These photographs supplied by Genelex Corporation depict actual DNA fingerprints and show the types of information that can be gleaned from them.
Students randomly select jelly beans (or other candy) that represent genes for several human traits such as tongue-rolling ability and eye color. Then, working in pairs (preferably of mixed gender), students randomly choose new pairs of jelly beans from those corresponding to their own genotypes. The new pairs are placed on toothpicks to represent the chromosomes of the couple's offspring. Finally, students compare genotypes and phenotypes of parents and offspring for all the "couples" in the class. In particular, they look to see if there are cases where parents and offspring share the exact same genotype and/or phenotype, and consider how the results would differ if they repeated the simulation using more than four traits.
Learn how genetic disorders are passed from parents to children as explained in this excerpt from Blazing a Genetic Trail, from the Howard Hughes Medical Institute.
In this assignment you will apply Monte Carlo computer simulations to study the effects of genetic drift and selection pressure on a single locus with two alleles: ?A? and ?a?. You will be running these simulations on a computer using a simple simulation
In a class discussion format, the teacher presents background information about basic human genetics. The number of chromosomes in both body cells and egg and sperm cells is covered, as well as the concept of dominant and recessive alleles. Students determine whether or not they possess the dominant allele for the tongue-rolling gene as an example.
