BIO 181 - General Biology I Mod3Act2_Student Version Lab Instructions:
Physiology Act II Mission Memo 2025-2026 Arizona State University
Greetings Fellow Explorer:
Thanks to your efforts, we were able to rule out two of the possible causes of Xor’s
symptoms. Xor’s blood oxygen concentration and blood glucose concentrations are
within the typical ranges. It seemed that Xor’s blood pressure was too high - so I decided
to administer Xor a drug that would dilate her blood vessels. Unfortunately, I only made
matters worse. On top of that - the gravity in the megaraffe enclosure seems to be too
high. I’m in a bind now and need your help again. The fate of Xor and the megaraffe
population rests in your hands.
Xor’s symptoms, her response to the vasodilators, and the seemingly elevated gravity in
the megaraffe enclosure must be connected. We must determine if an increase in gravity
was the cause of Xor’s symptoms and, if so, by how much I need to correct the gravity
before it's too late. If the gravity needs to be reset, we’ll need to ensure we have the
proper treatments on hand to stabilize Xor while I reset the gravity in the enclosure.
Use the following questions to guide your work.
● Why did Xor collapse after we administered a drug to dilate her blood vessels?
(Appendix 1)
● How much should we reduce the gravitational force in Xor's environment?
(Appendix 2)
● How should we treat Xor to stabilize her cranial blood pressure? (Appendix 3)
The appendices to this mission memo will guide you in answering these questions.
,Once you have completed your analyses, report your conclusions via Canvas before
returning to the Sanctuary.
Do not underestimate the urgency of your work.
Universally in your debt,
The AI
, Appendix 1
Why did Xor collapse after we administered a drug to dilate her
blood vessels?
Thanks to GUS, we might have discovered the cause of Xor’s illness—an increase in the
gravitational force of her environment. In other words, the current gravitational force
exceeds the set point of the Sanctuary's gravitational control system, a homeostatic
system designed to regulate gravity. If GUS is correct, the problem likely resulted from
damage to the system, caused when the Sanctuary collided with space debris.
Still, we must be sure that all of our observations support GUS's hypothesis. We already
administered an incorrect treatment, making Xor's condition worse. We don't want to
administer another incorrect treatment!
Complete the following steps to determine whether an increase in gravitational force can
explain why Xor fainted after we dilated her blood vessels.
Step 1: Model the effect of gravity on the distribution of blood. Construct a model
illustrating how a change in gravitational force would affect the distribution of blood in a
megaraffe. This step will enable us to construct an argument in Step 3.
Step 2: Model how a change in the distribution of blood would affect the cranial blood
pressure. Using the model constructed in Step 1, explain how the blood pressure in each
part of the circulatory system would change as the gravitational force increased. This
step will enable us to construct an argument in Step 3.
Step 3: Determine why Xor fainted after we dilated her blood vessels. Construct an
argument to answer the question “Could an increase in gravitational force explain why
Xor fainted after we dilated her blood vessels?” Your argument should draw on your
answers in Steps 1 and 2.
, Step 1: Model the effect of gravity on the distribution of blood
The challenge here is that because the gravitational fields in the Sanctuary were
pre-programmed by my creators, I don’t have any data that would explain how a change
in gravitational force would impact blood pressure or the distribution of blood in
megaraffes, let alone other species. However, humans have been a spacefaring species
for more than 60 years and, based on your archives, it appears that the effects of
microgravity have been well documented in humans. Perhaps this could lend some
insight as to what was happening to Xor? Let’s work together to find out.
Effects of microgravity on blood distribution in humans
Organisms on Earth, like in the megaraffe enclosure, are subjected to a constant force of
gravity. On Earth, the gravitational force equals 9.8 N kg-1. How does Earth’s gravity affect
the distribution of blood in your body?
A typical adult human has about 5 liters of blood. But how is that blood distributed
throughout the body? Is it evenly distributed, or does one part of the body have more
blood than other parts?
1. The answer choices below show three distributions of blood in the body of an
adult human. This person is standing but not performing any other physical
activity. The darker the shading of an area, the greater the amount of blood in that
area. Select the figure that best represents the distribution of blood in the body of
a human on Earth.
Physiology Act II Mission Memo 2025-2026 Arizona State University
Greetings Fellow Explorer:
Thanks to your efforts, we were able to rule out two of the possible causes of Xor’s
symptoms. Xor’s blood oxygen concentration and blood glucose concentrations are
within the typical ranges. It seemed that Xor’s blood pressure was too high - so I decided
to administer Xor a drug that would dilate her blood vessels. Unfortunately, I only made
matters worse. On top of that - the gravity in the megaraffe enclosure seems to be too
high. I’m in a bind now and need your help again. The fate of Xor and the megaraffe
population rests in your hands.
Xor’s symptoms, her response to the vasodilators, and the seemingly elevated gravity in
the megaraffe enclosure must be connected. We must determine if an increase in gravity
was the cause of Xor’s symptoms and, if so, by how much I need to correct the gravity
before it's too late. If the gravity needs to be reset, we’ll need to ensure we have the
proper treatments on hand to stabilize Xor while I reset the gravity in the enclosure.
Use the following questions to guide your work.
● Why did Xor collapse after we administered a drug to dilate her blood vessels?
(Appendix 1)
● How much should we reduce the gravitational force in Xor's environment?
(Appendix 2)
● How should we treat Xor to stabilize her cranial blood pressure? (Appendix 3)
The appendices to this mission memo will guide you in answering these questions.
,Once you have completed your analyses, report your conclusions via Canvas before
returning to the Sanctuary.
Do not underestimate the urgency of your work.
Universally in your debt,
The AI
, Appendix 1
Why did Xor collapse after we administered a drug to dilate her
blood vessels?
Thanks to GUS, we might have discovered the cause of Xor’s illness—an increase in the
gravitational force of her environment. In other words, the current gravitational force
exceeds the set point of the Sanctuary's gravitational control system, a homeostatic
system designed to regulate gravity. If GUS is correct, the problem likely resulted from
damage to the system, caused when the Sanctuary collided with space debris.
Still, we must be sure that all of our observations support GUS's hypothesis. We already
administered an incorrect treatment, making Xor's condition worse. We don't want to
administer another incorrect treatment!
Complete the following steps to determine whether an increase in gravitational force can
explain why Xor fainted after we dilated her blood vessels.
Step 1: Model the effect of gravity on the distribution of blood. Construct a model
illustrating how a change in gravitational force would affect the distribution of blood in a
megaraffe. This step will enable us to construct an argument in Step 3.
Step 2: Model how a change in the distribution of blood would affect the cranial blood
pressure. Using the model constructed in Step 1, explain how the blood pressure in each
part of the circulatory system would change as the gravitational force increased. This
step will enable us to construct an argument in Step 3.
Step 3: Determine why Xor fainted after we dilated her blood vessels. Construct an
argument to answer the question “Could an increase in gravitational force explain why
Xor fainted after we dilated her blood vessels?” Your argument should draw on your
answers in Steps 1 and 2.
, Step 1: Model the effect of gravity on the distribution of blood
The challenge here is that because the gravitational fields in the Sanctuary were
pre-programmed by my creators, I don’t have any data that would explain how a change
in gravitational force would impact blood pressure or the distribution of blood in
megaraffes, let alone other species. However, humans have been a spacefaring species
for more than 60 years and, based on your archives, it appears that the effects of
microgravity have been well documented in humans. Perhaps this could lend some
insight as to what was happening to Xor? Let’s work together to find out.
Effects of microgravity on blood distribution in humans
Organisms on Earth, like in the megaraffe enclosure, are subjected to a constant force of
gravity. On Earth, the gravitational force equals 9.8 N kg-1. How does Earth’s gravity affect
the distribution of blood in your body?
A typical adult human has about 5 liters of blood. But how is that blood distributed
throughout the body? Is it evenly distributed, or does one part of the body have more
blood than other parts?
1. The answer choices below show three distributions of blood in the body of an
adult human. This person is standing but not performing any other physical
activity. The darker the shading of an area, the greater the amount of blood in that
area. Select the figure that best represents the distribution of blood in the body of
a human on Earth.
