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BIOL 140 > Chapter 2: The Chemical Context of Life > Flashcards

Chapter 2: The Chemical Context of Life Flashcards

1
Q

matter

A

anything that takes up space and has mass
- composed of elements

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2
Q

element

A

any substance that cannot be broken down to any other substance by chemical reactions

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3
Q

compound

A

a substance consisting of two or more different elements combined in a fixed ratio

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4
Q

essential element

A

a chemical element required for an organism to survive, grow, and reproduce

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5
Q

carbon, hydrogen, oxygen, nitrogen

A

make up 96% of living matter

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6
Q

calcium, phosphorus, potassium, sulfur

A

most of the remaining 4% of living matter

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7
Q

trace elements

A

an element indispensable for life but required in extremely minute amounts

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8
Q

atom

A

the smallest unit of matter that retains the properties of an element
- composed of subatomic particles

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9
Q

neutron

A

a subatomic particle having no electrical charge (electrically neutral), with a mass of about 1.7x10^-24g, found in the nucleus of an atom

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10
Q

proton

A

a subatomic particle with a single positive electrical charge, with a mass of about 1.7x10^-24g, found in the nucleus of an atom

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11
Q

electron

A
  • a subatomic particle with a single negative electrical charge and a mass about 1/2,000 that of a neutron or a proton
  • one or more electrons move around the nucleus of an atom
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12
Q

atomic nucleus

A

an atom’s dense central core, containing protons and neutrons

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13
Q

dalton

A
  • a measure of mass for atoms and subatomic particles
  • the same as the atomic mass unit, or amu
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14
Q

atomic number

A

the number of protons in its nucleus of an atom, unique for each element and designated by a subscript

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15
Q

mass number

A

the total number of protons and neutrons in an atom’s nucleus

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16
Q

atomic mass

A
  • the total mass of an atom, numerically equivalent to the mass in grams of 1 mole of the atom
  • for an element with more than one isotope, the atomic mass is the average mass of the naturally occurring isotopes, weighted by their abundance
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17
Q

isotope

A

one of several atomic forms of an element, each with the same number of protons, but a different number of neutrons, thus differing in atomic mass

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18
Q

radioactive isotope

A
  • an isotope (an atomic form of a chemical element) that is unstable
  • the nucleus decays spontaneously, giving off detectable particles and energy
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19
Q

radioactive tracers

A

can be used to track atoms through metabolism and can also be used in combination with sophisticated imaging instruments

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20
Q

PET scanners

A

can monitor the growth and metabolism of cancers in the body

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21
Q

half-life

A

the amount of time it takes for 50% of a sample of a radioactive isotope to decay

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22
Q

radiometric dating

A

a method for determining the absolute age of rocks and fossils, based on the half-life of radioactive isotopes

23
Q

energy

A

the capacity to cause change, especially to do work (to move matter against an opposing force)

24
Q

potential energy

A

the energy that matter possesses as a result of its location or spatial arrangement (structure)

25
Q

lowest

A

matter has a natural tendency to move toward the ________ possible state of potential energy

26
Q

electron shells

A

an energy level of electrons at a characteristics average distance from the nucleus of an atom

27
Q

chemical behavior of an atom

A

determined by the distribution of electrons in the electron shell

28
Q

periodic table of the elements

A

shows the electron distribution for each element

29
Q

valence electron

A

an electron in the outermost electron shell

30
Q

valence shell

A

the outermost energy shell of an atom, containing the valence electrons involved in the chemical reactions of that atom

31
Q

orbital

A

the three-dimensional space where an electron is found 90% of the time

32
Q

chemical bond

A
  • an attraction between two atoms, resulting from a sharing of outer-shell electrons or the presence of opposite charges on the atoms
  • the bonded atoms gain complete outer electron shells
33
Q

covalent bond

A

a type of strong chemical bond in which two atoms share one or more pairs of valence electrons

34
Q

molecule

A

two or more atoms held together by covalent bonds

35
Q

single bond

A
  • a single covalent bond
  • the sharing of a pair of valence electrons by two atoms
36
Q

double bond

A
  • a double covalent bond
  • the sharing of two pairs of valence electrons by two atoms
37
Q

structural formation

A

the notation used to represent atoms and bonding
- H–H represents a single bond
- O=O represents a double bond

38
Q

valence

A
  • the bonding capacity of a given atom
  • the number of covalent bonds that an atom can form, which usually equals the number of unpaired electrons in its outermost (valence) shell
39
Q

electronegativity

A

the attraction of a given atom for the electrons of a covalent bond

40
Q

nonpolar covalent bond

A

a type of covalent bond in which electrons are shared equally between two atoms of similar electronegativity

41
Q

polar covalent bond

A
  • a covalent bond between atoms that differ in electronegativity
  • the shared electrons are pulled closer to the more electronegative atom, making it slightly negative and the other atom slightly positive
42
Q

ion

A

an atom or group of atoms that has gained or lost one or more electrons, thus acquiring a charge

43
Q

cation

A

a positively charged ion

44
Q

anion

A

a negatively charged ion

45
Q

ionic bond

A

a chemical bond resulting from the attraction between oppositely charged ions

46
Q

ionic compound

A
  • a compound resulting from the formation of an ionic bond
  • also called a salt
47
Q

hydrogen bond

A

a type of weak covalent bond that is formed when the slightly positive hydrogen atom of a polar covalent bond in one molecule is attracted to the slightly negative atom of a polar covalent bond in another molecule or in another region of the same molecule

48
Q

Van der Waals interactions

A

weak attractions between molecules or parts of molecules that result from transient local partial charges

49
Q

molecular shape

A

determines how biological molecules recognize and respond to one another

50
Q

chemical reaction

A

the making and breaking of chemical bonds, leading to changes in the composition of matter

51
Q

reactants

A

a starting material in a chemical reaction

52
Q

product

A

the material resulting from a chemical reaction

53
Q

chemical equilibrium

A

in a chemical reaction, the state in which the rate of the forward reaction equals the rate of the reverse reaction, so that the relative concentrations of the reactants and products do not change with time

BIOL 140 (7 decks)

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