Honors Biology A Final Exam Review Guide
Unit: Introduction to Biology
1. What is the name and function(s) for each of the following:
a. Hand lens
h. Graduated cylinder
o. Microscope
b. Dissecting tray
i. Test tube
p. Microscope slide
c. Dissecting pins
j. Beaker
q. Coverslip
d. Forceps
k. Test tube rack
r. Petri dish
e. Dissecting scissors
l. Bunsen burner
s. Thermometer
f. Dissecting probe
m. Dropper pipette
t. Funnel
g. Scalpel
n. Pipette
u. Metric ruler
2. Differentiate between quantitative and qualitative data
3. What is a hypothesis?
4. Differentiate between manipulated and responding variable.
5. List the steps of the scientific method, in order.
6. Name four scientific theories. Name two laws.
7. What is the difference between a theory and a law
8. List the levels of organization in order, from the simplest to the most complex. Give the definition of each level and an
example.
9. List the 8 characteristics of life.
10. Give two examples each of unicellular and multicellular organisms.
11. Describe three examples of how cells are specialized for a particular function based on their shape. Be specific.
12. Distinguish between sexual and asexual reproduction. What is the advantage and disadvantage for each type?
13. Differentiate between the two types of asexual reproduction. Give an example for each type.
14. How is the life span of a living thing determined?
15. What are telomeres?
16. Name 4 ways DNA fingerprinting is used
17. What types of stimuli do living things respond to?
18. Give three examples of how a plant responds to its environment. Be specific.
19. Describe three examples of how animals maintain homeostasis. Be specific
20. Distinguish between anabolism and catabolism and give an example of each.
21. Know the parts of the microscope and their function(s).
22. Name at least one advantage and one disadvantage of using compound light microscopes.
23. Describe the two types of electron microscopes, discussing how they work, magnification abilities and disadvantages.
24. Explain the following biological techniques:
a. Cell fractionation
c. Gel Electrophoresis
b. Centrifugation
d. Cell Culture
Unit: Ecology
1. Humans are the most important source of environmental change on the planet. What are 3 human activities that
affect/affected the biosphere?
2. Define ecology.
3. Put these levels of organization in order from the simplest to the most complex: ecosystem, biome, community,
population, individual, biosphere. Define each word, too.
4. Briefly describe photosynthesis and chemosynthesis.
5. What are heterotrophs? Autotrophs?
6. Give 2 examples of organisms that undergo photosynthesis and 2 examples of organisms that undergo chemosynthesis.
7. What are cyanobacteria?
8. Define producer, consumer, herbivore, carnivore, omnivore, detritivore, and decomposer. Give 2 examples of each.
9. Define food chain. *Be able to interpret a food chain*
10. Define food web. *Be able to interpret a food web*
11. Give an example of each of the following: primary consumer, secondary consumer, tertiary consumer and quaternary
consumer.
12. What is a trophic level? How much energy is transferred between levels? What happens to the remaining energy?
13. What is an ecological pyramid?
a. What are the 3 types of ecological pyramids? What does each tell us?
14. Define biogeochemical cycle.
a. Carbon cycle: Be able to answer general questions about a diagram of the carbon cycle.
b. Nitrogen cycle:
i. Why is nitrogen essential to living things?
ii. What are the different forms of nitrogen in the biosphere?
iii. What processes in nature can convert atmospheric nitrogen to usable nitrogen (can break the strong,
triple covalent bond)?
iv. Know the 3 types of bacteria found in the nitrogen cycle and what they do (nitrogen-fixing, nitrifying and
denitrifying)
v. Study the diagram of the nitrogen cycle.
c. Phosphorous cycle:
i. Why is phosphorous essential to living things?
ii. What are the 2 main reservoirs of phosphorous in the biosphere?
iii. Study the diagram of the phosphorous cycle.
15. What 3 elements are found in fertilizers?
16. What is an algal bloom? Define eutrophication.
a. Briefly describe the steps of eutrophication.
17. Name 3 examples of biotic factors. Name 3 examples of abiotic factors.
18. Define competition.
19. Name the 3 types of symbiotic relationships. Explain each type. Give 2 examples of each type of symbiotic relationship.
20. For each of the ten land biomes, name 2 plant examples, 2 animal examples, 2 other facts (like location, something
unique) and general climate (this is set up as matching on the test)
21. What are the 2 types of freshwater ecosystems? What are the main characteristics for each of these?
22. What is a wetland?
a. Name and briefly describe the 3 types of wetlands.
23. What is an estuary? What are estuaries important to the biosphere?
a. What are the two types of estuaries? Where are they located?
24. What is the photic zone? Aphotic zone?
25. Name the 3 zones of the marine ecosystem. *Be able to answer questions about the 3 zones (matching)*
26. What is the benthic zone?
27. What is ecological succession? Name and briefly describe the 2 types of ecological succession.
28. What is a pioneer species and how do they form soil?
29. Name the order of growth of plants in primary and secondary succession, starting with bare rock and ending with climax
community.
30. What are the general stages of ecological succession in the ocean? (whale carcass)
31. What are 3 factors that affect population size?
32. What is emigration and immigration?
33. What are the 2 types of population growth?
a. Draw and label a graph to represent exponential growth. What is happening during exponential growth?
b. Draw and explain the five stages of logistic growth. Include carrying capacity.
c. What happens to the death rate and the birth rate if a population becomes too large? Too small?
34. What are the 2 types of limiting factors?
35. Give 3 examples of the density-dependent factors. Give 2 examples of density-independent factors.
36. *Re-read the articles and accompanying questions about Isle Royale. Be able to answer general questions about this
predator-prey relationship on the test* Know the following about the Isle Royale predator-prey relationship:
37.
38.
39.
40.
a. WHY is it studied worldwide?
b. What do YOU think we should do about the low population of wolves on the island?
c. Study the graph given to you in class. Know the general trends of the graph.
Give 3 reasons as to why human population grew very slowly for most of human history.
a. Give 3 reasons as to why, about 500 years ago, human population started to grow exponentially?
Who was Thomas Malthus and what did he predict?
*Be able to interpret both an age-structure diagram and a demographic transition graph and answer questions about it.*
What is demography
Unit: Bacteria and Viruses
1. Define prokaryote.
2. Define eukaryote.
3. What are the 2 main kingdoms of bacteria?
4. Name 2 general characteristics of Eubacteria. Name 2 general characteristics of Archaebacteria.
5. What are the 3 types of Archaebacteria?
a. Define each.
6. What are rod-shaped bacteria called? Spherical-shaped? Spiral-shaped?
7. How do bacteria move, if they move at all?
8. Define each of the following ways bacteria can obtain energy:
a. Phototrophic autotrophs
c. Chemoheterophs
b. Chemotrophic autotrophs
d. Photoheterotrophs
9. Define each of the following methods of respiration for bacteria
a. Obligate aerobes
b. Obligate anaerobes
c. Facultative anaerobes
10. Bacteria reproduce by means of _________, where the bacterium doubles its DNA, then divides in half making two
identical cells.
11. What is conjugation?
12. What are endospores (spores)?
13. Name 5 ways that bacteria are helpful.
14. Name 5 bacteria diseases and/or illnesses.
15. What is the name of the scientist that developed the first antiobiotic (penicillin)?
16. What are pathogens?
17. Louis Pasteur developed the germ theory, which states _____...
18. Name the 2 ways that bacteria make us ill.
19. Name 2 ways to prevent bacteria disease.
a. What is a vaccine?
20. Viruses can be treated with antibiotics. True or false?
21. Viruses can be treated with _____.
a. The SYMPTOMS of viral illnesses/diseases can be treated with ____, ____, and ____.
22. How do viruses primarily spread to plants?
23. What does the word “virus” mean in Latin?
24. Who was responsible for first understanding viruses and in what year?
25. What are viruses called that infect bacteria?
26. Viruses are considered living organisms. True or false?
27. What is the basic structure of a virus?
a. What is a capsid?
28. What are “many-sided” viruses called? What are rod-shaped viruses called?
29. There are 2 categories of viruses. What are they?
30. What are the five stages of the lytic cycle (the cycle that VIRULENT viruses undergo)?
a. Briefly describe what happens in each step.
31. How is the lysogenic cycle (the cycle that TEMPERATE viruses undergo) different from the lytic cycle?
a. When the viral DNA gets inside the host DNA, it is called a ____________.
b. What factors prompt a virus in the lysogenic cycle to enter the lytic cycle?
32. Name 5 diseases and/or illnesses caused by viruses.
33. What is a retrovirus? Give one example of a retrovirus.
34. Complete the following table about viroids and prions:
Viroids
Prions
Does it have genetic material (DNA or
RNA) OR protein?
Does it infect plants OR animals?
Unit: Chemistry and Biochemistry
1. For protons, neutrons and electrons:
a. What is their charge?
b. What is their symbol?
c. Where in the atom are they located?
2. What does the atomic number on the periodic table tell us?
3. How is the mass number found? What does it tell us?
4. Define and give one example of each:
a. Atom
c. Molecule
b. Element
d. Compound
5. Given isotope notation to the right, find the number of protons, electrons and neutrons: 52
Cr
24
6. The number of protons in an atom will never change. True or false?
7. Atoms of the same element with different numbers of neutrons are called ___.
8. When atoms gain or lose electrons, they become ___ (charged particles)
a. Complete the following table:
p+
enO
O
O-2
9. How many atoms of each element are found in each of the following:
a. 3C6H12O6
2Na(OH)2
b.
10. How many electrons MAXIMUM can each energy level hold?
11. Draw the Bohr model of the elements (with correct placement of electrons) below:
a. Hydrogen
b. Sodium
c. Chlorine
12. What does the “Octet Rule” state?
a. What is the exception to this rule as far as the 1st energy level is concerned?
b. What are valence electrons?
c. How many valence electrons does each element below have AND what charge would it become if it lost or gained the
electron(s) it needs to become more stable?
i. Boron
ii. Sulfur
iii. Argon
13. What is the difference between an ionic bond and a covalent bond?
14. **Review your element names and symbols**
15. Distinguish between organic compounds and inorganic compounds. Give one example of each.
16. Why is carbon a unique element?
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What is a hydrocarbon?
Draw the structural formula for the ten simplest organic compounds. Write the molecular formula for each, too.
What elements constitute carbohydrates? In what ratio do monosaccharides exist?
Distinguish among monosaccharides, disaccharides and polysaccharides.
Give 3 examples of monosaccharides. (know where each comes from)
Give 3 examples of disaccharides. (know what 2 monosaccharides each is made from)
Give 3 examples of polysaccharides. (know the function of each)
What is a condensation reaction?
What is a hydrolysis reaction?
Draw the breakdown of sucrose into glucose and fructose.
Name 2 properties of lipids.
Lipids are formed from combinations of 1 ____molecule and 3 ____
Draw a glycerol molecule.
Draw a fatty acid molecule.
Draw the synthesis of a lipid.
What 4 elements do proteins contain?
Proteins are made up of _____, in which there are ___different types.
Draw the general structure of an amino acid. Label: amino group, carboxyl group and R group.
What is the significance of the R group of an amino acid?
Draw the synthesis of a protein circling the formation of the peptide bond
What is a chemical reaction and what are the two components of a chemical reaction?
What is the Law of Conservation of Mass?
Given a chemical equation, be able to tell how many atoms of each element there are.
What is an enzyme?
What are catalysts and how do they aid in chemical reactions?
Enzymes usually end in - ___.
How do enzymes work? Know the steps involved.
a. What is the enzyme-substrate complex?
b. What are substrates?
Unit: Cells
1. How did each of the following scientists contribute to our knowledge of cells: Anton van Leeuwenhoek, Robert Hooke, Matthias
Schleiden, Theodor Schwann, Rudolph Virchow and Lynn Margulis.
2. What are the 3 components of the cell theory?
3. What two components do all cells have in common?
4. Complete the chart:
Smaller or larger
Simple or complex
With or without
cells?
cells?
nucleus and
Give example(s)
organelles?
Eukaryotes
Prokaryotes
5. Be able to label the structures of an animal cell and a plant cell (refer to “Magna-Cell” handout given in class AND also page 175 of
your textbook)
6. What organelle(s) is/are found only in plant cells? Animal cells?
7. What is the function of the following organelles?
a. Cell membrane
i. Golgi apparatus/body/complex
b. Cell wall
j. Ribosomes
c. Cytoplasm
k. Lysosomes
d. Nucleus
l. Mitochondria
e. Nucleolus
m. Chloroplasts
f. Nuclear envelope
n. Vacuoles
g. Rough endoplasmic reticulum
o. Centrioles
h. Smooth endoplasmic reticulum
p. Cytoskeleton (microtubules and microfilaments)
8.
9.
10.
11.
12.
Define cell specialization.
What are the levels of organization in cells – from simplest to most complex?
Give an example of each in #10.
Name 3 differences between plant and animal cells.
Be able to identify a plant cell from an animal cell.