Category Archives: Biology

A teacher has been sacked after sending inappropriate texts to a schoolgirl. Perverted Colin James Bell, 42, a biology teacher, was struck off after being convicted of sending grossly offensive messages to the 16-year-old detailing his sexual desires towards her in 2015. He was given a 12-month supervision order and made to sign the sex offenders register at Kirkcaldy Sheriff Court on August 8 last year. The former high school teacher and married dad-of-two has now been struck off by education watchdogs after admitting the allegations against him. When the Daily Record tried to speak to him about his conviction yesterday, Bell placed a child on his shoulders and pulled a hood around his head. And when approached for comment at his home in Tayport, Fife, Bell said: No. Go away. Youre ruining peoples lives. Were all human, we all make mistakes. Theres no need to make it worse. We were able to photograph him later. The charge against Bell stated that he sent grossly offensive messages that were of an indecent, obscene or menacing character to the girl on December 29, 2015. The texts repeatedly made reference to your sexual desires towards her, the charge went on. A statement … Continue reading →

[Editors note: Excerpts are taken from an interview with three experts in the field of synthetic biology: David Berry,general partner at Flagship Ventures;Andras Forgacs, cofounder and CEO of Modern Meadow; andEllen Jorgensen,molecular biologist andexecutive director of Genspace.] Synthetic biology builds upon genetic engineeringsomething that has been around for 30 years and the results of which are everywhere in our daily livesGenetic engineering adds new DNA to an organism, and synthetic biology is similar. The end goal of both is to edit the DNA code of an organism in order to do something useful. Synthetic biology, however, allows the standardization and automation of the process, making it more precise and faster. Synthetic biology aims to take this a step further by making the pieces of DNA easier to assemble, effectively modularizing them. Then you can build what you need much more quickly, accurately, and at scale. Medicine is of course an important frontier. Perhaps one of the earliest breakthroughs for synthetic biology was making artemisinin for treating malariaOutside medicine, there have been lots of attempts to disrupt the fuel industry with biofuels, although low oil prices have slowed that down. The capabilities of synthetic biology are getting us to the point … Continue reading →

: India is taking its first steps to evolve a policy on synthetic biology, an emerging science through which new life forms can potentially be made in labs and existing life forms, such as bacteria and other microbes, tweaked to produce specific proteins or chemically useful products. The Environment Ministry will be convening a group of experts on biodiversity and biotechnology, to assess synthetic biology work pursued in Indian labs, potential benefits and risks, and the implications of the trans-boundary movement of such life forms. Synthetic biology in microbial systems holds promise for production of drugs, vaccines, fuel components and other chemicals. A popular example is the production of artemisinin, a powerful anti-malarial drug, in yeast, at a commercial level. Microorganisms have also been constructed to act as sensors that can detect a toxin in vitro (outside a living organism) or in vivo (inside a living organism). There are assorted labs in India that work on synthetic biology. Last December, officials from the Environment Ministry participated in the United Nations Biodiversity Conference of the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) at Cancun, Mexico, where about 8,000 delegates from 180 countries discussed matters related to biodiversity. India, so far, has no policy … Continue reading →

Science Daily Exceptional reproductive biology in extremely restricted critically ... Science Daily The critically endangered Nimba toad is long known for its exceptional reproductive biology. The females of this unique species give live birth to fully developed ... Critically Endangered Nimba Toad's Exceptional Reproductive Biology ExplainedI4U News all 2 news articles » Go here to read the rest: Exceptional reproductive biology in extremely restricted critically ... - Science Daily … Continue reading →

Missouri may not seem like a hotbed for marine biology, but that hasnt stopped local students from getting their feet wet. The St. Joseph School District has offered a half-credit elective in marine biology for more than 15 years. Students from across the community meet on Monday nights at Benton High School to learn about topics like oceanography, reef ecology, and how the things people do in Missouri impact oceans thousands of miles away. The course culminates each year in a weeklong sailing trip in the Exumas an island chain in the Bahamas. On Monday, the class tried out its snorkeling equipment for the first time as a group at the Downtown Family YMCA. Betsy Bing, a science instructor at Benton, explained the importance of preparing before the trip. The students all buy their own snorkel equipment to take, so this is a no pun intended get your feet wet kind of thing to allow them to test the equipment so they know if theres an issue, Bing said. If something breaks, they have time to get it fixed. They also know what to expect before we take them to the reefs, because well see reefs that very few people … Continue reading →

Gilford School Board delays transgender policy By GAIL OBER, LACONIA DAILY SUN GILFORD The School Board walked back its attempt to pass a transgendered student policy after hearing from several parents who oppose it. Isaac Brake led the anti-policy discussion by saying his daughter is terrified about it and what terrifies her terrifies him. "I'm distraught about boys sharing facilities with her," he said, adding that he and Superintendent Kirk Beitler had spoken at length about it and that none of his concerns were assuaged. Brake said he was disappointed the school district didn't see fit to notify parents that it was considering the policy and that the policy was disingenuous because it leads people who read it to think that it is mandated by state and federal law. The Supreme Court is scheduled to hear a case on the bill in March and is expected to determine if it is consistent with Title IX, which is a 1972 law that prohibits discrimination on the basis of sex for any publicly funded school. The policy as written would have allowed a transgender student or one who identifies as a different gender than they were "assigned" at birth to use the … Continue reading →

The Stephen F. Austin State University Department of Biology on Friday will offer its second annual Darwin Day program. The program includes a seminar by Charles Pence, assistant professor of philosophy and religious studies at Louisiana State University, titled "Evolution and Chance: From Darwin to the Pioneers of Statistics in Biology." Darwin Day is an annual celebration that takes place on or about Feb. 12, the anniversary of Charles Darwin's birthday. The day celebrates the contributions Darwin made to the field of biology as well as science, reason, exploration and intellectual bravery in general. The goal is to recognize science as a universal language capable of transcending border and culture. Pence's seminar will focus on the history of chance, probability and statistical tools that modern biologists use when discussing evolution and how Charles Darwin managed to refine his theory without those tools. Pence's seminar is from noon to 1 p.m. Friday in the Kennedy Auditorium on SFA's campus. This event is free and open to the public. View original post here: SFA biology to host Darwin Day lecture - Longview News-Journal … Continue reading →

According to a UNM newsroom press release, the Dr. William Jones & Dr. Siu Wong Biology Urgent Needs Endowed Fund, established by two local optometrists, will provide a scholarship for a full or part-time graduate or undergraduate biology student. Additionally, the endowment will help support student publication expenses, student presentation seminars, the departments annual Research Day Lecture and may also help defray the cost of purchasing lab or classroom equipment as well as building repairs, according to the press release. This endowment will make a big impact on the department, William Pockman, chair of the Department of Biology, is quoted as saying in the press release. It really will help make our programs stronger and create a variety of opportunities for our students. Dr. William Jones and his wife Dr. Siu Wong, both accomplished optometrists, established the endowment, according to the press release. "My husband and I are very proud to sponsor the Dr. William Jones & Dr. Siu Wong Biology Urgent Needs Endowed Fund, Wong was quoted as saying in the press release. We believe strongly that education is the key for a better life and society. Thank you for giving us this opportunity to support your work and … Continue reading →

Receding water levels at Lake Mead have exposed 60,000 acres of land, creating a petri dish the size of Denver for UNLV biology students and others to study how to restore wildlife habitat. Students Matthew Rader and Vivian Sam were joined by 10 volunteers for eight hours on a recent Saturday morning in an effort to bring life to 4 acres affected by the receding water. Armed with shovels, the group turned enough dirt to plant 630 trees and grasses along the Las Vegas Wash, an area that was once submerged and served as a docking area for boats. This area was 50 feet below Lake Mead, said Dr. Scott Abella, assistant professor in the School of Life Sciences at UNLV. And with the drought and all the water issues, its exposed now and probably will be for the foreseeable future. Its really alarming from a water storage standpoint, but from a land habitat standpoint, Im thrilled. Nothing can be better for wildlife and the native ecosystem than having this happen. Under Abellas direction, Rader and Sam led the effort to establish native plants for wildlife habitat and watershed protection on the now-exposed shoreline. Their 4-acre classroom represented a tiny … Continue reading →

MANGILAO Two biology majors from the University of Guam traveled to New York last summer to conduct research at the University of Rochester (UR) with their mentor Dr. Naushadalli Suleman, UOG chemistry professor. Ana Capati and Aubriana Perez participated in 10-week fellowships, working with a team of graduate students from UR led by organic photochemist Dr. Joseph Dinnocenzo. Their research investigated how and why certain bonds between carbon and tin atoms break during certain chemical reactions. "It is expected that the insights gained from these studies will be helpful in designing and synthesizing new materials," Suleman said. The cost of the fellowships was covered by the partnership between UOG, the Rotary Club of Guam and South Pacific Petroleum Corporation to raise over $13,000. Were so thankful to Dr. Suleman, UOG and all our sponsors for making it possible for us to be a part of this research project, Capati said. Perez: It was an eye-opening experience According to Suleman, the students are able to gain valuable professional experience through their participation in these research fellowships. Capati and Perez received such experience through working with sophisticated and expensive lab equipment, valued at millions of dollars. It was an eye-opening experience, said … Continue reading →