S3E9 Cube chatShaala: Exploring new ways of Learning

[KiranyadavR (Kiran Yadav)]

Meeting URL

webinar.hbcse.tifr.res.in

HBCSE Webinar

A front-end for HBCSE web conferencing server. You can create your own rooms to host sessions, or join others using a short and convenient link.

Please click on the HBCSE Webinar above to join the CUBE ChatShaala
Timing:5.30 pm to 9.30 pm
Webinar will be recorded and recording link will be post in the same thread after the webinar.

Looking forward to your participation.
Thanks

[KiranyadavR (Kiran Yadav)]

The above picture from 17th Nov’s ChatShaala shows a bunch of Giant African Land Snails (Achatina fulica) of different sizes and ages.
How do we choose snails for the olfactory assay?
Can we pick any random snail and use? Why not?
Will that not be a biased experiment?
How do we find out the age of snails?
I am sure that there would be literature (on finding the age of this animal) available. Achatina fulica is used as a model organism to study behavioural changes upon external stimuli, to study neurobiology and what not!
Ronald Chase has used Achatina fulica as a model organism.

Can we find out reliable references for the above questions and propose a theory?
We should!

The setup for maintaining snails in our HomeLabs as well as college/institute labs.
There are minimal requirements such as basket, tray, coriander/cucumber (as feed), water for their maintenance, as described during the ChatShaala. If it is easy and approachable, then why are CUBists facing issues in the maintenance of snails in their HomeLabs?
Cubist described that one of the snails has gone inside its shell.
What could be the reason for it? We came across terms such as aestivation, hibernation, the effect of temperature, climate. Really?
How do these crawling creatures manage in the wild? If the conditions are manipulative inside our HomeLabs, how do we make a way out of it?
There are many answers to this. One of them being updates!
If something like this happens, many of us will be ready with some or the other answers (way out). But lack of updates on the happenings of the model suppresses these topics and they are lost. The continuity breaks.

The setup for the olfactory assay (experiment).
We see, three model systems in CUBE; Fruitflies, Snails and Nematodes have the application of the olfactory assay in their research methodology. How are they same and how are they different?
We discussed that Ranchi CUBists have a slightly different method of performing the olfactory assay in snails when compared with Mumbai CUBists.
As the discussion was heading into the details of the olfactory assay, Mumbai CUBists found out a couple of faults in their design that was making it biased. Can we tell everyone the fault in the design?
Further, we saw the formula for measuring the olfactory sensitivity in snails/fruitflies; the Olfactory Response Index (ORI) that is based upon the readings that come out after a specific number of runs.

[KiranyadavR (Kiran Yadav)]

This is a photo of a small Phyllanthus plant having Eophylls (first true leaves of the plant). The leaves of this younger sapling are altogether different if we compare them with its older counterpart although both are Phyllanthus. The differences that are seen i) younger one has a round leaf apex whereas the older plant leaves have pointed apex; ii) the length and width of the leaves vary.
Heteroblasty is observed here. What is it?
“Heteroblasty is a significant and abrupt change in form and function that occurs over the lifespan of certain plants. Characteristics affected include internode length and stem structure as well as leaf form, size and arrangement.” [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Heteroblasty_(botany)]

After six leaves, the leaves are altogether different in terms of pattern from the onset of the seventh leaf.
It means that the leaves that will arise after the seventh leaf arises will be similar to the seventh leaf but different from the first six leaves.
Why that?

Correct me if I interpreted wrong and add to this!

[KiranyadavR (Kiran Yadav)]

[KiranyadavR (Kiran Yadav)]

We drew another relation between the animal as well as plant models of CUBE!
This time it was the water flea Moina and Phyllanthus plant.
While discussing an interesting observation made by, about the leaf pattern of the Phyllanthus plant, we saw that Phyllanthus and Moina are related through a common banner of chromosomal modifications.
Why does the leaf pattern changes suddenly? This is similar to the colour change observed in Moina under the influence of low oxygen condition.
If we wonder, we all have a relation with all the model systems in some or the other way and we are ultimately studying the processes in those models as they cannot be studied directly on humans.

[drishtantmkawale (Drishtant Maruti)]

CUBE Chatshaala on 17th November 2020
49 CUBists from 37 centres joined the webinar.
Map

ASSAM:
Narsing HS School, Silchar: Hasina Begam
Sonari: Susanta Tanti

BIHAR:
Sitarmarhi: Anamika Singh
Patna: DK Nirmal, Kshipra

GOA:
Nidhi Kapileshwari
Sakshi Prabhudesai

JHARKHAND:
Kanke, Ranchi: GC Baskey, Ram Deepak
Kokar, Ranchi: Man Masih Beck
Ranchi: Manjuel Jojo, Sweta Rani
Morabadi, Ranchi: Rechel Tirkey

KERALA:
Muvattupuzha: Abhijith Vinod, Fathima Ashraf
Kolenchery: Aparna Saleeph, Joel Johnson, Sagar Alias
Kozhikode: Arunima
Thriprayar: Aswathy Suresh
Kandassankadavu: Lakshmy PJ
Palakkad: Dr. Binumol
Ernakulum: Megha Pradeep
Thanniam: Sidhy PP
Perambavoor: Theres Hemin

MAHARASHTRA:
South Bombay: Arunan MC
Ghatkopar: Aashutosh Mule, Anjanikumar Kashyap, Nishmita
Thane: Anshu Kadam
Nerul: Drishtant Kawale
Powai, Mumbai: Lydia Mathew
Mahad: Manasi Prasad
Mumbai: Nilang
Dahanu Road, Palghar: Sachin Pradhan
Bandra: Saida Sayyed
Aurangabad: Shraddha Sonavane
Kalyan: Shubham Isame
Prabhadevi, Mumbai: Yash Sheregare

TAMIL NADU:
Erode: Dr. C. Chitra Vadivu

UTTAR PRADESH:
Kanpur: Hina Mudgal
Moradabad: Kiran Yadav

WEST BENGAL:
GHS, Kalyani: Aranyak Sarma, Eemon Mukherjee, Kaif, Sreemanti Das
Kolkata: Batul Pipewala

Inamdar Zarafsha Anjum
Zaveria Shaikh