SB4 Key Words

Question 1

Ardi?

Answer 1

Nickname for a 4.4 million year old fossilised specimen of Ardipithecus Ramidus.

Question 2

Binomial system?

Answer 2

System of naming organisms using two Latin words.

Question 3

Evolution?

Answer 3

A change in one or more characteristics of a population over a long period of time.

Question 4

Lucy?

Answer 4

Nickname for a 3.2 million year old fossilised specimen of Australopithecus Afarensis.

Question 5

Species?

Answer 5

A group of organisms that can reproduce with each other to produce offspring that will also be able to reproduce

Question 6

Ancestor?

Answer 6

An organism from which more recent organisms are descended.

Question 7

Antibiotic?

Answer 7

Medicine that helps people recover from a bacterial infection by killing the pathogen.

Question 8

Competition?

Answer 8

There is competition between organisms that need the same things as each other. We say they ‘compete’ for those things.

Question 9

Genetic variation / inherited variation?

Answer 9

Differences between organisms caused by difference in genes passed on from parents.

Question 10

Natural selection?

Answer 10

A process in which organisms are more likely to survive and reproduce than other members of the same species.

Question 10

Resistant?

Answer 10

Unaffected or less affected by something.

Question 11

Pentadactyl limb?

Answer 11

A limb that has 5 digits (fingers and thumbs). Amphibians, reptiles, birds and mammals have this in common.

Question 12

Classification?

Answer 12

Sorting things into groups.

Question 13

Domain?

Answer 13

The three main groups that organisms are now sorted into: Archaea, Bacteria and Eukarya.

Question 14

Kingdom?

Answer 14

A group of similar organisms.

Question 15

Artificial selection?

Answer 15

When people choose organisms with certain characteristics and use only those for breeding.

Question 16

Breed?

Answer 16

Group of animals of the same species that have characteristics that make them different to others of that species.

Question 17

Gene?

Answer 17

Section of a long strand of DNA found in a chromosome, which often contains instructions for a protein.

Question 18

Genetic engineering / genetic modification?

Answer 18

Altering the genome of an organism, often by adding genes from another species.

Question 19

Genetically modified organism?

Answer 19

Organism that has been produced using genetic engineering.

Question 20

GMO?

Answer 20

Genetically modified organism.

Question 21

Genome?

Answer 21

All the DNA in an organism. Each body cell contains a copy of the genome.

Question 22

Selective breeding?

Answer 22

When humans choose an organism that has a certain characteristic and then breed more of these organisms, making that chosen characteristic more obvious.

Question 23

Variety?

Answer 23

Group of plants of the same species that have characteristics that make them different to other members of the species.

Question 24

Yield?

Answer 24

The amount of useful product that you can get from something.

Question 25

Callus?

Answer 25

Small clump of unspecialised plant cells.

Question 26

Clone?

Answer 26

Offspring that is genetically identical to its parents.

Question 27

Differentiate?

Answer 27

When a cell becomes specialised for a particular function.

Question 28

Extinction?

Answer 28

When a species dies out.

Question 29

Reject?

Answer 29

When the immune system attacks tissue and cells that it does not recognise.

Question 30

Stem cell?

Answer 30

An unspecialised cell that continues to divide by mitosis to produce more stem cells and other cells that differentiate into specialised cells.

Question 31

Tissue culture?

Answer 31

Growing tiny pieces of tissue or cells in or on a medium containing nutrients.

Question 32

Virus?

Answer 32

A particle that can infect cells and cause them to make copies of the virus.

Question 33

Alleles?

Answer 33

Different versions of genes.

Question 34

Base?

Answer 34

There are four substances that make up the DNA, A + T, C + G

Question 35

Diabetes?

Answer 35

Disease in which the body cannot control the blood glucose concentration at the correct level.

Question 36

Insulin?

Answer 36

The hormone that decreases blood glucose concentration. Used in the treatment of type 1 diabetes.

Question 37

Ligase?

Answer 37

An enzyme that joins two DNA molecules together.

Question 38

Plasmid?

Answer 38

A small loop of DNA found in the cytoplasm of bacteria.

Question 39

Recombinant DNA?

Answer 39

DNA made by joining two sections of DNA together.

Question 40

Restriction enzyme?

Answer 40

An enzyme that cuts DNA molecule into pieces.

Question 41

Sticky end?

Answer 41

A short section of single stranded DNA found at the end of a section of DNA that has been cut by a restriction enzyme.

Question 42

Type 1 diabetes?

Answer 42

Type of diabetes in which the pancreas does not produce insulin.

Question 43

Vector?

Answer 43

Anything that transfers material from one organism to another.

Question 44

Bt toxins?

Answer 44

A natural insecticide made by the bacterium bacillus thuringiensis that kills some type of caterpillar.

Question 45

Insecticides?

Answer 45

A chemical substance used to kill insect pest of crops.

Question 46

Monoculture?

Answer 46

A large area of one kind of crop.

Question 47

Pest?

Answer 47

An animal that causes problems, such as by damaging crops.

Question 48

Strain?

Answer 48

Bacteria of a species that are slightly different to other strains of the species.

Question 49

Biological control?

Answer 49

Using living organisms to kill pests or weeds.

Question 50

Fertiliser?

Answer 50

Substance that adds plant nutrients to soil.

Question 51

Pollution?

Answer 51

Harm caused to the environment.

Question 52

Weeds?

Answer 52

Plants that are growing where they are unwanted.

Question 53

Variation?

Answer 53

Genetic variation between the individuals of any species. This is often caused by mutation.

Question 54

Overproduction?

Answer 54

Most species will produce more young than will survive to adult-hood. This means that some will die, some will survive.

Question 55

Struggle for existance?

Answer 55

environmental change can lead to a shortage of resources e.g. food, leading to competition for survival between the organisms.

Question 56

Survival of the fittest?

Answer 56

Those with advantageous variations are more likely to survive change in the environment.

Question 57

Advantageous characteristics inherited?

Answer 57

Better adapted organisms are more likely to survive and reproduce successfully passing on the advantageous characteristics to their offspring​

Question 58

Gradual change?

Answer 58

Over a period of time the proportion of individuals with the advantageous characteristics in the population will increase and the population will change, leading to evolution.