Critical Thinking Questions
Compare and contrast a human somatic cell to a human gamete.
What is the relationship between a genome, chromosomes, and genes?
Eukaryotic chromosomes are thousands of times longer than a typical cell. Explain how chromosomes can fit inside a eukaryotic nucleus.
Briefly describe the events that occur in each phase of interphase.
Chemotherapy drugs such as vincristine and colchicine disrupt mitosis by binding to tubulin (the subunit of microtubules) and interfering with microtubule assembly and disassembly. Exactly what mitotic structure is targeted by these drugs and what effect would that have on cell division?
Describe the similarities and differences between the cytokinesis mechanisms found in animal cells versus those in plant cells.
List some reasons why a cell that has just completed cytokinesis might enter the G 0 phase instead of the G 1 phase.
What cell cycle events will be affected in a cell that produces mutated (non-functional) cohesin protein?
Describe the general conditions that must be met at each of the three main cell cycle checkpoints.
Explain the roles of the positive cell cycle regulators compared to the negative regulators.
What steps are necessary for Cdk to become fully active?
Rb is a negative regulator that blocks the cell cycle at the G 1 checkpoint until the cell achieves a requisite size. What molecular mechanism does Rb employ to halt the cell cycle?
Outline the steps that lead to a cell becoming cancerous.
Explain the difference between a proto-oncogene and a tumor suppressor gene.
List the regulatory mechanisms that might be lost in a cell producing faulty p53.
p53 can trigger apoptosis if certain cell cycle events fail. How does this regulatory outcome benefit a multicellular organism?
Name the common components of eukaryotic cell division and binary fission.
Describe how the duplicated bacterial chromosomes are distributed into new daughter cells without the direction of the mitotic spindle.
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- Book title: Biology
- Publication date: Oct 21, 2016
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- Book URL: https://openstax.org/books/biology/pages/1-introduction
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3.1.8: Critical Thinking Questions
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Describe the process that results in the formation of a tetrad.
Explain how the random alignment of homologous chromosomes during metaphase I contributes to the variation in gametes produced by meiosis.
What is the function of the fused kinetochore found on sister chromatids in prometaphase I?
In a comparison of the stages of meiosis to the stages of mitosis, which stages are unique to meiosis and which stages have the same events in both meiosis and mitosis?
Why would an individual with a mutation that prevented the formation of recombination nodules be considered less fit than other members of its species?
Does crossing over occur during prophase II? From an evolutionary perspective, why is this advantageous?
List and briefly describe the three processes that lead to variation in offspring with the same parents.
Animals and plants both have diploid and haploid cells. How does the animal life cycle differ from the alternation of generations exhibited by plants?
Explain why sexual reproduction is beneficial to a population but can be detrimental to an individual offspring.
How does the role of meiosis in gamete production differ between organisms with a diploid-dominant life cycle and organisms with an alternation of generations life cycle?
How do organisms with haploid-dominant life cycles ensure continued genetic diversification in offspring without using a meiotic process to make gametes?
40 Critical Thinking Questions
25. In your everyday life, you have probably noticed that certain instruments are ideal for certain situations. For example, you would use a spoon rather than a fork to eat soup because a spoon is shaped for scooping, while soup would slip between the tines of a fork. The use of ideal instruments also applies in science. In what situation(s) would the use of a light microscope be ideal, and why?
26. In what situation(s) would the use of a scanning electron microscope be ideal, and why?
27. In what situation(s) would a transmission electron microscope be ideal, and why?
28. What are the advantages and disadvantages of each of these types of microscopes?
29. Explain how the formation of an adult human follows the cell theory.
30. Antibiotics are medicines that are used to fight bacterial infections. These medicines kill prokaryotic cells without harming human cells. What part or parts of the bacterial cell do you think antibiotics target? Why?
31. Explain why not all microbes are harmful.
32. You already know that ribosomes are abundant in red blood cells. In what other cells of the body would you find them in great abundance? Why?
33. What are the structural and functional similarities and differences between mitochondria and chloroplasts?
34. Why are plasma membranes arranged as a bilayer rather than a monolayer?
35. In the context of cell biology, what do we mean by form follows function? What are at least two examples of this concept?
36. In your opinion, is the nuclear membrane part of the endomembrane system? Why or why not? Defend your answer.
37. What are the similarities and differences between the structures of centrioles and flagella?
38. How do cilia and flagella differ?
39. Describe how microfilaments and microtubules are involved in the phagocytosis and destruction of a pathogen by a macrophage.
40. Compare and contrast the boundaries that plant, animal, and bacteria cells use to separate themselves from their surrounding environment.
41. How does the structure of a plasmodesma differ from that of a gap junction?
42. Explain how the extracellular matrix functions.
43. Pathogenic E. coli have recently been shown to degrade tight junction proteins during infection. How would this provide an advantage to the bacteria?
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Critical Thinking Questions
21 . Why are biological macromolecules considered organic?
22 . What role do electrons play in dehydration synthesis and hydrolysis?
23 . Amino acids have the generic structure seen below, where R represents different carbon-based side chains.
Describe how the structure of amino acids allows them to be linked into long peptide chains to form proteins.
24 . Describe the similarities and differences between glycogen and starch.
25 . Why is it impossible for humans to digest food that contains cellulose?
26 . Draw the ketose and aldose forms of a monosaccharide with the chemical formula C 3 H 6 O 3 . How is the structure of the monosaccharide changed from one form to the other in the human body?
27 . Explain at least three functions that lipids serve in plants and/or animals.
28 . Why have trans fats been banned from some restaurants? How are they created?
29 . Why are fatty acids better than glycogen for storing large amounts of chemical energy?
30 . Part of cortisol’s role in the body involves passing through the plasma membrane to initiate signaling inside a cell. Describe how the structures of cortisol and the plasma membrane allow this to occur.
31 . Explain what happens if even one amino acid is substituted for another in a polypeptide chain. Provide a specific example.
32 . Describe the differences in the four protein structures.
33 . Aquaporins are proteins embedded in the plasma membrane that allow water molecules to move between the extracellular matrix and the intracellular space. Based on its function and location, describe the key features of the protein’s shape and the chemical characteristics of its amino acids.
34 . What are the structural differences between RNA and DNA?
35 . What are the four types of RNA and how do they function?
Biology 2e for Biol 111 and Biol 112 Copyright © by Mary Ann Clark; Jung Choi; and Matthew Douglas is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License , except where otherwise noted.
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Thinking about the topic of cancer, write a basic science question and an applied science question that a researcher interested in this topic might ask 20 . Select two items that biologists agree are necessary in order to consider an organism "alive."
No headers. 16. Does physical exercise involve anabolic and/or catabolic processes? Give evidence for your answer. 17. Name two different cellular functions that require energy that parallel human energy-requiring functions. 18.
22. You go for a long walk on a hot day. Give an example of a way in which homeostasis keeps your body healthy. 23. Using examples, explain how biology can be studied from a microscopic approach to a global approach. 1.1.8: Critical Thinking Questions is shared under a not declared license and was authored, remixed, and/or curated by LibreTexts.
Suggest a reason for this. 19. If a series of genetic mutations prevented some, but not all, of the complement proteins from binding antibodies or pathogens, would the entire complement system be compromised? 20. How do B and T cells differ with respect to antigens that they bind? 21. Why is the immune response after reinfection much faster ...
Explain what happens if even one amino acid is substituted for another in a polypeptide chain. Provide a specific example. 32. Describe the differences in the four protein structures. 33. Aquaporins are proteins embedded in the plasma membrane that allow water molecules to move between the extracellular matrix and the intracellular space.
The Science of Biology. 3. Themes and Concepts of Biology. 4. Key Terms. 5. Chapter Summary. 6. Visual Connection Questions. 7. Review Questions. 8. Critical Thinking Questions. II. The Chemical Foundation of Life ... 112 Critical Thinking Questions 19. Describe the process that results in the formation of a tetrad. 20.
The Science of Biology. 3. Themes and Concepts of Biology. 4. Key Terms. 5. Chapter Summary. 6. Visual Connection Questions. 7. Review Questions. 8. ... Critical Thinking Questions. Appendix A: Checklist for Accessibility. Biology 2e Part I, 2nd edition. 74 Critical Thinking Questions 15. Compare how you feel when you are in a crowded room with ...
16. Although the scientific method is used by most of the sciences, it can also be applied to everyday situations. Think about a problem that you may have at home, at school, or with your car, and apply the scientific method to solve it. 17. Give an example of how applied science has had a direct effect on your daily life.
How are the 4 macromolecules different from each other? -carbohydrates are a source of quick energy. -lipids are a source of long term energy. -proteins communicate between and within cells. Why is carbon essential to life? Carbon's molecular structure allows it to form many types on bonds with many other elements.
Biology Critical Thinking Questions. Close. Contents Contents. Highlights. Print. Table of contents. Preface; Unit 1. The Chemistry of Life. 1 The Study of Life. Introduction; 1.1 The Science of Biology; 1.2 Themes and Concepts of Biology; Key Terms; Chapter Summary; Visual Connection Questions;
Hydrogen bonds hold water molecules together. 5. Explain how hydrogen bonding leads to the properties of cohesion, surface tension and adhesion. hydrogen bonds are weaker than covalent bonds, in liquid water they form, break, and reform easily. Thus, the exact number of hydrogen bonds formed per molecule varies.
Find step-by-step solutions and answers to Biology - 9781947172517, as well as thousands of textbooks so you can move forward with confidence. ... Critical Thinking Questions. Exercise 4. Exercise 5. Exercise 6. Exercise 7. Exercise 8. Exercise 9. Exercise 10. Exercise 11. Exercise 12. Exercise 13. Exercise 14. Exercise 15. Exercise 16 ...
Give evidence for your answer. 17. Name two different cellular functions that require energy that parallel human energy-requiring functions. 18. Explain in your own words the difference between a spontaneous reaction and one that occurs instantaneously, and what causes this difference. 19.
Compare the flow of energy with the flow of nutrients in a closed, sunny ecosystem consisting of a giraffe and a tree. 2.5.9: Critical Thinking Questions is shared under a not declared license and was authored, remixed, and/or curated by LibreTexts.
How does the lymphatic system work with blood flow? 21. Describe the cardiac cycle. 22. What happens in capillaries? 23. How does blood pressure change during heavy exercise? 7.8.10: Critical Thinking Questions is shared under a not declared license and was authored, remixed, and/or curated by LibreTexts.
Critical Thinking Questions. 28. Compare and contrast a human somatic cell to a human gamete. 29. What is the relationship between a genome, chromosomes, and genes? 30. Eukaryotic chromosomes are thousands of times longer than a typical cell. Explain how chromosomes can fit inside a eukaryotic nucleus. 31.
26. Animals and plants both have diploid and haploid cells. How does the animal life cycle differ from the alternation of generations exhibited by plants? 27. Explain why sexual reproduction is beneficial to a population but can be detrimental to an individual offspring. 28.
Critical Thinking Questions. 16 . Although the scientific method is used by most of the sciences, it can also be applied to everyday situations. Think about a problem that you may have at home, at school, or with your car, and apply the scientific method to solve it. 17 .
Critical thinking skills are referred to as one of the 21st-century skills. These skills should be empowered through Biology learning. This study aims to analyze the improvement of biology ...
The Science of Biology. 3. Themes and Concepts of Biology. 4. Key Terms. 5. Chapter Summary. 6. Visual Connection Questions. 7. Review Questions. 8. Critical Thinking Questions. II. The Chemical Foundation of Life ... 28 Critical Thinking Questions 21. Why are biological macromolecules considered organic? 22. Soil covers a vast proportion of ...
33. Mention three differences between bacteria and archaea. 34. Explain the statement that both types, bacteria and archaea, have the same basic structures, but built from different chemical components. 35. A scientist isolates a new species of prokaryote. They note that the specimen is a bacillus with a lipid bilayer and cell wall that stains ...
40 Critical Thinking Questions 25. In your everyday life, you have probably noticed that certain instruments are ideal for certain situations. For example, you would use a spoon rather than a fork to eat soup because a spoon is shaped for scooping, while soup would slip between the tines of a fork. The use of ideal instruments also applies in ...
Describe how the structures of cortisol and the plasma membrane allow this to occur. 31. Explain what happens if even one amino acid is substituted for another in a polypeptide chain. Provide a specific example. 32. Describe the differences in the four protein structures. 33. Aquaporins are proteins embedded in the plasma membrane that allow ...