10 Great Subtraction and Addition Apps for Kids

Taken from www.education.com
By Tia Benjamin
Updated on Jan 9, 2013

Practice makes perfect, and budding mathematicians can build their subtraction skills and addition ability with a range of apps.

If the idea of mixing math with summer fun horrifies your kid, she may reconsider after playing a math-centered (and entertaining) app. Competitive kids can test themselves against others in multiplayer contests, and outdoor types might find they enjoy mixing math and gardening. Get your reluctant mathematician excited about numbers again with these top ten subtraction and addition apps.    (more…)

Duons: Parallel Gene Code Defies Evolution

Taken from http://www.icr.org/article/7870/?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=facebook

Researchers have just characterized a new, previously hidden genetic code embedded within the same sections of genes that code for proteins—utterly defying all naturalistic explanations for its existence.1

In addition to supplying many different types of genetic code that regulate function, the genome also provides highly complex coded templates for making a wide diversity of functional RNA molecules and proteins.

Protein-coding genes—those containing the key information to make proteins—hold the most-studied type of genetic code. Some of the most important chunks of code in genes are the exons, which specify the actual template for protein sequences.

In exons, three consecutive DNA letters form what is called a codon, and each codon corresponds to a specific amino acid in a protein. Long sets of codons in genes contain the protein-making information that ends up being translated into entire proteins that may be hundreds of amino acids in length.

Before this study, scientists were aware that the protein-coding regions of genes had mysterious signals other than codons that told the cell machinery how to regulate and process the RNA transcripts (copies of genes) prior to making the protein. Researchers originally thought that these regulatory codes and the protein template codes containing the codons operated independently of each other.

In reality, the new results showed that these codes actually work both separately and together. While one set of codons specifies the order of amino acids for a protein, the very same sequence of DNA letters also specifies where necessary cellular machinery (transcription factors) are to bind to the gene to make the RNA transcript that codes for a protein. As a result of this new discovery, these dual-function code sites in exons have been labeled “duons.” Scientists just last year reported that transcription factors clamped onto some exons inside genes but did not understand this dual code system until now.2

The human mind struggles to comprehend the overall complexity of the genetic code—especially the emerging evidence showing that some genes have sections that can be read both forward and backward.3 Some genes overlap parts of other genes in the genome, and now it has been revealed that many genes have areas that contain dual codes within the very same sequence.1,4

Even the most advanced computer programmers can’t come close to matching the genetic code’s incredible information density and bewildering complexity. An all-powerful Creator appears to be the only explanation for this astounding amount of seemingly infinite bioengineering in the genome.

References

  1. Stergachis, A. B. et al. 2013. Exonic Transcription Factor Binding Directs Codon Choice and Affects Protein Evolution. Science. 342 (6164): 1367-1372.
  2. Neph, S. et al. 2012. An expansive human regulatory lexicon encoded in transcription factor footprints. Nature. 489 (7414): 83-90.
  3. Tomkins, J. Bewildering Pseudogene Functions Both Forwards and BackwardsCreation Science Update. Posted on icr.org June 14, 2013, accessed December 19, 2013.
  4. Sanna, C. R., W. H. Li, and L. Zhang. 2008. Overlapping genes in the human and mouse genomesBMC Genomics. 9: 169.

*Dr. Tomkins is Research Associate at the Institute for Creation Research and received his Ph.D. in genetics from Clemson University.

Article posted on January 6, 2014.

App Directories and Reviews Sites

Written by Sharra Badgley
Published with Permission
www.TOSMagazine.com

 

I often receive this question from readers and friends: “How do I choose the best educational apps for my family?” Hundreds of thousands of apps are available, and this number continues to skyrocket, as mobile app technology develops at a rapid pace. It can be overwhelming to navigate through all of the choices to select the best apps to use in homeschooling. One way that I select the highest quality apps, with the best educational value, is by staying connected with app reviewers and directories. Just as I read reviews before selecting and purchasing my homeschooling curriculum, I visit a few app review websites to research educational apps before downloading. This month in Apps in Home Education, I will share a few of my favorite app review websites and directories with you.

• Apps For Homeschooling –http://appsforhomeschooling.com/

Apps For Homeschooling, a valuable resource, is a website for discovering apps that work for homeschooled children of all ages. Jennifer Bogart, a homeschooling mother of four, shares weekly reviews and recommendations about top educational apps. You can search for app reviews categorized by grade, subject, cost, and device. Each week at the website, Jennifer features a listing of new apps and free apps, and you also can enter to win great giveaways. (more…)