Unit 1 Ap Bio

experimental design

question, hypothesis, independent variable, dependent variable, control, constants, timeframe, replicates

question

step one

question

What are you trying to answer/solve? What is the goal of the experiment?

hypothesis

step two

hypothesis

an educated guess; must be testable, falsifiable, contain the independent and dependent variable

null hypothesis

a statement saying there is no significant difference between groups

defining variables

step three

independent variable

part of the study that is manipulated

dependent variable

part of the study that is measured

control group

step four

control group

group under normal conditions

experimental group

group with ONE thing changed

constants

step five

constants

may impact the dependent variable, so they must be KEPT THE SAME

time frame

step six

sample size

step seven

ecology

the study of interaction between organisms and their environment

abiotic factors

non-living factors; temp, light, water, salinity, rocks and soil, wind, disturbance

biotic factors

effect of other organisms; competition, predation

climate

shapes environments and what organisms can live in a particular area; temp, precipitation, sunlight, and wind

global climate patterns

determines largely by solar energy and the movement of heat across the planet

climatic factors

solar radiation and latitude, axis tilt/seasons, air/water circulation patterns

differing solar radiation

poles: less light, equator: more light, the unequal heating causes air and water to circulate

seasons

caused by earth’s tilt, changes day length, restricts organisms based on their ability to adapt

global air patterns

air rises when heated, sinks when cooled; zones of rising/sinking are created; earth’s rotation causes zones to “twist”

rainfall patterns

rising air: wet areas, descending: dry areas

temperature

life can only exist over a fairly narrow ——- range

water

cells must maintain a correct ——- potential

salinity

salt concentration affects osmotic potential and water balance

sunlight

provides energy for photosynthesis, which drives most food webs

rocks and soil

physical structure, pH, mineral composition of ———— limit where plants can grow

wind

effects temperature and water conditions for many organisms

disturbance

allows organisms to re-colonize an area

interspecific interactions

interaction between species; may be positive, negative, or neutral

coevolution

when two species have reciprocal evolution to each other; ex. flowers and their pollinators

predation/herbivory

(+/-), predator and prey relationships; ex. lynx and hare; often leads to the development of defense mechanisms

cryptic coloration

a passive defense where the prey is camouflaged

aposematic coloration

the use of conspicuous colors to warn off a predator

mimicry

defense mechanism where the mimic has a resemblance to another species, the model; batesian and mullerian

batesian mimicry

a non-threatening prey species resembles a threatening predator species

mullerian mimicry

two or more dangerous species share warning signals to reduce the cost of educating predators

competition

when two species rely on the same limiting resource

ecological niche

the ecological role of a species; how a species fits into an ecosystem; species can not have niche overlap due to the competitive exclusion principle

competitive exclusion principle

predicts that two species with the same requirement cannot co-exist in the same community

symbiosis

a permanent interspecies relationship, can be beneficial or harmful.

parasitism

(+/-), parasite harms the host, parasites can be internal or external

commensalism

(+/0), one partner benefits while the other is unchanges

mutualism

(+/+), both partners benefit from the interaction

dominant species

a species that is the most abundant or has the highest biomass in a community, has a major effect on a community both biotically and abiotically

keystone species

not a dominant species, but has a major impact in the community structure, often a top predator that controls the numbers of other species; ex. sea otters

foundation species

species that cause physical changes in the environment that affect others; ex. beavers, bison, black rush

index indication

 a higher index indicates higher species diversity, while a lower number indicates a lower diversity

index of diversity

D= 1 - [Σ n(n-1)] / [N(N-1)]

N

total number of organisms

n

number of individuals of different species

ecosystem

all of the biotic and abiotic components in an area

energy

flows through a system, is often lost as heat or waste

nutrients/matter

recycled through a system

trophic levels

division of an ecosystem based on the source of nutrition (energy)

primary producer

generally plants capturing energy and storing it as chemical bonds, main source of energy in an ecosystem

primary consumer

feed on producers, ex. herbivores

secondary consumer

feed on primary consumer, ex. canivores

detritivores

feed on the waste produced by all levels

ten percent rule

averages 10% with each trophic level change

food chain

• Linear pathway of who eats who in an ecosystem.

  • Used to track energy and matter flow through an ecosystem

food web

• Network showing all the feeding relationships in an ecosystem.

  • More complex, but accurately shows all relationships in an ecosystem.

primary productivity

the rate at which light energy is captured by autotrophs or primary producers

gross primary productivity (GPP)

the maximum of energy captured by producers

net primary productivity (NPP)

the amount of energy left after respiration, this is the energy that builds biomass in the primary producers

NPP

GPP – Rs

GPP

NPP + Rs

limting factors

material or nutrient that is not present in sufficient quantity for the primary producers