Use the study guide to answer the following key questions! I will collect this and grade it!! You have learned all this material this semester and use this as an opportunity to show me and yourself that you can do this!! Also, I hope you all have a very very Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays with family and loved ones! –Mrs. Jewell

Goal 1: The learner will develop an understanding of the physical, chemical and cellular basis of life.(Chs. 1, 2, 7, 8 and 9)
  1. Explain the difference between biotic and abiotic factors. (Bio = LIFE A = NOT)

Biotic: living things like mushrooms, a dog, a plant, bacteria

Abiotic: nonliving things like water, air, metal, the sun

  1. What must present for an organism to be considered “living”?

Must contain carbon

Must be able to grow, adapt, develop, metabolize, reproduce, have cells, react and maintain homeostasis

  1. What is homeostasis?

Maintaining a constant environment in your body.

EX: shivering/sweating to keep body temperature the same.

  1. What is the difference between an autotroph and heterotroph?

Autotroph: Organism that makes its own food (think “automatic) EX: PLANT = PRODUCER

Heterotroph: Has to eat to get its food EX: ANIMALS = CONSUMER

  1. What is the difference between a producer and consumer?

Producer: “produces/makes” the food in an ecological system

Consumer: has to “consume/get” the food from someone/somewhere

(EX: herbivore, carnivore, omnivore, decomposer)

  1. How much energy passes from one organism to the next in a food chain?

Only 10% of energy is passed from 1 organism to the next in a food chain

90% (the rest) is LOST as HEAT!

  1. In an energy pyramid, what decreases the higher up you go?

Energy and biomass both decrease the higher up you go in an energy pyramid

Goal 4: The learner will develop an understanding of ecological relationships among organisms. (Ch. 3, 4, 5, 6)
  1. What is a niche?

A niche is the job or role of an organism in an ecosystem (aka, how an organism survives)

EX: a rabbit’s niche is to eat veggies and urinate in the garden

  1. How can two organisms live in the same habitat but different niches?

2 birds might live in the same tree (same habitat) but 1 bird’s niche might be to eat the seeds of the tree and the other bird’s niche might be to eat the flowers of the tree.

  1. Name 3 ways that humans are responsible for most modern day environmental issues.

1) Habitat destruction (deforestation, invasive species, melting glaciers, etc)

2) Biodiversity Loss (humans are responsible for the killing, endangerment and extinction of many organisms)

3) Bioaccumulation

  1. What is DDT and why do we no longer spray our crops with it?

DDT is a pesticide the USA used to spray on crops but it ended up in our rivers and lakes which killed small fish, and therefore also affected big fish that ate the small fish, and also affected eagles and therefore decreased the eagle population

  1. What does the pH scale measure?

The pH scale measures whether something is an acid or a base. If a solution measure between 1 and 6, it is an ACID; if a solution measures a perfect 7, it is considered NEUTRAL; if a solution measures between 8 and 14, it is a BASE

  1. Is acid rain dangerous? Why or why not?

Yes, acid rain is very dangerous. It can kill off entire forests and fish in lakes and rivers.

Acid rain is caused by air pollution which is produced by burning fossil fuels

  1. What is a nonnative/invasive species? What is 1 example we discussed in class?

A nonnative or invasive species is an organism that is brought in from another country. These organisms don’t have natural predators and therefore end up taking over the environment and push out all the native species.

EX: kudzu brought from Asia has taken over and killed off other natural plants in Eastern USA

  1. What do invasive species do to the environment they are in?

They take over and push out the native species in that area

  1. What does sustainability mean? Think about the movie we watched on the last day before break.

Sustainability is when humans work to protect their environment.

EX: recycling, replanting trees, cleaning streams and rivers

  1. Define these types of relationships (symbiosis).

a. mutualism –BOTH organisms benefit 

“you scratch my back, I scratch yours”

b. commensalism-ONE organism benefits, the other doesn’t care 

c. parasitism-ONE organism BENEFITS, ONE organism is HARMED 
The following is a non-symbiotic relationship:

d. predator/prey-It a predator prey relationship, we have one organism that is the killer and the other organism is the one that gets eaten.

  1. How does competition limit the growth of a population?

In a population, competition occurs when there is a demand for resources (such as food, water, habitat) exceeds the supply (availability) for those resources.

For the following questions, refer to the packet we did in class on cycles, climate change and energy pyramids:

  1. Describe the following cycles:

a. water cycle-

In the water cycle, water is cycled between the ocean, the atmosphere and land.

Evaporation: water changes from liquid to gas (water leaves the ocean as a liquid and goes into the atmosphere as gas)

Transpiration: water evaporates from the leaves of plants and goes back into the atmosphere
Condensation: water changes from gas back to liquid (water condenses, fills up a cloud and falls back down to Earth as precipitation.

Precipitation: anything that falls from the sky back onto land and into the ocean (rain, snow, sleet, hail, etc)

b. carbon cycle-

Carbon is key to all living things.
Carbon makes up the C in CHO (carbohydrates), CHO (lipids), CHON (proteins) and CHOPN (nucleic acids)

Photosynthesis is the only way we cycle Carbon OUT of the atmosphere. Plants perform photosynthesis and take CO2 out of the atmosphere by breathing it in and breathing out Oxygen.

Humans are pumping lots of CO2 back into the atmosphere by burning fossil fuels which is messing up the cycle even more since we are also cutting down trees that would otherwise help take CO2 out of the atmosphere.

Volcanoes also put CO2 into the atmosphere because there is lots of Carbon in the lava and ash that erupts.

c. nitrogen cycle-

Nitrogen is important because it is found in DNA and RNA (the N in CHOPN) which help make amino acidsproteins (The N in CHON). However, Nitrogen must be fixed before it can be used by plants. We get it by eating plants or eating animals that have eaten plants.

  1. What is nitrogen fixation and what organisms are involved?

Nitrogen fixation is the process by which bacteria take Nitrogen gas (N2) from the atmosphere and convert it into ammonia which is a form of Nitrogen that can be used by plants.

Denitrification is the opposite of nitrogen fixation. This is when other types of bacteria take usable Nitrogen (like ammonia or nitrates and nitrites and convert it back into Nitrogen gas (the unusable kind)

  1. How does photosynthesis relate to energy getting into ecosystems?

Sunlight (RADIANT ENERGY) is the main energy source for life on Earth.

Photosynthesis is related because autotrophs (plants) take sunlight/radiant energy and make their own food (glucose) through the process of photosynthesis. Sunlight/radiant energy provides the energy needed to take water and CO2 and turn it into oxygen and glucose for animals to eat and breathe so that they can perform cellular respiration to get ATP energy!

Basically, photosynthesis starts the whole process for plants, animals and ecosystems!!

  1. What role do decomposers play in the environment?

Decomposers such as fungi, break down organic matter!

  1. What is a trophic level?

A trophic level is what we call each step in a food chain, food web or energy pyramid.

  1. What is a food chain? Draw a food chain including the following organisms (plankton, minnow, frog).

A food chain is a series of steps in which organisms transfer energy by eating and being eaten.

Plankton  Minnow  Frog

  1. What happens to energy in an ecosystem? What happens to matter?

In an ecosystem, everything starts with Radiant energy from the sun which is taken in by autotrophs and then flows in one direction (up in the energy pyramid to consumers and then decomposers) but 90% is lost as heat.

Matter on the other hand is recycled through the water cycle, carbon cycle, nitrogen cycle and phosphorus cycle.

  1. How much energy is passed from one trophic level to the next in an ecosystem? What happens to the rest?

Only about 10% of energy available in 1 trophic level is passed to organisms in the next trophic level. The rest (about 90%) is lost as heat. This is why we say that energy in an ecosystem or energy pyramid is not very efficient!

  1. What is global warming? What causes it?

Global warming is 1 major factor that contributes to climate change on Earth. It is the steady increase in temperature and is caused by too much carbon dioxide in the atmosphere which causes the sun’s radiation to be trapped on Earth. We (humans) are releasing too much CO2 into the atmosphere because we are burning too many fossil fuels and cutting down too many trees which are the only thing that can take out some of the CO2 from the atmosphere.

  1. What are the possible effects of global warming?

Glaciers are melting and oceans are rising because global warming causes an increase in temperatures on Earth.

  1. What are some ways that carbon dioxide emissions can be reduced?

Plant more trees and use renewable resources such as solar panels, wind turbines, etc. instead of relying on burning coal, oil, etc.

  1. What is carrying capacity?

Carrying capacity is the max # of organisms an ecosystem can support.

  1. Define and give an example of:

a. density-dependent limiting factor:
A density dependent limiting factor can be anything that depends on the size of the population.
EX: resource availability (food, water, shelter), waste production, competition predation and disease

b. density-independent limiting factor:

A density independent factor doesn’t care about population size and can happen regadless of how big or how small the population is.

EX: fire, drought, landslide, earthquake, temperature, etc.

  1. What is the difference between a J curve and an S-curve?

J—exponential growth: The population grows extremely fast because there is an unlimited amount of resources

S—logistical growth: The population grows until it reaches the carrying capacity and then will fluctuate at the carrying capacity based on the availability of limited resources and predator/prey competition.

  1. What is the difference between birthrate and death rate?

Birth rate = # of people born each year

Death rate = # of people that die each year.

  1. What is the difference between rapid growth and stable growth?

Rapid growth = when there are more babies being born that old people dying. We see rapid growth in poor and developing countries.

Stable growth = Less babies are being born and lots of old people. We see stable growth in wealthy, developed and industrialized countries such as the USA because we have good healthcare to keep older people living longer and less babies are being born because people are very career-driven and work more than time is available to care for children.

  1. What are the 4 main ways that humans impact natural resources on Earth?
  1. Resource depletion (using more resources than we can make)
  2. Deforestation
  3. Pesticide Use
  4. Bioaccumulation

Now we get to the good stuff! Starting from the very beginning and moving forward, the rest of the packet reviews information from Day 1 until Thanksgiving. REALLY focus on reviewing this material and answering the review questions for your benefit!!

  1. Complete the table regarding the four types of organic molecules:

Organic Molecule: / Elements Present: / Building Blocks (Monomers) / What do they do? / Example
Carbohydrates / CHO / MONOSACCHARIDE (HEXAGON SHAPE) / INSTANT ENERGY
AND STRUCTURE FOR PLANTS / GLUCOSE
GLYCOGEN
STARCH
CELLULOSE
Lipids / CHO / LONG CHAINS OF C AND H WITH SOME O
“TRIGLYCERIDE” / LONG TERM ENERGY STORAGE
AND MAKE UP CELL MEMBRANE / PHOSPHOLIPIDS
STEROIDS
Proteins / CHON / AMINO ACIDS / JUST ABOUT EVERYTHING IN OUR BODY / ENZYMES
HEMOGLOBIN
INSULIN
Nucleic Acids / CHOPN / NUCLEOTIDES / STORE OUR GENETIC INFO (DNA)
HELP WITH PROTEIN SYNTHESIS (RNA) / DNA and RNA
  1. What are proteins made up of?

Amino acids held together by peptide bonds

  1. Hemoglobin is a very important protein. What does it do?

Hemoglobin is a protein found in red blood cells that helps blood carry oxygen throughout the body.

  1. Insulin is another very important protein in our body. What does it do?

Insulin helps maintain proper blood sugar levels by helping cells

  1. Define enzymes.

Enzymes (a type of protein) are often times called CATALYSTS because they SPEED UP REACTIONS.

Without enzymes, most of the reactions that happen in our body would not be able to happen and we would die. This is because every reaction needs a certain amount of energy (called ACTIVATION ENERGY) to start.
The way enzymes work is they LOWER the ACTIVATION ENERGY and therefore make reactions go FASTER because not as much energy is needed to start it.

  1. How do temperature and pH affect enzymes?

Enzymes are very specific and fit together like a lock and key with something called a SUBSTRATE.
If you change the shape of the enzyme it won’t work anymore because the shape of the lock will be messed up and the key wont be able to fit.

Temperature and pH are 2 ways that can affect the SHAPE of an enzyme and therefore cause the enzyme to not work anymore. This is called DENATURATION

  1. Explain the lock-and-key model of enzymes and substrates.SEE ANSWER TO QUESTION 6
  1. What is a substrate?SEE ANSWER TO QUESTION 6
  1. How do enzymes work/what do they do?SEE ANSWER TO QUESTION 5 and 6
  1. What is it called when enzymes get messed up and cannot work?SEE ANSWER TO QUESTION 6
  2. List the functionanddescribe the structure(drawing it is a good idea too) of the following organelles:

a. nucleus: The brain of the cell.

Controls all cell functions!

b. plasma membrane: Controls what enters and leaves the cell.

Helps the cell maintain homeostasis.

c. ribosomes: The site of protein synthesis!!

Where mRNA and tRNA come together to link amino acids into a protein.

d. mitochondria: The “powerhouse” of the cell.
Provides energy (ATP) by cellular respiration

e. cell wall: Only found in plant cells! (and some prokaryotes—bacteria)

Provides protection and support for the cell.

f. chloroplast: Only found in plant cells!

Where PHOTOSYNTHESIS happens!
Contains a pigment called chlorophyll which keeps the plant green and captures light energy.

g. vacuole: Only found in plant cells!

Stores food, water, enzymes and waste.

  1. Explain the differences in size, chromosome structure, and organelles between prokaryotes and eukaryotes.

PROKARYOTES: much smaller and less complex cells, DNA is in a circular shape called a plasmid (NO NUCLEUS), do not have any membrane-bound organelles. DO have RIBOSOMES!

EUKARYOTES: much larger and more complex cells; includes plant and animal cells as well as protists and fungi; have a nucleus which contains the DNA/chromosomes, and have all membrane-bound organelles.

  1. What is the difference between prokaryotes, plants, and animal cells?

Prokaryotes are your BACTERIA cells. See Question 12 for more explanation. DNA = plasmid, has ribosomes, a cell wall, flagella and cilia.

Plant and animal cells are both EURKARYOTES.

Plant cells have a cell wall outside of the cell membrane which gives the plant extra support so that the giant vacuole does not cause the cell to burst when the plant takes in lots of water. Plant cells also have a chloroplast so that these cells can photosynthesize.

Animal cells are what we have! They contain a cell membrane, but NO cell wall. Animal cells and plant cells both have mitochondria, although we typically think of animal cells doing cellular respiration and therefore having lots of mitochondria, especially in muscle cells.

  1. What is the formula for photosynthesis?

Sunlight (radiant energy) + Water (H2O) + CO2 Glucose + ATP Energy + O2

  1. Where does photosynthesis occur?

In the CHLOROPLAST of PLANT cells

  1. What organisms perform the process of photosynthesis?

Mainly PLANT cells!!

  1. Define cellular respiration:

Cell respiration is how animals (like humans) but also plants take food and oxygen and convert it into ATP energy that the body can use. The formula is the opposite of photosynthesis because cell respiration and photosynthesis are reverse reactions that help both continue in a cycle.

  1. Where does cellular respiration occur?

In the mitochondria!!! Animal cells do this a lot, but plant cells also have mitochondria (not just chloroplasts) and therefore perform cell respiration to get energy as well!