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Contents contributed and discussions participated by Marcy Withrow

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For Marmots, Too Many Brothers Turns Gals into Tomboys | Masculinization, Sex Hormones ... - 0 views

www.livescience.com/rmot-females-testosterone.html
shared by Erin Nash on 02 Sep 11 - No Cached
    • Marcy Withrow
      Marcy Withrow on 02 Sep 11
       
      Wow, that's crazy! I never thought of animals wanting to be the opposite sex, because of having too many of the same gender of siblings.
  • Extra testosterone from their brothers in the womb changes the females’ behavior.
    • Marcy Withrow
      Marcy Withrow on 02 Sep 11
       
      I wonder if this can happen with other species of animals too? Or if it can relate to humans in a way...somehow!
  • ...12 more annotations...
  • Previously, the researchers had classified marmots with long AG distances are males and shorter AG distances are females. Classification based just on AG distances first led to some confused researchers. Some of the long AG distance marmots, which researchers thought were males, seemed to undergo a sex change — they were actually females all along. Previous research has shown that these females with longer AG distances come from litters containing more males than females. And since the AG distance indicates testosterone exposure in the womb, the researchers figured the brother's testosterone had changed the female's AG distance; they wondered if it had any effect on the female marmots' behaviors, as well.
    • Marcy Withrow
      Marcy Withrow on 02 Sep 11
       
      Okay, that is flipping crazy! So, females that have tons of brothers end up having a longer AG distance! That really stinks for them, because they have to blame their brothers and their brother's hormones. And yeah, this should have an effect on behavior! Especially if it's going to cause a physical change..
  • wandered farther and pursued more play-fighting with more play partners than the more feminine females.
    • Marcy Withrow
      Marcy Withrow on 02 Sep 11
       
      So this is the behavior they saw with the "masculine females"
  • Whether a litter is male- or female-biased is dictated by the environment.
    • Marcy Withrow
      Marcy Withrow on 02 Sep 11
       
      How can environment have an effect on what gender a litter will be? I thought gender was completely random..50/50 chance...?
  • Male animals traditionally need more investment from their mothers, because they are larger. In some conditions, like when the environment is steady and resources are plenty, it might make sense to invest more in males. "For instance,  when mothers are in good conditions they usually have male-biased litters, whereas in bad body condition they have female-biased litters."
    • Marcy Withrow
      Marcy Withrow on 02 Sep 11
       
      Does this mean that it depends on the environment whether the moms want their sons to live or daughters? Do some end up dying to give these biased litters? Or do the moms store food for the babies, therefore getting more nutrition for males in better conditions? I feel like this can go many ways??
  • If hormones like testosterone from littermates are impacting marmots' behavior and reproduction, chemical pollutants that have similar structures could screw up these signals.
    • Marcy Withrow
      Marcy Withrow on 02 Sep 11
       
      Ah hah!! Here is a lead :)
  • These pollutants, also known as endocrine disruptors, could interfere with the mothers' intended "decision" to have a female- or male-biased litter.
    • Marcy Withrow
      Marcy Withrow on 02 Sep 11
       
      I still don't understand how the mothers choose what the gender of their offspring are. Wouldn't it have to be after birth?
24More

People See Odd Numbers as Male, Even as Female | Grammatical Gender | Psychology & Abst... - 0 views

www.livescience.com/9-odd-numbers-male-female.html
shared by Marcy Withrow on 01 Sep 11 - No Cached
    • Marcy Withrow
      Marcy Withrow on 01 Sep 11
       
      Yeah, this happens all the time! they'll refer to an object as male or female..
  • Scientists have long known that language can influence how we perceive gender in objects. Some languages consistently refer to certain objects as male or female, and this in turn, influences how speakers of that language think about those objects.
    • Marcy Withrow
      Marcy Withrow on 01 Sep 11
       
      I know the Spanish language uses masculine and feminine words, but I've never really thought of them thinking of that object as male or female.
  • ...13 more annotations...
  • They found that people rated each object according to its grammatical gender.
    • Marcy Withrow
      Marcy Withrow on 01 Sep 11
       
      And why wouldn't they? That's how they speak! :)
  • Aside from language, objects can also become infused with gender based on their appearance, who typically uses them, and whether they seem to possess the type of characteristics usually associated with men or women.
    • Marcy Withrow
      Marcy Withrow on 01 Sep 11
       
      this is good to keep in mind too. It would be interesting to see if people think an object is male or female based on these ideas.
  • They found that people see food dishes containing meat as more masculine and salads and sour dairy products as more feminine. People see furniture items, such as tables and trash cans, as more feminine when they feature rounded, rather than sharp, edges.
    • Marcy Withrow
      Marcy Withrow on 01 Sep 11
       
      Has our society put this image into humans brains? Seeing more vulnerable things as feminine and stronger items as masculine??
  • In another study, Wilkie and Bodenhausen showed participants photos of babies and asked them to determine for each photo the likelihood that the baby was male. They found that when a baby photo was paired with the number 1, people were much more likely to think the baby was male. Once again, people reported no awareness that the numbers were influencing their perceptions.
    • Marcy Withrow
      Marcy Withrow on 01 Sep 11
       
      The participants said that numbers made no influence. Later on it talks about how people rated the #1 and odd numbers more masculine and #2 and even number more feminine. once again, does society and the way we see things make a difference. It has to!
  • stereotypes
    • Marcy Withrow
      Marcy Withrow on 01 Sep 11
       
      Ah hah!! Stereotypes...exactly the word i was looking for! once again, societies outlook.
  • It's no surprise that the first thing that most people ask new parents is whether they had a boy or a girl. When we don’t know somebody's gender, it creates confusion in our minds
    • Marcy Withrow
      Marcy Withrow on 01 Sep 11
       
      Does this mean that it's in our minds that we MUST have a gender for every object, even though we don't mean to purposely.
  • Our brains can't help but see gender everywhere we look.
11More

Socially Anxious Kids Are Bully Targets | Elementary School Students & Bullying | Bully... - 1 views

www.livescience.com/us-children-bully-targets.html
shared by Marcy Withrow on 31 Aug 11 - No Cached
    • Marcy Withrow
      Marcy Withrow on 31 Aug 11
       
      Well yeah, I can see that happening. It happens all the time!
  • it may be particularly important for withdrawn youth to develop and participate in friendships through organized sports, play dates, and other such activities."
    • Marcy Withrow
      Marcy Withrow on 31 Aug 11
       
      I think that yeah! that is the answer. It may get youth more comfortable around kids their own age.
  • ...4 more annotations...
  • An earlier study published in 2010 in the journal Child Development found that bullies pick on unpopular children. Gay and lesbian students, or kids perceived to be gay or lesbian, are also at risk.
    • Marcy Withrow
      Marcy Withrow on 31 Aug 11
       
      They are seen as different or awkward. Maybe they need to rethink how people see them. Maybe they should try to get to know others.
  • Even compared with unsociable children, the researchers found, anxious-solitary withdrawn kids have fewer friends and are more likely to lose their friends over time. Anxious-solitary kids were also more emotionally sensitive than their peers and were more likely to be excluded and bullied. Having stable friendships protects children from victimization, the study found.
    • Marcy Withrow
      Marcy Withrow on 31 Aug 11
       
      It must be hard, because the anxious-solitary kids WANT to interact, but are too scared to. That makes me feel sorry for them and maybe they are emotional cause they are lonely; they may feel like they have no one. So, i could see where these results are very true. Kids must have stable friendships.
20More

Hens Eject Sperm from Unwelcome Suitors | Female Control & Battle of Sexes | Chicken Se... - 0 views

www.livescience.com/5828-chickens-eject-sperm.html
shared by Marcy Withrow on 31 Aug 11 - No Cached
    • Marcy Withrow
      Marcy Withrow on 31 Aug 11
       
      I think I learned this in DC Biology that hens can do that. which is crazy!!
  • A new study has shown that, during an average ejection, a hen jettisons 80 percent of the sperm a rooster deposits in her reproductive tract. This has a huge impact on the competition among males fighting to father her future chicks, according to study researcher Tommaso Pizzari, an evolutionary biologist and university lecturer at Oxford University in the United Kingdom.  
    • Marcy Withrow
      Marcy Withrow on 31 Aug 11
       
      This means that only the best of the best hens have chicks! That stinks for the loser hens..
  • ...10 more annotations...
  • Hens, however, often don't have a choice in mates. They prefer males at the top of the pecking order, but other roosters with lower status will force the hens — about half their size — to mate.
    • Marcy Withrow
      Marcy Withrow on 31 Aug 11
       
      So, they know what they want. but, sometimes they get taken advantage of, because roosters are bigger than them. But, then they can reject their sperm and choose what's best for the offspring.
  • Scientists already knew that hens could eject sperm, but in the recent study, they set out to find evidence that hens were actively using this technique to control fertilization.
    • Marcy Withrow
      Marcy Withrow on 31 Aug 11
       
      They already knew this, but now they are seeing if the hen actually controls the fertilization. that's nuts!
  • They then videotaped any sperm ejection that followed the mating and collected the results. To determine how this compared with the total sperm the roosters had deposited, the researchers captured all of their semen during another set of controlled mating attempts.
    • Marcy Withrow
      Marcy Withrow on 31 Aug 11
       
      this is how they tested it. I wonder how you would videotape sperm exactly.
  • When mating with a series of roosters, hens ejected more semen from the later mates. Since lower-status roosters don't get the first shot at the hens, for this reason alone, their sperm are more likely to be ejected, Pizzari explained.
    • Marcy Withrow
      Marcy Withrow on 31 Aug 11
       
      It's like they know which ones are lower status and have timed it perfectly to get rid of their sperm.
  • n addition, lower status roosters were more likely to ejaculate more semen in one shot, and the team found that hens were more likely to eject larger ejaculations.
    • Marcy Withrow
      Marcy Withrow on 31 Aug 11
       
      I wonder why they ejaculate so much? Do they not get enough action??
10More

The Fattest States List | Gallup Poll & State Obesity Rates | LiveScience - 0 views

www.livescience.com/15782-fattest-states-list.html
shared by Marcy Withrow on 28 Aug 11 - No Cached
    • Marcy Withrow
      Marcy Withrow on 28 Aug 11
       
      Couldn't there be other outside factors that could throw this research off? Did they take an even number from each state? And of those people were there any that had certain circumstances where they couldn't help but gain weight? Also, why January to June? That's coming out of the "winter depression" where a lot of people don't exercise. 
  • South Carolina: 30.6 percent Louisiana: 31.2 percent Mississippi: 32.1 percent Delaware: 33.6 percent West Virginia: 34.3 percent
    • Marcy Withrow
      Marcy Withrow on 28 Aug 11
       
      It seems like this research is suggesting that people towards the east coast are more obese. How could this be? Maybe they have a lot of Restaurants with unhealthy foods. it could be possible that they don't have a lot of orchards or state grown foods? I don't know much about these states. But, maybe they don't grow their own foods and have a lot of imports? 
    • Marcy Withrow
      Marcy Withrow on 28 Aug 11
       
      Note too that these states are southern east coast.
  • ...3 more annotations...
  • Colorado: 20.1 percent Utah: 21.6 percent Connecticut: 21.7 percent California: 22.1 percent Rhode Island: 22.1 percent Massachusetts: 22.6 percent New Jersey: 22.6 percent
  • Healthy Body Composition www.DrDavidWilliams.comNew TonaLean-3 Can Help You Maintain Heal
    • Marcy Withrow
      Marcy Withrow on 28 Aug 11
       
      Now the skinniest people are here. There's a few from the west coast, but there are also a few from the northern east coast like Rhode Island, Connecticut, and New Jersey. I find it strange that the obese are in the south and the skinnier are in the north. Maybe it's the environment and people care more about their appearances in the North while in the South there are southern Belles and farmers? I really don't know much about these states or why one side is more obese than the other. it would be interesting to find out..
10More

Warrior Wasp With Giant Jaws Discovered | Predatory Wasps & New Species | Indonesia Exp... - 0 views

www.livescience.com/t-warrior-wasp-discovered.html
shared by Marcy Withrow on 28 Aug 11 - No Cached
    • Marcy Withrow
      Marcy Withrow on 28 Aug 11
       
      Could this be from evolution? Will bigger jaws give them an advantage over other wasps??
  • The giant jaws may serve as both protection and a way to ensure males' genes get passed on to offspring, the researchers speculate
    • Marcy Withrow
      Marcy Withrow on 28 Aug 11
       
      So it may be linked to "Survivor of the fittest" ? The wasp with bigger jaws gets picked by the female wasps. Or it could be protection.
  • ...3 more annotations...
    • Marcy Withrow
      Marcy Withrow on 28 Aug 11
       
      They assume this by another wasp species. The male protects the nest and mates with the females as they enter.
  • We don't know anything about the biology of these wasps."
    • Marcy Withrow
      Marcy Withrow on 28 Aug 11
       
      A new species of wasp..
17More

Doodling May Draw Students into Science | Science Education & Student Learning | Drawin... - 1 views

www.livescience.com/oodling-science-education.html
shared by Erin Nash on 28 Aug 11 - No Cached
    • Marcy Withrow
      Marcy Withrow on 28 Aug 11
       
      Some people are visual learners and can learn better through images..
  • drawing should be recognized alongside writing, reading and talking as a key element in science education.
    • Marcy Withrow
      Marcy Withrow on 28 Aug 11
       
      Drawing sometimes helps me see the whole situation and makes it easier to understand. I agree that this is a good tool for learning. 
  • ...8 more annotations...
  • teachers and students indicated that when students were asked to draw to explore and justify understandings in science, they were more motivated to learn.
    • Marcy Withrow
      Marcy Withrow on 28 Aug 11
       
      Drawing is more hands-on than lecturing or doing worksheets out of a book. Plus, it helps to write something down cause you can remember it later.
  • students put wet hands on paper and were then challenged to represent what happened as the handprint faded using drawings involving particles. Teachers noted students were more engaged in class and performed better in their workbooks.
    • Marcy Withrow
      Marcy Withrow on 28 Aug 11
       
      This reminds me more of a lab than actual drawing. How would you draw the particles?
  • "Drawing should act in service of learning, so it's important that drawing serves a key function and not become 'a coloring in pretty pictures' activity."
    • Marcy Withrow
      Marcy Withrow on 28 Aug 11
       
      I agree, the drawing should be something you can learn from. not some busy work that teaches the student nothing. Therefore, the drawing method could be abused.
  • Many questions remain, such as whether one's skill at drawing influences how well you learn by it, and how teachers can use drawing in their classrooms
    • Marcy Withrow
      Marcy Withrow on 28 Aug 11
       
      This would be could to look into. I personally think though that a student can learn the best from how they picture it whether they are artistic or not I don't think would matter.
6More

Sex with Neanderthals Gave Humans Immunity Boost | Neanderthals & Denisovans | HLA Gene... - 0 views

www.livescience.com/als-immunity-boost-humans.html
shared by Marcy Withrow on 25 Aug 11 - No Cached
    • Marcy Withrow
      Marcy Withrow on 25 Aug 11
       
      This tells us wat percent of their genome is made up of Neanderthal or Denisovan.
    • Marcy Withrow
      Marcy Withrow on 25 Aug 11
       
      Just out of that one gene this is the percentages that these races got from the Neanderthals. 
    • Marcy Withrow
      Marcy Withrow on 25 Aug 11
       
      There were two other theories, but scientist are beginning to suggest this one.
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