Biology Exam Review

Biology

the study of living things

Species

A group of similar organisms that can breed and produce fertile offspring.

Reproduction

the production of offspring

environment

the surroundings or conditions in which a person, animal, or plant lives or operates.

Adaptation

A trait that helps an organism survive and reproduce

Cell

smallest unit of life, basic unit of life

Homeostasis

process by which organisms maintain a relatively stable internal environment

Metabolism

the combination of chemical reactions through which an organism builds up or breaks down materials

universal genetic code

DNA and RNA

Characteristics of life

organization, metabolism, responsiveness, growth, development, reproduction

carbon cycle

The organic circulation of carbon from the atmosphere into organisms and back again

nitrogen cycle

The transfer of nitrogen from the atmosphere to the soil, to living organisms, and back to the atmosphere

water cycle

The continuous process by which water moves from Earth's surface to the atmosphere and back

abiotic factors

Nonliving components of environment.

biotic factors

All the living organisms that inhabit an environment

food chains

link trophic levels from producers to top carnivores

Trophic Levels of a Food chain

producer, primary consumer, secondary consumer, tertiary consumer

Food webs are models that show

networks of feeding relationships

all graphs are

models

Ecology is the study of

interactions between organisms and their environments

Levels of organization

cell, tissue, organ, organ system, organism, population, community, ecosystem, biome, biosphere

Organism

A living thing

population

A group of individuals that belong to the same species and live in the same area

Community

All the different populations that live together in an area

ecoystem

all the living and nonliving things that interact in an environment

Biome

A group of ecosystems that share similar climates and typical organisms

Biosphere

part of Earth in which life exists including land, water, and air or atmosphere

producer

An organism that makes its own food

consumer

An organism that obtains energy by feeding on other organisms

predator

An animal that hunts other animals for food

prey

An organism that is killed and eaten by another organism

Decomposer

An organism that breaks down wastes and dead organisms

scavenger

A carnivore that feeds on the bodies of dead organisms

Detritivore

organism that feeds on plant and animal remains and other dead matter

Autotroph

An organism that makes its own food

Heterotroph

An organism that cannot make its own food.

Symbiosis

A close relationship between two species that benefits at least one of the species.

Mutualism

A relationship between two species in which both species benefit

Parasitism

A relationship between two organisms of different species where one benefits and the other is harmed

Commensalism

A relationship between two organisms in which one organism benefits and the other is unaffected

ecological pyramid

diagram that shows the relative amounts of energy or matter within each trophic level in a food chain or food web

habitat

the natural home or environment of an animal, plant, or other organism.

Niche

An organism's particular role in an ecosystem, or how it makes its living.

Hypothesis

A testable prediction, often implied by a theory

Theory

A hypothesis that has been tested with a significant amount of data

Conclusion

A summary based on evidence or facts

Quantative data

numerical data

qualitative data

descriptive data

discrete

unconnected; separate; distinct

continuous data

Data that can take any value

Steps of the Scientific Method

observation, hypothesis, experiment, conclusion

Controls

experimental conditions that remain constant

Constants

Conditions that stay the same in the experiment

dependent variable

The outcome factor; the variable that may change in response to manipulations of the independent variable.

independant variable

the thing that will be changed in each experiment

Atom

Basic unit of matter

Element

A pure substance made of only one kind of atom

chemistry bonds

a force of attraction between atoms or ions. formed when atoms share valence electrons.

polar molecule

A molecule that has electrically charged areas.

organic compounds

carbon-based molecules

Compound

A substance made up of atoms of two or more different elements joined by chemical bonds

Macromolecules

A very large organic molecule composed of many smaller molecules

Monomers

small unit that can join together with other small units to form polymers

Polymers

large compound formed from combinations of many monomers

Carbohydrates

Broken down to glucose to provide energy. sugars. contain C, H, O

Lipids

Contain C, and H, in larger proportion to O. Used to store energy. Fats, Oils, and Waxes. One glycerol molecule and 3 fatty acids.

Proteins

Chains of amino acids. Contain C, H, O, and N. Large complex polymers. Essential to chemical reactions in cells.

nucleic acids

complex macromolecules containing hydrogen, oxygen, nitrogen, carbon, and phosphorus.

DNA

A complex molecule containing the genetic information that makes up the chromosomes.

RNA

single-stranded nucleic acid that contains the sugar ribose

hydrolosis reaction

Water is added to molecule to separate polymers (many pieces) into monomers (one piece)

unique characteristics of water

Boiling Point and Freezing Point. Surface Tension, Heat of Vaporization, and Vapor Pressure. Adhesion and Cohesion.

Monosaccharides

Single sugar molecules

Disaccharides are

double sugars

Polysaccharides

Carbohydrates that are made up of more than two monosaccharides

A controlled experiment is one that

tests experimental and control groups in parallel

operationally defined

a precise description of how the variables in a study will be manipulated or measured

Electrons carry a _____ charge.

negative

Protons carry a ____ charge

positive

monomers of carbohydrates

monosaccharides (simple sugars)

monomers of nucleic acids

nucleotides, DNA, RNA

monomers of proteins

amino acids

monomers of lipids

glycerol and fatty acids

Why do water and oil not mix?

water is polar and oil is non polar

10 percent rule

ten percent of energy in transferred to the next tropic level for consummation

Herbivore

A consumer that eats only plants.

Omnivore

An animal that eats both plants and animals

Carnivore

A consumer that eats only animals.

The amounts of water, carbon dioxide, and nitrogen on Earth fluctuate and change. T or F

False

Plants can use atmospheric nitrogen

T or F

F

niche

An organism's particular role in an ecosystem, or how it makes its living.

carrying capacity

Largest number of individuals of a population that a environment can support

density dependent factors

limiting factor that depends on population size

density independent factors

limiting factor that affects all populations in similar ways, regardless of population size

population density

Number of individuals per unit area