Biology for a Changing World, 2nd edition - DRIVING QUESTIONS

Transcription

1 Chapter 1 1. How is the scientific method used to test hypotheses? 2. What factors influence the strength of scientific studies and whether the results of any give study are applicable to a particular population? 3. How can you evaluate the evidence in media reports of scientific studies? 4. How does the scientific method apply in clinical trials designed to investigate important issues in human health? Chapter 2 1. How is matter organized into molecules of living organisms? 2. What is the definition of life, and how could Martian life be recognized? 3. What is the basic structural unit of life? 4. Why is water so important for life and living organisms? Chapter 3 1. What structural features are shared by all cells, and what are the key differences between prokaryotic and eukaryotic cells? 2. How do solutes and water cross membranes, and what determines the direction of movement of solutes and water in different situations? 3. How do antibiotics target bacteria, and in what situations is antibiotic therapy indicated? 4. What are some key eukaryotic organelles and their functions? Chapter 4 1. What are the macronutrients and micronutrients provided by food? 2. What are essential nutrients? 3. What are enzymes, and how do they work? 4. What are the consequences of a diet lacking sufficient nutrients? Chapter 5 1. What are the photosynthetic organisms on the planet, and why are they so important? 2. What are the different types of energy and what transformations of energy do organisms carry out? 3. How do plants and algae convert the energy-rich organic molecules? (And why can t humans do this?) 4. How do algal biofuels compare to other fuels in terms of costs, benefits, and sustainability? Chapter 6 1. Why do humans weigh more now than in the past? 2. How does the body use the energy in food? 3. How does aerobic respiration extract useful energy from food? 4. When does fermentation occur, and why can t it sustain human life? 1

2 Chapter 7 1. What is the structure of DNA, and how is DNA organized in cells? 2. How is DNA copied in living cells, and how can DNA be amplified for forensics? 3. How does DNA profiling make use of genetic variation in DNA sequences? 4. How does DNA evidence fit into forensic investigations? Chapter 8 1. What determines the shape of a protein molecule? 2. What are the steps of gene expression, and where do they occur in a cell? 3. How can animals be genetically modified to produce human proteins (with therapeutic uses)? 4. What are some practical applications of genetically modified organisms in treating human disease? Chapter 9 1. When and how does normal cell division occur in the body? 2. How do normal cells and cancer cells differ with respect to cell division? 3. How are cancer treatment decisions made for a given patient? Chapter What are mutations, and how can they occur? 2. How does cancer develop, and how can people reduce their risk? 3. Why do people with inherited cancer often develop cancer at a relatively young age? Chapter How does the organization of chromosomes, genes, and their alleles contribute to human traits? 2. How does meiosis produce gametes? 3. Why do different traits have different inheritable patterns? 4. What are some practical applications of understanding the genetic basis of human disease? Chapter How do chromosomes determine sex, and how does sex influence the inheritance of certain traits? 2. Some traits are not inherited in simple dominant or recessive inheritance patterns. What are some complex inheritance patterns? 3. How do numerical abnormalities of chromosomes occur, and what are some of the consequences of these abnormalities? 2

3 Chapter What is the structure of tissues and organs, and how can organs be repaired or replaced? 2. What are the properties of specialized cells in tissues, and how do stem cells differentiate into these specialized cells? 3. How do stem cells contribute to regenerative medicine, and how can we obtain or produce stem cells for this purpose? Chapter What is staph, and how can it be present in the absence of an infection? 2. How do bacteria resist the effects of antibiotics? 3. How do populations evolve, and what is the role of evolution in antibiotic resistance? Chapter What is a gene pool (and can you swim in it)? 2. How do different evolutionary mechanisms influence the composition of a gene pool? 3. How does the gene pool of an evolving population compare to the gene pool of a nonevolving population? 4. How do new species arise, and how can we recognize them? Chapter How does the fossil record reveal information about evolutionary changes? 2. What features make Tiktaalik a transitional fossil, and what role do these types of fossil play in the fossil record? 3. What can anatomy and DNA reveal about evolution? Chapter What do we know about the history of life on Earth, and how do we know it? 2. What factors help to explain the distribution of species on Earth? 3. What are the major groups of organisms, and how are organisms placed in groups? Chapter What are the prokaryotic domains of life? 2. What are the features of bacteria and of archaea? 3. What are the challenges faced by organisms living at Lost City, and how do they face them? Chapter What are eukaryotic organisms, and what factors influence their diversity? 2. How are plants defined, and what influences their diversity? 3. How are animals defined, and what influences their diversity? 4. How are fungi defined, and what influences their diversity? 5. What are protists, and what influences their diversity? 3

4 Chapter What contributes to human skin color, and why is there so much variation in skin color among different populations? 2. Where did the earliest humans evolve, and how do we know? 3. What can we learn about human evolution from the fossil record? Chapter What is ecology, and what do ecologists study? 2. What are the different patterns of population growth? 3. What factors influence population growth and population size? Chapter What are keystone species in a community, and why are pollinators considered keystone species? 2. What are food chains and food webs, and how does energy flow through them? 3. What positive and negative interactions occur among members of a community? Chapter What are ecosystems, and how are ecosystems being affected by climate change? 2. What is the greenhouse effect, and what does it have to do with global warming? 3. How do carbon and other chemicals cycle through ecosystems? 4. How are scientists able to compare present-day levels of atmospheric carbon dioxide to past levels, and why would they want to? Chapter What human impacts are considered when determining ecological footprint, and how does human population size influence our impact on Earth? 2. What resources do humans rely on, and which of them are renewable? 3. What is sustainable living? Chapter How are the bodies of living organisms organized? 2. How do humans and other organisms regulate body temperature? 3. What physiological systems are regulated by homeostatic feedback loops? Chapter What is the anatomy of the digestive system? 2. How is food broken down and utilized as it moves through the digestive tract? 3. What are the risks and benefits of bariatric surgery? 4

5 Chapter What structures make up the cardiovascular system, and how does blood flow through the system? 2. What is the structure of the heart and of the different types of blood vessel? 3. What is the composition of blood, and what does blood do? 4. What is cardiovascular disease, and what are some of the risk factors for developing cardiovascular disease? Chapter 28 (2e Chapter 30) 1. What is the anatomy of the male and female reproductive tracts? 2. What hormones are involved in reproduction, and how do they work? 3. What are the different types of assisted reproduction, and how do they work? Chapter 29 (2e Chapter 31) 1. What is the structure of a virus, and how do viruses cause disease? 2. What is innate immunity? 3. What is adaptive immunity and how does vaccination rely on adaptive immunity? 4. What are specific features of influenza virus that allow it to cause worldwide outbreaks? Chapter What is the anatomy of the male and female reproductive tracts? 2. What hormones are involved in reproduction, and how do they work? 3. What are the different types of assisted reproduction, and how do they work? Chapter What is the structure of a virus, and how do viruses cause disease? 2. What is innate immunity? 3. What is adaptive immunity, and how does vaccination rely on adaptive immunity? 4. What are specific features of influenza virus that allow it to cause worldwide outbreaks? Chapter How is a plant body structured, and how do plants obtain water and grow? 2. How do plants obtain nutrients? 3. How do plants reproduce, respond to stimuli, and protect themselves? 5