WEEK 10 [SEMESTER 2]

Tuesday, 5th May 2015 

Today, Dr Wan finished the microbial systematic for bacteria and proceeded with archaea. 

Choy's group presented about "Archaea". 

From my point of view, when I hear "archaea", what I understand most about them is that they can withstand extreme conditions such as high temperature, low temperature, high salt concentration and high or low pH.

To be very honest, ever since last semester, I have always wonder on how do the archaea adapt themselves to withstand the extreme condition? What do they have that the other microorganisms don't? 

Curious~ Curious~ 

However! I have never once search about it. (Sadly) But! I think I did search about it some time during last semester, about how do they survive in high temperature, maybe.

The reason why I blabber about this is because of today's lesson! Today. What's with today? 

After the presentation by Choy's group, Dr Wan told us to be in our group and every group was assigned an extreme condition that the archaea are resistant to and afterwards present it in front of the class. 

Oh, I should mention that we have to find the reasons (about the archaea traits) based on articles or reviews and highlights the points or explaination that we found useful. 

Our group got "low temperature" in which we have to look up on the Net about how do archaea adapt themselves to withstand low temperature. (Which is also called "psychrophile"! I just knew that today!)

It was quite complicated, if i must say myself because of course, we didn't learn in great depth about it. And some of the terms are new and foreign. Our group actually had trouble to understand them but Nurin was able to present it in front based on what we/she understand.

I have to admit that we didn't understand about it 100% (I myself had trouble understanding them too) but we tried. Hehe.

So, today, I gained knowledge about archaea. 

About what, you wonder? 

Specifically, I actually just know today that for each extreme condition, the archaea have different approach to withstand them and does not rely on one feature to do it all.

It's amazing that they have all this different method in order to live. But then again, of course they have to have it in order to survive the extreme condition, right? 

What made me curious is, I'm wondering if they "transform" to have the specific features such as having anti-freezing protein (for archaea that can withstand low temperature)? Do they already have it before they were "born" or after they are "born"? I wonder if you get what I mean...

To put it simply, I'm just wondering that... Okay, for example, this archaea is grown in a low temperature condition. Do they already have the anti-freezing protein? Or they adapt themselves, from a non-anti-freezing organism to anti-freezing organism, the cold temperature triggers the transformation or some sort.  

But, after asking this to myself just now. I think I already have the answer. Of course they have it. Why? Because they reproduce asexually. So.... The genes that enable their parent cells to withstand low temperature will also be transmitted to the daughter cells. Ah. Isn't it obvious, Dayana. x'D 

I believe that this is the best time to use the quote, 

“The more you know, the more you know you don't know.”

-Aristotle

And also this quote,

“The more I learn, the more I realize how much I don't know."

-Albert Einstein

Friday, 8th May 2015

Most of our classmates today were absent for their BAKSIS programme and next week it's going to be my turn and some of the classmates that were present today. 

The group that was supposed to present today is fungi but their group members are not present, there were only Aisyah and Syafiq present. So, no presentation by the classmates today. 

At the beginning of the class, Dr Wan said that before we start our lesson for the day, she wants us to answer her quiz first. Quiz on "Prokaryotes"! 

I was surprised and a bit nervous. Because Dr Wan just mentioned during last class that we should be able to differentiate prokaryotes and eukaryotes by now. 

Also, I thought that the quiz wasn't going to take long but you know what? The quiz used up the whole two hours lecture. I guess Dr Wan planned to only do the quiz today? Since there were very little number of us in class today. 

I wonder what Dr Wan going to do next Friday then? Is she going to do another quiz or is she going to teach them and go on with the lecture, as usual, without us? T^T (hehe) You know what Dr Wan said, "Life goes on" = lecture must go on although some of us are M.I.A due to our BAKSIS programme. 

So, today quiz was fun yet very very very informative. I can answer most of the questions. (ceh. haha) but some requires a lot of thinking too because not all questions are direct and some of it are even topics that we haven't learn yet. We are actually going to learn it next semester. 

I guess we were given some "sneak peak" of next semester's topics, then~ 

The quiz questions covers about archaea and bacteria since they are prokaryotes and most of it we have learnt during last semester. 

That's all for this week. Thank you~ :)