UPCAT Review: Science I (General Science and Biology)

Vocabulary flashcards created from the UPCAT Review notes on General Science and Biology.

Kepler’s Laws of Planetary Motion

1. The orbit of a planet is an ellipse with the Sun at one of the two foci. 2. A line segment joining a planet and the Sun sweeps out equal areas during equal intervals of time. 3. The square of the orbital period of a planet is proportional to the cube of the semi-major axis of its orbit.

Igneous Rock

Forms from cooled magma or lava; includes intrusive (formed underground) and extrusive (formed above ground) types.

Sedimentary Rock

Formed from the accumulation of sediment, which compacts and cements over time due to pressure; can be clastic, organic, or chemical.

Metamorphic Rock

Rocks that have undergone change due to extreme heat, pressure, or chemical processes; includes foliated and non-foliated types.

Rock Cycle

The continuous process through which sedimentary, igneous, and metamorphic rocks transform from one type to another under various geological conditions.

Weathering

Destructive processes that break down rocks into smaller particles through mechanical, chemical, or biological means.

Erosion

The process by which soil and rock are removed from one location and transported to another, leading to landscape change.

Plate Tectonics

The theory that Earth's outer shell is divided into several plates that glide over the mantle; causes earthquakes, volcanic activity, and continental drift.

Independent Variable

The factor that is changed or controlled in a scientific experiment to test the effects on the dependent variable.

Dependent Variable

The factor that is measured in an experiment and is affected by changes in the independent variable.

Half-life

The time required for half of a sample of a radioactive material to decay; used in radiometric dating of rocks and fossils.

Photosynthesis

The process by which green plants and some other organisms use sunlight to synthesize foods with the help of chlorophyll; converts light energy into chemical energy.

Cellular Respiration

The metabolic process by which cells convert glucose and oxygen into energy (ATP), carbon dioxide, and water.

Gene

A hereditary unit of information consisting of a specific sequence of DNA that occupies a particular location on a chromosome.

Allele

An alternative form of a gene that is located at a specific position (locus) on a chromosome.

Phenotype

The observable characteristics or traits of an organism, determined by genetic and environmental factors.

Biogeochemical Cycles

The cycles through which nutrients and elements move through the environment, including the water, carbon, nitrogen, and phosphorous cycles.

Symbiosis

The interaction between two different organisms living in close physical proximity, often to the advantage of both.

Trophic Level

Each level in a food chain or food web, reflecting the flow of energy through an ecosystem.

Dominant Allele

An allele that expresses its phenotype even in the presence of a recessive allele.

Recessive Allele

An allele that is not expressed in the phenotype when a dominant allele is present.

Mitosis

The process of cell division that results in two genetically identical daughter cells from a single parent cell.

Meiosis

The specialized form of cell division that produces gametes with half the number of chromosomes of the original cell.