickness and size of the stems. Yes, the range from many differences colors and purposes but their common ancestor shows the many similarities within these plants. 

Who Wants to Live a Million Years: Analysis of a Natural Selection Simulation

1. After playing 5 games, my mutations lived 100,000,00 years. I think it took so long because you have to find out which mutations work together well and feed off each others strongest traits. In real life, I think this means that without some species on this earth, others would not be able to survive. I think this because not one species is perfect, they can’t adapt to every environment, so there needs to be a balance.
2. At first, I selected the same exact species, but soon realized that I need 2 to 3 different ones. The first time I won I chose long neck, bulky, and stripped. Long neck is good for getting food off of branches, bulky is good for cold weather, and stripped can camouflage. These three mutations worked well together because each one has traits that benefit the other mutations.
3. I do think this population would be greatly affected by genetic drift  because the mutations rely on each other. One example of genetic drift I saw, was when one of the mutations died off due to random weather conditions.
4. Long necks was dominant and the long legs were recessive. The majority of mutations had long necks and the not many mutations carried the long leg attribute.
5. Cold conditions- they got bulkie; hot conditions- they became thinner and less furry; new large predator- mutations used camouflage; tall food source- their necks became longer to reach the food
6. One improvement I would make, would be to add other coexisting organisms. I would also include more than one food source. Finally, I would add more environmental changes.

Perfection Versus Happiness: GATTACA Review Essay

Perfection Versus Happiness: GATTACA

Perfection versus happiness. In the movie, the “perfect” people are not always the happiest. Theoretically, the valids get to do whatever they want, whatever their heart desires. While the invalids are not positively viewed in society, they are not allowed to do what they please. There is a major void in the setting of the movie that is apparent. There is a lack of laughing, color, and fun. The need for perfection overrules the need for happiness.

For example, Jerome was genetically “perfect”, but you can tell that he is very unhappy. This is shown when he ends up committing suicide at the end of the movie. Society viewed him as “perfect”, but he couldn’t be less happy physically, mentally, and emotionally. In the movie, I noticed that the picture was very dark, no vibrant colors. They wanted to make the movie have a dull and futuristic look. There was no laughing or fun because everybody is focused on being “perfect” because society expects nothing less.

Cleary, being perfect doesn’t mean you are happy. It is an overwhelming expectation to withhold this perfect image. Trying to please everyone causes the most pain if you can’t meet such high expectations. Happiness comes from laughter, fun, and pure joy, they have none of this shown in the film. Everyone looks sad and inundated.