Topic 3- Problems of, and Solutions to, a Changing Environment Flashcards

1
Q

What are drugs?

A

Drugs are chemical substances that affect the central nervous system, causing changes in psychological behaviour and possibly addiction.

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
2
Q

What are opiates?

A

Opiates are drugs that come from poppy plants.

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
3
Q

What are the 4 types of drugs?

A
  • stimulants
  • depressants
  • painkillers
  • hallucinogens
How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
4
Q

How do the 4 types of drugs affect neurotransmission?

A
  • stimulants speed up the transmission of a message across a synapse.
  • depressants slow down the transmission of a message across a synapse.
  • painkillers precent the transmission of a message across a synapse.
  • hallucinogens block pathways to the sensory pathways to the brain.
How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
5
Q

What are illegal and legal examples of the 4 types of drugs?

A

stimulants: legal- caffeine, nicotine. illegal- cocaine, speed
depressants: legal- alcohol. illegal- barbiturates, solvents
painkillers: legal- paracetamol. illegal- heroin
hallucinogens- legal- (legal highs?) illegal- LSD

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
6
Q

What are solvents?

A

Solvents are depressants that give off different kinds of vapours.

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
7
Q

What is alcohol?

A

Alcohol is a depressant that contains the chemical ethanol.

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
8
Q

What is tobacco?

A

Tobacco is the substance in cigarettes that contains tar and nicotine, and produces carbon monoxide when smoked.

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
9
Q

What are the physical and mental effects of a solvent when inhaled?

A

Physical effect - can cause permanent damage to the lungs, liver, brain and kidneys
Mental effect - causes hallucinations, alter behaviour and personality

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
10
Q

What are the physical and mental effects of alcohol?

A

Physical effect - can cause brain and liver damage (cirrhosis) and blurred vision
Mental effect - can cause depression, and can lead to loss of inhibitions and self-control

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
11
Q

What are the physical and mental effects of tobacco?

A

Physical effect - carbon monoxide absorbed by the haemoglobin in red blood cells more easily than oxygen.
Can lead to: emphysema (alveoli walls break down), build up of mucus, bronchitis, cancer caused by tar, increased heart rate and blood pressure.
Mental effect - nicotine is addictive

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
12
Q

What is a carcinogen?

A

A carcinogen is a chemical that causes cancer.

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
13
Q

What is the carcinogen in cigarettes?

A

Tar is the carcinogen in cigarettes.

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
14
Q

What is a transplant?

A

A transplant is when an organ or tissue is moved from one patient to another or from one part of a patient to another.

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
15
Q

What are examples of some organs that can be transplanted?

A

Hearts, kidneys, livers, lungs, intestines, pancreases

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
16
Q

What are examples of some tissues that can be transplanted?

A

Skin, bones, tendons, corneas, heart valves and veins.

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
17
Q

What are 3 ethical issues of organ transplants?

A
  • Voluntary or mandatory donation (should people have to give organs when they die or should they make the conscious decision when they are alive)
  • Should people who may have had some control over their condition be allowed to have transplants (eg. liver transplants for alcoholics)
  • Theft of, and then illegal trade of, organs (trafficking/black market)
How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
18
Q

What are pathogens?

A

Microorganisms that cause disease.

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
19
Q

What are the 4 types of pathogens?

A

Bacteria, Fungi, Viruses, Protozoan

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
20
Q

What are 2 examples of diseases that each of the 4 types of pathogens cause?

A

Bacteria - salmonella, tuberculosis
Fungi - ringworm, athlete’s foot
Viruses - Influenza, HIV
Protozoan - malaria, ?

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
21
Q

What is the most common method of transmission of pathogens?

A

Indirect contact

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
22
Q

What disease is caused by drinking dirty water?

A

Cholera

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
23
Q

What disease is caused by eating uncooked meat?

A

Salmonella (food poisoning)

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
24
Q

What disease is airborne?

A

Influenza

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
25
Q

What disease is caused by a vector?

A

Malaria (mosquito), dysentery (housefly).

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
26
Q

What disease is caused by direct contact?

A

Athlete’s foot fungus

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
27
Q

What disease is caused by the exchange of body fluids?

A

HIV

28
Q

How do some plants protect themselves from being attacked from pathogens?

A

They make protective chemicals.

29
Q

Where is aspirin found naturally and what is it used for?

A

Aspirin is found in the bark and leaves of willow plants and is used as pain relief

30
Q

Where is taxol found naturally and what is it used for?

A

Taxol is found in the bark of the Pacific yew tree and is used as treatment of some forms of cancer

31
Q

What are the 3 physical barriers that animals use to defend themselves?

A
  • skin
  • cilia
  • mucus
32
Q

What are the 2 chemical barriers that animals use to defend themselves?

A
  • lysozymes

- hydrochloric acid

33
Q

What are antiseptics?

A

Antiseptics are substances that are applied to surfaces, and commonly, broken skin, to prevent infection by microorganisms.

34
Q

What are examples of frequently used antiseptics?

A

Alcohol, iodine and salt

35
Q

What are antibiotics?

A

Antibiotics are medicines that kill or inhibit the growth of bacteria or fungi.

36
Q

What was the first antibiotic to be discovered?

A

Penicillin

37
Q

What is a superbug?

A

A superbug is a bacteria that has become resistant to antibiotic medicines.

38
Q

What is MRSA?

A

A superbug, MRSA stands for methicillin-resistant Staphyloccucus aureus.

39
Q

Why is MRSA a particular problem in hospitals?

A

Because people with weakened immune systems are at greater risk.

40
Q

Why is it important to take a full course of antibiotics in order to kill a bacterial infection?

A

Because if you do not take a full course, then the bacteria will have time to evolve and become resistant to the antibiotics.

41
Q

What is interdependence?

A

Interdependence refers to a relationship between organisms whereby organisms depend on each other for some resource or for survival.

42
Q

What is a food chain?

A

A food chain is a chain that shows the feeding relationship between organisms in an ecosystem.

43
Q

What a trophic level?

A

Each stage in a food chain or food pyramid

44
Q

What is parasitism?

A

A relationship between two organisms where an infecting parasite benefits directly from its host.

45
Q

What is mutualism?

A

A relationship between two organisms where both organisms benefit from the relationship.

46
Q

What are examples of parasites?

A

Mistletoe, fleas, ticks, headlice, tapeworms

47
Q

What are examples of mutualistic relationships?

A

Oxpecker birds and large mammals, cleaner fish and larger fish, chemosynthetic bacteria in tube worms, and nitrogen-fixing bacteria in the root nodules of legumes

48
Q

What are problems caused by the overpopulation of the world?

A

Global warming, extinction of animals and plants, and pollution

49
Q

What may air pollution consist of?

A

Hydrocarbons, carbon dioxide, sulfur dioxide, carbon monoxide

50
Q

What is pollution?

A

Pollution is the contamination of the environment by waste substances, produced as a result of human activity

51
Q

What may water pollution consist of?

A

Sewage (human waste), Nitrates, Phosphates

52
Q

What is an indicator species?

A

An indicator species is a species whose presence is an indicator to scientists of how polluted an area is.

53
Q

What are examples of indicator species that indicate low levels of air pollution?

A

blackspot fungus on roses, lichens

54
Q

What are examples of indicator species that indicate high levels of water pollution?

A

sludgeworms, bloodworms, rat-tailed maggots

55
Q

What are examples of indicator species that indicate low levels of water pollution?

A

mayfly larvae, freshwater shrimp, stonefly

56
Q

What are the main processes in the carbon cycle?

A
  • photosynthesis
  • consumption
  • respiration
  • decay
  • combustion
57
Q

What are the main processes in the nitrogen cycle?

A
  • nitrogen fixation
  • nitrification
  • denitrification
  • decomposition
  • death
  • excretion
58
Q

Where are nitrogen-fixing bacteria found?

A

Some are found in the soil, some are found in the root nodules of legumes

59
Q

What is the role of nitrifying bacteria in the nitrogen cycle?

A

They convert ammonia to nitrates in the soil

60
Q

What is the role of nitrogen fixing bacteria in the soil and in the roots of legumes?

A

They convert atmospheric nitrogen into ammonia in the soil.

61
Q

What is the role of denitrifying bacteria in the nitrogen cycle?

A

They convert nitrates into atmospheric nitrogen.

62
Q

What is nitrogen fixation?

A

The process of converting atmospheric nitrogen into ammonia

63
Q

What is denitrification?

A

The process of converting nitrates into atmospheric nitrogen

64
Q

What is nitrification?

A

The process of converting ammonia into nitrates

65
Q

What is the name for microorganisms that break down the dead animals and plants in the nitrogen cycle?

A

Decomposers

66
Q

What is eutrophication?

A

The process whereby fertilisers leak into nearby streams or rivers, causing death of underwater plants and animals.

67
Q

What is another way that atmospheric nitrogen can be converted into nitrates other than nitrogen fixation and nitrification?

A

Lightening strikes can convert nitrogen gas into nitrates that are put into the soil.