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Suggested topic: "For biologists, including biochemists, molecular biologists, cell biologists, physiologists, and ecologists." Does this leave anyone feeling left out? I think bioinformatics should be included as part of molecular biology, but technical/tool questions about computers or programming that are not specific to biology belong elsewhere. (In contrast, technical lab questions should be welcome.) I see no reason to restrict the site to academia: I think many industrial researchers (e.g., in the pharmaceutical industry) could be valuable contributors. – Vebjorn Ljosa Jul 14 '10 at 18:46

We seem to be having problems collecting enough biology enthusiasts to get a site going. Let's try to consolidate people in area51.stackexchange.com/proposals/17115/science? – Gaurav Nov 12 '10 at 9:08

@Finie Agree. That's what we can use tags for! Suggest: [microbiology] [astrobiology] [biochemistry] [biophysics] [botany] [zoology] to start... – Lisa Nov 15 '11 at 3:32

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80 Example Questions (10 closed)

active newest votes

up vote 1 down vote

added by psihodelia, edited by WikiSpeedia hang-around Mar 1 '11 at 20:32

up vote 1 down vote

added by muntoo, edited by WikiSpeedia hang-around Mar 6 '11 at 9:52

up vote 1 down vote

added by muntoo Mar 5 '11 at 3:53

up vote 1 down vote

added by Emlena Mar 12 '11 at 23:47

up vote 1 down vote

added by Emlena Mar 12 '11 at 23:52

up vote 0 down vote

added by Łukasz Lew, edited by WikiSpeedia hang-around Jul 12 '10 at 15:35

closed as off topic by William, Nicojo, ParanoiaPuppy, HélèneR, Edgar Nov 22 '10 at 7:06

This question does not relate to the topic of the proposal.
It was closed as part of an automated migration of off-topic to close votes on September 29, 2011.

A better variation of the question would be about a species with a stereotypic development pattern: "How many somatic cells does an adult /C. elegans/ have?" (Answer: 959 for hermaphrodites and 1031 for males.) – Vebjorn Ljosa Jul 14 '10 at 17:10

up vote 0 down vote

added by blueberryfields Dec 3 '10 at 1:37

closed as off topic by Winawer, glenneroo, Mad Scientist, Kaji, NewName Feb 11 '11 at 7:38

This question does not relate to the topic of the proposal.
It was closed as part of an automated migration of off-topic to close votes on September 29, 2011.

up vote 0 down vote

added by blueberryfields Dec 3 '10 at 1:37

closed as off topic by user1926999, Cody Gray, M28, kmm, Emlena Mar 12 '11 at 22:56

This question does not relate to the topic of the proposal.
It was closed as part of an automated migration of off-topic to close votes on September 29, 2011.

up vote 0 down vote

added by blueberryfields Dec 3 '10 at 1:40

closed as off topic by Andrew Grimm, Christian, Winawer, Vebjorn Ljosa, Dori Dec 28 '10 at 23:15

This question does not relate to the topic of the proposal.
It was closed as part of an automated migration of off-topic to close votes on September 29, 2011.

Too much like medical advice. – Andrew Grimm Dec 3 '10 at 21:49

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added by jokoon, edited by WikiSpeedia hang-around Mar 1 '11 at 20:38

I'd be a bit worried it sounds a bit like vetinary advice. – Andrew Grimm Dec 28 '10 at 23:27

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added by psihodelia, edited by WikiSpeedia hang-around Mar 1 '11 at 20:31

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added by Tomas Narros Feb 10 '11 at 13:32

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added by mbq Feb 16 '11 at 11:33

Intended as off-topic. – mbq Feb 16 '11 at 11:33

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added by Berlin Brown Feb 21 '11 at 11:05

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added by Daniel Standage Mar 1 '11 at 19:21

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added by ripper234 Mar 6 '11 at 14:37

Off topic, of course. – ripper234 Mar 6 '11 at 14:37

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added by ogerard Mar 22 '11 at 11:05

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added by ogerard Mar 22 '11 at 11:18

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added by ogerard Mar 27 '11 at 22:34

intended as off-topic – ogerard Mar 27 '11 at 22:38

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added by hippietrail Mar 29 '11 at 6:19

up vote -1 down vote

added by Łukasz Lew Jul 10 '10 at 18:29

To general as there are a lot of different ways different drugs might induce sleep. – Christian Jul 12 '10 at 12:37

Could be a much better example if you said "how does the drug xxxx put you to sleep?". – nico Aug 4 '10 at 8:25

@nico I don't know if the example would be good when rephrased. This is actually medicine, not really biology any more. But then again, how do you draw the line... – Joris Meys Sep 28 '10 at 14:35

@Joris Meys: I don't know. I can say that drug xxx puts you to sleep because it binds to whatever channel and inhibits it. If we're talking about molecular pathways and such I think it would be more towards biology then medicine (generally a MD does not know/care too much about these details). Definitely we should refrain to say "take 3mg of the drug each 6 hours" or things like that of course. – nico Sep 30 '10 at 5:50

@nico agreed. As I said, the line is thin... – Joris Meys Sep 30 '10 at 20:47

up vote -1 down vote

added by ParanoiaPuppy Jul 28 '10 at 2:05

	Earth's biota? That's a bit too vague... – Nicojo Aug 2 '10 at 10:57
	Also, this question is argumentative and does not have a clear answer. – Nicojo Aug 2 '10 at 11:17

up vote -1 down vote

added by Michal Sznajder, edited by WikiSpeedia hang-around Jan 29 '11 at 8:15

closed as off topic by Joris Meys, Finie, Mad Scientist, Edgar, blueberryfields Dec 3 '10 at 22:05

This question does not relate to the topic of the proposal.
It was closed as part of an automated migration of off-topic to close votes on September 29, 2011.

	Not a good example. Too subjective. – Borror0 Feb 22 '11 at 8:53
	@Borror0 Could you please provide an example of a "great off-topic example"? It might help the rest of us understand better your distinction, and phrase our questions better. Thanks. – muntoo Mar 7 '11 at 2:58
	@muntoo: It's anything that could be mistaken to be on-topic but actually belongs on another site: gardening advices, medical advice, etc. If the question is bad (i.e. you would close it if it was asked), but not because it is off-topic (subjective, argumentative, too localized, too vague, etc.) it falls under "not a good example." – Borror0 Mar 7 '11 at 19:37
	BTW, "challeges" is spelled wrong. – muntoo Mar 9 '11 at 2:37

up vote -1 down vote

added by Tomas Narros Feb 10 '11 at 12:36

up vote -1 down vote

added by muntoo Feb 28 '11 at 1:46

Off topic; An even worse question would be: "If I'm xxxx pounds, am I overweight?" – muntoo Feb 28 '11 at 1:47

up vote -1 down vote

added by muntoo Mar 2 '11 at 1:45

I said taste buds, so it must be about biology! – muntoo Mar 2 '11 at 1:45

up vote -2 down vote

added by ParanoiaPuppy Jul 27 '10 at 23:21

Too vague and textbook type Q&A. Not a research level. – Nicojo Aug 2 '10 at 11:12

up vote -2 down vote

added by J. Pablo Fernández Aug 28 '10 at 13:01

closed as off topic by Lucas, Joris Meys, Edgar, blueberryfields, Borror0 Feb 22 '11 at 8:56

This question does not relate to the topic of the proposal.
It was closed as part of an automated migration of off-topic to close votes on September 29, 2011.

Too vague (if the myelination question is) – Lucas Sep 17 '10 at 5:45

up vote -2 down vote

added by Michal Sznajder Sep 30 '10 at 18:14

up vote -2 down vote

added by gkrogers Nov 27 '10 at 12:53

closed as off topic by Vebjorn Ljosa, muntoo, M28, Ginamin, Piotr Migdal Mar 20 '11 at 13:49

This question does not relate to the topic of the proposal.
It was closed as part of an automated migration of off-topic to close votes on September 29, 2011.

Not specific enough. – muntoo Feb 28 '11 at 1:48

up vote -2 down vote

added by gkrogers Nov 27 '10 at 12:54

Not a good example. Absurdly basic. – Borror0 Feb 22 '11 at 8:57

Well, surely a good off-topic example then? – gkrogers Feb 22 '11 at 13:51

up vote -2 down vote

added by brupp, edited by WikiSpeedia hang-around Mar 1 '11 at 20:33

closed as off topic by Cody Gray, psihodelia, Tomas Narros, Daniel Standage, Jay Kominek Mar 1 '11 at 15:57

This question does not relate to the topic of the proposal.
It was closed as part of an automated migration of off-topic to close votes on September 29, 2011.

Not a good example. Does not have a definite answer. – Borror0 Feb 22 '11 at 8:55

@Borror0 Shouldn't that be off-topic, then?? – muntoo Mar 2 '11 at 1:46

@muntoo: No. It a common misconception but "The fact that a sample question is too broad or too subjective is a terrible, terrible, terrible reason to vote the question as a 'great off-topic example.' It does nothing to help you define your subject space, and even worse, it will likely mislead your audience." -Robert Cartaino – Borror0 Mar 2 '11 at 2:07

up vote -2 down vote

added by Tomas Narros Feb 10 '11 at 12:22

	Not specific enough – brupp Feb 14 '11 at 20:39
	I think it is the typical question to be expected from bio students at a Q&A site. It's suposed to be an experts Q6A site, but it will be open and public, so you'll have to deal with this kind of questions frequently. – Tomas Narros Feb 15 '11 at 8:46

up vote -2 down vote

added by mbq Feb 16 '11 at 11:37

Yes, but not as much as I want to. – muntoo Feb 28 '11 at 1:52

Come on, we need some obvious off-topics. – mbq Feb 28 '11 at 10:41

That's kind of a stupid question (even though it is claimed that there isn't such thing as a stupid question) – Greg Mar 6 '11 at 12:48

@Greg I know, that's why it is IMO a good off-topic example. – mbq Mar 6 '11 at 19:16

up vote -3 down vote

added by Vebjorn Ljosa Jul 19 '10 at 11:34

closed as off topic by Christian, Nicojo, nico, warren, ssakl Aug 6 '10 at 16:49

This question does not relate to the topic of the proposal.
It was closed as part of an automated migration of off-topic to close votes on September 29, 2011.

Intended to be off topic because it is an entirely medical question without reference to the underlying biology. – Vebjorn Ljosa Jul 19 '10 at 11:35

I think this question is too broadly formulated. "Works best" is fuzzy as hell, since it can mean risk/benefit ratio, cost/benefit ratio, or "never mind the consequences, I just want the pain gone". Furthermore, different age groups or phenotypes react differently to the same compound. Answering this question would require a lengthy discourse, and StackExchange does not handle those too well. Also, I'm not a big fan of giving medical advice on the internet. – ParanoiaPuppy Jul 27 '10 at 22:44

Completely agree with ParanoiaPuppy, especially on medical advice on the Internet, which for me is a big no-no. – nico Aug 5 '10 at 12:16

up vote -3 down vote

added by Gaurav Aug 23 '10 at 5:41

This is a great off topic question (but I can't vote anymore). This is ornithology, a branch of zoology, that does not fit the description of this proposal. – Nicojo Aug 26 '10 at 8:49

Then the site shouldn't be called "Biology" but "Biotechnology/physiology/lab-practice" or so. Biologists, including... does not exclude zoology. Actually, many biochemists would benefit a whole lot of diving into systematics a bit more often. /end-off-rant – Joris Meys Sep 27 '10 at 16:23

@Nicojo: Are you arguing that zoology (ornithology, entomology, and so on) should be excluded? Why? – Vebjorn Ljosa Sep 27 '10 at 17:18

@Vebjorn: I may be mistaken, but at the beginning this proposal did not include ecology. Besides that, in the current proposal, it is mostly cellular and molecular biology that is targeted (biology done in the confines of the "indoor" laboratory). That is why I argue that zoology should be excluded. However, if the general purpose of this Q&A site should be biology from molecular biology to "what's blue, green and yellow that lives in a small island outside of singapore" type of question, then why not... – Nicojo Sep 29 '10 at 11:33

@Nicojo: There's a whole set of high-level research questions to ask about systematics (see phylogenetic analyses and genomics), ecology (see e.g. spatia-temporal modelling and satellite based research) and every other branch of biology that is not necessarily carried out only in the lab. Why would these not have a place here? – Joris Meys Oct 10 '10 at 19:08

show 1 more improvement suggestion

up vote -3 down vote

added by Andrew Grimm Nov 26 '10 at 12:18

up vote -5 down vote

added by Lucas Sep 17 '10 at 6:14

Argumentative and without any definitive answer. – Nicojo Sep 17 '10 at 17:29

Off-topic: philosophy, not biology. – Vebjorn Ljosa Sep 27 '10 at 17:21

Argumentative would make it "Not a good example", not great off-topic example. – Andrew Grimm Dec 17 '10 at 12:02

up vote -8 down vote

added by Łukasz Lew Jul 10 '10 at 18:28

This seems too basic. If was about a specific virus that used novel replication then it might be more appropriate. – William Jul 12 '10 at 3:48

I believe there are no silly / too easy questions. – ripper234 Jul 24 '10 at 22:26

@ripper234: Read the Area51 FAQ. Good on-topic questions are supposed to be expert level questions. – Christian Jul 27 '10 at 22:51

Too broad, and any biology textbook (or Google) has very extended answers to this question. – nico Aug 4 '10 at 8:26

up vote -9 down vote

added by walkytalky Sep 11 '10 at 12:43

	Not very tactful is it? Nothing wrong with the question, just put in an impolite manner - which should be discouraged – Lucas Sep 17 '10 at 5:43
	Argumentative and with no real answer, also off topic because it's not a question pertaining to biology, but politics and fashion... – Nicojo Sep 17 '10 at 17:34
	@Nicojo Phrased, obviously, to be argumentative and hence OT. But I disagree with your "politics and fashion" assessment -- the question body could easily address valid biological points and invite a real biological answer. Hence I have to reluctantly concur with whoever voted "not a good example". – walkytalky Sep 17 '10 at 22:17
	Can someone propose a variant of this question that has been rephrased to be a tactful, specific, objective question about a published result? I think that might make for a good on-topic example, but I have already asked my allotted five questions. – Vebjorn Ljosa Sep 27 '10 at 17:26