Biology Quiz

Ecological Footprint

A way of measuring how much of an impact a person or community has on the earth. Someone who uses more natural resources will have a bigger footprint than someone who uses less.

Villi

Small fingerlike projections on the walls of the small intestines that increase surface area

Trophic levels

The hierarchical levels of the food chain through which energy flows from primary producers to primary consumers, secondary consumers and so on.

Hydrogen bond

a chemical bond consisting of a hydrogen atom between two electronegative atoms (e.g., oxygen or nitrogen) with one side be a covalent bond and the other being an ionic bond

Covalent Bond

a chemical bond that involves sharing a pair of electrons between atoms in a molecule

Saliva

a clear liquid secreted into the mouth by the salivary glands and mucous glands of the mouth

Organism

a living thing that has (or can develop) the ability to act or function independently

Biome

a major biotic community characterized by the dominant forms of plant life and the prevailing climate

Capillary action

a phenomenon associated with surface tension and resulting in the elevation or depression of liquids in capillaries

Chyme

a semiliquid mass of partially digested food that passes from the stomach through the pyloric sphincter into the duodenum

Food chain

a series of steps in which organisms transfer energy by eating and being eaten

Monomer

a simple compound whose molecules can join together to form polymers

Ecosystem

a system formed by the interaction of a community of organisms with their physical environment

Asexual

a type of reproduction involving only one parent that produces genetically identical offspring by budding or by the division of a single cell or the entire organism into two or more parts

Calorie

a unit of the energy supplied by food

Appendix

a vestigial process that extends from the lower end of the cecum and that resembles a small pouch

Liver

Large organ just above the stomach that produces bile

Mechanical Digestion

Part of digestion that uses movement and muscles to break down food

Heridity

The passing of traits from parents to offspring

Hydrophillic

Water Loving

Global Climate Change

a change in the world's climate

Bile

a digestive juice secreted by the liver and stored in the gallbladder

Law of Conservation of Matter

a fundamental principle of classical physics that matter cannot be created or destroyed in an isolated system

Greenhouse Gas

a gas that contributes to the greenhouse effect by absorbing infrared radiation

Solvent

a liquid substance capable of dissolving other substances

Macromolecule

any very large complex molecule

Cohesion

attraction between molecules of the same substance

Chemical Digestion

chemicals produced by the body break foods into their smaller chemical building blocks

Small Intestine

digestive organ in which most chemical digestion takes place

Pancreas

gland that secretes pancreatic juice into the duodenum, where it mixes with bile to digest food

Populations

groups of individuals that belong to the same species and live in the same area

Polar

having a pair of equal and opposite charges

HcL

hydrochloric acid

Biotic

living

10% rule

only 10% of the total energy produced at each trophic level is available to the next level. The amount of energy passed up to the levels of the food pyramid reduces as you go up.

Anus

opening of the rectum to the outside of the body

Autotroph

organism capable of synthesizing its own food from simple organic substances

Decomposer

organism that breaks down and obtains energy from dead organic matter

Sexual

reproduction in which the genes from two parents join to make an offspring

Metabolism

set of chemical reactions through which an organism builds up or breaks down materials as it carries out its life processes

1st law of Thermodynamics

the law that states that energy cannot be created nor destroyed

Cellular respiration

the metabolic processes whereby certain organisms obtain energy from organic moelcules

Greenhouse effect

warming that results when solar radiation is trapped by the atmosphere

Runoff

water that flows over the ground surface rather than soaking into the ground

Catalyst

(chemistry) a substance that initiates or accelerates a chemical reaction without itself being affected

Food web

(ecology) a community of organisms where there are several interrelated food chains

Community

(ecology) a group of interdependent organisms inhabiting the same region and interacting with each other

Molecule

(physics and chemistry) the simplest structural unit of an element or compound

Rectum

A short tube at the end of the large intestine where waste material is compressed into a solid form before being eliminated

Pepsin

Enzyme that breaks down proteins in the stomach

Protease

Enzyme that digests protein

Water

H2o

Lock and Key

Model of enzyme activity that explains how a particular enzyme will only fit with one particular type of substrate.

Nutrient Cycle

The movement of materials (nutrients) in a local ecosystem

Hydrophobic

Water Fearing

Surface tension

a phenomenon at the surface of a liquid caused by intermolecular forces

Polymer

large molecule formed when many smaller molecules bond together

Seepage

water that leaks out and slowly moves deeper underground

2nd law of Thermodynamics

whenever energy is converted from one form to another form some energy is lost as heat

Anaerobic

without oxygen

Omnivore

an animal that feeds on both animal and vegetable substances

Adhesion

an attraction between molecules of different substances

Stomach

an enlarged and muscular sack like organ of the alimentary canal

Trypsin

an enzyme from the pancreas that digests proteins in the small intestine

Lipase

an enzyme secreted in the digestive tract that catalyzes the breakdown of fats into individual fatty acids that can be absorbed into the bloodstream

Heterotroph

an organism that depends on complex organic substances for nutrition

Producer

an organism that makes its own food

Consumer

an organism that obtains energy by feeding on other organisms

Herbivore

any animal that feeds chiefly on grass and other plants

Carnivore

any animal that feeds on flesh

Amylase

any of a group of proteins found in saliva and pancreatic juice and parts of plants

Abiotic

non-living

Non-polar

not ionic

Root uptake

plant roots absorb the water

Photosynthesis

process by which plants use the sun's energy to convert water and carbon dioxide into sugars

Aerobic

process that requires oxygen

Enzymes

protein substances that speed up chemical reactions.

Gall Bladder

stores bile until needed for digestion

Charged

term referring to matter having an excess of electrons (a negative charge) or a deficiency of electrons (a positive charge)

Homeostasis

the ability of a living thing to keep conditions inside its body constant

Nitrogen Fixation

the assimilation of atmospheric nitrogen by soil bacteria and its release for plant use on the death of the bacteria

Cecum

the cavity in which the large intestine begins and into which the ileum opens

Solute

the dissolved substance in a solution

Products

the elements or compounds produced by a chemical reaction

Transpiration

the emission of water vapor from the leaves of plants

Activation Energy

the energy that an atomic system must acquire before a process (such as an emission or reaction) can occur

Ecology

the environment as it relates to living organisms

Surface Area

the extent of a 2-dimensional surface enclosed within a boundary

Precipitation

the falling to earth of any form of water (rain or snow or hail or sleet or mist)

Large Intestine

the last section of the digestive system, where water is absorbed from food and the remaining material is eliminated from the body

Mouth

the opening through which food is taken in and vocalizations emerge

Active site

the part of an enzyme or antibody where the chemical reaction occurs

Colon

the part of the large intestine between the cecum and the rectum

Esophagus

the passage between the pharynx and the stomach

Evaporation

the process of becoming a vapor

Condensation

the process of changing from a gaseous to a liquid or solid state

Peristalsis

the process of wave-like muscle contractions of the alimentary tract that moves food along

Substrate

the substance acted upon by an enzyme or ferment

Organelles

tiny structures that carry out functions necessary for the cell to stay alive

calorie

unit of heat defined as the quantity of heat required to raise the temperature of 1 gram of water by 1 degree centigrade at atmospheric pressure