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The Genetics of
Alphabet Soup: 2 - Placement
Back to the bowl of alphabet soup we go…
Now imagine the process of placing those letters in order. Your spoon carefully guides each letter into place. Problem: You can’t get the letter to let go of the spoon. Solution: You jiggle the spoon and the letter detaches itself. As this process unfolds, you realize your arms are tired. It takes energy to place the letters and energy to detach them from the spoon. The molecular letters of DNA come complete with a rechargeable battery pack: it allows from zero to three phosphate
batteries (mono, di and tri phosphates). Another requirement of
a DNA letter is the controlled ability to move into a
location and parallel park – SELECTIVE PLACEMENT. An old-style typewriter would mechanically nudge the paper forward with every letter added. One had much more choice with those than the DNA offers - four keys on the keyboard; only three letters for each word, and all the punctuation is done with words. It reminds me of a telegram... grow more hair STOP please don't stop STOP Once placed in
order, a message - a movement from "point A" to "point B" is
possible. The recipient of my desperate telegram knows something that they did
not know before. They have gone from where they were to where they are
- all under my direction. But what if
you want to change the sentence ? What
if someone changes it for
you ? How could you be certain that if you copied it over and over, it would not change ?
In our society, measures are often taken to ensure the quality of our products or services. In written pieces, editors will use blue ink to signify a need for change; in newspaper photos we may scribble a mustache or draw horns on a popular figure; in school we test the students’ recollective accuracy.
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