mammalian cell

What: A mammalian cell is somewhat similar to a water balloon, in that, by weight it's mostly water and it's fluid and malleable. The outer rubber portion of the balloon is like the thin outer membrane found in a mammalian cell. And like a water balloon, mammalian cells are sensitive to mechanical shock. They will fall apart very easily if not handled gently.

Writer: LucretiaGermanica

LCC: QP

Where:

Date: Mar 27 2012 5:17 PM

What: The mammalian cell is taught and explained in many K-12 classes as well as in college. From my vantage point they are explained with 10-20 essential parts. This simplification is necessary in the learning process to prime students' minds about the subject. But this framework misses something. Mammalian cells, as they occur in real life, are extremely complicated dynamic entities. To get a feel for actually may be occurring, a stadium metaphor may be helpful. Visualize a football stadium on game day; it is a huge structure with ten of thousands of people coming and going some sitting, some moving. Some the activity is highly structured, the game itself and the fans sitting in the seats. Some of the activity is unstructured. Penalties in the game and fans getting drunk and starting fights. The key point is that there are thousand of movements within the confined and structured space of the stadium. This crudely approximates the dynamic physiology of a mammalian cell.

Writer: Lucretia

LCC:

Where: Reference Link Has Evaporated

Date: May 7 2013 11:41 AM

What: "A cell (in a multicellular organism) is an identifiable unit that is part of a larger organism just as a factory is an identifiable unit that is part of society. A cell uses material and energy resources and produces products just as a factory does." The link expands this discussion.

Writer: Norm Herr CSUN

LCC: QP

Where:

Date: Jul 14 2010 12:15 AM