Activity Description of "Lorenzo's Oil Film Guide"
Title Lorenzo's Oil Film Guide
Audience High School Biology, Advance Biology
Abstract This is a guide to be used in conjunction with viewing the film
"Lorenzo's Oil" with Nick Nolte and Susan Sarandon. This text-only
file contains a partial family tree for the main character's family. Since
the file is text-only you will need to add the relationship lines to the
family tree. Here is the information you will need to add those lines:
Aunt 1, Aunt 2, Aunt Dee and Michaela are siblings. Michaela is
married to Augusto. Michaela and Augusto are the parents of Lorenzo.
Author Catherine Ross
Email Catherine.Ross@atlas.moa.net
Unifying Evidence, models, and explanation
Concept
Science and Understandings about science and technology
Technology
Science as Understandings about scientific inquiry
Inquiry
History and Science as a human endeavor, Nature of scientific knowledge
Nature of
Science
Science in Personal and community health, Science and technology in local,
Personal and national, global challenges
Social
Perspectives
Life, Physical, Molecular basis of heredity, Reproduction and heredity
Earth Sciences
Other Science Teaching, Assessment
Standards
Film Guide for:
LORENZO'S Oil
starring
Nick Nolte and Susan Sarandon
by Cathy Ross
Please read these questions over before you see the movie!! Then consider
and write your answers.
1. From the description of the disease, ALD, (adrenoleukodystrophy)
sketch what Lorenzo's neurons most likely looked like after a year.
Include a sketch of a normal neuron.
Before
After a year
2. ALD is a recessive sex-linked or X-linked disease. If this is a partial
family tree for the Odone's, what are the probable genotypes of the
family members listed:
XA = normal neurons and Xa = ALD
Aunt #1 . . . . X---X---
Michaela . . . X---X---
Aunt #2 . . . . X---X---
Augusto . . . . X---Y
Aunt Dee . . . X---X--
Lorenzo . . . . X---Y
3. What was Augusto Odone's plumbing example used to explain? How
do analogies often help us understand a scientific problem?
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4. How did diet affect this disease's progression?
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5. What was "Lorenzo's Oil" ? Why was it so
special?__________________________________________________
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6. How did Augusto use modeling (paper clips) to solve a scientific
problem? Can you think of other "great discoveries" that employed
models?
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7. Why did they encounter resistance from the medical community and
from the support organization? What did you learn from observing
this behavior?
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8. We can learn anything we want to. Most of us will and should regard
ourselves as "lifelong learners." How did Augusto and Michaela
Odone demonstrate this?
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9. As you reflect on this movie, how did the Odone family use the
scientific method? Start with the problem statement and use examples
from the movie to illustrate the steps.
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10.
Did this family's courage and persistence inspire you?
How?___________________________________________________
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11.
Look online and write a brief conclusion to Lorenzo’s
story._____________________________________________
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© C. Sheils Ross,
1993