Cumulative General Science/Technology Quiz

[Aramazd]

Thymine Dimers?

Next time leave it open a bit longer; in my timezone the question was open from 2am to 6am.

All right, will do.

 

[Serutan]

Yes, IMO you should wait at least 24 hours before opening the floor.

 

[ori]

Thymine Dimers?

Thymine Dimers are a form of Damage - and one of a few repair mechanisms that repair them is indeed the one I am looking for
In fact both the first and second mechanism found were characterized in part by showing repair of them

 

[xienwolf]

Hells, I know almost nothing about Genetics, but have a fun question I want to ask. So I'll guess...

RNA?

I highly doubt that is the case though. If you want specificity, I mean the fact that there is massive repetition through the DNA strand and the RNA does sort of a comparison check deal, and overwrites/replaces the sections that don't match up properly.

 

[ori]

Hells, I know almost nothing about Genetics, but have a fun question I want to ask. So I'll guess...

RNA?

I highly doubt that is the case though. If you want specificity, I mean the fact that there is massive repetition through the DNA strand and the RNA does sort of a comparison check deal, and overwrites/replaces the sections that don't match up properly.

never heard of RNA being used for repair (there are not many RNA reading DNA synthesizing enzymes out there - and none is a genuine repair enzyme) - though what you describe is (very) roughly mismatch repair (just using old vs. new DNA strands for the check) - which StarWorms already guessed. So no.

 

[ori]

its not quite 72 hours, but close enough I think. There don't seem to be any more takers.
The answer is Enzymatic Photoreactivation. For anyone interested: have a look at A brief history of the DNA repair field.

So to keep this going: something more recent
What is Giant Magnetoresistance? I'd also be content with naming the product of everyday use that utilizes it

 

[Niklas]

What is Giant Magnetoresistance?

Couldn't say, but...

I'd also be content with naming the product of everyday use that utilizes it

... this I know. But I'll wait for a while, don't want to answer too fast, and I'd feel slightly cheating since I don't really have a clue about the physics behind it.

 

[Genocidicbunny]

I also know the answer, and just like Niklas ill wait. Im curious to know how it actually works, not where its used.

 

[dutchfire]

its not quite 72 hours, but close enough I think. There don't seem to be any more takers.
The answer is Enzymatic Photoreactivation. For anyone interested: have a look at A brief history of the DNA repair field.

So to keep this going: something more recent
What is Giant Magnetoresistance? I'd also be content with naming the product of everyday use that utilizes it

Isn't that this year's Noble Prize winning thing? I believe it's used in computer hard-drives.

 

[Genocidicbunny]

Guess Im not gonna be waiting much longer. I do know that its used in Hard Drives and that it was one of the Nobel Prizes last year.

SO now can someone explain it in laymans terms? Or at least close to them?

 

[ori]

Giant Magnetoresistance: Often abbreviated to GMR, the giant magnetoresistance is the large drop in resistance in a magnetic multilayer

For a more detailed, but still pretty readable description have a look at
Scientific Background
and
Information for the Public
compiled by the Nobel Foundation.

Congrats y'all - now who was first Niklas who first said he knew or dutchfire who was the first to post the answer - anyway go ahead post your question

 

[dutchfire]

Okay, what's an RLC circuit, what are it's main components, and what is it's main use?

 

[Genocidicbunny]

Ive heard it before in conjunction with radio, so im gonna guess that they're used for radio? I have no idea what they are though..

 

[dutchfire]

Ive heard it before in conjunction with radio, so im gonna guess that they're used for radio? I have no idea what they are though..

That's correct, but I'm going to wait for someone to give a more complete answer.

 

[Mise]

I forget the details, but basically, it consists of a Resistor, Capacitor and Inductor in series or in parallel (depending on what you want to use it for -- again, I forget the details of what's used when...). The resistor has the same impedence regardless of frequency (of the AC supply). The capacitor acts as a perfect resistor under low frequencies, but as a perfect conductor under high frequencies. The Inductor does the opposite.

So in that way, you can "tune" the circuit to only select a narrow band of frequencies.

Not exactly a complete answer I admit.... I'm hazy on the details.

 

[dutchfire]

I forget the details, but basically, it consists of a Resistor, Capacitor and Inductor in series or in parallel (depending on what you want to use it for -- again, I forget the details of what's used when...). The resistor has the same impedence regardless of frequency (of the AC supply). The capacitor acts as a perfect resistor under low frequencies, but as a perfect conductor under high frequencies. The Inductor does the opposite.

So in that way, you can "tune" the circuit to only select a narrow band of frequencies.

Not exactly a complete answer I admit.... I'm hazy on the details.

I was referring to a Resistor, Inductor and Capacitor in series. They are used in radio's to tune in to one specific frequency. This is done by changing the capacity of the Capacitor.

Wiki

 

[Mise]

I suck at question setting... I hereby open the floor! *opens*

 

[Brighteye]

What is the rationale behind prescribing certain people antibiotics when they have a bad cold or 'flu?

I would say which group of people, but that'd make it even easier. And no, I'm not talking about people who happen to have an infection when they get the cold, and therefore would have been taking antibiotics anyway.

 

[Catharsis]

Are you referring to children, and the rationale is that they would be expecting to get antibiotics for any disease, and so it acts as a sort of placebo to make them 'better' (i.e. able to go to school)?

 

[Niklas]

Yikes, I certainly hope not! Giving extraneous antibiotics to kids to make them resistant early in life, ugh... My thought was the elderly, with the rationale that if they get an infection as complication, it could be fatal.

Then again, it's not people that become resistant, its the bacteriae, and in that regard it shouldn't be better to give it to elderly than to kids. Same bacteriae, same resistances... But giving antibiotics for the placebo effect, that's just scary.