The A&P Professor Science & Education Updates - Issue #156

Life Science

By this time tomorrow, every drop of blood in your body will have passed through your kidneys dozens of times. With each pass, water saturated with waste is removed to form urine, and freshly cleaned blood then returns back into circulation.

The telomere-to-telomere (T2T) consortium has just taken a massive step forwards in human genomics. Writing in Science1, the group describes the first essentially complete sequence of a human genome, called the T2T-CHM13 assembly.

In fact, the testes of both fruit flies and humans seem to be enriched in protein products of these rarely-used pieces of genetic code. The researchers say the use of rare pieces of code may be another layer of control in the genome that could be essential to fertility and evolutionary innovation.

The team expected that the elimination of vasopressin activity would make the hamsters behave more peacefully. Instead, the gene-edited hamsters displayed "high levels" of aggression.

Around 15 percent of the world's population suffers from tinnitus, a condition which causes someone to hear a sound (such as ringing or buzzing) without any external source. It's often associated with hearing loss.

Boost in nerve-growth protein helps explain why running supports brain health. Exercise increases levels of a chemical involved in brain cell growth, which bolsters the release of the “feel good” hormone dopamine, new research shows.

In the quest for eternal youth, poo transplants may seem like an unlikely way to reverse the aging process.

Researchers from the University of Cambridge and Fudan University say seven hours is the ideal amount of sleep for people in their middle age and upwards, with too little or too much sleep associated with poorer cognitive performance and mental health.

Teaching & Learning

I have often had students tell me, "Professor, it always seems so easy when you are explaining it, but when I get to the quiz/test, I just can't do it." As I learn more about the cognitive science behind learning and retention, I have come to understand the pain, but also the potential, behind such a statement. We know that when students can understand and temporarily remember something, they believe they have "learned it." However, until they attempt to retrieve that information or apply that concept, they do not realize that it "didn't stick."

TAPP News & Notes

Kevin Patton summarizes his odd way of testing students | Multiple Attempts | Formative & Summative | Open Book | Test Integrity