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Each exercise below tests your ability to apply biological reasoning and the scientific method to solve or at least develop potential explanations for a problem in modern biology. The topics come from all areas of biology, and should serve as good models for applying biological principles. In each exercise, the questions and challenges get successively more difficult - see how far you can go !
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| Taxonomy
and Systematics
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1. Make
a list of the important physical characteristics of Big Red (what type
of skeleton does it have, is it segmented or not, etc.) and use
that to decide what Kingdom and Phylum it belongs to and why. Can
you go any further (Class, Order, Family, etc.)?
2. Come up with some hypotheses about the physiology, behavior and ecology of Big Red. For example, do you think it is a carnivore or an herbivore, warm-blooded or cold-blooded, active during the day or at night, solitary or social, etc.? What makes you say that? 3. Think of something you would like to know about Big Red, and how you could set up an experiment to find out. What kinds of problems would you have to control for, and how could you make sure your experiment was answering the question you wanted it to? 4. Suggest a genus and species name for Big Red. Remember that genus and species names are usually Latin words that describe important or distinctive charactersitics of the organism. |
Taxonomy
is the description and classification of organisms, and systematics
is the study of the relationships of groups of organisms
to one another. The goal of taxonomy and systematics
is to group together related species by carefully comparing
their similarities and differences, and to generate a 'family
tree' of species that reflects their evolutionary history. Besides
telling us something about how closely-related species are,
studying the physical characteristics of organisms can also
tell us things about their physiology, ecology and behavior.|
Genetic Testing When you lick an envelope, you may be sending a more detailed message than you realize. Your saliva leaves a DNA fingerprint that not only says who you are, but also whether you have a genetic predisposition for certain diseases. Genetic testing is a valuable method currently being used by the police, insurance companies, and of course, physicians. Recently developed molecular techniques can determine the sequence of your DNA from just a few stray cells. Genetic testing is a powerful tool that can be used for many prurposes.
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Forensic testing, which is the newest area to use information obtained from genetic testing, seeks to discover a genetic linkage between suspects and evidence discovered in criminal investigations. Test results have been presented as proof of innocence or guilt in court cases, and jury verdicts have been based on this type of genetic evidence. 1. Take this simple genetic test and see if you can determine the culprit. 2. Click the red button to step thru the isolation and analysis of DNA. |
Adaptation  Adaptations are characteristics of organisms which make the individuals that have them more likely to survive and reproduce. Adaptations evolve through natural selection, which favors the best versions of those features in each generation; over time, an adaptation becomes better and more efficient at carrying out its function. Many adaptations are extremely complex, and it's often difficult to imagine that they could arise naturally and without being 'designed'. However, it's important to realize that adaptations ARE designed, just not in advance nor by a 'designer'. Instead, they are shaped by nature, which keeps good designs that arise naturally and eliminates bad ones. In order to understand and study adaptations, we must be able to propose a possible function of the feature we think might be an adaptation, and show how that feature improves the chances that the individual carrying it will survive and reproduce. |
1. Figure
out what this is a picture of. HINT: It's a single organism
collected from a local Kentucky river (it also shows a very famous
example of an adaptation).
2. Do some research and learn something about the ecology of this organism. In particular, how does it feed (which will help it survive) and reproduce? 3. Come up with an hypothesis to explain how the unusual structure(s) of this organism might be an adaptation. What function do you think this structure serves, and how would it benefit the organism in its ability to survive and reproduce? 4. Think about an experiment you could develop to determine whether this structure really is an adaptation. What would you need to show to make your case, and what kinds of things would you need to control for to make sure the experiment was answering the question you meant it to? |
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The Bio 121 PreLabs are meant to serve as an introduction to some of the exercises and concepts students encounter in the Bio 121 Lab course. They consist of simulations of several common College Intro Biology Labs. Feel free to have your students use them. |