Biology EOC Study/Resource Guide for Students and Parents - Notes

Introduction

  • The Study/Resource Guides serve as a resource for parents and students, containing practice questions.
  • Teachers should consult www.georgiastandards.org for classroom instruction resources.

Depth of Knowledge (DOK) Example Items

  • DOK levels are represented across various Biology content domains with example items.
  • All example and sample items are the property of the Georgia Department of Education.

Example Item 1: Selected-Response

  • DOK Level 1 Item: Requires recalling information about the role of mitosis in maintaining genetic continuity.
  • Biology Domain: Cells
  • Standard: SB1b
  • Correct Answer: A. The chromosomes in cell 1 are the same as in cells 6 and 7.
  • Explanation: Mitosis maintains genetic continuity by producing daughter cells (cells 6 and 7) with the same chromosomes as the parent cell (cell 1). Crossing-over does not occur in mitosis, step 5 chromosomes are haploid, and it's not an independent assortment.

Example Item 2: Drop-Down Technology-Enhanced

  • DOK Level 2 Item: Requires applying scientific concepts and theories to abstract and real-life situations.
  • Biology Domain: Cellular Genetics & Heredity
  • Standard: SB2c
  • Scoring Rubric: 1 point for correctly selecting both drop-down menu options.
  • Exemplar Response: "Decrease" and "people can afford to buy".
  • Explanation: Ethical considerations in biotechnology involve decreasing the cost of medicine to make it accessible to more people.

Example Item 3: Multi-Select Technology-Enhanced

  • DOK Level 3 Item: Requires analyzing data from an investigation and using it as evidence to pose arguments supporting a scientific claim.
  • Biology Domain: Classification & Phylogeny
  • Standard: SB4c
    *Scientists studied phytoplankton and viruses in a lab setting, graphing their relative concentrations over time.
  • Correct Answers: D and F
    • D. As the phytoplankton population reached capacity, the number of viruses increased because the phytoplankton were the hosts to the viruses and replicated the viruses’ genome.
    • F. The phytoplankton population decreased as the number of viruses increased because the cells of the phytoplankton were destroyed as the viruses used them to increase the number of viruses in the environment.
  • Explanation: The growth and stability of phytoplankton populations were affected by viruses, with the viruses using phytoplankton as hosts and destroying their cells.

Content Description and Additional Sample Items

  • This section provides information about what to study for the EOC assessment, including topics, standards, and sample items.
  • Content is organized into five domains: Cells, Cellular Genetics & Heredity, Classification & Phylogeny, Ecology, and Theory of Evolution.
  • The guide is organized into four units that review the material covered within the five domains of the Biology course.
    • A content domain is a reporting category that broadly describes and defines the content of the course, as measured by the EOC assessment.
  • On the actual test, the standards for Biology are grouped into five domains:
    • Cells
    • Cellular Genetics & Heredity
    • Classification & Phylogeny
    • Ecology
    • Theory of Evolution
  • Each domain was created by organizing standards that share similar content characteristics.

Unit 1: Organization

  • Life is organized at all levels from cell to biosphere.
  • Areas of Focus:
    • Cells (SB1a, SB1c)
      • Organelles and structures within a cell interact to maintain homeostasis.
      • The structures of macromolecules within a cell are related to their interactions in carrying out cellular processes.
    • Classification and Phylogeny (SB4c, SB4a)
      • Viruses and organisms are different in some ways and similar in others.
      • Clades of organisms are constructed to represent patterns of structure and function of the organisms within the three domains of organisms: archaea, bacteria, and eukarya.
    • Theory of Evolution (SB4b, SB6a, SB6b, SB6c, SB6d, SB6e)
      • Cladograms and phylogenetic trees are models based on patterns of common ancestry and the theory of evolution and they are used to determine relationships among major groups of organisms.
      • Our understanding of biology has been influenced by new understandings of the age of Earth, the emergence of new species from preexisting species, and our understanding of genetics.
      • Speciation results in patterns of biodiversity.
      • Comparative morphology, embryology, biochemistry, and genetics support the theory that all living organisms are related by way of common descent.
      • Undirected genetic changes in natural selection and genetic drift have led to changes in populations of organisms.
      • Natural selection plays a role in causing biological resistance.

Key Ideas

  • Differentiate Between Prokaryotic and Eukaryotic
    • Prokaryotes: Single-celled organisms lacking internal membrane-bound structures and a true nucleus (e.g., Bacteria, Archaea).
    • Eukaryotes: Single-celled or multi-cellular organisms with membrane-bound structures and a true nucleus containing DNA (e.g., Plants, Animals, Fungi, Protists).
  • Cells Must Have Boundaries
    • Cell Membrane: Flexible boundary controlling movement of materials and maintaining homeostasis.
    • Cell Wall: Thicker, inflexible boundary providing protection and shape (present in plants, fungi, bacteria, and some protists but not animals).
  • Organelles and Their Functions
    • Nucleus: contains DNA, which controls cellular function
    • Chloroplasts: capture solar energy for photosynthesis
    • Golgi bodies: modify, sort, and ship proteins and lipids
    • Mitochondria: produces ATP
    • Ribosomes: synthesizes protein chains
  • Compare the Structures and Functions of Organisms of Different Domains
    • Three Domains: Eukarya, Archaea, Bacteria
      • Bacteria: Includes bacteria causing disease and beneficial bacteria.
      • Archaea: Bacteria in extreme environments.
      • Eukarya: Organisms with membrane-bound organelles; includes protists, fungi, plants, and animals.
    • Taxonomy: Grouping and naming organisms based on internal/external structures, genome sequencing, protein comparisons, and evolutionary relationships.
  • The Modern Classification System
    • Classification: Grouping objects based on similarities.
    • Levels of Classification: Kingdom, Phylum, Class, Order, Family, Genus, Species
  • Compare and Contrast Viruses with Living Organisms
    • Viruses: Infectious particles with a protein capsid containing DNA or RNA.
    • Viruses are not cells, cannot reproduce outside a host cell, but contain genetic material, respond to the environment, and evolve.
  • Explain the History of Life in Terms of Biodiversity, Ancestry, and the Rates of Evolution
    • Biodiversity: Variety of organisms, genetic information, and communities.
      • Ecosystem diversity includes the variety of habitats, living communities, and ecological processes in the living world.
      • Species diversity includes the vast number of different organisms on Earth.
      • Genetic diversity refers to the sum total of all the different forms of genetic information carried by all living organisms on Earth. It gives rise to inheritable variation, which provides the raw material for evolution.
    • Speciation: Evolution of new species due to changes in gene flow.
      • Evolution of new species because of geographic isolation occurs when physical barriers separate populations, preventing mating of individuals.
    • Fossil and Biochemical Evidence: Fossils provide an incomplete picture; biochemical data provides further evidence of evolution.
      • Fossil Age relates to relative dating and radioisotope dating based on the half-life of elements like Carbon-14 (C-14) with a half-life of 5,770 years, and uranium-235, decays into the daughter element, lead- 207, in approximately 700 million years.

Sample Items

  • Item 1: Selected-Response (phylogenetic tree)
  • Item 2: Selected-Response (common ancestor)
  • Item 3: Drop-Down Technology-Enhanced
  • Item 4: Drop-Down Technology-Enhanced
  • Item 5: Drag-and-Drop Technology-Enhanced
  • Item 6: Drop-Down Technology-Enhanced

Unit 2: Energy Transformations

  • Energy can neither be created nor destroyed, but it can be transformed as it flows through organisms and ecosystems.
  • Areas of Focus: *Cells (SB1c, SB1e) *The structure of macromolecules determines their function in cellular processes. *Photosynthesis and respiration are essential in the cycling of matter and energy within the cell. *It is important to understand the inputs, outputs, and functions of photosynthesis and respiration. *The functions of the major subprocesses of photosynthesis and respiration include glycolysis, Krebs cycle, electron transport chain, light reactions, and Calvin cycle.
    • Ecology (SB5b, SB5a)
      *Energy transformation and the cycling of matter are the reasons organisms within an ecosystem depend on one another.
      *Specific factors that affect ecosystems are population sizes, carrying capacity, response to limiting factors, and keystone species.
      *Food webs are useful models to represent the flow of energy.
      *An energy pyramid is a model that can provide information about biomass and energy moving from producer to consumer and on to higher-order consumers.
      *The carbon cycle, oxygen cycle, and hydrogen cycle model how these major biochemical elements move through ecosystems.

Key Ideas

  • Characteristics of the Four Major Macromolecules
    • Carbohydrates: Provide usable chemical energy for cells and structural support in plants. Ratio of C:H:O atoms is 1:2:1.
      • Monosaccharides (one sugar unit).
      • Oligosaccharides(few sugar units).
      • Polysaccharides (many sugar units).
    • Lipids: Used for long-term energy storage and are a major component of cell membranes. More C-H bonds and less oxygen.
    • Proteins: Involved in muscle contraction, oxygen transport, and the immune system. Made of amino acids C, H, O, N, S.
    • Nucleic Acids: Store and transmit genetic information in cells. Made by nucleotides: 5-carbon, a nitrogen-containing base, and a phosphate group
  • Energy Flow Needed by All Organisms
    • Energy: Sun is primary energy source.
    • Photosynthesis: Converts solar energy to chemical energy in the form of carbohydrates.
      • 6CO2 + 6H2O + \text{energy from sunlight} \rightarrow C6H{12}O6 + 6O2
    • ATP (Adenosine Triphosphate): Stores and releases energy in its bonds.
    • Cellular Respiration: Breaking down carbohydrates for ATP.
      • C6H{12}O6 + 6O2 \rightarrow 6CO2 + 6H2O + \text{energy}
    • Trapping Energy
      • The key to this process is the pigment chlorophyll, which is the molecule in the chloroplasts of plants that absorbs energy from sunlight.
      • Light reactions: These reactions split water molecules, providing hydrogen and an energy source (ATP and NADPH) for the Calvin cycle. Oxygen is given off.
      • Calvin cycle: This cycle is the series of reactions that form simple sugars using carbon dioxide and hydrogen from water. The light reaction is the photo part of photosynthesis. The Calvin cycle is the synthesis part of photosynthesis.
    • Using Energy
      *Glycolysis: The series of reactions takes place in the cell’s cytoplasm and is anaerobic (without oxygen).
      *Krebs cycle: This cycle breaks down the products of glycolysis to produce molecules used in the electron transport chain.
      *Electron transport chain: This chain consists of a series of proteins in the mitochondrial membranes that convert ADP to ATP by transferring electrons.
  • Relationships among Organisms, Populations, Communities, Ecosystems, and Biomes
    • Population: A group of organisms of one species that lives in the same place at the same time .
    • Communities: Made up of several populations interacting with each other. Balance is important.
    • Exponential Growth: shape of a J curve.
    • Logistic growth: S-shaped curve ( the population becomes stable is known as the carrying capacity).
      • Density-Dependent and Density-Independent Limiting Factors
    • The Flow of Matter and Energy through Ecosystems
      • Producers harness the Sun’s energy to make energy-rich molecules that they and all other organisms can use to make living tissues. The process of photosynthesis uses the Sun’s energy to convert carbon dioxide and water into glucose and oxygen. Glucose is the molecule that provides all organisms with a source of energy. Producers are also called autotrophs, meaning “self-feeding,” because they do not need other organisms to provide them with energy-rich molecules.
      • Animals are consumers. They are also known as heterotrophs, meaning they need to feed on other organisms.
      • Decomposers are organisms that feed on dead bodies of animals and plants or on their waste products.
      • Food Chain: A Food Chain Sun → grass → mice → hawk
      • Food Web: A more complex interconnected system of food chains is called a food web.
      • Ecologists use energy pyramids to show how energy decreases at each succeeding trophic level. The total energy transferred from one trophic level to the next is only about 10 percent.
      • Recycling Matter: Carbon, oxygen, hydrogen, and nitrogen

Unit 3: Growth and Heredity

  • Organisms must be able to grow and reproduce to ensure species survival.
  • Areas of Focus:
    • Cells (SB2a, SB2b)
      • The structures of DNA and RNA lead to the expression of information within the cell.
      • The processes of replication, transcription, and translation are the mechanisms by which information in DNA becomes a protein.
      • Genetic variation can result from meiosis, mutations to DNA during replication, or mutations to reproductive cells caused by environmental factors.
    • Cellular Genetics and Heredity (SB3a, SB3b, SB3c, SB2c)
      • The processes described in Mendel’s laws increase reproductive variability during meiosis.
      • Mathematical models (Punnett squares and probability) can be used to predict and explain patterns of inheritance.
      • Inheritance patterns include dominance, codominance, and incomplete dominance.
      • Environmental conditions determine the relative advantages and disadvantages of sexual and asexual reproduction for a population.
      • Biotechnology in forensics, medicine, and agriculture should be evaluated for its benefits and the ethics of its use.
    • Theory of Evolution (SB2b)
      • Genetic variation within a species is one of the foundational themes of natural selection. Genetic variations may result from meiosis, nonlethal errors that occur during DNA replication, or inheritable mutations caused by environmental factors.
    • Ecology (SB2b)
      • Heritable mutations may be caused by environmental factors (radiation, chemicals, and viruses).

Key Ideas

  • Genetic Information in Storing and Transmitting Cellular Information
    • Genetics: The branch of biology that studies heredity, the passing on of characteristics from parents to offspring.
      • DNA carries information in a triplet code; each sequence of three nucleotides either codes for a particular amino acid or indicates the beginning or end of a sequence. The DNA sequences are unique for each organism.
        *DNA forms a complex biological polymer called a nucleic acid that is used for information storage. Nucleic acids are made up of monomers called nucleotides. The components of a DNA nucleotide are deoxyribose, a phosphate group, and a nitrogen base. DNA has four nitrogen bases––adenine (A), guanine (G), cytosine (C), and thymine (T). In DNA, nucleotides combine to form two long chains similar to a ladder that has twisted into a spiral. This spiral is the double helix, or double-stranded DNA.
        * In DNA, adenine bonds with thymine (A-T) and guanine bonds with cytosine (G-C).
      • The process of DNA makes an exact copy of itself in a process called replication.
    • RNA transfers the genetic information from DNA to the ribosomes in the cytoplasm. At the ribosomes, the process of translation uses the genetic code on the RNA to form proteins from amino acids.
      *messenger RNA (mRNA) codes for a specific amino acid.
      *Transfer RNA (tRNA) matches a codon on an mRNA molecule
  • Mendel’s Laws & Reproductive Variability
    • Each organism has two factors (genes) for each trait, with dominant and recessive alleles.
    • Genotype: List of alleles for a particular trait.
    • Phenotype: Physical appearance of an organism.
  • Mendel’s Laws:
    • Law of Dominance
    • Law of Segregation
    • Law of Independent Assortment.
  • Meiosis *Meiosis, which occurs in two phases, Meiosis I and Meiosis II, is the process by which gametes (sex cells) are produced. Gametes are called sperm, and in females, they are called eggs. *Meiosis reduces the number of chromosomes in the gamete to one-half the number of chromosomes in the parent’s body cells.
    • crossing over.
  • DNA and the Appearance of New Traits *A change in the genes is called DNA Mutations. * mutations may cause a change in the protein that the genetic code for that gene. * these are several types of changes that may result: base-pair substitution, base insertion, and base deletion
    • Mutagens: Ultraviolet light, ionizing radiation, free radicals, and substances in tobacco products and other chemical compounds.
  • Sexual & Asexual Reproduction
    • DNA is divided equally between two daughter cells, this is called Mitosis.
  • Advantages of Sexual and Asexual Reproduction:
    • Asexual reproduction does not require another partner, and the resulting organism is identical genetically to the parent organism.
    • Sexual reproduction involves much more time than asexual reproduction but the benefit of sexual reproduction is the genetic variability that results from the process of meiosis.
    • DNA Technology in Forensics, Medicine, and Agriculture
  • DNA Technology in Genetic Engineering involves advances in medicine, forensics, and agriculture.
    * Recombinant DNA technology researchers cut, splice together, and insert modified DNA molecules from different species into bacteria or other types of cells that rapidly replicate and divide. The cells copy the foreign DNA right along with their own DNA

Unit 4: Equilibrium

  • Survival and stability require that living things maintain biological balance at all levels.
  • Areas of Focus:
    • Cells (SB1a, SB1d)
      • Cell structures and organelles interact as a system to maintain homeostasis.
      • Cellular transport plays an important role in maintaining homeostasis.
    • Ecology (SB5c, SB5a, SB5d, SB5e)
      • Environmental change impacts the stability of an ecosystem.
      • Specific factors that affect ecosystems are population sizes, carrying capacity, response to limiting factors, and keystone species.
      • Human activities have a negative impact on the environment.
      • Organisms are limited in their ability to survive within a changing environment.
    • Theory of Evolution (SB6a, SB6b, SB6d, SB6e)
      • Our understanding of biology has been influenced by new understandings of the age of Earth.
      • Speciation results in patterns of biodiversity.
      • Undirected genetic changes in natural selection and genetic drift have led to changes in populations of organisms.
      • Natural selection plays a role in causing biological resistance.

Key Ideas

  • Homeostasis
    Organisms maintain their internal equilibrium by responding and adjusting to environmental stressors
  • Cell Structures and Organelles All the structures such as the nucleus, cytoplasm, cell membrane, cell wall, chloroplasts, lysosome, Golgi, endoplasmic reticulum, vacuoles, ribosomes, and mitochondria) interact as a system to maintain homeostasis. *Cell Membrane: controls
    • Selective permeability.
  • Passive/Active Transport
    In passive transport, materials cross cell membrane without the use of the cell’s energy Diffusion (movement of substances), Osmosis, and Facilitated transport (facilitated diffusion) require no energy.
    In active transport, including endocytosis (a process in which a cell surrounds and takes in material from its environment) and exocytosis (a process in which a cell surrounds and removes materials from inside the cell) , is a process that uses energy to transport materials into or out of the cell
  • Adaptations Relate Plant Adaptations, Including Tropisms, to the Ability to Survive Stressful Environmental Conditions
    *Several tyes of troupsims:
    * Gravitropism is the response of seedlings to the force of gravity.
    * Phototropism is the ability of the plant to respond to light.
    * Thigmotropism is the response of a plant to touch.
    *Mechanical and Chemical plant and animal adaptations for Environmental Conditions
  • **Species Evolve over Time by Natural Selection
    ** Adaptations are genetically coded traits that occur in organisms and enable them to be more successful in their environment Natural selection results in adaptations that allow populations to survive in their environments
  • Molecular Clock
    ** **The debate continues on the rate of evolution in terms of years, alternative theories, and scientific discoveries.
  • Relationships among Organisms, Populations, Communities, Ecosystems, and Biomes
    Ecology is the scientific study of the interactions between different kinds of living things and their environment. An ecologist is a scientist who studies ecology.