“Why Do We Have to

Learn This??”

Biology In Your World

Solving Real World Problems
1. Preserving the Environment.
– As of 2010, rain forests are being destroyed
at the rate of an acre a second.
– Doing a little math: At this rate, they will all be
gone in 30 years!!!
– Recently, scientists have found many food
supplies and medicines in the rain forests that
have been very useful.

– BP Disaster
Solving Real World Problems
2. Improving the Food Supply
– One of the greatest impacts of biology in
society is genetic engineering.

– Genetic engineering allows scientists to

alter the genetic makeup of cells and has
allowed them to make crops that are
resistant to herbicides, some that are
poisonous to pests but not humans, and
crops with increased nutritional content.
Solving Real World Problems
3. Understanding the Human Genome
– In 2003, the human genome (the complete genetic
material of an individual) was decoded and completed.

– The human genome contains 3 billion individual units!!

– Today, biologists are able to read a detailed “road map” of

every person’s genes and even today, many leaps in
research are being taken to build upon this project.
 Fighting Disease
Today, most of the scientific research that
you are exposed to is on the topic of
medicine and treating disease.
 AIDS
• AIDS is a fatal disease that is caused by HIV, a virus that
attacks the body’s immune system.
• HIV is spread through the transfer of bodily fluids.
• Scientists today are unable to produce a vaccine for the
HIV virus because the virus transforms as it moves from
one victim to the next.
 Cancer
• Cancer is a growth defect in cells. The
mechanism that controls cell division does not
work.
• Many cancers can be treated successfully if
discovered at an early stage.
 Newer Diseases
1. West Nile Virus (1999)
– Transmitted by mosquitos.
– Infects humans, birds, and horses
 Gene Therapy
• A new science and treatment!!
• Scientists today are figuring out ways to
replace defective genes in humans with
normal genes.

Think of all of the possibilities!!