BIOE exam 2
Be able to extract a lesson from the history of reindeer on SaintMatthew Island or rabbits in Australia.•
- Biological populations can grow exponentially. - Human actions can have unforeseen consequences. - Non-native species can drive native species extinct. - Removing organisms from an ecosystem can be difficult. - Animals can evolve resistance to diseases
The exam will probably also have questions designed to determine whether you have some of the common misunderstandings mentioned in this lecture.
- Evolution does not happen through a process similar to suntanning in which individuals change. Getting a sun tan may darken your skin, but it will not change your genes (and therefore does not affect your children). - Shivering doesn't change genes of individual musk ox.Evolution occurs when environment changes genes in a population by selecting who survives and who reproduces. - Giraffes didn't evolve long necks by stretching to reach branches. Stretching may lengthen a giraffe's neck, but will not change a giraffe's genes. This change will not be inherited.
Learn the requirements for natural selection.
- The physical characteristics of all living organisms are affected by their genes and their environment 1. VARIATION (for a trait) 2. Differential survival or reproduction ("SELECTION") at that trait. 3. INHERITANCE
Be able to describe how limestone, sandstone, and mudstone are formed.
- sandstone is Rocks erode in mountains... sand moved to ocean.... Pressure turns it to rock - Limestone forms from accumulation of calcium carbonate skeletons of plankton in ocean - mudstone Formed from compressed mud and silt from rivers
Be able to define evolution in two ways.
1. The theory that all species are descended from a common ancestor, and have changed with time 2. A change in genetic composition of a population.
Be able to list 3 ways to fertilize a field.
1. plants capable of extracting the nitrogen will be used as fertilizer 2. manure
end of last ice age
12,000 years ago
age of earth
4.5 billion years
great pyramid built
4500 years ago
dinosaur extinction
65 million years ago
• Be able to explain two ways that nitrogen in the atmosphere is converted to ammonia.•
Converting atmospheric nitrogen to ammonia is called "fixing" nitrogen
• Be able to describe eutrophication.•
Eutrophication is the process by which an entire body of water, or parts of it, becomes progressively enriched with minerals and nutrients, particularly nitrogen and phosphorus
Be able to extract a lesson from the history of the "dead zone" in the Gulf of Mississippi (see textbook for additional details).
Fertilizers may have bigger impact on the Gulfof Mexico than Deepwater Horizon oil spill
Almost every year, the exam contains an essay question asking you to describe how some species has evolved some trait. Responses are graded according to how well they mention variation, selection, and inheritance.
How to turn a wolf into a Chihuahua1. Start with a population of wolves that have varying sizes and shapes. 2. Select the wolves that are smallest, or look at least a little like a Chihuahua. 3. Breed these "Chihuahua-like" dogs. 4. These dogs have Chihuahua-like" puppies 5. Continue until you have aChihuahua.
Be able to identify what limits plant growth and explain why.
Plant growth in many ecosystems is limitedby a lack of nitrogen in the environment
Be able to describe the history of reindeer on Saint Matthew Island, and the history of rabbits in Australia.•
Saint Matthew Island: 1944 - 29 reindeer released for emergency food 1957 - 1350 reindeer on island 1963 - We counted 6,000 of them 1966 - Only 42 survivors observed. 1980- All reindeer dead . Australia rabits: 1859 - 13 rabits were released, rabits quickly overflowed the place, 16 rabits eat as much as 1 sheep, rabbits threatened sheep ranhing, in an effort 2 million rabbits were killed each year with no noticeable effect, ranches were being abandond and species were going exctinct, a virus was released to kill the rabbits but the ones that survuved grew the population again.
Be able to explain why there are different communities of plants and animals in different parts of the world.•
The physical environment limits the distribution of most species
Know how many millions there are in a billion.
There are 1000 millions in a billion
• Be able to explain the difference between nitrogen in the atmosphere and nitrogen that is useful for plants.
_ N - N - Nitrogen atoms on Earth are present indifferent moleculesThese nitrogen atoms are triple bonded to each other.Triple bonds are hard to break and most organisms cannot break this molecule apart to use the nitrogen for their growth. This form of nitrogen is completely useless to plants
Be able to define exponential growth, and describe its properties.•
number of indeviduals, time, resorces
Be able to answer timeline questions presented in lecture. (pyramids
pyramids: Earth is 10x(1,000,000 years) older than the pyramids
Be able to use formula DT = 70 / r.
r = percentage rate of increase
Be able to describe history of a location from its geology.
rock formations of a location shows the history of what moved through there and what the ground used to be like.
Be able to describe evidence for great age of earth
rock layers show historical aging of the earth but cant predict the age. Radioactive dating later showed earth to be ~4.5 billion years old
