This article discussed how slime molds, or groups of amoebas, might hold the key to answering some big questions about evolution. Often, slime molds form into a large body sometimes encompassing 20,000 individuals to form a unified body. They are also able to adapt to their surroundings. In one study, a slime mold in a maze along with two blocks of food. The mold extended it tendrils through the maze even backing up from dead ends, for hours until it found the food. Slime molds can also help us to see how civilizations of organisms make decisions. For example, in order to get food, some slime molds will form a stalk and sacrifice their lives so that the rest of the group can climb atop them and become spores.
Scientists know through DNA analysis that slime molds date hundreds of millions of years before plants and animals. Slime molds are found in almost everywhere in the world including Antarctica. Many believe that these molds may have been the first colonizers of continents and through that scientists may be able to see what factors influenced the evolution of slime molds into different species. For example, one slime mold, Dictyostelium, may have evolved the ability to form spores out of the ground so that they would have a better chance to spread. In any case scientists believe that finding out why these changes occurred could provide clues to the evolution of other species.
I thought this article was informative and well written, if not a little misleading. The title makes it sound like they have discovered some huge clue that could change the way we think about evolution, but in reality these molds may just provide us with some insights into prehistoric evolution. I also thought that the article should have spent more time on the implications of these molds rather than all of the interesting tricks that the molds can perform. However, over all the article was engaging and I am curious to see what results these molds will yield.
This article is remarkably well presented. Ben facilitates our understanding of the passage and of the connection between amoebas and evolution by describing the structure and behavior of amoebas and the reactions from the scientists who have discovered these links. The writing is concise and informative, he relays the methods scientists use to date the amoebas in a way that is easy to understand for the reader. The article could be improved by further describing the extent of which the amoebas link to evolution and the larger social significance of the findings. Also, more information on the experimental methods of scientists would make the article more grounded. These new findings on how slime molds have an element of self-sacrifice in their “programing” so to speak. The fact that one may sacrifice itself in order to allow the others to spread their spores is eye-opening.
ReplyDeleteBen gave a great review of Zimmer’s article. He did a good job presenting different ideas and describing examples to support them. For instance, his citation of how slime is able to reach its food is the perfect example to further his argument that the slime molds “help us to see how civilizations of organisms make decisions.” Ben really clearly illustrated the hypothesis of the properties slime and what they could mean. Perhaps his best point in the review is the challenging of the author’s title. Ben’s insight demonstrates independent thought; crucial to a solid review.
ReplyDeleteBen could have worked on some of his grammar or organization of phrases. Some of his phrases were slightly choppy. Like, “in one study, a slime mold in a maze along with two blocks of food.” Here, the sentence could have been written more clearly. Also, it would help Ben’s review if he perhaps gave another example about the properties of slime that could be related to a species today (like he did with the spores). I feel yet another example would really catch the reader’s attention.
Overall, I was really interested by these properties of slime. It is such an old organism and yet, seems relatively under-studied. I was unaware of its ability to manipulate itself in the way the article describes.
Ben gave a good review of the article, “Can answers to evolution be found in slime?” The article seemed compelling and offered interesting information about amoeba activity. Ben described the article well; I felt that I had a good understanding of what the article was about after having read the review. I also thought that Ben pointed out well how the scientists are using the observations made about the slime molds to further continue their understanding of evolution.
ReplyDeleteAlthough overall the review that Ben gave was good, there were a few things left unclear. Firstly, there was little introduction to the article and very little background information. I think he could have added more context to make understanding this article and review a little easier. Secondly, I don’t think that Ben made a very strong connection to how this may change everyday life. However, he stated in his critique of the article that there was not a very strong point made about how the experiments conducted with the amoebas would change everyone’s perception of evolution.
I would like to learn more about how scientists could conclude anything important about evolution from these findings. It seems to me that the discoveries did not seem extremely significant. Such small advances, it seems to me, would not be momentous in the development of our understanding of evolution.