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Science as a Process (return to top) |
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1. Scientific evidence is collected through experiments and observations. (AKSci - B.2) |
• Analyze the experimental design, with on emphasis on controls, used by Calvin and his students to discover the sugar-producing cycle of photosynthesis. • Predict the interactions between artificial membranes and certain added components, with and emphasis on the limitations of the experimental methods applies. • Describe in detail the major experiments that led ultimately to the conclusions that DNA is the major genetic material of life. |
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2. Long-term ecological research can teach us about the human impact on the biosphere. (AKSci - D.1) |
• Research and create a presentation on the changes of the ecosystem due to the impact of humans and the survival of selected species. |
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Evolution (return to top) |
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1. Chemical evolution on a young earth set the stage for the origin of life. (AKSci - A.13) |
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2. Mutations and genetic recombination generate heritable variation that is subjected to natural selection. (AKSci - A.13) |
• Apply the Hardy-Weinberg principle to demonstrate factors affecting changes in gene frequency in evolving populations. |
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3. When a population's local environment changes unfavorably, the population adapts, migrates, or dies. (AKSci - A.13, A.14b, A.14c) |
• Conduct a laboratory investigation or a simulation to demonstrate that variations within a species may enable organisms to survive large-scale environmental change. Examples could include exposure of bacteria to UV radiation or aquatic organisms to chlorine. |
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4. The system of taxonomy used by most biologists today reflects our current understanding of phylogenetic relationships among organisms. (AKSci - A.10, A.12, A.13) |
• Gather data, summarize findings, and present critical analysis of evolution on the basis of anatomical and molecular characteristics of species. • Classify selected plants and animals to their genus and species using a taxonomic key. |
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5. Adaptations can be structural, biochemical, and behavioral. (AKSci - A.12, A.13) |
• Participate in natural selection simulation activities to determine how environmentally favored traits are perpetuated over generations, while less favorable traits decrease in frequency. Discuss the relationship and significance of genetic variation, natural selection, and the ability to reproduce. |
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Energy Transfer (return to top) |
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1. Plants transform light energy into chemical energy. (AKSci - A.2, A.10) |
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2. Potential and kinetic energy can be regulated by membranes (i.e.; action potentials, proton gradients). (AKSci - A.8a) |
• Explain how ion pumps in membranes reestablish a transmembrane resting potential after a neuron fires an impulse or a muscle fiber contracts. |
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3. Energy flows from producers to consumers in an ecosystem. (AKSci - A.9) |
• Conduct an experiment showing the energy loss from one trophic level to the next, (i.e.; measure food intake relative to weight gain in a mouse). |
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4. All living systems must expend energy to live as to not violate the laws of thermodynamics. (AKSci - A.8b, A.8c, A.9) |
• Trace energy flow from glucose to the hydrolysis of ATP. |
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Continuity and Change (return to top) |
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1. The process of mitosis allows for genetic continuity from generation to generation while at the same time, through mutation, it provides for diversity. (AKSci - A.12) |
• Perform a transformation experiment involving bacteria. |
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2. There are advantages and disadvantages of sexual and asexual reproduction. (AKSci - A.12, A.13) |
• Read a karyotype and determine whether the individual is normal or has mutations. • Grow and utilize "fast plants" to demonstrate the many possible combinations of crossbreeding. • Perform dominant/recessive and sex-linked fruit fly crosses. |
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3. Changes in gene pools over time can be explained by methods that result in propagation of the most fit genotypes. (AKSci - A.12, A.13) |
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4. Homologous structures are variations on a common ancestral prototype. (AKSci - A.10, A.13) |
• Perform dissections on organisms in order to determine the similarities and differences between systems. |
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Relationship of Structure to Function (return to top) |
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1. The distinctive functions of molecules reflect structural differences among them. (AKSci - A.10) |
• Discuss how the membranous organization of the mitochondrion orders the process of cellular respiration. |
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2. By knowing structure, function can be explained. (AKSci - A.10) |
• Extract DNA from onion cells or human cheek cells. • Using the mammalian small intestine, show how the surface area to volume ratio increases absorption of nutrients. • Explain how the complementary nature of the two DNA strands explains replication. |
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3. Morphological adaptations of organisms to their environment enhance their survival. (AKSci - A.12, A.13) |
• Design an organism that lives under specified environmental conditions. |
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Regulation (return to top) |
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1. Control of the flow of molecules across the membrane maintains a favorable intracellular environment. (AKSci - A.2, A.10) |
• Diagram the structure of the plasma membrane and relate the control of molecular movement to its structure. |
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2. Regulatory mechanisms switch genes on and off in response to environmental cues. (AKSci - A.10) |
• Discuss that the many body cells in an individual can be very different from one another, even though they are all descended from a single cell and thus have essentially identical genetic instructions. Different parts of the instructions are used in different types of cells, influenced by the cell's environment and past history. |
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3. The nervous and endocrine systems mediate an animal's responses to changes in the environment. (AKSci - A.2, A.10) |
• Examine and observe small, live organisms (i.e.; mealworms, planaria) to study animal behavior. |
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4. Hormones and gene functions regulate the growth and development of both plants and animals. (AKSci - A.2, A.10) |
• Conduct a laboratory investigation of plant hormones and their affect on plant growth. |
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Interdependence in Nature (return to top) |
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1. At the metabolic level, photosynthesis and cellular respiration are mutually symbiotic. (AKSci - A.2, A.9) |
• Discuss the interactions that exist between photosynthesis and cellular respiration. |
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2. An organism's phenotype is the synergistic product of genes and environment. (AKSci - A.10) |
•Debate "Nature or Nurture." |
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3. The sporophyte and gametophyte generations of a plant are interdependent. (AKSci - A.10) |
• Discuss the adaptive significance of alternation of generations in the major groups of plants. |
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4. An understanding of basic ecological principles can help us to assess the human impact on the biosphere. (AKSci - D.1, D.2) |
• Articulate how destruction of tropical forests has global consequences. |
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5. Competition, predation, and parasitism between populations in a food web contribute to the stability of an ecosystem. (AKSci - A.9) |
• Demonstrate the impacts of available resources on yeast populations in a laboratory investigation. |
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Science, Technology, and Society (return to top) |
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1. Advances in cancer research depend on progress in our basic understanding of how cells work. (AKSci - A.10, C.7, D.1, D.2) |
• Research and develop a multimedia presentation on a human disease or cancer. |
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2. Various new techniques in microscopy have led us to a better understanding of basic cell structure and function. (AKSci - A.10) |
• Compare and contrast a cross-section of a stem from a monocot and a dicot plant after viewing it under the microscope. |
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3. DNA technology is a double-edged sword, promising health advances and posing new ethical issues. (AKSci - D.2) |
• Discuss aging in relation to genetics and biochemical cellular changes and the possible implications of cloning in this process. • Debate ethical issues relative to the human genome project and manipulation of human cells. |
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4. Biotechnology has provided new treatments for various genetic diseases, developed crops with better yields, and provided solutions for environmental problems. (AKSci - D.2) |
• Use the internet to make a "web quest" on genetically engineered plants and animals. |
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5. More people utilizing more technology have generated many current global problems. (AKSci - D.2) |
• Investigate and conduct a panel discussion on a global issue, relative to cultural ethics and impact on society and modern culture. |
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