Biology

Bee orchid is the common name of this short-lived perennial plant that occurs mostly in  the pastures, field boarders, banks on chalk or limestone, recently disturbed soils and calcareous- and base-rich portions of the Central and Southern Europe, particularly in Britain, and in North Africa. In terms of its taxonomical features, Bee orchid belongs to the Family Orchidaceae, Genus Ophrys, and with the specific epithet of apifera, hence, the scientific name of Ophrys apifera. The common name...

The term deforestation connotes transformation of forested land to permanently cleared land or to a shifting-cultivation cycle1. It involves permanent destruction of forest land by virtue of human activities such as logging and burning of trees in forested regions. Global warming Deforestation and destruction of rainforests have several adverse consequences, the most significant being global warming, which occurs due to increased atmospheric concentrations of greenhouse gases, in turn, raising...

Crop improvement is the main strategy for a farmer. After rediscovery of Mendels laws of Heredity at the very beginning of the last century, this got a scientific base. Since then several new principles and technologies for proven and promising and potential applications have come into practice. Initially plant breeding between two desirable parents by proper selections in the subsequent generations was the main strategy. During the last thirty years deeper molecular biology insights have opened...

In recent years the use of novel methods for transfer of genes over a wide range of organisms, leading to the production of transgenic plants, has been recognized as one of the thrust areas of biotechnology. Gene transfer methods in plants make use of a variety of target cell types, which include cultured cells, meristem cells (it is a type tissue) from immature embryos, shoots or flowers and pollen or zygotes through chloroplast or nuclear transformation (P K Gupta). The uptake of foreign DNA or...

Single-molecule force spectroscopy (SMFS) measurements are invaluable techniques which have gained increasing acceptability in recent times (Bustamante et al, 2000 Clausen-Schaumann et al, 2000 Lavery et al, 2002). Commonly used to quantify the forces between covalent bonds, nucleic acids and receptor-ligand pairs, SMFS seeks to determine the magnitude, in piconewtons, of forces which hold single molecules together (Albrecht et al, 2003 p.367 Moy, Florin  Gaub, 1994). The information obtained...

The word volcano refers to a place (fissure or vent) where molten rock (magma), gasses or other debris erupts from the interior of the earth. The origin of the word volcano is associated with a Roman god of fire Vulcan.  According to Roman mythology, he was thought to carry his iron smelting activities on an active volcano named Vulcano at Lipari Island in Italy (Upton, 1565).A progressive study of volcanoes, how they are formed and diversity of their formations has helped many scholars and...

This paper focuses on a work of art made by Claude Lorrain which is entitled Pastoral Landscape. This piece of art shows a picture of scenery from the past which features two people in the foreground who seem to be talking, animals grazing on grassland, beautiful large trees, a bridge built over a winding river and even a castle at the background. According to the Yale University Art Gallery, his painting was custom-made in 1648 by Hans Georg Werdmller, a Swiss military engineer, who probably made...

If my parents are going to build a second home, I would suggest building one in a mountainous region, preferably on a mountain that has relatively lesser trees and stronger winds. Provided that there are no budget and resource constraints, I would like to propose some ideas to make the house as sustainable as possible. I would propose building a solar panel on the roof of the house, as well as a windmill nearby. Both wind and solar energy are known for their variability, and so constructing both...

Monoclonal antibodies, usually abbreviated as mAb, have been known to be very important reagents that can be effectively used for biomedical researches. Upon their use in such researches, they can be effectively developed to diagnose a number of human diseases, treat the diagnosed diseases, and these may vary from cancers and other contagious infections. These monoclonal antibodies have been produced successfully from cell lines and clones which have been obtained from some different animals such...

1. Hektoen Agar is a selective medium, It is also a defined on an undefined medium. Why is that formulation desirable Ans. Hektoen Agar is a selective medium that helps in detecting and isolating only the Salmonella and Shigella organisms from other enteric bacteria. Since it can also isolate the growth of salmonella from shigella sps., it can be classified under differentiating media. The bile salts present in the composition of the medium inhibit the growth of gram-positive organisms in the culture...

Antonie van leeuwenhoek, first to observe microorganisms using a microscope. He invented more than 500 simple microscopes. Though they are not that much powerful as compound microscope but they rule the world for more than a decade. Leeuwenhoeks simple microscopes magnified objects to over 200 times actual size, with clearer and brighter images than any of his predecessors had achieved. He was the first person to observe company of living animalcules (bacteria) in tooth plaque. Of course, nobody...