Adaptations
Species are always able to adapt successfully to a new or changing environment. True or False?
False. Those that can't adapt tend to die out leaving the stronger, more resilient organisms to pass along their genetic traits.
Where do our genes come from?
We inherit our genetics from our parents.
List 3-4 effects on the human body from drinking caffeine at a young age.
What are hyperactivity, anxiety, increased heart rate/blood pressure, sleep issues, cardiovascular disease, etc.
Define growth
The process of increasing in size and maturity
In Stemscopes, we discussed a specific plant that thrives on excess CO2. Name that plant.
What is poison ivy?
List the 4 major tropisms that allow plants to adapt to their surroundings.
What are geotropism, hydrotropism, phototropism, and thigmotropism?
Define what it means to be an environmental factor.
Any factor, whether abiotic or biotic, that influences living organisms.
When organisms are not given adequate living space, name some of the possible effects on their growth and development.
What are decreased life span, higher stress levels, increased competition for resources, growth defects, etc.
Define biotic factors
Factors that are living or produced by living things.
DNA cannot be changed by our experiences. True or False?
What is false? Our DNA can have different sections activated/deactivated based on our life experiences and exposure (i.e. rat mamas - level of care)
What adaptations do plants have that allow them to survive?
Stem size, leaf size, root systems, height,etc.
Define what a genetic factor is.
Things that result from the specific alleles (genes) carried by an individual.
List some of the potential side effects from too much UV exposure.
What are: damage to DNA, increased risk of disease, skin cancer, early aging (wrinkles, etc), tanning, suppressed immune system, decrease in photosynthesis for plants.
Define abiotic factors
Nonliving factors that affect the ecosystem are light, space, temperature, shelter, water, and soil composition.
The two categories of inherited traits for all organisms.
What are dominant and recessive?
List at least 3 methods of seed dispersal used by plants to aid in reproduction of their species.
What are flowering, budding, bursting, burrs and fruit production?
Name the four environmental factors necessary for growth in all organisms
What are food, water, air and space?
List 3-4 factors that might be affected by genetically modifying plants/animals for food.
Animals:
pros: larger muscle mass, faster growth
cons: oversized, weak, susceptible to disease, genetic defects in future generations.
Plants:
Pros: Higher crop yield, added nutrients, fewer pesticides, and cheaper prices
Cons: increased allergy issues, loss of nutrition, antibiotic resistance
What materials do plants need to live and grow?
Water, carbon dioxide, nutrients, space, sunlight
The temperature of our environment doesn't affect us, true or false? Defend your answer.
False. An increase in temperature often leads to a decrease in habitat for certain species while others are thriving with the increased temps. Many plants are blooming earlier and staying active longer. However, species like the polar bear are having adverse effects due to loss of habitat, etc.
Cooler temps often have opposite effects on a species' growth and development.
Name some adaptations animals can use to adjust to their environment. Explain whether these are long or short term adaptations.
ex. increase in fur growth, height, coloration
Most are long term that changes over generations due to survival of the fittest.
List 3 genetic factors and 3 environmental factors that affect organisms.
Environmental Factors: Where we live, temperature, weather, soil content, water quality, air quality, pH levels, etc.
Explain what it means when we hear the term "Midnight Sun".
When the Sun, as seen in the Arctic or Antarctic, where the tilt of the Earth's axis, relative to the plane of its orbit, produces at least one 24-hour period of daylight, and one of night, in every year.
Common results of the midnight sun include having trouble sleeping or sleep disturbances, hyperactivity, fatigue, and a bad mood.
In plants, because of the endless light, plants grow fast and become leggy, rather than filling out. It also tends to make produce sweeter, photosynthesis is disrupted.
Define adaptation.
A process by which a population becomes better suited to its environment by increasing the frequencies of alleles (our genes) that provide benefits to survival and reproduction.
A directed growth or movement based on a stimulus; can be positive or negative. Positive grows toward a stimulus and negative grows away from the stimulus.