Semester 1 exam Flashcards
biology
scientific study of life
hypothesis
possible explanation for a set of observations or possible answers to a scientific question
theory
well-tested explanation that unifies a broad range observations and hypotheses, enabling scientists to make accurate predictions about new situations
biosphere
part of earth in which life exists, including land, water, and air or atmosphere
ecology
scientific study of interactions among organisms and between organisms and their environment
species
group of similar organisms that can breed and produce fertile offspring
population
groups of individuals of the same species that live in the same area
ecosystem
all the organisms that live in a place
climate
average year-to-year conditions of temperature and precipitation in an area over a long period of time
weather
day-to-day conditions of the atmosphere
Greenhouse Effect
process in which gases trap sunlight energy in Earth’s atmosphere as heat
autotroph
organism that is able to capture energy from sunlight or chemicals and use it to produce its own food from inorganic compounds
heterotroph
organism that obtains food by consuming other living things
food chain
series of steps in an ecosystem in which organisms transfer energy by eating and being eaten
food web
network of complex interactions formed by the feeding relationships among the various organisms in an ecosystem
population density
number of individuals per unit area
population distribution
the way individuals are spaced out across their range
demography
scientific study of human populations
limiting factor
factor that causes population growth to decrease
habitat
area in which an organism lives
resource
any necessity of life
keystone species
single species that is not usually abundant in a community yet exerts strong control on the structure of a community
symbiosis
relationship in which two species live close together
parasitism
relationship in which one organism lives inside or on another organism and harms it
mutualism
symbiotic relationship in which both species benefit from the relationship
commensalism
symbiotic relationship in which one organism benefits and the other is neither helped nor harmed
atom
the basic unit of matter
electron
negatively charged particle; located in the space surrounding the nucleus
element
pure substance that consists entirely of one type of atom
compound
substance formed by the chemical combination of two or more elements in definite proportions
Molecule
smallest unit of most compounds that displays all the properties of that compound
Ionic bond
chemical bond formed when one or more electrons are transferred from one atom to another
reactant
elements or compounds that enter into a chemical reaction
Covalent Bond
type of bond between atoms in which the electrons are shared
chemical reaction
process that changes, or transforms, one set of chemicals into another set of chemcials
product
elements or compounds produced by chemical reactions
Enzyme
protein catalyst that speeds up the rate of specific biological reactions
prokaryote
unicellular organism that lacks a nucleus
Eukaryote
organism whose cells contains a nucleus
Diffusion
process by which particles tend to move from an area where they are more concentrated to an area where they are less concentrated
Osmosis
diffusion of water through a selectively permeable membrane
ATP
compound used by cells to store and release energy
Cancer
disorder in which some of the body’s cells lose the ability to control growth
Differentiation
process by which cells become speacialized
Stem cell
unspecialized cell that can give rise to one or more types of specialized cells
Genetics
scientific study of heredity
mRNA
type of RNA that carries copies of instructions for the assembly of amino acids into proteins from DNA to the rest of the cell
rRNA
type of RNA that combines with proteins to form ribosomes
tRNA
type of RNA that carries each amino acid to a ribosome during protein synthesis
Transcription
synthesis of an RNA molecule from a DNA template
Translation
process by which the sequence of bases of mRNA is converted into the sequence of amino acids of a protein
Mutations
change in the genetic material of a cell
Mutagen
chemical or physical agents in the environment that interact with DNA and may cause a mutation
What are the 3 components of cell theory?
All living things are made up of cells, cells are the basic unit of structure and function in living things, and living cells only come from other living cells
levels of organization in an multicellular organism
Cells, tissues organs, organ systems, organisms
What is the process of photosynthesis
uses the energy of sunlight to convert water and carbon dioxide into high-energy sugars and oxygen
what are the reactants and products in photosynthesis
Reactants: , water, carbon Dioxide Products: oxygen and glucose
Where does photosynthesis take place
The chloroplast
Light Dependant Reactions vs. Light Independent Reactions
In light dependent reactions, energy is taken from sunlight and turned into chemical energy, called ATP. In light independent reactions, the harvested chemical energy drives the assembly of sugar molecules from carbon dioxide
What is cellular Respiration
The process by which organisms use oxygen to break down food molecules to get chemical energy for cell functions
what are 3 stages of cellular respiration
Glycolysis, Krebs cycle, Electron Transport chain
What are the products and reactants of cellular respiration
Products: ATP, carbon dioxide, water Reactants: Oxygen, Glucose
what are the 2 types of fermentation
Lactic acid fermentation and alcoholic fermentation
What is cell division
The process where a parent cell divides into two or more daughter cells
What are the 4 phases of Mitosis in order
Prophase, metaphase, anaphase, and telophase
What is Meiosis
Meiosis is the formation of egg and sperm cells in sexually reproducing organisms
In what 3 important ways do DNA and RNA differ
RNA is single stranded while DNA is double stranded, RNA contains ribose and DNA contains deoxyribose, RNA has uracil while DNA has thymine
What are the 3 main types of RNA involved in protein synthesis
messenger RNA, transfer RNA, and ribosomal RNA
What is the genetic code
A set of rules used by living cells to translate information encoded within genetic material into proteins
What are the 3 main differences between meiosis and mitosis
- Mitosis is 1 stage while Meiosis is 2 stages
- Mitosis produces diploid cells while Meiosis produces haploid cells
- Mitosis has 2 identical daughter cells but Meiosis has 4 different daughter cells
What are the 3 main roles of DNA
store, copy, and express
Each DNA nucleotide is made up of what(3 components)
deoxyribose, a phosphate group, and a nitrogenous base
what are the 4 nitrogenous bases in DNA
Adenine, thymine, cytosine, and guanine
What is Charigaff’s rule
A goes with T and C goes with G
What scientists discovered that DNA was a double helix
James Watson and Francis Crick
What is DNA replication
the process by which DNA makes a copy of itself during cell division
