Extra Blog Post

I think the skittle lab we did in class today was very interesting. We had to taste the skittles by using our nose for scent and then plugging our nose to see if we were able to tell the flavor of the skittle. I did not think the lab was that valid because after tasting the skittles you got adapted to the taste of each skittle, so after a while all the flavors tasted the same. Another thing that i thought was invalid was the blindfold we used. I think your eyes should be fully covered so there are no possible ways of accidently seeing the color of the skittles.

Blog post #5 The Eye (how light percieves through the eye)

Eyes are the part of are body that enable us to see. The light first passes through the pupil which is the black dot in the center of the eye ball. The iris controls the pupil opening. For examply when your eyes look at a bright light your pupil will shrink in size, but when in dark areas your pupil will dilate past its normal size which enables us to see some what in the dark. Our lens which sits right behing the pupil/iris helps focus images which are percieved by the retina.  The retina sits in the back of the eye between the aqueous humor. The retina is a very important part of the eye which contains rods and cones which are our receptors that process the visual information. The rods detect black, white, and gray and helps our peripheral vision. Cones are in the center and detect color sensations. Next in line is the optic nerve, which carries the neural impulses from the retina to the brain.

Respone to Teens Before Their Time

The article Teens Before Their Time is about young girls maturing at a very young age. At the begining of the article talks about a young girl around the age of  began to develope breats, growth of pubic hair, and growth of arm pit hair. The mother nor did the doctors understand why she was developing so many years early. The doctor then proscribed the little girl with lupron which is a hormone that stops puberty. She than began to have mild mood swings. She then was taken off the drug and had full grown breast and her period at the age of 9.

Doctors than began to do studies and figured out the problem. Children who are dealing with obesity start to have this problem. Why we have our periods around the age of 12 or 13 is because our body has enough fat to support having a child and menstration. When a child is obeise at a young age they already have enough fat to support having a child, so puberty will begin early for them.

Ice Cube Addiction Response (thoughts, feelings, reactions)

In my opinion i particulary liked doing this experiement. I got a feel what its like to have a secret addiction. Having to hide ice cubes which everyone uses was kind of difficult at times when out in public but  mostly easy when at home. I also got a feel what its like when the person addicted to a certain drug is always figuring out where and who they are going to get their next suppy from. Being addicted to the ice cubes, i had to constantly be figuring out where i was going to get my next ice cubes from. Whether it was from the fridge, gas station, restuarant, or even someone elsen i had to get it right away and then hide it.

My feelings during the experiement  were awkward at times, especially when i had to ask for a non clear cup at the restaurant or make sure nobody saw me use the ice machine before getting my drink. Also when i was at home with my family, i always had to sneek the ice cubes in my cup before ne one could see, or make sure that my drink was completely full in my cup so that my ice cubes were even more hidden.

I also learned that being addicted to something you will do everything in your power to get and to keep it. By which means you will do the unordinary to hide it. It seemed that i was on a time schedule during the experiement, i always had to watch when someone was in the kitchen or people who were around me in public places in order for them not to see my ice cube addiction.

 My final reactions to the experiement gave me a little taste on what its like to be an addict. I noticed how much it changes your schedule, your life, and your relationships with your friends and family. If i were to be an actual addict i know my reputation would change and how people would like at me. My behavior and they way i would look at things would also change. Having myself change may change the way others look at me and they may decided not to be around me anymore.

Ice Cube Addiction Reflection (upon 48 hours)

The ice cube addiction was kind of tricky at times when we had to hide something so simple as an ice cube. Most of my friends especially did not notice cuz i just used a water bottle from home. It was difficult though when i ate out at restaurants. The other day when i went to Noodles and Company i had to find a way to hide the ice cubes. I had to ask the cashier if they had a small cup for water and he gave me a small cup that you couldnt see through. I got lucky there because by having that non clear cup, it enables no one to see my ice cubes in my cup. I felt very sneaky when i was at home around my parents. I always had to find a large cup that was see through in order to hide my ice cubes. I dont think my parents noticed since i occasionally put ice cubes in a lot of my drinks. By them not noticing they did not notice a change in my behavior.

Response to Left brain/Right brain Quiz

My quiz was bases of 32 random questions that were based on what i like to do, what things i prefer over another, or how i would act in certain situations. The results were either going to tell me if i was dominant on my right side of my brain or dominant on my left side of my brain. My results were even, i was dominant on both sides with a score for 16 on my right and a score of 16 on my left. I think this quiz could hace been accurate but then some quizes are based off different questions which then may lead to different results.

Neurons & Action Potential Process

Neurons are nerve cells that are within the body. There are over millions of nerves cells in our body that are broken down into different kinds of neurons such as sensory, motor, and inter neurons. Sensory neurons carry messags from organs to the spinal cord and up to the brain. Once these reach the brain the motor neurons are waiting where they recieve instructions from the sensory neuarons and then send them out to the bodys tissue. The interneurons job process this information that is sent between the sensory and motor which then cause our body to react. All these neurons contain cell bodys where action potential occurs. Action potential is a nerve impulse or electrical charge that travels down the axon. This a chemical even that occurs by a electrical charge, almost like how a battery works.

The first stage of the action potential is called the resting potention. At this early stage the axon contains positivie ions outside the axon while it contaings negacitce ions on the inside. The axon contains these small gates where it detects what is allowed in. The next stage is called depolarization. Once the neuron fires the gates are then open. The positive ions then move their way inward and the negative ions move outward of the axon. The gates open one after another like a domino effect. The third period is callled the refracting period or also known as the resting pause. The neurons then pump the positive ions back outside of the axon. This then nears the ending stages where the proccess is finally complete. Once completed, it then can fire again speedly down the axon.

Methamphetamine

Methamphetamine  also known as amphetamine or (Meth) is a powerfull droug that is usually taken by the mouth, snorted, or smoked. Meth comes in different forms whether it is a small fine powder or in pills. Meths medical use is sticked today and only used in certain situations. The main effects of meth are
-euphoria
-alertness
-greater energy
-heart, breathing, and blood levels increase
-hunger and fatigue are reduced
-heart palpitations
-mouth dry=eating difficulty
Taking meth will cause pupil dialations and reflexes will be faster. Meth mostly causes slurred speech and  immediate pysical pleausre. As the drug wears off depression will occur. This cycle causes the user to repeatedly use meth to indow happiness all the time which then leads to an addiction of the drug.

Meth binds to the nerve receptors and cofuse the brain by mimicking certain neurotransmitters. This drug is known as a agonist. When the drug mimicks the neurotransmitters, this then creates nerve cell death by shuttig down the safety mechanisms located in the brain and body.

Dopamine, norepinephrine, epinephrine, and serotonin will all be affected by meth and can suffer long lasting damages. These long term damages are
-hallucinations
-violent/agressive behavior
-permanent psychological problems
-behavior resembling schizophrenia
-brain damage
-poor coping abilities
-weight loss (depending on body type)
-malnutrition
-skin disorders
-lung/heart diseases

Bioagraphy
www.kci.org/meth_info/sites/meth_facts2.htm
www.montana.edu/wwwai/imsd/rezmeth/transmit.htm