Write Stuff: September 2012

Sunday, September 30, 2012

Science Sundays: sexual selection

Welcome back to Science Sundays! I thought we'd delve a little into the interesting and complex world that is sexual selection (it's a crazy world, and one that is always sure to get my student's attention!). So how can this fit into your writing? Well, it influences the natural world quite a bit, and there has been some suggestion that humans, especially when it comes to ornamentation, also have sexual selection at play. Maybe with some of the underlying concepts you can give me some ideas!

Okay, here's what sexual selection actually is: it's a form of natural selection where the reproductive success of one sex is more variable than the other, and therefore there are selective forces that create adaptations that allow for more matings (and not necessarily just survival). In plain natural selection, adaptations are all about reproductive success--passing along genes and surviving to be able to do so. Same goes for sexual selection, but some of the adaptations that arise don't always make an individual the best suited for their environment.

Examples: take the giant antlers on the deer that are roaming around in my backyard (I think hunting season's begun and they're hiding here), those antlers take a HUGE amount of energy to produce, maintain, and don't make it any easier for a deer to run fast through the woods. They'd be better off without them. BUT, they do attract the lady deer, and allow for fighting off other males who want to mate with it's ladies. The same kind of thing goes for the huge size of male walrus--they are so big they can hardly move on the ground, but they can certainly fight off other males from sneaking in and mating with their women. Fun right?

Now there are two general areas where sexual selection comes into play, the first is intra-sexual selection. This is where males (due to the fact that their reproductive success is more variable than females) fight with one another to get mates. Both of the above examples are intra-sexual (between males) selection at work. The male with the biggest antlers/size and best fighting ability will get the most mates (usually--there are exceptions of sneaky males :).

The other type is inter-sexual selection. This is where the reproductive success of one sex is determined by the pickiness of the other sex. This one's my favorite, because this is where you get some of the most crazy strange traits showing up. Personal favorite? The giant NOSES on the proboscus monkey--who think's that's sexy?? Well, apparently the female monkeys. Biggest nose = more mates. Fun times! This kind of selection is really common in birds especially, which results in all kinds of awesome feather colors (think peacocks), strange mating dances, calls, etc. etc.

What about humans? Well, not all mates are created equal. (I think that's pretty obvious, yeah?) So members of both sexes will try to attract the highest "quality" mate, depending on what they think that is. So we see all kinds of random use of ornamentation--flashy cars, expressions of wealth, showing of "assets." Can you think of anything else? :)

<--sexy p="p" right="right">
So, how might sexual selection play into a story? Can anyone think of anything?

After Reading: Soul Thief

By: Meradeth Houston on 7:27 AM

by Jana Oliver

Riley Blackthorne is beginning to learn that there are worse things than death by demon. And love is just one of them…

Seventeen-year-old Riley has about had it up to here. After the devastating battle at the Tabernacle, trappers are dead and injured, her boyfriend Simon is gravely injured, and now her beloved late father’s been illegally poached from his grave by a very powerful necromancer. As if that’s not enough, there's Ori, one sizzling hot freelance demon hunter who’s made himself Riley’s unofficial body guard, and Beck, a super over-protective “friend” who acts more like a grouchy granddad. With all the hassles, Riley’s almost ready to leave Atlanta altogether.

But as Atlanta’s demon count increases, the Vatican finally sends its own Demon Hunters to take care of the city’s “little” problem, and pandemonium breaks loose. Only Riley knows that she might be the center of Hell’s attention: an extremely powerful Grade 5 demon is stalking her, and her luck can't last forever…

So this is the second book in the series, and it picks up right where The Demon Trapper's Daughter left off. Reading them both back to back was nice, as I had all the myriad of characters in mind, and could just enjoy the story. As in the first book, the world building here was great. Such amazing attention to detail, with lots of little side notes that really made everything come alive. Loved that! In some respects, though, I really found myself wondering what is going on with Riley--she's in some ways much older than 17, and yet again, not. Seriously, I kind of found myself wondering if these books had been written as an adult series that was then converted to YA, like the YA bits (school, etc) were just added in. Not that I particularly mind an older YA, but still, in places it comes across as a little strange. Anyhoo, this is a fun series, and I'll have to try and pick up the final book somewhere's!

Anyone read the last book? Worth it?

Thankful Thursdays: the usually forgotten items

By: Meradeth Houston on 7:20 AM

Today, I'm in some serious need of remembering what I'm thankful for. Some days are just like that, ya know? And since going back to bed isn't much of an option, here goes :)

My job. I have two close friends on the verge of losing theirs due to plants closing, losing funding, all that kind of junk. I'm grateful to be employed today with a job I actually like.
That writing last night was one of those magical writing times where the words just come and the scene takes over the real world for a while. Love it when that happens!
My health. I don't think I'm grateful enough for this, and I should be.
For the roof over my head, the fact that I have food in my fridge, and all that other stuff that I know I really should be more grateful for :)

Okay, and here's an awesome series of picks that I came across this morning and had to share:

Source: aperfectcommotion.tumblr.com via Beth on Pinterest

Cool, right? So tell me, what are you grateful for this Thursday?

Commenting Conundrum

By: Meradeth Houston on 7:19 AM

So, I've had IntenseDebate installed on my blog for a while now--according to their stats, just over a year. I've liked several of their features quite a bit:

-The ability to respond to comments via email.
-The nested exchanges of responses.
-The lack of spam comments.

However, there are a few things I've found seriously annoying:

-The extra sign-in for most people to comment.
-The lack of "comment here" on my main blog entries--you have to click through to the article.
-The lack of flexibility to turn off commenting when I want/need.
-The fact that it doesn't always show up on some browsers, or work whatsoever.

I've been seriously tempted to just shut it off, but there's one main thing that's been holding me back: doing so erases ALL of my comments. SO not cool. I do have the comments still--they're saved in my account online, and in my inbox. But still, it'll look like no one's commented on my blog for the past year. Yeah, that's just awesome. But, I'm afraid the time has come to make my blog a little more user friendly, and get rid of the random commenting add-on. Even if it means losing the earlier comments (there are 700+ of them, yikes!). So, if you see some changes on my blog, you'll know what's up. And hopefully it works! And I do have my old comments, and cherish them, so please don't think I'm all willy-nilly deleting them!

The reason this warrants a blog post is I'm wondering if anyone's done this before out there? Had the same issues? I'd love to hear about it, and would love suggestions or comments :)

Colors Like Memories is 30% off today :)

By: Meradeth Houston on 7:36 AM

I thought I'd pass along that my publisher, MuseItUp Publishing, is having a little back-to-school promotion that ends tomorrow. COLORS LIKE MEMORIES is 30%, and can be found here. There are lots of other awesome YA and MG ebooks up for cheap, too, if you're looking for something to read!

And tomorrow I'll be back with more regular programming!

UNCONTROLLABLE by SR Johannes available starting today!

By: Meradeth Houston on 4:00 AM

Yay! Uncontrollable is out today!

Uncontrollable is the second book in "The Nature of Grace" series by S.R. Johannes. Untraceable, the first book in the series, has won and been nominated for several awards including Winner of the 2012 IndieReader Discovery Award (YA), 2012 Georgia Author of the Year (YA Nominee), and a finalist in The Kindle Book Review's "Best Indie Book of 2012 (YA)".

Kirkus reviewed Untraceable as "A thrilling story is a dramatic entanglement of mystery, deception and teen romance. The action flows like a brisk mountain stream interspersed with rapids, holding suspense to last page."

If you like a page turner, you will love this series!

Head over to Mundie Moms for a Big Uncontrollable Launch Party with tons of prizes and then over to SR Johannes blog for even more.

To continue on with the blog tour, check out the line up! Where SR talks about anything from marketing to writing to her books to personal interviews and giveaways.

Book Summary

As 16-year-old Grace recovers from tragedy, her science class is chosen by Agent Sweeney at the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service to help with research on the new "Red Wolf Reintroduction Program".

While she’s excited about helping with the conservation of the endangered wolves, Grace knows this means being outdoors in the worst winter recorded, in a place she no longer feels comfortable. It also means working closely with Wyn (her ex) and his annoying girlfriend (Skyler), a girl whose idea of getting close to nature is picking silk plants and growing fake plants.

After a couple of wolves show up dead, Grace almost quits. However, when a fellow project team member goes missing, Grace continues the assignment under a renewed suspicion that someone might be sabotaging the conservation program. She quietly begins to hunt for clues.

Little does she know, she is being hunted too.

On Sale Now!

Uncontrollable is on sale in paperback and ebook at all major booksellers including Amazon, iBooks/Apple (coming soon), Smashwords, and B&N.

If you haven't read Untraceable, you can get it in paperback and ebook at all major booksellers including Amazon, Apple, Smashwords, and B&N.

Author Bio

S.R. Johannes is the author of award-winning and Amazon bestselling Untraceable (a teen wilderness thriller) and new tween paranormal, On The Bright Side. She has also published short novelettes as well as a teen romance anthology with 16 other authors titled, In His Eyes. Uncontrollable, the sequel to Untraceable, is scheduled for September 2012.

S.R. Johannes is a winner of the 2012 IndieReader Discovery Awards (Young Adult) and was also recently nominated for 2012 Georgia Author of the Year (Young Adult). Untraceable was also recently named a Finalist in The Kindle Book Review's Indie Book of the Year (YA)

After earning an MBA and working in corporate America, S.R. Johannes traded in her expensive suits, high heels, and corporate lingo for a family, flip-flops, and her love of writing. She lives in Atlanta, Georgia with her dog, British-accented husband, and the huge imaginations of their little prince and princess, which she hopes- someday- will change the world.

Connect!

Follow S.R. online on her website, Twitter, Facebook, and Pinterest

You can also sign up for her newsletter to keep up on author or book news.

Science Sundays: Dishing on Genetic Drift

By: Meradeth Houston on 9:37 AM

Welcome back to Science Sundays :) Today I thought I'd hit on another genetic concept that I've been hitting home with my students all week (well, at least attempting to). Genetic Drift: sounds cool, right? It is a powerful force, and would have a big effect if, say you had a new population being founded, or lost a huge chunk of a population.

That new population that was founded on Mars or the moon? They might have some issues with genetic drift.

So, what's genetic drift? Well, at its most basic, it's sampling error. Where you have a sample of something that isn't totally representative of the underlying diversity. Take flipping a coin: if you do it twice, you may get two heads, so you're not sampling the tails side of the coin. Say you flip it ten times and you get seven heads and three tails: you're not seeing the true 50/50 variability that exists in the coin's nature. (Okay, I know that's a random example, but it works :)

This skew from the actual total variability and range in a population in each sample that's taken can work from generation to generation. Just by chance (sampling error) not all the variability that exists in a population may get passed down from one generation to the next. Say someone with a unique gene variant (allele) doesn't have children, or doesn't pass along that specific allele: well, then it's lost. Over time, just through random chance, genetic drift works to get rid of variability in a population. A population will eventually hit what is known as fixation, where they've lost all the variability for a gene. It's crazy how this happens, but drift is one of those forces that is totally random and therefore super powerful.

Okay, so the true interesting stuff that happens is when genetic drift principles are applied to founding a new population. This is where Founders Effect comes into play. Simply, it's where a new population in formed and brings with it a random sample of the variability in the parent population. What usually happens is that variability is lost this way, as the migrants take less variation with them as they pick up and leave.

It's also possible to get a strange concentration of certain genes that may have been really rare in the parent population (take schizophrenia in the Hutterite populations--it's at like 1/43 people are affected, which is insanely high compared to regular populations, all because the 101 couples that founded the population had a randomly higher concentration of alleles for the ailment). It works on a larger scale, too: like the peopling of the New World with Native Americans: they have almost all blood type O, having randomly sampled only that blood group when they split off.

The other effect of genetic drift is a genetic bottleneck. When a population event occurs and leads to a large part of the population being lost, random variation can be lost. The difference here is that this happens within one population, not by founding another one. So, say a giant meteor hits the earth, killing off a huge portion of the population: the variability of the population that's left may be very different, if say, only one population in the jungles of the Amazon manages to survive (more on the true nature of human variability later).

This has turned into a giant post, but hopefully it makes sense. Anyone have a good example of genetic drift they want to share?

Happy Friday!

By: Meradeth Houston on 9:03 AM

Tonight, the local library is holding Cheap Date Night (quite possibly the best library invention ever) and showing this:

I can't wait. I'm dragging hubby along (he's never seen it), and looking forward to a fun evening (I hope!).

What are you up to this weekend? I hope to get in some good writing time!

Thankful Thursdays, the random edition with comics

By: Meradeth Houston on 7:36 AM

Some days I really realize I need to remember more of the things I'm grateful for, and today would be one of those :) Here are a few of the things I've been thinking about lately that I'm seriously happy are in my life:

The awesome writing community. I honestly am so grateful for the emails/tweets/etc I get from fellow writers, bloggers, and others, just to chat, discuss books, plans, etc. It totally cheers me up makes me realize I'm not alone in this giant mess of publishing!
That book #2 is coming out next April. I'll admit it--the thought totally gives me massive butterflies, and also makes me a little giddy.
My job. I know, that sounds kinda lame, but it's nice to one, have a job, and two, have one I enjoy as much as I do mine.
My family. Even if they make me crazy from time to time, they are wonderful support.
Having a little free time to write. Because I was really worried that would never happen with my new job, but I'm managing a little time here and there, and book 3 in the Sary stories is getting closer and closer to being complete! (Maybe. I hope. I still don't have an ending...)

Oh, and for things like this that make me laugh my butt off (gotta love The Doctor!):

After Reading: The Demon Trapper's Daughter

By: Meradeth Houston on 7:03 AM

by Janna Oliver

Demon Trapper Riley Blackthorne just needs a chance to prove herself—and that’s exactly what Lucifer is counting on…

It’s the year 2018, and with human society seriously disrupted by the economic upheavals of the previous decade, Lucifer has increased the number of demons in all major cities. Atlanta is no exception. Fortunately, humans are protected by Demon Trappers, who work to keep homes and streets safe from the things that go bump in the night. Seventeen-year-old Riley, only daughter of legendary Demon Trapper Paul Blackthorne, has always dreamed of following in her father’s footsteps. When she’s not keeping up with her homework or trying to manage her growing attraction to fellow Trapper apprentice, Simon, Riley’s out saving citizens from Grade One Hellspawn. Business as usual, really, for a demon-trapping teen. When a Grade Five Geo-Fiend crashes Riley’s routine assignment at a library, jeopardizing her life and her chosen livelihood, she realizes that she’s caught in the middle of a battle between Heaven and Hell.

Apparently I'm on an unintentional books-set-in-the-South kick lately :) Anyhow, this was another fun read, though I'll admit, it wasn't as good as I wanted it to be. The world building itself, however, was impeccable! Seriously, this was a great example of how to go about setting up an incredibly complex and realistic setting, near future and all. But, the pace kind of lagged for me in places, and there didn't seem to be much propelling the story forward until the last quarter of the the book. I can understand giving us a little time to settle in before hinting around at Riley's big role, but giving the book a centralized feeling earlier would have helped, imho. Other than that, though, I enjoyed the book and the crazy concept of "what if demons were real"?

Science Sundays: Culture and Biology working together (Lactose Tolerance)

By: Meradeth Houston on 9:19 AM

Welcome back to Science Sundays! I hope you have been enjoying a little random science on the weekends :) Today I thought I'd talk about what can happen with culture and biology get friendly with one another, leading to selection for some kind of trait. Specifically I'm thinking about lactose tolerance, however this kind of thing could work for other traits, given the right kind of environment, and might play well in a fun futuristic story. So, here goes:

Most of the world can't process milk once they have been weaned. The gene that produces lactase, the enzyme that breaks down the sugars in milk, turns itself off once it's no longer needed. So when people who don't have a whole lot of lactase in their system have milk, it usually gives them some serious gastrointestinal issues. No fun. (I can't imagine a life without ice cream. Or cheese. Or hot chocolate...)

Anyhow, there have been a few instances where there have been mutations that keep the gene that produces this necessary enzyme turned on, even after a person's no longer getting their milk from their mother. Handy, right? It's important to remember that this mutation was a totally random event--just because it's handy doesn't make it more likely to happen (for some reason this never sinks in with my students...I think they like thinking that if they really needed some kind of mutation it would just magically happen, thank you X-Men!). So, yeah, the mutation itself may have been totally random, but the places where it's been selected for aren't.

This is where things get nifty: in cultures where pastoralism (ie, herding cows and animals with udders) is prevalent, the mutation to keep this gene on throughout life has been selected for. These peoples find this mutation useful and beneficial, and those with it contribute more copies of this gene to the next generation. Presto--positive selection for this variant of the gene! (AKA, this allele, or gene variant.) I love instances where culture effects biology :)

The other cool thing about lactose tolerance? It's developed independently twice, all on its own. Once in Europe and once in Africa. This is a classic example of convergent evolution--where the same kind of trait has developed to a similar environmental stimulus independent of one another (so, not because they share a common ancestor). Another example would be wings in birds and bats--they developed independently of one another. Cool, right?

My students have a paper due on this topic next week. Hmm, chances of them seeing this entry? Very slim. I hope!

So, can you think of any ways biology also might change our genes? Maybe something interesting you want to use in a story? Do share in the comments!

UNCONTROLLABLE Blog Tour: S.R. Johannes talking about pacing!

By: Meradeth Houston on 3:00 AM

I'm incredibly happy to be taking part in the blog tour for S.R. Johannes' new release, UNCONTROLLABLE, sequel to the awesome UNTRACEABLE! She's going to be talking about pacing here today, which is such an incredible important part of writing. Take it away!

There is nothing more important than pacing to a thriller. But you have to balance fast ace and slow pace or your reader will be exhausted.

Different ways to create fast pacing:

· Use a plot template to make sure you know how your story will go

· The way you cut your chapters. Cut on the conflict.

· The dialogue needs to focus on moving story forward not dragging it down

· Avoid too much description – it weighs down story. Intersperse in throughout story not in a dump

· Use shorter sentences when you want pace to pick up

· Watch adverbs and adjectives

· “Arrive late, leave first” – start in the middle of action. Don’t lead up to it.

· Show the conflict – don’t have your characters talk about it

· Minimize internal dialogue or speeches

· Pull your lense in close – look at a scene detail. Don’t pull back and oversee

· Include fight scene, chase scenes, and arguments

· Make sure dialogue is real so it is easy to read

· Identify the mood of every scene and write to that mood

· Use strong action verbs

· Add time constraints

· Up the stakes

· Put on the pressure and add complications

· Surprise or mislead the reader – keeping them on their toes

· Make sure you r bad guys are bad but real

You can’t keep up the pace for the whole book or the reader will be exhausted. You will need to slow down before you ramp up again.

Ways to slow down and regroup:

· Add descriptions

· Add in dialogue

· Change setting to be slower paces

· Move from action to emotion

· Play with flashbacks

· Use longer sentences, softer verbs, and focus on the 5 senses.

Pacing is not just about action and suspense. It is using techniques to get the reader to turn the page or slow down the action to get the reader to take a breath.

As Grace recovers from tragedy, her science class is chosen by Agent Sweeney at the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service to help with research on the new "Red Wolf Reintroduction Program".

While she’s excited about helping with the conservation of the endangered wolves, Grace knows this means being outdoors in the worst winter recorded, in a place she no longer feels comfortable. It also means working closely with Wyn (her ex) and his annoying girlfriend (Skyler), a girl whose idea of getting close to nature is picking silk plants and growing fake plants.

After a couple of wolves show up dead, Grace almost quits. However, when a fellow project team member goes missing, Grace continues the assignment under a renewed suspicion that someone might be sabotaging the conservation program. She quietly begins to hunt for clues.
Little does she know, she is being hunted too. (From Goodreads)

Pick up a copy of UNTRACEABLE from Amazon!

After Reading: Beautiful Creatures

By: Meradeth Houston on 3:00 AM

By Kami Garcia and Margaret Stohl

There were no surprises in Gatlin County.
We were pretty much the epicenter of the middle of nowhere.
At least, that's what I thought.
Turns out, I couldn't have been more wrong.
There was a curse.
There was a girl.
And in the end, there was a grave.

Lena Duchannes is unlike anyone the small Southern town of Gatlin has ever seen, and she's struggling to conceal her power and a curse that has haunted her family for generations. But even within the overgrown gardens, murky swamps and crumbling graveyards of the forgotten South, a secret cannot stay hidden forever.

Ethan Wate, who has been counting the months until he can escape from Gatlin, is haunted by dreams of a beautiful girl he has never met. When Lena moves into the town's oldest and most infamous plantation, Ethan is inexplicably drawn to her and determined to uncover the connection between them.

In a town with no surprises, one secret could change everything.

I have to admit it, I flat out just love paranormal YA. I mean, that's probably no big surprise, but I had to reaffirm it :) So, yeah, this was a really fun read, and I particularly liked reading something from a male POV. It's been a while, and though there were a few times where I kind of wondered if some of the things that Ethan was doing were more the product of two female authors than anything else, it was still fun. Plus, the story itself kept me quite wrapped up throughout. Also, I'll admit, someday, I really will have to go see a Civil War reenactment. It just sounds cool, and so utterly random, and after writing CLM, I would love to see it in person, if only for Derek's sake!

And here's my other shameless plug for Colors Like Memories: if you liked Beautiful Creatures, there are lots and lots of nice similarities between the two books. Especially dealing with the Civil War. So you may want to check it out!

So, who's looking forward to this being made into a movie next year??

Some Awesome News: book #2, Chemistry of Fate, has the green light!

By: Meradeth Houston on 9:07 AM

Hi everyone! So, a little while ago I subbed my second Sary book, set as a companion to Colors Like Memories, and hoped and prayed my publisher liked it :) Well, I've had fate smile on me again, because Chemistry of Fate is now set to release April of 2013!! Woohoo! I'm very, very happy about this. CoF is a little more New Adult than YA (it's set in college), but it's a fun book and I love Tom and Ari!

So, here's a little but about the book:

“They are everywhere, can be anyone, and are always the last person you’d expect.” When Tom stumbles across a journal that belonged to his grandfather, he’s convinced the old man was crazier than everyone thought. The book contains all kinds of references to beings called the Sary, immortals who are supposed to help save humans on the verge of suicide. They certainly aren’t supposed to fall in love with mortals, which is just what the journal claims Tom’s grandfather did, resulting in his expulsion from the Sary. The more Tom reads, the more certain he is that his grandfather was weaving a great lie in his stories. But the journal won’t leave him in peace; especially when he finds the photo of his grandfather’s wings.

Tom’s only distraction is Ari, the girl he studies with for their Chemistry class.

Ari has one goal when she arrives in town: see how much Tom knows about the Sary and neutralize the situation if necessary. This isn’t a normal job, but protecting the secrecy of the Sary is vital, and any possible information leak is investigated. If Tom is a threat to exposing the Sary to the general public, fate has a way of taking care of those kinds of situations, usually ending with the mortal’s death. While Ari spends time with Tom, he starts to become more than just an assignment, but how far can a relationship go when she can’t tell him who she really is? When she finds out just how much Tom actually knows about the Sary, Ari is forced to choose between her wings, and her heart.

Tom and Ari must fight against the strict rules of the Sary, and the unbending rules of fate, if they hope to have a future together.

I hope that sounds like fun :)

Science Sundays x3: What is really a gene?

By: Meradeth Houston on 3:00 AM

Welcome back to Science Sundays! I hope someone out there is finding them fun and informative :) Feel free to ask questions or suggest future topics in the comments!

One of the things I see regularly getting all mixed up by my students, people in general, and sometimes in books, is the concept of what a gene really is. And in reality, it's a bit of a tricky concept, as in some senses defining exactly where a gene officially starts and stops can be a bit ambiguous. However, there are some things about what a gene is and isn't that I think may be helpful to point out :)

The first one is that there are very, very few instances where there is one gene for a single trait. And there are no genes that code for liking reality TV (even though I know plenty of people who'd like to blame it on that!). In reality, most genes are involved in helping shape many traits--in all honesty there are probably many traits that we don't even know a gene might be influencing! This is referred to as pleiotropy.

The opposite is also true: most traits are influenced by a whole bunch of different genes. (This is how we end up with all kinds of continuous variation--like height--where there aren't distinct categories.) There are a few traits that aren't (think about whether or not you have wet or dry ear wax--did you know there are different kinds? More info about that here), but most all traits are considered to be polygenenic, as in, influenced by multiple genes.

Okay, hopefully I haven't confused you too much yet! So, we know that one trait is often not under the control of a single gene, but what is a gene? Well, it is a stretch of DNA that codes for a protein. So, through the process of transcription and translation, a stretch of specifically pattered basepairs of DNA (specifically those adenine, cytosine, thymine, and guanine's) are going to be read in three-base packages to create a stretch of amino acids that will then fold into a protein.

What is a protein then? Well, they're the basis of our bodies and do all kinds of things. We can find them doing things like:

– structural support
– transportation
– enzyme
– nutrients
– defense
– contractile
– regulatory

Basically, the whole gamut of necessary things to keep us running! One cool thing about a gene is that there is something called alternative splicing that goes on--basically how a stretch of DNA is edited before a final product is made (even DNA has editors!). What this means though is that one stretch of DNA/gene can code for a lot of different types of proteins! The record holder for the total number of proteins that come from a single gene? 38k--in fruit flies! Cool, right?

Genes are vastly important, for obvious reasons, but we don't have as many as researchers originally thought. In reality we have around 25k genes (give or take, depending on the estimate). About the same number as a host of other species, ranging from really complex to super simple. So our true complexity doesn't lie in the number of genes we have!

I hope you found that interesting, and maybe learned something a little new!

Free ebooks and all kinds of awesomeness!

By: Meradeth Houston on 11:33 AM

My publisher, MuseItUp Publishing is about to celebrate their 2nd anniversary, and their doing so in an awesome manner: giving away free ebooks! Now who doesn't like that, and on a Friday too? So I thought I'd pimp them here a bit in case you want to grab a copy of Colors Like Memories, or any of the other awesome titles :)

Instructions are simple: go to the MIU facebook page, like it, then PM the page with your choice of book and our fab editor-in-chief, Lea Schizas, will get that to you pronto!

So, what will you be reading this weekend?

After Reading: NERVE by Jeanne Ryan

By: Meradeth Houston on 3:00 AM

A high-stakes online game of dares turns deadly

When Vee is picked to be a player in NERVE, an anonymous game of dares broadcast live online, she discovers that the game knows her. They tempt her with prizes taken from her ThisIsMe page and team her up with the perfect boy, sizzling-hot Ian. At first it's exhilarating--Vee and Ian's fans cheer them on to riskier dares with higher stakes. But the game takes a twisted turn when they're directed to a secret location with five other players for the Grand Prize round. Suddenly they're playing all or nothing, with their lives on the line. Just how far will Vee go before she loses NERVE?

First things first: GO PREORDER THIS BOOK (Amazon, B&N) because it is amazing! Ryan creates a situation where Vee (who is incredibly identifiable in all her behind the scenes--literally--glory) is sucked into an incredibly crazy situation where the stakes just keep going up. The pace is fantastic and kept me up way late at night as I just couldn't put it down. Ryan's teen voice, too, is awesome. The way she portrays the social structure of the school and world of the game were spot-on. And Ian's just downright delightful :) And, despite a few things that happen (I don't want to be spoiler-y, I kind of like Tommy lots...). So, if you're looking for a great, fast, edge-of-your-seat read, check out Nerve!

Cover Reveal for NEVERLOVE and GIVIN' UP THE GHOST

By: Meradeth Houston on 4:00 AM

Today I have the priveledge of sharing not just one, but two awesome covers for Gwen Gardeners GIVIN' UP THE GHOST, and Angela Brown's NEVERLOVE. Take it away ladies:

Mystery and mayhem teamed with heartache and overcoming. Follow PIP here.

It's that time folks, the moment Gwen and I have been so excited for. Well, one of the moments. This Indie publishing adventure has been one thrilling moment after another. So here they are, our covers for GIVIN' UP THE GHOST and NEVERLOVE by Gwen Gardner and Angela Brown, respectively.

Corona Zschusschen

Friend or Foe?

Murder victim Bart Bagley is not content to merely roll over in his grave. He wants his murderer caught and he wants teenage ghost whisperer, Indigo Eady, to help him.

It becomes obvious that Bart’s temper lead to more than one disagreement, but is it enough to want him dead? With nothing but a cold trail and a hot list of “friendly” suspects, Indigo and her friends race to find the killer before they become the next victims.

Indigo Eady is not clumsy. At least, that’s what she keeps telling everyone. Can she help that the overactive spirit community of Sabrina Shores causes her psychic abilities to short-circuit? It’s unfortunate that her cute new friend Badger is often on the receiving end of her mishaps. At times, she is positively hazardous to his health. Even so, sparks start to fly in more than one direction...

Heather McCorckle of CP Designs

For seventeen-year-old Abigail, one rash decision leads to an unexpected chance for redemption. At V'Salicus Academy, a unique institute where she trains to become an agent of heaven, she struggles with the pain of her past, the changes of the present and accepts a loveless future until her path – and heart – crosses with Basil’s.

Basil's off-chance slip of the tongue binds him to a life of servitude to the Devourer, the master of hell. His existence has no upside until a chance meeting with Abigail brings new perspective.

Keeping the truth of their present lives from each other brings disaster when secrets are brought to light and the life of Abigail’s mentor is put on the line.

Can Abigail and Basil save her mentor and salvage their love amid the chaos? Or will they lose it all, destined forever to NEVERLOVE?

About the authors:

Haunt me: FB, Blog, Goodreads

Gwen Gardner

Running, writing and reading are my favorite things.

I am also a dreamer.

Have you ever told yourself that "some day" I'm going to travel or write or whatever it is that you are passionate about but can't do right now for whatever reason? You can go for years and years and keep telling yourself that "some day" you'll do it. Too often "some day" never comes. But mine did. I am a former Administrative Manager and Vice President of a successful swimming pool plastering company - until I woke up one day and realized that my "some day" had arrived. I quit my job, moved to the mountains and began to write. Crazy, I know. But even crazier? Is when you get to the end of your life and realize that your "some day" is too late. Life is much too short for that! So the adventure has begun.

GIVIN' UP THE GHOST is a YA paranormYA cozy mystery, the first in the Indigo Eady series, due out October 8, 2012.

Haunt me FB, Blog, Goodreads

Angela Brown

Reading and writing have been lifelong passions. It was around the time I gave birth to my forever-love, nicknamed Chipmunk, that I really took writing seriously. After all, how could I teach my child to follow her dreams if I hadn't tried myself?

As a YA fantasy/sci-fi reader and author, I favor the magical, mysterious, the darker side of life...even harbor a secret fright for things that go bump in the night.

NEVERLOVE is a special project spawned from a blog-challenge-turned-blog-opera, the Abby and Basil affair. It is the first in the Shadow Jumpers series and due out October 8, 2012.

Science Sundays: What's in a Species?

By: Meradeth Houston on 9:04 AM

Welcome back to Science Sundays! A place for writers to learn a little about some random science stuff, and maybe find a way to work it into their stories :) Or, ya know, have a little fun learning something random for the week!

I have gotten some awesome suggestions for future posts, but would love to hear if you have any more--just shout it out in the comments!

Today I thought I'd talk a little bit about what a species is, how we define it, and all that fun stuff. And by species, I don't mean this:

I mean, more like this:

How do we define what belongs to one species, and what belongs to another? I see this regularly used to define a new species of mutant human, or alien, in plenty of books, so I think it might be somewhat useful.

Now, most of the time, people who see different organisms don't have too much trouble organizing them into groups that look similar to one another. But, there are grey areas where this can become kind of tricky. What do I mean? Well, what if two species look really alike? Or they can interbreed? Are they separate species then?

In general, there are two ways scientists break things down at this point:

The Biological Species Concept: where species are defined as separate when they can't produce viable offspring with one another.
The Ecological Species Concept: where species are kept distinct through natural selection, which selects against any possible offspring.

So, how does this work? Well, according to the BSC, species are distinct from one another when they can't interbreed (ya know, have reproductively viable offspring). So, take a horse and donkey--they can mate and have mules, but mules are sterile and can't have offspring of their own, because horses and donkeys are different species. (I know there are some random and rare exceptions to the donkey/horse thing, but in general this is the case.) This is the most common and more generally recognized method for dividing up species.

According to the ESC, then, two different species may have offspring, but their offspring aren't going to be as fit and therefore are going to be selected against. Darwin's Finches are always used to illustrate these examples, so here's one: say there are two types of finches, one with large beaks and one with small. Now the two types can interbreed no problem, but they have medium beaked offspring, and those medium sized beaks don't allow them to do well in either of the environments of their parents. So, like they don't have a big enough beak to eat the hard seeds their big-beaked parent eats, and there aren't enough smaller seeds their small-beaked parent eats to support them. So, they're the odd man out and natural selection weeds them out of the population.

Make sense? Hope it's handy!