Properties of Life
Name three of the fundamental properties that all living things share.
Energy processing, regulation (homeostasis), ability to evolve, reproduction, growth and development, response to environment, order.
Fill in the blank: The organelle that produces most of the cell’s ATP is the ________.
Mitochondrion
Fill in the blank: The movement of water across a selectively permeable membrane is called ________.
Osmosis.
Fill in the blank: The three types of RNA are ________, ________, and ________.
mRNA, tRNA, rRNA.
Which kingdom contains only prokaryotic organisms?
Bacteria (or Archaea, depending on classification).
Fill in the blank: The theory stating that all organisms are made of cells and all cells come from pre-existing cells is called the ________.
Cell Theory.
Which type of cell (prokaryotic or eukaryotic) lacks a membrane-bound nucleus?
Prokaryotic
Give one example of passive transport and explain why it does not require energy.
Diffusion of oxygen into a cell — molecules move down their concentration gradient without energy input.
In the Hardy-Weinberg equation, what does q² represent?
Frequency of the homozygous recessive genotype.
Give an example of a density-dependent limiting factor in a population.
Disease, competition for resources, predation.
Which property of life involves maintaining a stable internal environment despite external changes?
Regulation / Homeostasis.
During translation, which type of RNA brings amino acids to the ribosome?
tRNA (transfer RNA).
Which stage of cellular respiration produces the greatest amount of ATP?
Electron transport chain (ETC).
Which type of natural selection favors individuals with average traits and reduces variation?
Stabilizing selection.
Which level of an ecological pyramid contains the most amount of available energy?
Producers.
Explain one property that all living things have that non-living things do not. Give an example.
Growth and reproduction (e.g., a tree growing taller each year), ability to respond to stimuli, metabolism, etc.
Name two differences between plant and animal cells in terms of structure.
Plant cells have cell walls, chloroplasts, and large central vacuoles; animal cells lack these but have centrioles and lysosomes.
Fill in the blank: The energy-producing process that occurs in the chloroplasts of plants is called ________.
Photosynthesis.
What is the complementary DNA strand for 5’-TGCATA-3’?
3’-ACGTAT-5’.
Fill in the blank: A relationship in which both species benefit is called ________.
Mutualism.
True or False (and explain): All living cells contain a nucleus.
False — prokaryotic cells do not have a nucleus; only eukaryotic cells do.
Fill in the blank: The enzyme that unwinds and unzips DNA during replication is called ________.
Helicase
Explain the main purpose of mitosis in multicellular organisms.
Growth and repair of tissues, and to produce genetically identical cells.
Explain why the shape of a protein is important for its function. Give one example.
Shape determines how a protein interacts with other molecules; if altered, it can’t bind properly. Example: enzyme active site binding to substrate.
Provide one example of homeostasis in the human body and explain how it is maintained.
Body temperature regulation — sweating to cool down, shivering to warm up; regulated by hypothalamus.