Biology 30

• In Aristotle's ancient naming system, animals were classified according to the presence/absence of what?

  Red blood
• What is binomial nomenclature?


  Linnaeus' naming system, consisting of a two-part name listing the genus followed by the species.
• Linnaeus chose to use Latin because the language is pervasive.
• In what order are taxonomic categories listed?

  Domain, kingdom, phylum, class, order, family, genus, species.
• What is a taxa?


  A named group of organisms.
• What is a genus?


  A group of species that are closely related and that share a common ancestor.
• What is Aristotle and Linnaeus' definition of a species?

  A distinctly different group of organisms based on physical similarities.
• What is phylogeny?


  The evolutionary history of a species.
• What is the definition of a species according to the concept of phylogeny?

  A cluster of organisms that is distinct from other clusters of organisms, and that shows evidence of ancestry.
• What is the definition of a species according to modern science?

  A group of organisms that is able to interbreed and produce fertile offspring in a natural setting.
• What is the difference between morphological and biochemical characters?

  Morphological characters are physical structures, and biochemical characters are DNA sequencing.
• Shared morphological characters suggest that a species is closely related and may have evolved from a recent common ancestor.
• What are analogous characters?


  Characters that have the same function but different construction.
• What are homologous characters?


  Characters that may perform different functions, but have the same underlying construction.
• What are biochemical characters?


  Molecular traits, such as amino acid and nucleotide sequencing.
• What are molecular clocks?


  A method of estimating the timing of evolutionary events by comparing DNA or protein sequences.
• What is the rate of mutation affected by?

  Population in which the mutation occurs

  Type of mutation

  Where the mutation is in the genome

  Type of protein that the mutation affects
• Cladistics reconstruct phylogenies based on shared characters.
• What is the difference between an ancestral character and a derived character?

  An ancestral character is found within the entire descent of organisms, a derived character is is found in one instance of the organism.
• What are the three domains?

  Bacteria, Archaea, and Eukarya
• What are the six kingdoms?

  Bacteria

  Archaea

  Protista

  Fungi

  Plantae

  Animalia
• What are eubacteria?


  Prokaryotes whose cell walls contain peptidoglycan
• What are thought to be the most ancient of all observed organisms?

  Archaea
• Archaea are thought to be most closely related to what?

  Eukaryotes
• Archaea are also called what?

  Extremophiles
• What are protists?


  Eukaryotic organisms that can be unicellular, colonial, or multicellular.
• What are the three types of protists?

  Plant-like

  Animal-like

  Fungus-like
• What are the 5 types of fungi?

  Common mold

  Sac fungi

  Club fungi

  Imperfect fungi

  Chytridiomycota
• What's the main difference between archaea and bacteria?

  Bactera contains peptidoglycan, archaea does not.
• What is a nucleoid?


  A circular chromosome found in a prokaryotic cell.
• What is a plasmid?


  A circular piece of DNA found in a prokaryotic cell.
• What is a capsule?


  A layer of polysaccharides around a prokaryotic cell.
• What does a capsule do for a prokaryotic cell?

  It prevents the cell from drying out and helps the cell attach to surfaces.
• What are pili?


  Hair-like structures structures found on the outside of a cell.
• What do pili help a prokaryotic cell do?

  The act as a bridge between cells, and they help the cell attach to things.
• What are the three types of prokaryote?

  Spherical (or cocci)

  Rod-shaped (or bacilli)

  Spiral-shaped (or spirilli)
• When a gram stain is applied, purple indicates gram positive bacteria, and pink indicates gram negative bacteria.
• What is the difference between gram positive and gram negative bacteria?

  Gram positive bacteria has more peptidoglycan, gram negative has less peptidoglycan.
• Why do scientists need to determine the gram of a bacteria?

  So they can prescribe the most effective antibiotics.
• What is binary fission?


  The division of a cell into two genetically identical cells.