I will complete my B.S. degree in
Microbiology with a minor in Chemistry in August, and over the last couple of
years of my college science education, I have noticed that the most basic of
principles are the least understood. Almost every time I would begin a
Biology science course, I was relearning the same basic concepts again and
again regarding molecular biology. That is what I hope to do with this
blog. I do not want to go into huge detail, but provide a refresher
understanding to the general public regarding these important principles of
Biology and Chemistry.
I am not a professional teacher,
nor do I claim to be, though I do have some teaching experience. I have
tutored for organic chemistry for two and half years of college. I have
also been an Undergraduate Teaching Assistant for Molecular Biology twice now.
In order to understand molecular
biology it is EXTREMELY important to understand the basic principles of
chemistry. Everything we see around us is made of atoms. Within the
nucleus of atoms are protons and neutrons. Protons are positively charged
and neutrons have no charge. Surrounding the nucleus of atoms are
negatively charged electrons. Electrons are a lot smaller than their
counterparts in the nucleus and fly around the nucleus in a circle pattern
called an orbit. Think of the orbit in a similar fashion to how the moon
travels around the earth. Usually, the number of protons equals the
number of electrons, so the atom has no charge. The periodic table
represents all the known atoms, but Biology usually uses just a few of these
atoms: Hydrogen, Oxygen, Sulfur, Phosphate, Nitrogen, Potassium, Sodium, and
most commonly Carbon. These atoms combine in various different ways to
form everything we see around us, and in my next lesson I am going to discuss
how this binding occurs.
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