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Descriptive Statements:
- Analyze the structure and function of cell organelles in eukaryotic and prokaryotic cells.
- Analyze the processes of respiration and photosynthesis at the cellular level.
- Recognize how the structure of specialized cells relates to their different functions.
- Demonstrate knowledge of mitosis and meiosis.
Sample Item:
The folding of the internal membrane of the mitochondria serves which of the following
purposes?
- increasing the number of separate compartments in which proteins can be assembled
- increasing the capacity to filter waste products produced during the process of
cellular respiration
- increasing the capacity to absorb enzymes needed to regulate cell division
- increasing the surface area over which energy-releasing chemical reactions take
place
Correct Response and Explanation (Show Correct ResponseHide Correct Response)
D. This question requires the examinee to analyze the structure and
function of cell organelles in eukaryotic cells. Many of the reactions involved in
cellular respiration occur on the membranes of mitochondria. The folding of the
internal membrane serves to increase its surface area, thereby providing more surface
on which reactions can take place.
Descriptive Statements:
- Analyze the reproduction, development, and life cycles of representative organisms.
- Demonstrate knowledge of the structures and functions of plant and animal systems, including the different levels of biological organization.
- Demonstrate knowledge of the structures and functions of human body systems.
- Analyze how organisms obtain, use, and store matter and energy.
- Analyze how organisms both maintain homeostasis and fight diseases.
Sample Item:
Many reef-forming corals form a symbiotic relationship with unicellular algae.
Which of the following best describes the primary benefit to the corals from this
relationship?
- The corals obtain much of their energy from photosynthetic activity of the algae.
- The algae are toxic to most fish and reduce predation by small fish on coral
populations.
- The corals can maintain a higher internal temperature due to heat generated by
metabolic processes of the algae.
- The algae attract small herbivorous fish and invertebrates, which are a major food
source of the corals.
Correct Response and Explanation (Show Correct ResponseHide Correct Response)
A. This question requires the examinee to analyze how organisms obtain,
use, and store matter and energy. Photosynthetic algae called zooxanthellae live within
coral polyps and produce oxygen and nutrients needed by the coral.
Descriptive Statements:
- Recognize the basic principles of heredity, the nature of the genetic code, the basic processes of DNA replication and protein synthesis, and the methods and uses of genetic engineering.
- Apply knowledge of the principles and evidence of biological evolution to explain how species change over time.
- Demonstrate knowledge of the major events in the history of life, including mass extinctions and the evolution of organisms that characterize specific periods in Earth's history.
- Demonstrate knowledge of the principles of biological classification.
Sample Item:
In which of the following scenarios is a species most likely to undergo evolutionary
change?
- A small population of a species of rodent is isolated permanently from the rest
of its species by a natural disaster.
- A migratory species of caribou is substantially reduced by predators during a
very cold winter.
- A species of invasive weed spreads rapidly along highways after being accidentally
introduced.
- A species of insect experiences rapid population growth during an unusually warm
summer.
Correct Response and Explanation (Show Correct ResponseHide Correct Response)
A. This question requires the examinee to apply knowledge of the
principles and evidence of biological evolution to explain how species change over
time. Geographic isolation of a species separates the species reproductively from
other members of the species. This results in the isolated population taking a different
evolutionary path than the main population due to genetic drift and differences in
environmental pressures.
Descriptive Statements:
- Recognize the characteristics of terrestrial and aquatic biomes, including representative species of plants and animals that inhabit them.
- Analyze the relationships between organisms in a variety of ecosystems.
- Demonstrate knowledge of biotic and abiotic factors that affect population dynamics in ecosystems, including competition, resource availability, and niche and habitat requirements.
- Recognize the ways both human activities and climate change affect ecosystems.
- Recognize strategies used by different organisms to obtain the basic needs for life.
- Analyze the cycling of matter and the flow of energy through different types of ecosystems.
Sample Item:
Plants of the pea family use which of the following strategies to obtain a portion of
their nitrogen requirement?
- absorbing atmospheric nitrogen through the stomata in their leaves and stems
- breaking down amino acids found in decaying soil humus into elemental nitrogen
- hosting bacteria in their roots that transform gaseous nitrogen into useable
nitrogen compounds
- taking in rainwater that contains dissolved elemental nitrogen through leaf
pores
Correct Response and Explanation (Show Correct ResponseHide Correct Response)
C. This question requires the examinee to demonstrate knowledge of
biotic and abiotic factors that affect population dynamics in ecosystems, including
competition, resource availability, and niche and habitat requirements. Although
approximately 78% of the atmosphere is made up of nitrogen, that nitrogen is not in
a form that is useable by most organisms. Many plants, including pea plants, have
close biological relationships with bacteria that are able to use atmospheric nitrogen,
and in the process they convert the nitrogen to a form useful to the host plant.