Year 12 Biology Excursion

On the 18th of July, the year 12 biology students went on an excursion to the University of Melbourne for our second excursion in Biology this year. This excursion was really exciting and intriguing and it was a nice change to get out of the science classrooms at school for a day in preparation for our upcoming SAC. The first experiment that we did was about inheritance, where we looked at the species of plant known as Arabidopsis thaliana.

The investigation aimed to determine the genotypes and phenotypes of different generations of the plant through genetic crosses. We were able to use dissection microscopes to have a closer look at what genes the plants inherited in order to make a conclusion about their offspring. Following this was an experiment about DNA tools and technologies where we were able to do a gel electrophoresis to determine whether or not a copper resistant gene had successfully genetically modified a species of bacteria. Both of these practicals were really enjoyable and interesting because we have spent weeks talking about all these topics and we were finally able to put our knowledge to the test. The final tutorial session was spent learning about genetic modification, which was an eye opener to us all as we walked out with a different perspective of genetically modified foods.

Teresa Vu

Science Learning Area Captain