The Challenge Question of the Legacy Cycle draws the student into considering …
The Challenge Question of the Legacy Cycle draws the student into considering the engineering ingenuity of nature. It will force him to analyze, appreciate and understand the wisdom of these designs as the student team focuses on meeting each of the challenge's requirements. The student is asked, with his team members, to envision a sustainable design for a future guest village within the Saguaro National Park, outside of Tucson, Arizona. What issues need to be addressed to support the comforts of park visitors without compromising the natural resources or endangering the endemic species of the area? A deeper scope of application will reveal extensions of this design in the incorporation of urban planning and systems design. It also strengthens the concept of manufacturing and building without producing waste or pollution.
The principles involved in morphogenesis and the determination of complex cellular patterns …
The principles involved in morphogenesis and the determination of complex cellular patterns are examined using examples from animal systems in which the tools of genetics, molecular biology and cell biology have been applied to reveal mechanism. This graduate and advanced undergraduate level lecture and literature discussion course covers the current understanding of the molecular mechanisms that regulate animal development. Evolutionary mechanisms are emphasized as well as the discussion of relevant diseases. Vertebrate (mouse, chick, frog, fish) and invertebrate (fly, worm) models are covered. Specific topics include formation of early body plan, cell type determination, organogenesis, morphogenesis, stem cells, cloning, and issues in human development.
Considers molecular control of neural specification, formation of neuronal connections, construction of …
Considers molecular control of neural specification, formation of neuronal connections, construction of neural systems, and the contributions of experience to shaping brain structure and function. Topics include: neural induction and pattern formation, cell lineage and fate determination, neuronal migration, axon guidance, synapse formation and stabilization, activity-dependent development and critical periods, development of behavior.
In this video module, students learn how scientists use genetic information from …
In this video module, students learn how scientists use genetic information from dogs to find out which gene (out of all 20,000 dog genes) is associated with any specific trait or disease of interest. This method involves comparing hundreds of dogs with the trait to hundreds of dogs not displaying the trait, and examining which position on the dog DNA is correlated with the trait (i.e. has one DNA sequence in dogs with the trait but another DNA sequence in dogs not displaying the trait). Students will also learn something about the history of dog breeds and how this history helps us find genes.
Scientists who are working to discover new medicines often use robots to …
Scientists who are working to discover new medicines often use robots to prepare samples of cells, allowing them to test chemicals to identify those that might be used to treat diseases. Students will meet a scientist who works to identify new medicines. She created free software that ''looks'' at images of cells and determines which images show cells that have responded to the potential medicines. Students will learn about how this technology is currently enabling research to identify new antibiotics to treat tuberculosis. Students will complete hands-on activities that demonstrate how new medicines can be discovered using robots and computer software, starring the student as ''the computer.'' In the process, the students learn about experimental design, including positive and negative controls.
Following the steps of the iterative engineering design process, student teams use …
Following the steps of the iterative engineering design process, student teams use what they learned in the previous lessons and activity in this unit to research and choose materials for their model heart valves and test those materials to compare their properties to known properties of real heart valve tissues. Once testing is complete, they choose final materials and design and construct prototype valve models, then test them and evaluate their data. Based on their evaluations, students consider how they might redesign their models for improvement and then change some aspect of their models and retest aiming to design optimal heart valve models as solutions to the unit's overarching design challenge. They conclude by presenting for client review, in both verbal and written portfolio/report formats, summaries and descriptions of their final products with supporting data.
How many calories are in your favorite foods? How much exercise would …
How many calories are in your favorite foods? How much exercise would you have to do to burn off these calories? What is the relationship between calories and weight? Explore these issues by choosing diet and exercise and keeping an eye on your weight.
As part of the engineering design process to create testable model heart …
As part of the engineering design process to create testable model heart valves, students learn about the forces at play in the human body to open and close aortic valves. They learn about blood flow forces, elasticity, stress, strain, valve structure and tissue properties, and Young's modulus, including laminar and oscillatory flow, stress vs. strain relationship and how to calculate Young's modulus. They complete some practice problems that use the equations learned in the lesson mathematical functions that relate to the functioning of the human heart. With this understanding, students are ready for the associated activity, during which they research and test materials and incorporate the most suitable to design, build and test their own prototype model heart valves.
Current research on the evolution and development of cognition and affect, including …
Current research on the evolution and development of cognition and affect, including intuitive physics, biology, and psychology, language, emotions sexuality, social relations.
Seminar covering topics of current interest in biology. Includes reading and analysis …
Seminar covering topics of current interest in biology. Includes reading and analysis of research papers and student presentations. Contact Biology Education Office for topics.
7.02 and 7.021 require simultaneous registration. Application of experimental techniques in biochemistry, …
7.02 and 7.021 require simultaneous registration. Application of experimental techniques in biochemistry, microbiology, and cell biology. Emphasizes integrating factual knowledge with understanding the design of experiments and data analysis to prepare the students for research projects. Instruction and practice in written communication provided.
This course is the scientific communications portion of course 7.02, Experimental Biology …
This course is the scientific communications portion of course 7.02, Experimental Biology and Communication. Students develop their skills as writers of scientific research, skills that also contribute to the learning of the 7.02 course materials. Through in class and out of class writing exercises, students explore the genre of the research article and its components while developing an understanding of the materials covered in the 7.02 laboratory.
Laboratory uses yeast as an experimental system to study fundamental problems in …
Laboratory uses yeast as an experimental system to study fundamental problems in understanding cell cycle and chromosome segregation. Experimental work combines genetic approaches with the tools of molecular and cell biology to identify and characterize novel genes that act on these processes. Instruction and practice in written and oral communication provided.
This course introduces the basic driving forces for electric current, fluid flow, …
This course introduces the basic driving forces for electric current, fluid flow, and mass transport, plus their application to a variety of biological systems. Basic mathematical and engineering tools will be introduced, in the context of biology and physiology. Various electrokinetic phenomena are also considered as an example of coupled nature of chemical-electro-mechanical driving forces. Applications include transport in biological tissues and across membranes, manipulation of cells and biomolecules, and microfluidics.
Students are presented with an engineering challenge that asks them to develop …
Students are presented with an engineering challenge that asks them to develop a material and model that can be used to test the properties of aortic valves without using real specimens. Developing material that is similar to human heart valves makes testing easier for biomedical engineers because they can test new devices or ideas on the model valve instead of real heart valves, which can be difficult to obtain for research. To meet the challenge, students are presented with a variety of background information, are asked to research the topic to learn more specific information pertaining to the challenge, and design and build a (prototype) product. After students test their products and make modifications as needed, they convey background and product information in the form of portfolios and presentations to the potential buyer.
This video lesson shows students that math can play a role in …
This video lesson shows students that math can play a role in understanding how an infectious disease spreads and how it can be controlled. During this lesson, students will see and use both deterministic and probabilistic models and will learn by doing through role-playing exercises. The primary exercises between video segments of this lesson are class-intensive simulation games in which members of the class 'infect' each other under alternative math modeling assumptions about disease progression. Also there is an occasional class discussion and local discussion with nearby classmates.
This course is an introduction to computational biology emphasizing the fundamentals of …
This course is an introduction to computational biology emphasizing the fundamentals of nucleic acid and protein sequence and structural analysis; it also includes an introduction to the analysis of complex biological systems. Topics covered in the course include principles and methods used for sequence alignment, motif finding, structural modeling, structure prediction and network modeling, as well as currently emerging research areas.
Since the discovery of the structure of the DNA double helix in …
Since the discovery of the structure of the DNA double helix in 1953 by Watson and Crick, the information on detailed molecular structures of DNA and RNA, namely, the foundation of genetic material, has expanded rapidly. This discovery is the beginning of the "Big Bang" of molecular biology and biotechnology. In this seminar, students discuss, from a historical perspective and current developments, the importance of pursuing the detailed structural basis of genetic materials.
Are you interested in investigating how nature engineers itself? How engineers copy …
Are you interested in investigating how nature engineers itself? How engineers copy the shapes found in nature ("biomimetics")? This Freshman Seminar investigates why similar shapes occur in so many natural things and how physics changes the shape of nature. Why are things in nature shaped the way they are? How do birds fly? Why do bird nests look the way they do? How do woodpeckers peck? Why can't trees grow taller than they are? Why is grass skinny and hollow? What is the wood science behind musical instruments? Questions such as these are the subject of biomimetic research and they have been the focus of investigation in this course for the past three years.
The need to identify sustainable forms of energy as an alternative to …
The need to identify sustainable forms of energy as an alternative to our dependence on depleting worldwide oil reserves is one of the grand challenges of our time. The energy from the sun converted into plant biomass is the most promising renewable resource available to humanity. This seminar will examine each of the critical steps along the pathway towards the conversion of plant biomass into ethanol. This course is one of many Advanced Undergraduate Seminars offered by the Biology Department at MIT. These seminars are tailored for students with an interest in using primary research literature to discuss and learn about current biological research in a highly interactive setting. Many instructors of the Advanced Undergraduate Seminars are postdoctoral scientists with a strong interest in teaching.
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