My other Web Sites
I have created to other websiteshttp://sciencecomedy.freeservers.com is a collection of sketches by Billy Conolley, Eddie Izzard and Ali G about scientific ideas.
My Science comedy site at geocities has some funny scientific stories about endosymbiosis, the origins of life and cloning Dolly the sheep.
There's also a story about Scooby Doo helping Richard Dawkins getting rid of the ghost Haunting him. Plus a few others.
|
Future Plans
Eventually I would like to explain the science behind my stories in an interesting yet accurate way. www.newscientist.com usually does a good job of communicating science to the public although sometimes dosn't reveal the whole truth, or over simplifies things.
For example their article about cloning a cat this week states " However consumers might want to think carefully before they attempt to duplicate their own beloved kitty as Cc does not look exactly like her older twin. That is because she was cloned from tortoiseshell cat, whose coat pattern is determined by environmental as well as genetic factors."
This is a perfect opportunity to explain about X chromosome inactivation.
As you probably know males have an X and a Y chromosome wheras females have two X chromosomes but it seems to be a big secret that in females one of these X chromosomes is inactivated. This is because the X chromosome is much larger than the Y chromosome and therefore has more genes on it. So X chromosome inactivation ensures that the number genes active in males and females is more or less balanced (as the Y chromomsome is very small)
This inactivation can occur on either of the X chromosomes in the cells that make up the embryo and the same X chromosome is inactivated in the progeny of the original cell.
The Tortishell cat has genes that determine it's coat colour on the X chromosome therefore you get different patches of colour depending on which X chromosome has been inactivated.
The pattern of inactivation will not be the same in the cloned cat and the cat from which it was cloned therefore they have different pattens of colour in their coat.
|
Call for contributions
If you know of other humerous stories with a scientific background or other comedians doing sketches about science please leave a message in my guest book at the science comedy site or contact me at ljellis71@hotmail.com
Please also contact me if you have a similar site to which ,you would like me to create a link to.
Finally
Wondering why this site is called the life of Martha? you'll have to check out my geocities site Enjoy the sites and keeping checking them for new stories
Welcome to my site visitor number:
   
|
Why We Have X Chromosome Inactivation
Without it sites as beutiful as this could never have arisen
|
