Tuesday, February 10, 2015

Big Idea 1-34

34) Orders- animal classes are further divided into orders. For example the mammal class has the rodent is is the order to which rabbits and mice belong to, but they are part of the mammalian class and Chordata phylum. Snakes and lizards belong to the Squamata order, but they are part of the reptile class and Chordata phylum. Tortoises belong to the testudines order, but are part of the reptile class and Chordata phylum.


Big Idea 1-7

7) Annelids- is a phylum of  invertebrates with segmented bodies that have circular shapes and reproduce sexually. Examples are earthworms, marine worms, and leeches. The picture is of some worms that are about to be used as food. They have pretty round bodies so I'm guessing they're Annelids. 

Big Idea 3-17

17) Pollinator- is an organism, like insects or birds, that help plants with flowers or seeds pollinate. When they eat a seed or flower they spread the plants pollen to its flowers or to other places on the ground so more of a plant can grow. Conures are birds that when they eat in the wild, distribute seeds and help pollinate flowers. Bees are other well-known pollinators. 

Big Idea 4-1

1) Altruistic Behavior- is behavior in which an individual helps another, but suffers from it. Dogs are animals that show altruistic behavior. When their children or master is in danger they will become very protective and can fight for them, even if they get hurt. Humans and many other animals show altruistic behavior, especially when it concerns their own blood.

Big Idea 3-6

6) Haploid- an organism or cell that only has one set of chromosomes. Some organisms like bacteria are always haploid. Other organisms like humans, plants, and other sexually reproducing organisms have cells that are haploid, but are mainly diploid organisms. The picture above is of a palm tree. Palm trees have cells that are haploid meant for reproduction, just like humans have haploid gametes.

Monday, February 9, 2015

Big Idea 2-2

2) Anabolic- when energy is required for a reaction to occur. Anabolic reactions involve building something rather than breaking something down and require an input of energy. Stacking blocks represents anabolic reactions because no energy is being released. I have to use and input energy to stack the blocks.

Big Idea 2-9

9) Chitin- a polysaccharide that makes up the exoskeleton of Arthropods and the cell wall of fungi and algae. The picture of a moth shows an organism that uses chitin. A moth is a type of arthropod and and chitin is especially important for its wings. 

Big Idea 2-19

19) Hetertroph- an organism that can't make its own food and so must eat other organisms. Most plants and algae are autotrophs. That means everything else is a heterotroph. A bearded dragon is a heterotroph because it must eat to survive and get its necessary nutrients. 




Big Idea 3-20

20) Tropism- the response or orientation of a plant or sometimes animal to an external stimulus. Tropism can be positive, when the organism moves towards the stimulus, or negative, when the organism moves away from the stimulus. The image above is of daisies. They are plants that turn towards where the sun usually is. This is called phototropism. 

Big Idea 2-11

11) Denaturation- the change in a protein's shape or the shape of another molecule. Some Molecules like proteins are very  sensitive and require a specific environment to function properly. If a protein's environment becomes too hot, acidic, or basic the protein will change shape and basically die. It loses its function. This is why homeostasis in people is so important. The image of fire represents how extreme heat can denature proteins or DNA.

Big Idea 3-8

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3-8) Flock, Herd, Schooling- a flock is a group of birds that migrate and live together. A herd is group of animals usually mammals that live and migrate together. Schooling is when a group of fish swim in an organized manner in the same direction. The image above is of sulcata tortoises. A group of tortoises is called a "creep." 

Big Idea 2-29

29) Long Day Plant- a plant that blooms when the days are longer, usually in the summer. They require at least 12 hours of sunlight exposure and don't need to be left in the darkness for too long to bloom. Clovers are a type of long day plant that are important to many ecosystems because of the nutrients they provide. 

Big Idea 4-7

7) Detritivore- an organism that eats organic waste. The image is of a woodlouse. They are a type of Detritivore, which means they eat decomposing plants, animals, and poop. Other detritivores include earthworms, dung beetles, and millipedes. 

Big Idea 1-27

1-27) Lichens- are a combination of a fungus and an alga. The fungus is the body and the alga is the food producer. They often form on trees, rocks, and walls. The image above is of my tree at home. It has a bunch of lichen growing on its branches.

Big Idea 1-20

20) Fungi- eukaryotic organisms that live on dead or decaying things. Mushrooms, like the one in the picture, are a type of fungus that grow from the soil and release spores to reproduce. Fungi can also grow on trees and basically anywhere with decomposing material that is damp enough.