Exam #1 Review: Key Concepts in Biology (incomplete)

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Biosphere

Consists of all life on Earth and all the places where life exists.

Ecosystem

Consists of all the living things in a particular area, along with all the nonliving components of the environment with which life interacts, such as soil, water, atmospheric gases, and light.

Community

An array of organisms inhabiting a particular ecosystem.

Populations

Consists of all the individuals of a species living within the bounds of a specified area.

Organism

Individual living things.

Organs

A body part that is made up of multiple tissues and has specific functions in the body.

Tissues

Groups of cells that work together, performing a specialized function.

Cells

Life's fundamental unit of structure and function.

Organelles

The various functional components present in cells.

Molecules

A chemical structure consisting of two or more units called atoms.

Biology

The scientific study of life.

Cell Biology

Study and research of the structure, function, and behavior of cells.

Molecular Biology

The study of the molecular basis of biological functions (ie. macromolecules: Proteins, Lipids, Carbohydrates, Nucleic acids).

DNA (Deoxyribonucleic Acid)

Very long molecules with hundreds or thousands of genes. They encode information necessary to build all of the molecules synthesized within a cell, which in turn establish that cell's identity and function.

Chromosomes

Structures within cells, contain genetic material in the form of DNA.

Genes

Found within DNA strands, contains the units of inheritance.

Eukaryote

Contains membrane-enclosed organelles with some organelles such as the DNA-containing nucleus, are found in the cells of all eukaryotes.

Prokaryote

Lacks a nucleus or other membrane-enclosed organelles. These cells are generally smaller than eukaryotic cells.

Domain

A classification of life broken down into 3 different groups that all organisms are placed into.

Domain Bacteria

Shares it's domain with archaea, and consists of singled-celled prokaryotic cells. However, this is the most diverse and widespread of the two prokaryotic domains.

Domain Archaea

Shares it's domain with Bacteria, and consists of singled-celled prokaryotic cells. Known to live in Earth's extreme environments, such as salty lakes and boiling hot springs.

Domain Eukarya

All eukaryotes are in this domain, and it is split into four subgroups.

Kingdom Plantae

Consists of multicellular Eukaryotes that carry out photosynthesis (i.e. Plants that mainly on land).

Kingdom Fungi

Characterized in part by the nutritional mode of its members that absorb nutrients from outside their bodies (i.e. mushrooms).

Kingdom Animalia

Consists of multicellular eukaryotes that ingest other organisms (i.e. Humans).

Protists

Mostly unicellular eukaryotes and some relatively simple multicellular relatives (i.e. Red algae).

Scientific inquiry

A method of investigation that involves forming hypotheses and testing them through experimentation.

Abstract

A summary of a scientific paper that provides an overview of the study's purpose, methods, results, and conclusions.

Cell biology

The study of the structure, function, and characteristics of cells.

Molecular biology

The study of macromolecules like proteins, nucleic acids, lipids, and carbohydrates.

Cells

The smallest common denominator of life that can live on their own, and build higher forms of organisms. They all have a plasma membrane, cytoplasm, and DNA/RNA

Common characteristics of cells

They all have a plasma membrane, cytoplasm, and DNA/RNA.

Prokaryotes

Unicellular organisms that do not contain membrane-bound organelles.

Eukaryotes

Organisms that can be both multicellular and unicellular and contain membrane-bound organelles.

Size of prokaryotes

0.1-5.0 µM.

Size of eukaryotes

10-100 µM.

Domains of life for eukaryotes

Eukaryotes belong to the domain eukarya.

Domains of life for prokaryotes

Prokaryotes belong to the domains bacteria and archaea.

Domain eukarya

Contains eukaryotic organisms like fungi, plants, animals, and protists.

Domain bacteria

Contains the most diverse prokaryotes (e.g., cyanobacteria, proteobacteria).

Domain archaea

Contains organisms that can live in extreme environments (e.g., Euryarchaeotes, Thermaproteota).

Genetic relation of domains

Yes, they are all genetically related, coming from one common ancestor.

Natural selection in domains

Yes, they all undergo natural selection, which caused the branching of their common ancestor into different domains.

Data

Recorded observations.

Types of data

Quantitative and qualitative data.

Scientific method

A systematic approach to research involving observation, question, hypothesis, predictions, experiments, data collection, data analysis, and conclusion.

Control group

Used as a baseline to compare against the experimental group.

Experimental group

The group in an experiment that is tested against the control group.

Sections of a scientific paper

Includes title, authors, summary (or abstract), introduction, results, discussion, conclusion, experimental procedure, acknowledgments, and references.

Matter

Anything that has mass and takes up space.

Elements

Substances that cannot be broken down into simpler substances by chemical means.

Atoms

The smallest unit of an element that retains the properties of that element.

Atomic Number

The number of protons in the nucleus of an atom.

Mass Number

The total number of protons and neutrons in an atom's nucleus.

Isotopes

Atoms of the same element that have different numbers of neutrons.

Radioactive Isotopes

Isotopes that decay over time, releasing radiation.

Ionic Bonds

Chemical bonds formed through the transfer of electrons from one atom to another.

Cations

Positively charged ions formed by the loss of electrons.

Anions

Negatively charged ions formed by the gain of electrons.

Covalent Bonds

Chemical bonds formed when two atoms share electrons.

Polar Covalent Bonds

Bonds where electrons are shared unequally between atoms, resulting in partial charges.

Electronegativity

The tendency of an atom to attract electrons in a chemical bond.

Non-Polar Covalent Bonds

Bonds where electrons are shared equally between atoms.

Hydrogen Bonds

Weak attractions between a hydrogen atom and an electronegative atom.

Van der Waals Attractions

Weak attractions between molecules that result from transient local partial charges.

Reactants

Substances that undergo change in a chemical reaction.

Products

Substances that are produced in a chemical reaction.

Potassium-39

An isotope of potassium with 19 protons and 20 neutrons.

Potassium-40

An isotope of potassium with 19 protons and 21 neutrons.

Potassium-56

An isotope of potassium with 19 protons and 37 neutrons.

Single Bond

A covalent bond where one pair of valence electrons is shared.

Double Bond

A covalent bond where two pairs of valence electrons are shared.

Triple Bond

A covalent bond where three pairs of valence electrons are shared.

Chemical Reaction

A process that involves the rearrangement of the molecular or ionic structure of a substance.

solute

A substance that is dissolved in a solution.

solvent

A substance that dissolves a solute, forming a solution.

aqueous solution

A solution in which water is the solvent.

hydrophilic

Molecules that are attracted to water and can interact with it.

hydrophobic

Molecules that repel water and do not interact with it.

hydration shell

The sphere of water molecules around a dissolved ion.

surface tension

The cohesive force at the surface of a liquid that makes it behave like a stretched elastic membrane.

cohesive (cohesion)

The attraction between molecules of the same substance.

adhesive (adhesion)

The attraction between molecules of different substances.

specific heat

The amount of heat required to raise the temperature of a substance by 1 degree Celsius.

heat

A form of energy that is transferred between systems or objects with different temperatures.

density

The mass per unit volume of a substance.

acid

A substance that increases the hydrogen ion concentration in a solution.

base

A substance that decreases the hydrogen ion concentration in a solution.

pH

A measure of the acidity or basicity of a solution, defined as the negative logarithm of the hydrogen ion concentration.

Neutral pH

A pH of 7, indicating a balance between acids and bases.

acidic pH

A pH less than 7, indicating a higher concentration of hydrogen ions.

basic pH

A pH greater than 7, indicating a lower concentration of hydrogen ions.

buffer

A solution that resists changes in pH when small amounts of acid or base are added.

macromolecule

Giant molecules formed by the joining of smaller molecules.

polymer

A long molecule consisting of many monomers linked by covalent bonds.

monomer

The building blocks of polymers.

dehydration reaction

A chemical reaction that involves the loss of a water molecule from the reacting molecule. → forming a polymer

hydrolysis reaction

A chemical reaction that involves the breaking of a bond in a molecule (polymer) using water.

Macromolecules

Polymers

Monomer

Smaller molecules that are the building blocks or subunits of a polymer