Group 3

Cordilia Chan, Eunice Chan, Helen Chui, Hebe Lai, Teresa Lai

12^th August, 2014

Photo with Jeremy

Last week had the first part of evolutionary biology, and today we wrapped up the topic by having the second lesson. It was nice seeing humorous Jeremy and taking a closer look at DNAs. In order to observe and investigate the structure of DNA with our naked eyes, we did a lab to extract DNA from fresh strawberries using household items like dish-washing soap, alcohol, table salt and water to form a buffer. We placed a strawberry into a Ziploc bag and smashed it into puree. After all the procedures were done, a network of transparent fibers could be observed and those are DNAs of strawberries. Doing lab experiment inside a regular lecture hall was definitely a remarkable experience. 

Mirror Selfie

  In the afternoon, Teresa volunteered to play a decision making game with the professor. The game was like investment in the form of guessing whether the coin tossed has a head or a tail. Although Teresa guessed wrongly, she was awarded with $10 for active participation! We also watched a video called “The Himalayan Decision”. The participants of the video had to make a hard decision that matters with their personal safety. We realized that there is a fine line between decisions and outcomes. Making a good decision does not mean that the outcome will be satisfying and having bad choices might not lead to bad outcomes. Just as Teresa may not have made the best decision, she still received a $10 dollar reward from the professor. So choices and decisions do not necessarily affect the results directly.

Before dinner, we got the chance to visit the bookstore and we spent almost an hour inside choosing souvenirs for our families and ourselves. Finally, we watched the catching fire movie as an end to our day. 

Sunset in Stanford!