Module 6 Mendelian Genetics

Read

To set the stage, read the short section in your text on Genes and the Environment on page 609.

Watch and Listen

Watch a short segment from the video on Alternate Patterns of Inheritance: the Potential for Diversity (about 2 minutes). Watch the following sections:

• Bio Break: Environmental Influences
• Bio Discovery: Environmental Influence

Answer the following questions for your own understanding and save your work in your course folder.

1. Is height in humans determined only by our genes?
2. Are our interests genetic or environmental?
3. How does temperature affect coat colour in rabbits?

Module 6: Lesson 7 Assignment—Labs

Can eating sweets or salty foods determine if a pregnant couple will have a boy or a girl? Despite some persistent folk tales, there is nothing a person can do while pregnant that will influence the gender of their child. However, this is not the case with other species. In this exploration, you will determine if a change in temperature will have an effect on the gender of hatching chickens or geckos. By doing so, you will see how environment can indeed affect the expression of genes already present in the developing embryos.

You will complete a gizmo on the effect of temperature on gender and all related activities. You will be prompted to complete your Module 6: Lesson 7 Assignment as part of the lab.