Apoptosis: The Biological Recycling Protocol

,What is Apoptosis?

The most common idea of death involves an organism ceasing to exist as a functional entity. However, it is important to remember that for each macroscopic creature, there are billions to trillions of microscopic cells that allow the creature to survive. While death seems to mean an “end to all things” for us, the microscopic world begs to differ. At the cellular level, death is quite necessary. Cellular death can simply be considered a recycling of molecules in order to reduce energy organisms spend making them. We are talking about apoptosis.

Pages: 1 2 3 4

January 27, 2019February 24, 2019

DNA Mutation: The Ultimate Elixir of Life

DNA Mutations: What Are They?

Since the advent of life on Earth, the struggle for survival is the driving force of all biology. We have established the problems associated with maintaining complexity and various ways organisms regulate their responses to the environment. These developments are a result of the process we call evolution. It is time to describe exactly how evolution occurs. We know it is the result of cumulative changes in the characteristics in an organism. This is explained by differences in protein formation. However, we also know that DNA is the ultimate unit of life. DNA is the molecule that seeks to replicate and codes for proteins. Thus, this must be the level at which evolution takes place. It does this through a unique process: DNA mutation.

Pages: 1 2 3

December 30, 2018March 10, 2019

Symbiosis: The Intricacies of Interaction

What is Symbiosis?

Life is inherently selfish. In the natural world, the end goal of all organisms is to ensure their DNA is passed down over generations, preserving the immortality of the replicator. In order to accomplish this goal, evolution takes all opportunities it is presented with and uses them. This selfishness is one of the most misrepresented topics in biology. Here’s why:

When one thinks about selfishness, one often visualize a bully or person without any care for others. As a result, they view the idea of life being selfish as repulsive. However, by following the mechanical processes of evolution, it becomes clear that this is not the only type of behavior selfishness can induce.

Ultimately, everything that is done in one’s life is selfish. People help others because it brings them pleasure. This goes for everything from helping a friend with homework to donating millions to charity. The reason for the selfish intent present in everything is not because of apathy towards others. In fact, the reason for this behavior is because of the way human perception evolved.

Pages: 1 2 3