Silue Fougnigue Serin
CRITICAL THINKING HOMEWORK 3 BIOLOGY 2108
Part 1: Video & Comprehension Questions
1. The enzyme lactase catalyzes the breakdown of lactose into what 2 sugars?
Lactase catalyzes the breakdown of lactose into glucose and galactose.
2. What is the difference between lactase persistence and lactose intolerance?
Lactose intolerance occurs when young mammals stop drinking milk, consequently,
stop making lactase and thus losing their ability to digest milk when becoming adults.
In contract, lactase persistence is when an adult persisted in his ability to produce
lactase, the enzyme that breaks down lactose. Such adults can thus digest lactose.
Part 2: Critical Thinking
A) Formulate a Research Question and a Hypothesis
Question: How is the distribution of adult students exhibiting lactase persistence and
lactose intolerance in metropolitan Atlanta.
Hypothesis: Since one third of adults are lactose intolerant, less adult students in the
sample will be lactase persistent compared to lactose intolerant.
B) Please create a graph to represent the data relevant to the study in Table 1. Please use
Microsoft Excel or another graphing software to create your graph. If you need help,
contact your TAs or seek help at the STEM Tutoring Center.
Silue Fougnigue Serin
14
LACTASE PERSISTANCE AND LACTOSE INTOLERENCE
DISTRIBIUTION IN ADULT STUDENT SAMPLE
12
Number of students
10
8
6
4
2
0
Lactose intolerent [-3;2]
Lactase persistent[12;40]
Change in clucose level 40 min after drinking milk (Final Initial)
C) Explain why you chose that type of graph. In your answer, be sure to include why you
chose to include certain variables and exclude others in your graphing analysis.
I chose a bar graph to be able to effectively compare the two variables I am interested in
namely lactase persistence and lactose intolerance in the sample of students. I just used
the initial glucose level and the glucose level 40 minutes after the students drank the
milk to make the bar graphs, because I believe the glucose level after 20 minutes of milk
consumption is just an intermediary value and therefore not relevant to my analysis
D) What is the take-home message from your graph? State if your hypothesis was
accepted or rejected and justify your answer
The take home message from this graph is that more adult students in a given sample
from metropolitan Atlanta are lactase persistent compared to lactose intolerant. My
hypothesis was therefore rejected.
Silue Fougnigue Serin
E) Taking another look at your data, you notice some peculiarities. What do you think is
happening with the lactose metabolism with students 000-10-001 and 000-10-003?
Use data from the table to explain your answer.
When paying close attention to the data, I can deduct student 000-10-001 is lactose
intolerant. If he was lactase persistent, the lactase enzyme would have broken the
lactose he was ingesting from the milk into sugar, that would have made his glucose
level higher 40 min after drinking the milk compared to the glucose level before drinking
it. However, the results show a different result, the glucose level of this student 40 min
after drinking milk is even lower compared to the initial glucose level.
Student 00-10-003 on the other hand is lactase persistent. We can observe in the table
that 40 min after drinking the milk, her glucose level was substantially higher compared
to her glucose level before drinking the milk. This gives evidence that the lactase
enzyme is still working in her body allowing the breaking down of lactose into glucose
and galactose, the sugars that eventually made her glucose level high after the 40 min.
Part 3: Career Inventory
1. What percentage of people in this field have a Master’s degree?
24% of people in this field have a master’s degree
2. In your own words, briefly describe the role of a dietitian and nutritionist.
Dietitians and nutritionists monitor medical facility activities to ensure adherence to
standards or regulations. Also, they analyze patient data to determine patient needs or
treatment goals. They can then collaborate with healthcare professionals to plan or
provide treatment as well as provide health and wellness advice to patients, program
participants, or caregivers. Finally, they conduct research to increase knowledge about
medical issues.
3. This occupation is classified as a field with a ‘Bright Outlook’. You can find this
information on the top right corner of this career’s profile on O*Net. Briefly describe
what it means for a career to have a ‘Bright Outlook’ (Hint: you can click on the word
‘Bright Outlook’)
Silue Fougnigue Serin
Bright Outlook occupations are expected to grow rapidly in the next several years or will
have large numbers of job openings.
Note: In the ‘Interests’ category of the career profile there is a link to the ‘O*Net Interest
Profiler’; the interest profiler is a survey that helps you discover what your interests are with
respect to potential career options. Feel free to use this resource to aid in your future career
search!