For the exam, be sure to understand the following: 

 

Prokaryotes

-           what differentiates them from eukaryotes (in terms of cell structure)

-           understand 3 domains and how prokaryotes fit into this scheme

-           metabolic diversity , carbon and energy acquisition

-           morphological diversity

-           role in nitrogen cycle

-           global change, photosynthetic prokaryotes and oxygen production

-           methods for studying prokaryotes, enrichment cultures, direct sequencing

 

Eukaryotes
-       fundamental characteristics of eukaryotes
-       comparisons with prokaryotes – influence of size, etc.
-       Endosymbiotic Theory – how it works, what are the benefits for the different “players” involved. Know both mitochondria and chloroplasts
-       Carbon and energy aquisition

 

Land plant evolution

-           what adaptations were fundamental to the transition to land

-           role of vascular tissue

-           the alternation of generations

-           what role did pollen and seeds play in the move to terrestrial environments

-           what contributed to the adaptive radiation in angiosperms

-           what do mosses and ferns have in common with respect to reproduction

 

Animal evolution
-       what adaptations were fundamental to the transition to land
-       body plan and the 8 major trends in animal body plan evolution (what we spent Wednesday talking about)
-       protostomes vs. deuterostomes

 

Global Change

-           what does the issue of temporal scale have to do with global change

-           what are the greenhouse gasses, how do they differ in terms of heat trapping ability

-           describe changes to the N cycle, and some of the consequences

-           what are the implications of human appropriations of natural resources