The Gene Factor:
Cracking the Code: A Similuation

This activity requires that you become a detective once again. You are looking for the code in each of the sentences below. Your group will be given one of the sentences to decode. The code is the same for each sentence. See Clues below. Each sentence gives some information that can be found in this module. Your teacher can supply an extra clue about each sentence if necessary. Once you have worked to decode the message you may consult with other groups if you wish. Researchers communicate with each other all the time about their work. Work out the decoding any way you choose. When you think you have the correct decoded message, write it in the space provided. Unlike real-world genetics, there are no "mutations" in this code.

Messages

1. Exposure to UV radiation causes skin ageing and skin cancer

    

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2. Surgery, radiation and chemotherapy are primary cancer treatments

    

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3. Compounds in fruits and vegetables that fight cancer are called phytochemicals

    

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4. Gertrude Elion and George Hitchings earned Nobel Prizes in 1988

    

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5. Smoking is the leading cause of lung cancer in the United States

    

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6. Cancer cells undergo cell division more rapidly than normal cells

    

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7. The anti-cancer compounds cisplatin was discovered serendipitously

    

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8. The drug Taxol was first isolated from the bark of the Pacific yew tree

    

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9. Breast cancer and prostate cancer can be treated with sex hormones

    

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10. Scientists know that mutations in specific genes can cause cancer

     

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1. The word cancer appears in each clue except Message D and Message H.
2. The symbol for a capital letter is different than the symbol for its lower case form.
3. The symbols for the vowels a e i o u are a e i o u
4. The periods at the end of each coded message are actual periods and not part of the code.
5. In addition to the capital letter that begins all sentences, there are capital letters within messages A, D, E, and H.