gene

gene

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Pronunciation

Phonetic Spelling

• /dʒiːn/

Syllable Breakdown

• Syllable 1: /dʒiːn/

• /dʒ/ - a voiced palato-alveolar affricate sound, similar to the "j" in "jump."

• /iː/ - a long, high, front, unrounded vowel sound, similar to the "ee" in "see."

• /n/ - a voiced alveolar nasal sound, similar to the "n" in "no."

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Word Form Variations

• Singular Noun: gene

• Plural Noun: genes

• Adjective: genetic

• Adverb: genetically

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Definitions, Synonyms and Antonyms

Noun

• Definition 1: The fundamental physical and functional unit of heredity, which is a segment of DNA or RNA that carries the genetic information for a specific trait, such as eye color or blood type.

• Synonyms: allele, locus, cistron, factor

• Antonyms: (There are no direct antonyms for this scientific term.)

• Definition 2: In a metaphorical sense, an inherent or defining characteristic or quality that is passed down or present within a system, organization, or family.

• Synonyms: essence, core, root, blueprint, foundation

• Antonyms: result, consequence, outcome, derivation

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Examples of Use

1. Science & Technology: "The researchers identified a new gene that appears to be responsible for a specific type of inherited blindness, offering hope for targeted gene therapy treatments in the future." ( Nature Genetics, May 2024)

2. General Public Discourse: "You have a gene for wanderlust; you're always planning your next trip."

3. News Media: "Scientists have successfully edited a gene in human embryos to correct a mutation that causes hypertrophic cardiomyopathy, a common cause of sudden death in young people." ( The New York Times, August 2017)

4. Books (Non-fiction): "The Selfish Gene" by Richard Dawkins explores the theory that genes are the primary unit of selection in evolution, and organisms are simply 'survival machines' for these genes.

5. Film/Television: In the movie Gattaca, society is divided into a genetically superior class ("valids") and those conceived naturally ("in-valids"). The protagonist, an "in-valid," struggles to fulfill his dream of space travel in a world where DNA determines one's destiny.

6. Online Publication: "The obesity gene, as it's often called, is a real thing, but its presence doesn't mean a person is destined to be overweight. Lifestyle and environmental factors play a huge role." (Healthline, February 2023)

7. Entertainment Platforms (Video Games): In the BioShock series, players can use "plasmids" which are gene-altering serums that grant supernatural abilities, but with a cost to the user's sanity.

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10 Famous Quotes Using Gene

1. We are survival machines – robot vehicles blindly programmed to preserve the selfish molecules known as genes. This is a truth which still fills me with astonishment. (Richard Dawkins, The Selfish Gene, 1976)

2. The human has genetic adaptation to natural electromagnetic radiation. Increasing, reducing or removing the natural radiation exposures results in a sickened human that may progress onto a diseased state. (Steven Magee)

3. The cloning of humans is on most of the lists of things to worry about from Science, along with behaviour control, genetic engineering, transplanted heads, computer poetry and the unrestrained growth of plastic flowers. (Lewis Thomas, The Medusa and the Snail)

4. I'm fascinated by the idea that genetics is digital. A gene is a long sequence of coded letters, like computer information. (Richard Dawkins)

5. The problem with the gene pool is that there's no lifeguard. (David Gerrold)

6. Genetics is not just about the genes we inherit, but how we use them. (Richard Dawkins)

7. Talent is an accident of genes – and a responsibility. (Alan Rickman)

8. They are in you and in me; they created us, body and mind; and their preservation is the ultimate rationale for our existence. They have come a long way, those replicators. Now they go by the name of genes, and we are their survival machines. (Richard Dawkins, The Selfish Gene)

9. It has not escaped our notice that the specific pairing we have postulated immediately suggests a possible copying mechanism for the genetic material. (James Watson and Francis Crick, Nature, April 1953)

10. The universe seeks equilibriums; it prefers to disperse energy, disrupt organization, and maximize chaos. Life is designed to combat these forces. We slow down reactions, concentrate matter, and organize chemicals into compartments; we sort laundry on Wednesdays. (Siddhartha Mukherjee, The Gene: An Intimate History, May 2016)

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Etymology

The word "gene" is a modern invention, created to give a name to a concept that scientists were just beginning to understand.

Its story begins with the Danish botanist Wilhelm Johannsen, who coined the term in 1909. At the time, scientists were aware that certain "factors" were responsible for passing on traits from parents to offspring, thanks to the work of Gregor Mendel. However, there was no single, clear word for this fundamental unit of heredity.

Johannsen took inspiration from the ancient Greek word "genos," which means "race," "kind," or "birth." He chose "gene" to represent the very thing that determines the "kind" of characteristics an organism inherits from its "birth" parents. Essentially, he gave a short, memorable name to the physical unit of inheritance that we now know is a segment of DNA.

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Phrases + Idioms Containing Gene

1. In your genes

2. The gene pool

3. A gene for X (e.g., a gene for wanderlust)

4. The selfish gene

5. A gene jockey

6. To activate a gene

7. A gene drive

8. Hardwired into the genes

9. A gene bank

10. To inherit a gene

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Vocabulary-Based Stories from SEA

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Source Information

Definition of gene from The Academic Glossary at Self Exploration Academy, a Urikville Press Publication. © All rights reserved.

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