- Bioengineered lungs transplanted into pigs
- Good overview of cognitive biases. You can't escape these, only hope to recognize when you may be falling victim to them.
Tuesday, August 7, 2018
Summer Assignment 8.7.18
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This week I found the article titled “Scientists successfully transplant lab-grown lungs into pigs” the most interesting. I found this article the most interesting because I think it is important for us to more fully understand how we can help treat people without solely relying on transplants. If scientists can produce organs using the patients own cells it can really change the way people are treated. There will be no shortage of organs and there will be almost no risk of rejection. Artificial lungs will help pave the way for more scientific discoveries like making artificial hearts and livers. However, their is a downside, the manufactured lungs cannot be connected to pulmonary artery so it’ll be hard for there to be a constant flow of blood from the heart to the lungs. Overall, this scientific advancement will one day help save the lives of many people and animals.
This week I read the article about scientists transplanting artificial lungs into pigs. Lab grown lungs, with healthy blood vessels, were successfully transplanted into 4 pigs. While each pig was put down at a different time, ranging from 10 hours to two months, none of the transplants were rejected. While this practice has its flaws, it can save a countless amount of lives, if perfected. It can also drastically reduce the wait that many individuals have to go through in order to get donated organs, specifically lungs. If scientists are able to grow other organs, like hearts and livers, failed transplants could become a thing of the past. While this can be a life changer for so many patients, is this experiment ethical? Despite the issue of animal testing, what happens if this gets out of hand? Will it eventually become possible to artificially make an entire human being? While nobody quite knows these answers yet, I believe that the possible risk is worth the reward of saving numerous people.
The first article about artificial lungs successfully transplanted into pigs was fascinating, and just amazing to think about. The fact that we have the ability to create artificial parts for a complex, living animal successfully is mind-blowing. Once this process is perfected in pigs and possibly other animals, it could be used to save human lives. Currently, though, there are still some problems that need to be solved to even consider using the process in humans. One problem mentioned in the article was that the organs weren’t connected with the animals’ pulmonary arteries. This forced the right natural lung, which was the constant, to solely supply oxygen into the blood. Although there are still a few complications, this accomplishment at the University of Texas Medical Branch at Galveston proved that this new technology was possible and very close to becoming implemented in humans.
The second article that I read was about biases, which was very interesting and surprising. I never realized that so many different types of biases existed, each one bringing its own negative effects. The article brought up two different opinions from experts on whether or not your mind can be trained to recognize these biases in everyday life and avoid them to help you make good decisions. Kahneman, a social scientist and a Nobel Prize winner in economics has a pessimistic thought on biases, and believes that it is impossible to train your mind to effect changes on system 1, which is the quick thinking part of your brain. This is because he feels that it is extremely difficult to recognize biases in the real world in the heat of a moment, where there is usually never a “cue” that you recognize which makes you think of the biases that might be in play. On the opposite side of the spectrum, Nisbett, a social psychologist at the University of Michigan, has an optimistic view on biases. He believes that it is possible to train your mind to recognize and to take into account biases in the real world. The article also discusses multiple ways that can possibly train your mind to deal with biases, including a Coursera course and a video game designed by the Intelligence Advanced Research Projects Activity (IARPA) in their program, Sirius. Both were very interesting, and all the training methods had a varying degree of success. Overall, there are many different biases that affect many parts of your life, from decision making to your opinions. It is best to recognize that many biases do exist, and try to take them into account in your daily lives.
I read the article titled “Scientists successfully transplant lab-grown lungs into pigs”. I chose to read this article because I was interested to find out if the pigs survived for long periods of time, and if the transplant supplied information that could be carried over to humans some day. The lungs transplanted into the 4 pigs were bioengineered, growing for 30 days before transplant. Only the left lung of the pigs was replaced, and all 4 pigs’ lungs blood vessels joined with their circulatory system. None of the lungs were rejected, even though immunosuppressant drugs were not given to the pigs, and upon autopsy the pig who survived for 2 months had a seemingly normal developing lung. I found this to be amazing. The immunosuppressants might not have been needed because the lung included blood vessels and tissue from the pig who received it. These 4 transplants being a success, is a step on the way to bioengineering lungs for humans. However the lungs in the pigs were not connected to the pulmonary arteries. Because of this the transplanted lungs were not supplying the blood with oxygen.
I found the article titled "Scientists successfully transplant lab-grown lungs into pigs" to be intriguing. The scientists essentially took a mold of the pigs' lungs by stripping the cells, then filled them in with blood vessels and lung tissue from the corresponding pig. These lungs grew for thirty days and then were used to replace the left lungs of the four pigs. Although the survival times varied, one lived a remarkable two months. The fact that an organ grown in a lab can develop healthy blood vessels and the correct bacteria amazes me. However, the lungs did have their flaws as they weren’t connected with the pulmoary arteries, leaving the pigs to rely on their right lungs for oxygen. It would be incredibly useful to be able to use a similar procedure on humans in the future, as it would prevent the new organs from being rejected and help transplant patients avoid the long donor list.
The absurd length of waiting lists for organ transplants is something we hear about often. Many people die while waiting for a life-saving transplant, therefore scientific progress that can lead to solving this problem is extremely interesting. In the article, scientists successfully grew then transplanted lungs into pigs. The lungs used in the transplant were grown on bases from donor lungs in bioreactor tanks. The lungs grew properly with the correct tissues and were then transplanted into the pigs. When they were transplanted the lungs integrated with the pigs circulatory systems and survived, however they did not integrate with pulmonary arteries so the lungs could not perform their function of replenishing the blood with oxygen, so the pigs had to rely on their one original lung, in this experiment it was the right lung. Though the transplant was not a complete success, many useful pieces of information were figured out and it showed how far this area of science has come in recent years. The results of this experiment illustrate that bioengineered organ transplants are not just a thing of the future, but are incredibly close to being a viable option for human patients using donated organs or 3-D printed bases.
I found the article "Scientists successfully transplant lab-grown lungs into pigs" very interesting. This is the first time scientists bioengineered lungs which they were able to transplant into pigs. These lungs were successful since they allowed the pig to develop healthy blood vessels. This is amazing because currently there are 1,500 people in the United States waiting for months for a lung transplant. These bioengineered lungs for pigs are a step towards developing ones that are suitable for humans. If scientists are able to modify these lungs so they can be used by humans then these bioengineered lungs have the ability to reduce the wait time for lung transplant patients waiting for lungs and reduce the chance of rejection of the organ. These bioengineered lungs were transplanted into 4 pigs, the researchers let the pigs live from 10 hours at least to two months at most. In the pig, the bioengineered lung gave the body oxygen and nutrients by connecting to the circulatory system through blood vessels. These lab made lungs are a break through in science that can change the lives of many people for better.
The article, "Scientists successfully transplant lab-grown lungs into pigs", is yet another example of how fast medicine and technology is evolving in our current day and age. This research, though it is far from being perfect, is right on the verge of being able to save so many lives. For the thousands that are currently on the transplant waiting lists, this technology and medicine may be their only hope. Even though its only gotten as far as being in a pig thats survived for two months, every day the results are growing and becoming better. This gives hope for a future where liver transplants can be readily available, saving countless lives. In "The Cognitive Biases Tricking Your Brain", my interest in psychology was piqued. The human brain is a truly fascinating thing, and with that comes all there is that is unknown about it. These cognitive biases fit into that category of how much of the decisions made by the brain are unknown to us because they just happen without us even noticing. We often make decisions from preconceived notions that have been engineered into the vast unknown of the brain. This article goes to demonstrate through countless research how we are often tricked by our brains, and by becoming more aware of these biases, we may be able to make decisions differently. However, presented with everyday, normal decisions that we have not previously studied, the biases may shine through without us realizing because that is what the brain has been trained to do.
I found the article "Scientists Successfully Transplant Lab-Grown Lungs into Pigs" the most interesting since the notion that even regular organ transplants are still a more recent breakthrough. The evidence that proves that we can create, at the very least, lungs that can function inside a living organism is a miracle. I find that, even though we can not yet implement this project into the human body just yet,the possibility exists. The pigs which were tested were shown to have the lungs successfully integrated into their systems. There was even the same culture of bacteria found in a normal lung present in the synthetic one. On the other hand, the pigs had to use the original lung to breath because the integration was not complete.
The article that I chose was "Scientists successfully transplant lab-grown lungs into pigs," by Maria Temming. This article shows how modern medicine has evolved through time. In the olden days, anesthesia hadn't even been formulated and surgery was given without it, but recently people that are in need of organ transplants have more of a chance of survival with these lab-grown lungs. Though these developments are still evolving have many major complications, this research is the farthest that scientists have gone with lung transplants. Previous procedures were tested and had failed multiple times within hours in rodents but with the pigs, there was a significant improvement. The pigs were able to live for several weeks. I found this article very intriguing because majority of the people that need surgery for organ replacement wait weeks and weeks for the right match will no need to go through the long process of the waiting list. If this procedure could work on humans in the future, organ rejections would no longer be an issue and neither would the month long waiting list. For the procedure, 4 artificial lungs were produced for 4 different testable pigs. The tests resulted in a pig that stayed alive for up to 2 months without being rejected. Overall, this has been a huge development in the issue of organ transplants. Now, scientists are closer than ever to building artificial lungs that will eventually be adapted into human bodies.
I read the article scientist successfully transplant lab-grown lungs into pigs this week and found it extremely interesting. Before this transplant, there was a transplant in rodents but the rodents failed within hours of the transplant being put inside of them. If this concept is adapted for humans, the way list for a lung donor will cut down significantly and will lower the risk of rejection. At University of Texas Medical Branch at Galveston a study was preformed to make four lungs for four pigs. They took donor pigs lungs, stripped them down to nothing and repopulated them with blood vessels and lung tissue. From there, the lungs grew for 30 days and pumped nutrient cocktails. Then, they implanted the lungs into the pigs, and one lived for 10 hours, one for 2 weeks, one for 1 month and one for 2 months. When the pigs died, they did an autopsy to see how the lungs did in the body. The lungs were not rejected and were supplying organs with oxygen and nutrients. The problem was the organs are not connected to the pulmonary arteries. This left the pigs to rely on the natural lung for air post surgery. If scientist could connect the lungs to the pulmonary arteries that would be a huge mile stone for science and a step towards creating lungs instead of relying on donors.
The article I chose to read this week was titled, "Scientists successfully transplant lab-grown lungs into pigs." The article discusses a groundbreaking surgery using bioengineered lungs on pigs. Once the lungs were transplanted into the pigs, they condition improved and their post-op recovery was great. All the pigs were closely moderated and showed significant improvements up to the point of their death. The scientists conducting the study allowed the pigs to survive to different points in time. One pig was kept alive for 2 months and didn't show any symptoms of lung failure. When its autopsy was done, the scientist saw that the pig's had been colonized with the bacteria that a pig would have if it had normal lungs which showed that the lungs were thriving. The way the lungs were grown was quite interesting because the cells of a donor pig were used. A lung-shaped scaffold was then created which was further grown using the lung and issue cells of the pig that would receive the transplant. If scientists can perfect this method to be safe for humans, the face of medicine would be changed for the better. Many hospital patients that are need of lung transplants spend several months on the transplant list, hoping that they will get lucky enough to be chosen. Instead, if bioengineered lungs are used, many lives would be saved and patients wouldn't be stuck on the transplant lost fo too long. The way surgeons do organ transplants could be revolutionized thanks to this new study.
This weeks article was about a group of researchers who are trying to prevent organ rejections (that occurs after a transplant) and reduce the number of people who are on the organ waiting list. They performed an experiment of pigs where they grew lungs in a lab and then transplanted them into the pigs. To do this, the researchers first used the lungs of donor pigs. They used a solution to get rid of any remaining cells from the donor pigs. Then, they put the lungs into a bioreactor tank for 30 days. The bioreactor tank pumped nutrients into the lungs. Then, the lung was put in place of each pigs left lung. The four pigs they tested on lived on after the transplant for anywhere from 2 weeks to 4 months. In the future, these scientists plan to make their experiment more efficient by hooking up the organ to the pulmonary artery (which they did not do in the experiment). In the future, this technology could be greatly useful. The article describes how there are about 1,500 people in the United States alone who are on a list for a lung transplant. The use of this research could lower these peoples wait time and make the transplant more efficient and without all the medication and side effects that patients have.
The first article, "Scientists successfully transplant lab-grown lungs into pigs," was an example of how much biotechnology has evolved over the years. Scientists at the University of Texas developed lungs for pigs. They stripped cells from the pigs to create scaffolds of the lungs. Then, they filled the scaffolds with blood vessels and lung tissue from the pig the lung was created for. The lungs were left to grow in a bioreactor tank for 30 days. During this period, they were supplied with nutrients to help the cells evolve and spread. Once the lungs were ready, they were inserted into the pigs to replace their left lung. All of the four pigs accepted the bioengineered lung. Each of the pigs survived for 10 hours, two weeks, a month, and two months, respectively. Scientists were very satisfied with the success of the lungs and their functionality. The one flaw was that the bioengineered lung couldn't connect with the pulmonary arteries. This meant the pigs had to rely on their natural right lung for air. Nevertheless, it was a still considered a victory and spreads hope that bioengineered organs can potentially be used on humans. Organs are in high demand in the world and the organ-transplant list is endless. With bioengineered organs, the demand can be met and people won't have to die or suffer longer. I think that this kind of technology would be revolutionary. I was fascinated by the article, "The Cognitive Biases Tricking Your Brain". It was very intriguing learning about all the different kind of cognitive biases humans have and how they're often within us unconsciously. I was captivated by confirmation bias because I found myself guilty of it quite often. When I'm researching for an argumentative essay, I tend to look towards information that supports my claim rather than not. Confirmation bias makes you look at an issue in a limited format cause you're only willing to see one side of it. This is the case with most biases. We make a decision based on preconceptions instead of considering all the facts. It seems that our biases blind us from making logical choices. The article also makes me wonder whether we can train our brains against cognitive biases. Daniel Kahneman, a social scientist and the 2002 Nobel Prize Winner in Economics, says no. He believes that there are two parts to the brain, System 1 and System 2. System 1 is the quick thinking mind and System 2 is our slow-thinking, analytical mind. Kahneman claims that it isn't possible to inflict changes to System 1 that make it more similar to System 2. He says that it's much more difficult to identify biases in the real world than in situations when you're on your guard. Therefore, Kahneman concludes that it's impossible to train your mind against cognitive biases. On the contrary, Richard E. Nisbett, a social psychologist believes that it is possible to train your mind against cognitive biases. With the correct training, Nisbett supposes that anyone can have a mental barrier against cognitive biases. He mentions lectures, courses, and games that may assist in the journey. Among these include an online Coursera course called "Mindware: Critical Thinking for the Information Age", which Nisbett himself teaches. Another example is the game Sirius, a program created by IARPA to understand if video games could combat cognitive biases. These methods had varying degrees of success. I believe that the answer is a middle ground. We may not always be able to fight against our natural instinct, but we can allow ourselves to look at a situation with less bias. With training, it is possible to be more open-minded, but I don't think that our cognitive biases will ever truly go away. For now, it's important to take cognitive biases into account and attempt to not let them influence your decisions.
This week I read the article, "Scientists successfully transplant lab-grown lungs into pigs". I found this article very interesting because this research can help save thousands of lives. It takes a few months, or more, for people on the transport list to get their organs, and some people may not have that much time. SO this research can save more than 1500 people. Scientist took a pigs left lung out and sterilized it. They then used the lung shaped scaffolds to make inter cellular proteins. After that they refilled each scaffold with blood vessels and the lung tissues from the pig. Finally they let them grow for 30 days in a bioreactor tank before they can place the lung back inside the pig. After the transplant, one of the pigs was able to survive for 2 months and the lungs blood vessels connected to the pigs circulatory system. This research is promising but still needs more work before humans can be apart of it. Although the lungs connected to the circulatory system, they did not connect with pulmonary arteries. This means that pigs relied on their right lungs for breathing after surgery. I really enjoyed this article because I'm interested in medicine and it is good to see how far technology has come and how it can help people.
This week, I found the article titled, "Scientists successfully transplant lab-grown lungs into pigs," the most interesting. In order to accomplish this feat, scientists first stripped the cells from the lungs of donor pigs using a solution, creating scaffold lungs. The lungs were then given vital lung and blood vessel cells and grown in a tank for a period of 30 days, after which each subject pig received one bio engineered lung. All of the pigs were able to breathe normally afterwards, and the bio engineered lung functioned just as a normal healthy one would. The success of this experiment opens up a new solution for humans who need lung transplants, and it can mean the difference between life or death for a person who is in dire need of a transplant. The success of this experiment is also a testament to how much science has developed over time, and will continue to do so. Lung transplants are still completely functional, but bio engineered lungs are shaping up to be a quicker, more reliable option in the years to come if scientists can figure out a way to connect them to the pulmonary artery. I truly hope that this technology continues to be developed, because it has the capability to save a lot of lives in the future.
The article about bio engineered lungs being transplanted into pigs is yet another example of a huge medical advancement that can make a big difference in many people's lives. These lab grown lungs developed healthy blood vessels once transplanted into the pigs and allowed them to live for a while after surgery without any complications. Although the pigs did survive for different time periods, none of the lungs were rejected. This was previously conducted on rodents and failed, but after this successful attempt, the procedure can be adapted for humans. Lungs can be bio engineered for people resulting in a decrease the risk of organ rejection and reduce the wait times for organ transplants. Most people wait a couple of months, but after this medical breakthrough, the wait time can be drastically reduced. Although there is great potential, there are some issues. For example, the lungs were not connected to the pig's pulmonary arteries, which carry low oxygen blood for the lungs to create oxygen from the air that they breathed in. Therefore, the pigs had to rely on their right lungs, which were their natural ones, for air. If perfected, this method of creating bio engineered lungs can benefit many people around the world.
This week I read the article, "Scientists successfully transplant lab-grown lungs into pigs" by Marie Temming. The riveting article describes a procedure which will bring scientists closer to one day providing bioengineered lungs for humans. For the study, researchers built lungs for four pigs by using a sugar and detergent mixture to strip the cells from lungs of donor pigs. Each engineered lung grew for 30 days inside a bioreactor tank. Afterwards, the researchers then replaced the left lung of each pig with the bioengineered version. The results were astounding. The pig that lived two months after surgery did not experience any breathing problems. However, the lung transplant was colonized by bacteria that inhabit normal pig lungs. In other words, the tissue was developing normally and there was no rejection, making the study a medical breakthrough. Even though the research is not perfected yet, it will be able to save the thousands of people who are on waitlists for months. If the new procedure can be used upon humans, with creating bioengineered lungs that are grown from a patient’s own cells, it could decrease the risk of rejection and drastically reduce wait times for organ transplants, improving the quality of life. The study brings organ transplant to another level. In the past, lungs that were transplanted in rodents failed within hours. But in the recent study, some of the pigs survived for two months, a great improvement, depicting that research is moving forward everyday.
Of the two articles I resonated with “ Scientists successfully transplant lab-grown lungs into pigs” more because I am interested in veterinary medicine. Although the article expresses that the use of bioengineered lungs in pigs is merely a step in order to be able to use them in humans, I find the animal’s role in the experiment fascinating. The fact that scientists were able to take what they learned in a failed experiment with bioengineered lungs in rodents and apply that to pigs shows a promising future for the lab-grown lungs in humans. In the rodents the article explains the lungs couldn’t develop a “complex blood vessel network” thus causing the lungs to fail. However in the pig the lung’s blood vessels were able to connect to the pigs circulatory system, showing improvement from the previous experiment. The one factor that caused some complications was that the lung wasn’t connected to the pig’s pulmonary arteries which means the pigs could not use the bioengineered lung to breath. Hopefully finding a solution to this problem will prove to be no different than finding a solution to the failed rodent experiment. Moving forward this research could save the lives of many people waiting on transplants. It’s truly incredible that scientific research done on animals, as they sacrifice their lives, could be the reason many human lives are saved. The pig’s role in this all could mean the difference between life and death for many.
I chose the article, "Scientists successfully transplant lab-grown lungs into pigs". This is because it is so amazing how they were able to successfully help the pigs survive with bioengineered lungs. This is important because it is the first time this was successful. Personally, I think that since these lungs helped the pigs survive up to two months we are exponentially gaining success in the field of medicine. It was also very interesting how the artificial lungs could grow bacteria that usually inhabit regular lungs. Overall, this article makes me look forward to the future of medical science.
The article I chose for this week was "Scientists successfully transplant lab-grown lungs into pigs" by Maria Temming. This article made me understand that there are many things that can be done that were deemed impossible in the past. For the first time, researchers have successfully transplanted lab-made lungs into pigs. Scientists were able to achieve this because the bioengineered lungs were able to develop healthy blood vessels in pigs after the transplant which allowed the pigs to live up several weeks, longer than that of previous attempts of lung transplants in rodents, where blood vessels weren't properly formed and the rodents died in hour. This can possibly revolutionize the word of modern medicine because if this procedure can be adapted and applied to humans, with lungs made from the patients' cells, the risk of organ rejection and the wait time for transplants will significantly decrease. In order to this, the scientists first stripped the cells from the lungs of the pigs by using a sugar and detergent mixture. This left lung-shaped scaffolds of the intercellular proteins. Next, they repopulated each scaffold with blood vessels and lung tissue cells from the respective pig it was taken from. The lungs then grew for 30 days in a bioreactor tank filled with nutrients to help cells stick to the scaffold and multiply correctly. After surgery, the pigs were killed at different times to examine the autopsy reports of the pigs depending on how long they survived. In all pigs, the lungs weren't rejected; in fact, they worked perfectly fine in the pigs' natural circulatory systems. In the pig that lived for two months, no breathing problems occurred and the tissue grew normally, colonized by bacteria. Although this feat is quite outstanding, the lab-made lungs aren't quite ready for humans , because the lungs weren't connected to the pulmonary arteries which forced the pigs to depend on their other lungs for air. If the lungs can be connected to pulmonary arteries, these lab-made lungs will be fully functional and ready for use in the medical field. In conclusion, these scientists have pioneered lab-made lungs which can help save many humans in the future when perfected. This is a remarkable feat that will significantly change the field of medicine for the better.
This week the article I found the most interesting was "Scientists successfully transplant lab-grown lungs into pigs." The article was about how scientists created lab-grown lung transplants for pigs so that they could live healthily for several weeks after surgery. This is significant because in the past scientists did not have many successes when it came to creating artificial lungs. For example, when they tried implanting lab-grown lungs, the lungs would fail very quickly. This scientific advance is also extremely important because it can help scientists create artificial lungs for humans from their own cells. This can decrease the risk of organ rejection. In addition, the 1,500 Americans waiting for an organ transplant won't have to wait as long anymore. Joan Nichols at the University of Texas Medical Branch at Galveston and her team decided to build lungs for 4 pigs. They first stripped the cells from donor pigs lungs by using a sugar and detergent mixture. They then repopulated the pigs with blood vessels and tissues. After thirty days, the scientists replaced the left lungs with the engineered one in each pig. One pig survived for 10 hours, one for 2 weeks, one for a month, and one for 2 months. Afterward, the scientists did an autopsy on each pig to see what happened. They noticed that the engineered lung was able to successfully produce oxygen and nutrients. The pig that survived for 2 months had no breathing problems and was inhabited by bacteria which is normal for pigs. That proved that the tissue was developing properly. However, these lungs aren't completely ready because they did not connect to the pigs' pulmonary arteries which helps provide them oxygen. Once they are able to do this, lab-grown lungs will be a success.
“Scientists successfully transplant lab-grown lungs into pigs” was an incredibly exciting article. Lab grown organs were once something of the realms of science fiction, and now it is a part of our reality. The fact that these organs were not rejected proves that the possibility of creating functioning organs that could be transplanted into humans is not so farfetched. Normally when an organ is rejected, the immune system has an adverse reaction to the new organ, treating it as a threat. To deal with this threat, it tries to destroy the organ, harming the body in the process. Since the human body has not evolved to undergo organ transplants, the body typically rejects it. Most lab grown organs up until this point have been rejected, so this is breakthrough. The next step in research is to find a way to connect the lung to the pulmonary system in order to make it function. So far, the lung is doing nothing except for taking up space in the body. The pigs were relying entirely on their original lung to breathe, and the goal is to have the transplant pick up some of the work as well.
“The Cognitive Biases Tricking Your Brain” really made me evaluate how I behave in my everyday life. In hindsight, it is incredibly clear that I am often a victim of confirmation bias. In my numerous arguments with my little brother, I tend to disregard his evidence and focus solely on the facts that support my side. Even while perusing the web for more support, I ignore the opposing argument. This article opened my eyes and made me realize to be more accepting of evidence that supports other viewpoints. I also clearly suffer from the bias blind spot, which is the tendency to believe that you are less biased than the average person. I consider myself to be of average intelligence, but I often think that I cannot be tricked. I have read about biases in the past, and have told myself that I am exempt from all of them, but this is the first time that I have encountered the bias blind spot. The realization that in believing I do not have biases, I indeed displayed a bias was a little bit mind blowing. When I read about the endowment effect, I couldn’t help but chuck; This behavior was perfectly demonstrated by NPC merchants in video games. The endowment effect is when you assign a much higher value to things you own than to things you do not own. Merchants will often sell a product for money than they will buy it for. They believe that it is more valuable in their hands, and as such, it is worth more money. I found this connection comical, as I had just experienced it earlier that day. To overcome my biases, I will slow down my thinking. I will allow my System 2 thinking to overtake my System 1 thinking by giving it more time to process the world around me and give it time to remove my biases. Perhaps I will also take Nisbett’s coursera course to improve myself. I look forward to a more intelligent lifestyle.
Out of the two articles given this week, I found the article, “Scientists successfully transplant lab-grown lungs into pigs” the most intriguing because the thought of implanting a lab-grown lung into a pig without any rejection is absolutely amazing. Without a doubt, this procedure has created a major breakthrough in the science field. Around 1,500 patients are put on the waiting list, with an average wait of a couple of months, and are left to hope. Hope that their turn will eventually come before they reach their last stages. With this new procedure however, patients have a greater chance of survival. Bioengineered lungs or any organ could be made from the patients own cell in order to reduce organ rejection. During the procedure, scientists were able to notice in an autopsy that a tested pig with a lab-grown lung inside of it presented the same features when compared to a pig with a regular lung inside of it. This showed the scientists that the lab-grown lung was working efficiently. However, the downfall to this procedure was that only 2 of the 4 testable pigs stayed alive. As scientists begin to study this new procedure and make changes for the better, there is a good chance that soon we will be able to implant lab-grown organs into the bodies of humans.
One of this weeks articles, Scientists successfully transplant lab-grown lungs into pigs shows the great advancements of modern day science. Being able to transplant lungs that didn't reject a pig's body for up to two months gives great hope for those on organ diner lists. There are thousands on patients on this list waiting one after the other for the call saying a pair of lungs has been found for them. But the reality is most don't end up getting the lungs and pass away. The bioengineered lungs created by the scientist were able to plug its blood vessels into the pigs natural circulatory system which helped supply the organ with nutrients and oxygen to survive. Although the bioengineered lungs did work for a short period of time, there was a flaw, the organs weren't connected to the pulmonary arteries causing for the pigs to rely on their natural right lung for oxygen. If this obstacle can be overcome these bioengineered lungs forever change the future of organ transplants.
The article regarding the artificial lungs in pigs was very interesting. Although not full proof, scientists were able to create this organ and the pigs lived off of it, although not for long. Scientists still need to figure out how to complete the lungs, they need to account for its other purposes and other connections. For example, the pulmonary system. This gives hope to the world of human surgery and transplants, because more lungs will be able to be used for those in need. Maybe in the future, the artificial lungs will be so sufficient, that those with severe asthma could get use out of them. Or even recovered smokers. Who knows what the future holds and how useful this artificial transplant will become.
The article I read was “Scientists successfully transplant lab-grown lungs into pigs.” This article intrigued me as it involved researchers creating lungs in the lab and successfully transplanting them into pigs. These lungs were bioengineered and had developed blood vessels that allowed pigs to live for several weeks after surgery without medical complications. This experiment has great implications for humans. Bioengineered lungs grown from a patient’s own cells could reduce the risk of organ rejection and drastically reduce wait times for organ transplants. In the United States, the average wait time is a few months. This procedure could save many lives and make the lung transplant process far more efficient. The experiment started when immunologist Joan Nichols at the University of Texas and colleagues built lungs for four pigs by using a sugar and detergent mixture to strip the cells from lungs of donor pigs. That left sterilized, white, scaffolds made of the intercellular proteins. The researchers then repopulated each scaffold with blood vessel and lung tissue cells from the pig intended to receive that particular organ. After surgery, Nichols’ team allowed each pig to survive for different amounts of time. At each pig’s death, the researchers did an autopsy on the animal to see how the new lungs integrated into the pigs’ bodies over time. None of the transplants were rejected, and inside the pig’s body, the bioengineered lung’s blood vessels plugged into to the circulatory system, supplying the lung with the oxygen and nutrients necessary to survive. The pig that lived two months after surgery didn’t experience any breathing problems, and its lung transplant was colonized by bacteria that are present in normal pig lungs. One problem exists though that prevents lab-grown lungs from becoming more prevalent. This is that even though the bioengineered lungs linked up with the pigs’ circulatory systems, the organs weren’t connected with the animals’ pulmonary arteries. This left the pigs to rely on their natural right lungs for air after surgery. In order for lab-grown lungs to become a valid alternative, they must be hooked up to the pulmonary artery to ensure the lungs get oxygen into the blood effectively. This article opened my eyes to current research taking place that could advance humanity. I hope to learn more about interesting experiments like these, and I also hope that a solution is found so that lab grown lungs can be used for humans. - Karan Nayak
After reading both articles, the one that definitely stood out to me was, “Scientists successfully transplant lab-grown lungs into pigs,” by Maria Temming. The reason this article stood out to me over the other one was because of the fact that I’ve always been interested in/ wanted to help out those who need some sort of transplant, and this article is most definitely headed in that direction. The title was most definitely what caught my eye & immediately made me want to read this article. After seeing that lab grown lungs were used successfully in pigs, I knew I had to read this article to find out how this was even possible because I’ve only ever heard of this concept in science fiction novels and movies. After reading the article, I found that first, to build the lungs, a sugar and detergent mixture was used to strip the cells from the donor pigs. This in turn left “sterilized, pearly white, lung-shaped scaffolds made of the intracellular proteins,” as stated in the article. Afterwards, the researchers (immunologist Joan Nichols and his colleagues) ‘re-filled’ each scaffold with blood vessel & lung tissue cells from the pig that was going to obtain this organ. After this process was complete, the bioengineered lung was grown for 30 days in a tank which was pumped with nutrient cocktails that allowed cells to stick to the scaffold & multiply in the right spots. The experiment that was done on the pigs (where each pig had one bioengineered lung) was very fascinating. After each pig had one of their lungs replaced with an engineered lung, one was allowed to survive for 10 hours, another for 2 weeks, the third one for 4 weeks, and the fourth one for 2 months. After the death of each pig, an autopsy was done to see how well the “fake” lung had adapted into the body of the pig. The results were all the same- the engineered lung had been integrated into the body of the pig flawlessly & none of the bodies had rejected it. This truly is a ground-breaking moment as these lungs which have turned out to be very successful in pigs can be used to help thousands of people who are on the waitlist for a lung transplant worldwide. However, there’s most likely some time for this, as the engineered lungs aren’t perfect and still require many advancements and major changes until they can be used to help humans. However, despite however much time it may take for the engineered lungs to be fully perfected & used for humans, this success in pigs proves that it really is possible for lungs to one day be made. It gives a new hope to doctors, surgeons, and people worldwide who need a lung transplant. This breakthrough in science will truly advance our world in the future and help millions of people while doing so.
The article that I decided to read this week was “ Scientists successfully transplant lab-grown lungs into pigs.” As I was reading the article, I was astonished as to how this procedure was executed by scientists. According to the article, scientists created these lungs by basically using cells of the four pigs to create replicas of them. The lungs grew successfully for thirty days and then were used as substitutes for the original left lungs. Even though the survival of the pigs were different, one of them survived for two months with the transplanted lung that seemed to have been functioning normally. Like most experiments, there are setbacks. One of the main flaws of the lungs were the fact that they were not connected to the pulmonary arteries. The pulmonary arteries allow the blood to be refilled with oxygen. As a result, it was necessary for the pigs to use their original lung for oxygen ( the right lung ). This procedure was a partial accomplishment, but the lessons from this can allow scientists to develop better technology in the future. These bioengineered lungs could possibly be useful to humans, and can impact the lives of many that are in desperate need of transplants.
I found that both of the articles provided this week piqued my interest as I was able to take away valuable information from each. I began by reading "The Cognitive Biases Tricking Your Brain" and found myself searching for additional articles pertaining to the same topics covered in it out of sheer curiosity and motivation to better understand how bias plays a fundamental role in impacting our day-to-day decisions. Prior to reading the article, I automatically affiliated the word "bias" with politics, social media, and other extensive aspects of life in which I see it being utilized. In other words, I overlooked the specifics of how we utilize bias in going about nearly each and every one of our decisions- a concept that the article further opened my eyes to. According the article, the decisions we ultimately reach are often driven by various different forms of bias. For instance, the sunk cost fallacy pertains to a "sunk cost" or cost that can not be restored upon being spent; many individuals refuse to abandon sunken costs for the sole reason that the costs required some form of an investment on their part (whether it be an investment of time, money, effort, etc.). Entrepreneurs refraining from ceasing operations in spite of the decline of their businesses because of the initial investments they put into their businesses is a common example of sunk cost fallacy as it plays a role in the economy. Another example of a form of bias that factors into our decision-making process is factor attribution error, an error in which an individual to pinpoint another's internal characteristics and intentions for certain actions or behavior he or she committed or displayed rather than his or her external surroundings. In other words, it causes someone to accuse the person without knowing the situation. Blaming one's absence at an event on his or her lack of commitment when in actuality an emergency prevented him or her from being unable to attend is an example of factor attribution error. Yet another example of a form of bias, one that the author of "The Cognitive Biases Tricking Your Brain" describes as "the most pervasive and damaging", is confirmation bias- an effect that causes individuals to seek evidence justifying a suspicion or conviction they foster and debunk or ignore evidence that suggests otherwise. I agree with the author's claim as the country is currently in a state of divide that I believe is being fueled by this very exact form of biased thinking, with each side fostering the mentality that any fact or figure refuting their own is inaccurate. Additionally, after reading the article, I further realized that with complexity comes vulnerability. The human brain, one of the most complex organs on Earth, is also highly vulnerable to be so easily influenced by various different kinds of bias and effects. According to the article, Richard E. Nisbett, a social psychologist at the University of Michigan, leads an online course titled “Mindware: Critical Thinking for the Information Age" that revolves around overcoming biased thinking. Whereas I might have dismissed such a course prior to reading the article, the article has truly brought my attention to how preventing bias from impacting our decisions can help us build better versions of ourselves and be closer to our roots or the cores of who we are.
.. The second article, as the title "Scientists successfully transplant lab-grown lungs into pigs" suggests, revolves around a group of scientists' recent act of bioengineering lungs and successfully transplanting them into pigs. I was highly captivated by the major medical breakthrough as well as the sheer thought of how far we have come as a society to be able to synthesize complex organs that can function for a relatively lengthy amount of time. According to the article, the blood vessels of the bioengineered lungs were successfully able to integrate into the pigs' natural circulatory systems and thus carry out their function of providing oxygen and nutrients. Furthermore, no immunosuppressant drugs were distributed to the animals; the animals' bodies did not reject the bioengineered lungs. However, despite the bodies' compliance with the synthesized lungs, the lungs were not connected with the receivers' pulmonary arteries which are responsible for delivering low-oxygen blood for the lungs to restore with oxygen from the air inhaled. Overcoming this shortcoming would be the next step in the process of ensuring that the overall procedure can, ultimately, be applied to humans.
"Scientists successfully transplant lab-grown lungs into pigs" was an article that was both fascinating and informative about how far we have come in terms of society's medical and scientific achievements. In this article it talks about how biomedical engineers and researchers were able to grow pig lungs in a bioreactor tank, pumped full of nutrient cocktails that helped cells stick to the scaffold and multiply in the right spots which were then transplanted into different pigs using surgery. This is an incredible breakthrough for the medical field because if scientists find a way to use the same process for growing human lungs in a lab, then it could reduce the risk of organ rejection and drastically reduce wait times for organ transplants. In the United States, where about 1,500 people currently are on a waiting list for a lung transplant this would be extremely beneficial to patients who have to wait a long time for lung transplants. The process for growing these lungs are quite interesting as well. First, scientists use a sugar and detergent mixture to strip the cells from the lungs of donor pigs. This resulted in sterilized, pearly white, lung-shaped scaffolds made of the inter-cellular proteins. Next, the researchers then repopulated each scaffold with the blood vessel and lung tissue cells from the pig that would receive the bioengineered lung. Finally, they would put the lung in a bioreactor tank where it would grow for 30 days. Overall, the lungs were successful causing pigs to live with the bioengineered lung for up to four months. However, a problem that occurred with these bioengineered lungs was that the organs weren’t connected with the animals’ pulmonary arteries, which carried low-oxygen blood for the lungs to replenish with oxygen from air breathed in and forced the pigs to rely on their natural right lung for oxygen. All in all, this was a major breakthrough in the biomedical field and hopefully can be a method used by humans in order to save many lives in a more quick and efficient way.
The first article which caught my attention was titled, "Scientists successfully transplant lab-grown lungs into pigs" by Maria Temming. The article was about bioengineered lungs that were created and transplanted into pigs. The lungs developed the intricate blood vessel network which is critical for long-term survival. When it was given to the pigs they were able to survive after surgery for up to 2 months, because the lungs integrated well into their body allowing them to have a great post-op recovery. A flaw with these lungs, however, was that they could not replenish low-oxygen blood and depended on the natural lungs for that. This is because they were not attached to a pulmonary artery. Innovative technologies such as these can eliminate the need for a natural organ transplant and are a step closer towards the world of personalized medicine. Furthermore, another article which captured my interest was, "The Cognitive Biases Tricking Your Brain" by Ben Yagoda. Cognitive biases are the flawed ways of thinking which are embedded into our brains. An example of bias occurring today can be seen regarding money and retirement as many people often undersave for retirement. This is because they view this task as a "choice between spending money today or giving it to a stranger years from now. (Yagoda)" It is important to be aware of these biases because they influence our daily lives and decisions. For instance, the sunk cost fallacy causes us to support a poor decision or investment because we already put our resources towards it. It can be something as small as eating a bad meal just because you paid for it, or even supporting a politician's decision of the deployment of troops towards an unwinnable war. After all, both required sacrifices. Another bias which affects students especially is the conjunction fallacy in which it is thought that the chance of many specific circumstances happening is more likely than one broad one. This affects daily decisions and possibly even when we take tests, as one answer might seem correct solely because it is more specific than the latter. Acknowledging your cognitive biases and working towards fixing them will allow you to be more prepared and successful.
The first article I read was “Scientists Successfully Transplant Lab-Grown Lungs into Pigs” by Maria Temming. This article was interesting and hopeful, for it shows how technology in science is improving, so in the future many more people will benefit. Just as the title says, lab-grown lungs were successfully transplanted into lungs. This piece of news is significant because that means in the near future it may be possible to successfully grow lungs in a lab and transplant them into a human. Everyday, many people die due to lung issues, such as cystic fibrosis, non-small cell and small cell lung cancer, and more. Therefore, if people can be saved in another way, then the death rate of people everyday would decrease. As of now, lung transplants do take place. However, they occur when a donor is involved. If lab-grown lung transplants become successful enough to the point where they can aid humans, then the struggles of lung donation will not have to be included. The transplant list is unbelievably huge, donors have to be a match, there is always a chance of rejection, and generally, the logistics may not always work out. Though there were problems with the lab-grown lung transplants, such as the organs not being connected to the pulmonary arteries of the pigs, the surgeries allowed pigs to survive an extra ten hours to up to two months, which is an extraordinary first step. At least now scientists are aware of the next step to improve on and are closer to benefiting humans. This scientific success will aid many, many people across the world for many years to come if it becomes a true success.
The second article I read was “The Cognitive Biases Tricking Your Brain” by Ben Yagoda. This article was eye-opening because I never knew that there were that many biases. The article goes into depth about confirmation bias, which is what is believed to be the most persuasive and damaging bias of all biases, which is the bias that causes us to search for evidence that proves what we already think. This is eye-opening because I realize a lot of the mentioned biases, especially confirmation bias, are involved in my life everyday. The article also makes the reader aware of a debate on whether or not it is possible to train the brain to recognize biases, so some decisions can be made without the involvement of opinions. One scientist believes that it is not possible because in a specific moment, one part of our brain can not recognize the bias. However, another scientist believes the brain can be trained. I personally believe that it would be good for us to recognize biases and to take them into account on a daily basis when we make important and life-changing decisions.
Out of the two articles, “Scientists successfully transplant lab-grown lungs into pigs” was one that peaked my interest. I found this interesting because it’ll help the idea of humans having lab-grown lungs as well. This would mean there would not be a risk of organ rejection from organ donors, and the long waiting lists for organs that are such a burden for many sick people would be shorter as people would only have to wait a few months instead of possible years. This would be a very big breakthrough as it would help many people around the world. The lab-grown lungs were created by Immunologist Joan Nicols. He used their own cells from their lungs and used other ingredients in order to grow actual pig lungs. He used them on four pigs, each living longer each time. One of the pigs survived two months and did not have any lung issues. This was a very huge step, however the lab-grown lungs still needs more research and time for the idea of it being used for humans to come true.
-Akshith Macherla
The article, "Scientists Successfully Transplant Lab-Grown Lungs Into Pigs" was very intriguing to me because it shows how humans are making new discoveries and breakthroughs in the field of science constantly. The prospect of lungs being able to be lab-engineered and accepted by the pigs without much rejection brings hope that in the future, because then organs can be made by humans for those who are waiting for a organ donor. Many patients in America, about 1,500, have to wait for a long time just for an organ donor, and the wait is usually months in average. Also, after the organ is donated, it has to be tested to see if the body would reject it or not because if it is, then the immune system would treat it as something harmful and try to destroy it, thus harming the human even further. This could lead to some patients not being able to get an organ even when one is donated, which results in them waiting longer, hoping for an organ that will work for them. Some, sadly, may not even get an organ and won't be able to make it. However, with this experiment, it was proved that bio-engineered organs with the patients own cells can work for a proper transplant, which could result in patients not having to wait for a donor. On top of that, it only takes an average of 30 days to create the lungs, which means organs can be made faster, thus giving the patients less waiting time and more time to live their life. However, the only problem as of now is that the organs that were created may also not be properly stable, and they could also fail after sometime. This is shown in the experiment when the lungs of the pigs failed after sometime, causing them to die. Not only that, because it couldn't be hooked up to the other systems properly yet, the pig had to rely on its other real lung, which shows that more study on how the systems interact and connect is needed. As scientists further study the interactions in the body and improve the new procedure to make organs, we will soon be able to make our own organs for patients in need, furthering our knowledge and abilities in the science field.
The article about lab-grown lungs transplanted into pigs really grasped my attention this week, as though the entirety of my freshman year I was doing research on stem cells, and lab-grown organs for biology projects. I have also heard of many that have died on the waiting list for life-essential organs. This article shows that creating essential lab-grown lungs, and other organs can occur in the near future, and it can happen effectively. in this experiment, scientists grew a lung that the pig did not reject. After the surgery, the scientists let the pigs live for 10 hours, two weeks, a month, and two months, observing the autopsies of the lungs after the pigs died. The team saw that the lung's blood vessels attached to that of the pigs, as well as the inhabitation of natural bacterium that develops in normal pig lungs. On top of this success, the engineers can now create the lung in about a month, which could potentially help reduce, or eliminate the dreaded waitlist. The animals post-op recovery was "pretty amazing", never experiencing any long-term breathing problems. While this new discovery is not quite ready for the prime time, it is one giant leap to saving many that are in desperate need for an essential organ, and do not have to wait for the right match to come. With prior knowledge, lab-grown lungs have another added bonus- the lung is genetically identical to the damaged one. This is because the enigineers take DNA from your cells, creating an exact replica, which not only lowers the wait time, but also lowers the chances of a rejection, or a failure. This article spoke to me, as it increased my knowledge on growing organs, as well as introducing a possible solution to the wait list problem.
The article, "Scientists Successfully Transplant Lab-Grown Lungs Into Pigs" caught my attention because this success opens doors to numerous possibilities. In the experiment, bio engineered lungs were created and transplanted into pigs' bodies. Blood vessels were then developed which allowed the pigs to thrive for several weeks after the surgery. Currently, roughly 1500 people are on the waiting list for a lung transplant. However, this experiment may serve as the basis for developing further improved bio engineered lungs. This is a revolutionary discovery that can save thousands of lives on the daily. It takes an average of only thirty days to create these lungs. After the surgery, the pig's tissue also developed well and did not show any signs of a problem with the new lung. Unfortunately, there are still a few issues to resolve before opening this option up to the public. For example, the lungs linked up to the pig's circulatory system but failed to connect with the animal's pulmonary arteries. These arteries were not able to carry oxygenated blood to the lungs. If more research and experiments are conducted, bio engineered lungs have the potential to revolutionize organ transplants.
The article that I read this week was titled, "Scientists successfully transplant lab-grown lungs into pigs." The reason I found this article so interesting is because the procedure brings scientists closer to one day providing bioengineered lungs for humans, which can be a major breakthrough the for medical field. The bioengineered lungs that are being used for transplants developed healthy blood vessels that allowed the pig to live several weeks after surgery, barring any medical issues. This is considered such a great advancement because the lungs that were implanted in rodents failed within hours, disallowing the development of the complex blood vessel network. The article states that if a new procedure can be made possible for humans to undergo, it could reduce the risk of organ rejection and reduce the time a patient waits for an organ transplant. For the experiment, John Nichols and his colleagues made lungs for 4 pigs and stripped the cells from lungs of donor pigs. Each bioengineered lung grew for a month in a bioreactor tank, and then replaced the left lung of each pig. Inside the bioreactor tank, the replacement lung was pumped with nutrient cocktails that helped cells stick to the scaffold and multiply in the right areas. After surgery, one pig was allowed to survive for 10 hours,one for two weeks, the third for a month, and the fourth for two months. I found this interesting because they set a time variable in which how long the pig could survive with the bioengineered lung. When each pig passed away the researchers did an autopsy on the animal to see how the bioengineered lungs fit into the pigs’ bodies over time. Surprisingly, none of the transplants were rejected, which meant that the operation turned out to be a success. Scientists claim that these lab grown lungs are quite not ready yet, which I sound dissappointing because the quicker they discover a breakthrough, the quicker lives can be saved. This could be a huge game changer for lung cancer patients a all around the world.
The article that caught my eye was “Scientists successfully transplant lab-grown lungs into pigs.” It is astounding to hear that because it transforms the medical aspect of life on earth. For example, bioengineered lungs created healthy blood vessels that allowed pigs to survive for longer periods post surgery. This scientific breakthrough can be vital to changing the lives of humans and increase survival rates. For instance, if these lungs producing blood vessels can be adapted into humans, waiting rates for transplants will reduce and decrease organ rejections. Furthermore, a point in the article that shocked me was the fact that the bioengineered lungs started with a mixture of items found in the household: sugar and detergent. This mixture was then used to take cells off of donor pigs and placed blood vessels and lung tissues of the donee pigs onto the lung shaped scaffolds of intercellular proteins on the donor pigs. The lungs were then left to grow inside a bioreactor tank for 30 days and then replaced the left lung of each pig with the bioengineered lung. The lungs combined with the natural circulatory system provided the organ with oxygen and nutrients needed to survive. Although a pig was able to live for 2 months post surgery and was recovering well, there is still complications in the new scientific process. For instance, the organs aren’t connected with the animals’ pulmonary arteries, which allow low-oxygen blood for the lungs to replenish with oxygen from air breathed in. Therefore, the pigs still had to rely on their untouched right lung to supply air. However, in my opinion, this is still a scientific phenomena which can be improved and worked on to help change the future of both the scientific and medical fields. Furthermore, the article titled “The cognitive biases tricking your brain,” helped me realize that I am guilty of “present bias.” Present bias is the collection of questionable ways of thinking that is engraved into the human brain. For example, when I have the option to spend my money on items I want now or save the money for the future and buy something bigger, I tend to spend the money right away. In addition, I agree to the idea that gambler’s fallacy that even if a coin lands on head for lets say five times in a row, we tend to believe it will land on tails the next, even though theoretically the probability is ½ chance. The part of the article that stood out to me is the confirmation bias. The other day, while watching the news, I realized that the channels were biased in their political views and did not allow anyone of the opposing side to support themselves. For example, MSNBC tends to be more liberal and all the stories help support their beliefs and thoughts about politics. On the other hand, Fox News is more conservative and uses evidence and viewpoints that support their side. Therefore, there is a major division in politics and split in sides causing increase controversy on topics today.
Out of the articles from the week, I found the article "Scientists successfully transplant lab-grown lungs" to be more interesting. I found this article interesting because of the implications that can be done to an actual human if these artificial lungs were to be of success. At the moment the amount of people currently waiting for lung donors stands at 1500 and with each person comes a few months of wait time. The people currently waiting would be in a very fortunate situation if scientist were to figure out how to properly create these lungs. Now in the article, scientists had used pigs for their treatment groups and each pig was only allowed to live for an allotted amount of time. After each pig died, scientist were fortunate enough to find out that none of the pigs had rejected the artificial lungs transplanted during surgery which shows that these lungs are in fact compatible. The pigs never had any problems breathing and the tissue of these lungs had seem to be integrating well into the body of these pigs. The downside to the seemingly various successes of the surgery was that the pig was only able to supply air to the lungs and not the bloodstream. Up to this point, the only reason why the pig was able to live was because their actual right lung was able to supply air into blood as well as the lungs. The issue may seem big at hand but if we are able to one day find a resolution for the issue it would not only be a reliable source for a transplant but also save many lives at hand.
The article that I found most interesting this week was "Scientists successfully transplant lab-grown lungs into pigs." I was intrigued by the fact that scientists/doctors had the capability to actually engineer working lungs. It amazes me that scientists grew lungs for pigs for 30 days in a bioreactor tank and then implanted them inside the pigs. It is very interesting how bioengineered lungs are able to keep the pigs alive (for 2 moths at most) and that their bodies didn't reject them. They even knew that the lungs were functioning normally because the lung transplants were colonized by bacteria that inhibit normal pig lungs. The only thing that the lung couldn't do was allow airflow through the pulmonary arteries so that the pig could breathe from it. This is a huge scientific advancement and could pave ways to further bioengineering of lungs and even eventually have them suitable for humans.
Out of the two articles, I found “The Cognitive Biases Tricking Your Brain” to be the most intriguing since everyone has dealt with cognitive biases, as it is a natural phenomenon amongst humans. I’ve learned in AP Psychology the many cognitive biases that were stated throughout the article, such as fundamental attribution error, gambler’s fallacy, and confirmation bias, but I did not know there were over hundred different types. For instance, I’ve never heard of the “Zeigarnik effect” or the “IKEA effect.” The article provided two different view points on cognitive biases: a pessimistic one and an optimistic one. Daniel Kahneman provides the pessimistic view that humans cannot train their brain to not fall victim to cognitive bias. He believes that it is impossible to change System 1, the quick-thinking part of the brain, and to make it more like System 2, the slow-thinking, analytic mind because the real world does not provide people with cues that they’re about to make a bias. On the other hand, Richard E. Nisbett provides an optimistic view on cognitive bias: that you can train people to overcome or avoid cognitive biases. Nisbett believed that there are de-biasing intervention techniques, such as the video game called Missing, that can help reduce cognitive biases. Although I always try to see the good in society, I agree with Kahneman that you cannot avoid cognitive biases. Cognitive biases affect us almost every day and have been since at a young age. They’re a part of our natural instinct, so we don’t have time to just stop and think “Oh I am about to do a cognitive bias.” However, I do think it is important to be aware of the different types of cognitive biases. Cognitive biases help make us humans, and by understanding the different types, we’re able to understand society more.
For this week's article I chose "Scientists successfully lab-grown lungs into pigs" by Maria Temming. The article explains how scientists started off with a mixture of sugar and detergent, and then used the cells they obtained to form a lung. They took blood vessel and lung tissue samples from the pigs and also placed them inside the lung scaffold. Once this step was complete the lung was left to grow in a bioreactor tank for 30 days. While inside the tank, the lungs were pumped with nutrients to ensure proper growth. When complete, the scientists transferred the lungs into the pigs and observed. All the pigs were healthy and showd no signs of troubled breathing. An obstacle they still need to overcome is that the lung did not collaborate with the pulmonary arteries. This discovery could be extremely beneficial because 1500 people are on the wait list for a new lung and the wait could last up to 4 months. This procedure could benefit the people on the wait list greatly and could save many lives.
This week I chose to read, “ Scientists successfully transplant lab-grown lungs into pigs.” It gives a background to compare this breakthrough to. In earlier attempts, bioengineered lungs were implemented into rodents, which did not work as planned. It failed within hours, way before the lungs could develop a network for long term survival. This new discovery helps humans out in the process as well. If this procedure works on humans, it can lead to reducing the risk of organ failure as well as reduced the waiting times for organ transplants. In the experiment provided in the passage, 4 pigs were tested on. They let the engineered ung r inside a bioreactor tank, which pumped it with necessary nutrients for optimal chance at survival. Th scientists controlled how long each pig lived and when they died, autopsies showed that the lung was not rejected.
I read the article about bioengineered lungs on pigs, and it was warm to read about potential lung replacement for humans via bioengineering. Getting a pair of lungs takes a very long time, but if we can make lungs without rejection, it would be amazing. The lungs tested on the pigs were perfectly fine; bacteria that grows on normal lungs grew in the engineered ones. None of the pigs rejected them, either. Making it work on humans is another step, but it’s definitely possible with the way scientists have been advancing.
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