The purpose of this project was to continue learning about genetics. The class was given a fictional crime scene which we had to run several forensic tests for. We conducted the tests in groups. At the end of the project each group had to create a presentation to convince the rest of the class which of the four suspects they believe committed the crime.
The suspects are: Teresa Terra Glen Glee Fred Flimmer Sam Sophomore
The victim: Carlton Comet
Forensic Science - The use of scientific experimentation to provide evidence analysis for a crime investigation. This is what we were doing in the project.
Chromatography- The process of putting a piece of paper with writing in alcohol to separate the different colors in the ink. We used this process to determine which of the suspects could have authored the threatening note.
Karyotype- A visual representation of a persons chromosomes. They reveal gender and chromosomal disorders. We made one of these for each of the suspects. From the information we could identify which suspect matched with Crime Scene evidence.
Genetics Disease- A disease cause by an error in your DNA. We discovered the genetic diseases the suspects had and tried to figure out how they could relate to their behavior. This could be used as evidence.
Mutation- A change in the DNA. These can cause genetic diseases. We looked for mutations in our karyotypes.
Double Helix- A form of DNA where the DNA is spread out for gene expression.
Chromosome- A form of DNA where the DNA is tightly wound around histones. It is used for mitosis so none of the genetic code gets lost.
Genotype- The "letters" that code for a trait. We look at genotypes to try and understand genetic diseases.
Phenotype- What the Genotype looks like when it is expressed. We used the phenotypes given to us about each person to figure out if they might have a genetic disease.
Complete Domiance- A type of trait where both Phenotype are expressed.
Incomplete Dominance- A type of trait where a new hybrid Phenotype made from the previous Phenotype are expressed.
Epigenetics- The markers on your DNA that turn them on or off. They are effected by inheritance, environment, and diet. These are important to consider in our suspects since they can affect your behavior.
Gene Expression- The process from DNA to Protein to Phenotype.
Overall, this project went well. I am happy with our finished product. It turned out professional and persuasive. I like the format of our presentation and the way the speaking was divided up. The pits would be that one of my teammates did not take the project seriously. They did not practice enough and spent most of their time messing around with their friends. The other teammates also did not do as much work as they should have. Another pit would be that we ran out of time to think our argument through as much as we wanted. If we planned out our time better than we might have had a better presentation. However, as it was, ours was still the most presentation and planned out presentation.