<p>
</p>
<p>You’ve got to be kidding me. I love body stuff. At school, we had JUST spent an entire 9 weeks covering body systems. Now body stuff is gone from the AP.</p>
<p>Well, at least it is still on the SAT II Bio exam :p. Freaking bifurcated curriculums though …</p>
<p>I’m sorry, but learning about the the vestigial function of a tailbone will never interest me. Nor will having to memorize all different functions of the organs.</p>
<p>Genetics changes people. It’s your pre-destiny of sorts, and we can manipulate it to help people. How cool is that?</p>
<p>Well, I hate vague genetics questions such as what is the probability that a child will have Huntington’s Disease if one of his parents is unaffected (normal) and the other one is affected. Huntington’s Disease is autosomal dominant btw. Care to give this question a shot?</p>
<p>The tailbone is just one part of the body systems. Body systems are fascinating. You see how form fits function when studying body systems, and you see the ingenuity in our how bodies were … uh … “designed”? In any case the body systems are a marvel and I have no care for genetics.</p>
<p>…I only know basic concepts of biology. Punnet Squares aren’t bad though. </p>
<p>Mom-pp
Dad-Pp</p>
<p>4 combinations
Pp
Pp
pp
pp</p>
<p>50% of acquiring Huntington’s, 50% chance of staying healthy. </p>
<p>If dad is PP</p>
<p>Pp
Pp
Pp
Pp</p>
<p>100% chance. </p>
<p>That’s going off basic punnet squares though, so I’m probably wrong. I don’t remember much else.</p>
<p>EDIT: Eh, the actual body isn’t interesting to me. It’s how it was formed that is interesting. Let’s just agree to disagree on this one.</p>
<p>As the creator of the original AP Bio topic:
<a href=“http://i0.kym-cdn.com/photos/images/original/000/131/399/fry.PNG?1307468855[/url]”>http://i0.kym-cdn.com/photos/images/original/000/131/399/fry.PNG?1307468855</a></p>
<p>J/k, looking forward to AP Bio next year. Seems like the most exciting class, personally.</p>
<p>My summer homework is divided into several segments where each segment has a different due date during the summer. First I need to read “Your Inner Fish” and do questions and stuff along with it while I read and then read “Survival of the Sickest” and do questions and stuff with it and then do Book exercises using Campbell 8th Edition AP Bio book.</p>
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</p>
<p>I recall someone that was also required to read Survival of the Sickest last year. I also remember reading commentary on that book. Most of the seemingly more informed critics lambasted that book as Survival of the Silliest. Could you be going to the same left wing indoctrination camp as that other user who had to read that book last year? Just kidding :). </p>
<p>Neither book will actually prove helpful in the AP Bio exam. Especially when The Survival of the Sickest starts refuting random mutations as a cause of evolution. Your teacher probably chose the two books to pique your interest in biology - or more insidiously - to indoctrinate you with junk science o.o. </p>
<p>[Survival</a> of the Silliest – Pharyngula](<a href=“http://scienceblogs.com/pharyngula/2007/12/17/survival-of-the-silliest/]Survival”>Survival of the Silliest | ScienceBlogs)</p>
<p>It’s good to see a thread like this! I’m a rising Junior and I haven’t been preparing at all. I’m actually scared to, I don’t why but I am, but I am. I hate studying ahead of time, because I always screw something up and confuse myself even more.</p>
<p>Do you guys know how much math/chemistry will be in Ap bio ?</p>
<p>I don’t think there will more THAT much chemistry, but there will be math. There’s a formula sheet for AP Biology on College Board. It’s mostly probability, the chi square formula, temperature, exponential growth, rates etc. For the chemistry, there’s little to none. It’s helpful to know some chemistry to better understand some topics in Biology. The only example that come to mind is cell biology and the semi-permeable membrane.</p>
<p>Thats Very Good news lol 
… Math i can handle … Chemistry, well its like a foriegn language i dont get NONE of it … my brains outwired for bio :D</p>
<p>As long as I have a formula sheet, I’m good.</p>
<p>^^ FORREAL !! one less thing to worry about</p>
<p>I hope there is not a lot of chem. I haven’t even taken it. =x</p>
<p>Chemistry and Physics Review</p>
<p>What’s wrong with chemistry? There really isn’t that much chemistry on the Bio exam. Plus, chemistry is fascinating, and I always love seeing a chemistry angle to something in Biology. Most of the chemistry in biology relates to water. Water is polar, water has a high specific heat, water forms hydrogen bonds, water has a certain heat of fusion, blah, blah, blah. </p>
<p>Physics angle: It also helps to know the difference between temperature and heat. Temperature is the measure of the average kinetic energy of the molecules; heat is the total kinetic energy of the molecules. Know that molecules start moving around faster (gain kinetic energy) when they are heated. Molecules not only move around faster but also start occupying more space. As you heat water, molecules gain kinetic energy and move around faster and faster. Eventually the liquid might turn into a gas, which has a relatively low density compared to water. </p>
<p>Knowing that particles gain kinetic energy as temperature rises can also help you understand enzyme activity. As temperature rises, enzymes tend to work faster. Please note, however, that this only holds true to a certain extent; if temperatures rise TOO much, then enzymes lose their 3D conformation (they become denatured). This reminds me of a bad pickup line scientist meme …</p>
<p>Baby you’re so hot … you denature my enzymes.</p>
<p>Guys - don’t ever try that on girls :). </p>
<p>Anyway, increased temperatures mean increased movement of particles. As these particles (substrates) move faster and faster, the likelihood of one of these particles latching on to an active site of an enzyme increases. The total number of collisions between the substrates and the enzyme increases, as does the number of successful collisions. This reminds me of yet another pickup line …</p>
<p>Baby let’s go camping … at my active site.</p>
<p>Some chemistry terms to know are:</p>
<p>1) Exergonic. Net release of free energy. Just look at the root - “exer.” It looks like “exit.”
2) Endergonic. Net absorption of free energy.
3) Catabolic: the breaking down of molecules to release energy. Cellular respiration is a catabolic process. Glucose is broken down to ATP.
4) Anabolic: synthesis of molecules to store energy. Photosynthesis is an anabolic process. Glucose, a long-term energy storage molecule, is made.</p>
<p>Some other chemistry things to know include that carbon dioxide dissolves in water to form carbonic acid. There is a lot of water in blood plasma. Therefore, CO2 dissolves in the bloodstream, making it acidic - and especially acidic when you start exercising. This increased acidity of the bloodstream changes the conformation of the respiratory pigment, hemoglobin, and hemoglobin starts giving up oxygen easier, which is a boon for the cells. The shift in pH is termed the Bohr Shift (the phenomenon was named not after Niels Bohr but after his father). </p>
<p>Macromolecules Cheat Sheet</p>
<p>You will definitely find this useful. AP Bio courses tend to tackle macromolecules fairly early in the course. I made this last year some time.</p>
<p>I think there will be quite a lot of chem in AP Bio. Well. Not a lot, actually. But it’s good to read over a chem book. For those who know about Campbell’s, they emphasize biochem in the first few chapters…
So more biochem than chem questions.
Biochem examples are macromolecules, OILRIG, photosynthesis/cellular respiration, amino acid structures, osmosis and diffusion…</p>
<p>Aww who am I kidding, I’m only a rising 9th grader…</p>
<p>Macromolecules Cheat Sheet</p>
<p>Oops, didn’t beat the 20 minute edit window. Here’s the sheet to which I was referring. </p>
<p><a href=“http://i.minus.com/iJIvmWoVftwBD.JPG[/url][/size]”>http://i.minus.com/iJIvmWoVftwBD.JPG</a></p>
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<p>I summed up the chem in my post above. The only thing I sort of skimmed over was water, but I’ll cover that right now. </p>
<p>Properties of Water</p>
<p>0) Draw a water molecule. The formula is H2O. One oxygen molecule with two hydrogen molecules branching off. You’ll want this model around to understand what I’m going to explain. </p>
<p>1) Water is polar. </p>
<p>Oxygen is more electronegative than hydrogen. Oxygen likes electrons more than hydrogen; oxygen has a higher affinity for electrons than hydrogen. So electrons tend to hang out around oxygen more than they hang out around hydrogen. </p>
<p>As a result, the oxygen part of water has a partial negative charge (electrons are negatively charged). The hydrogen parts of water have partial positive charges. This gives rise to the various properties of water. </p>
<p>2) Water forms hydrogen bonds. </p>
<p>A hydrogen bond is defined as a bond between hydrogen and a highly electronegative molecule (Fluorine, Oxygen, or Nitrogen). Water forms hydrogen bonds with itself; the hydrogen part of one water molecule is attracted to the oxygen part of another water molecule. Remember that the hydrogen part exhibits a partial positive charge and the oxygen part exhibits a partial negative charge, and that opposites attract. </p>
<p>3) Water is cohesive.</p>
<p>Water molecules stick to themselves because of the hydrogen bonding. </p>
<p>4) Water is adhesive.</p>
<p>Water can stick well to other materials because it is polar. Note how water doesn’t just fall off the wall; it may stick to the wall for a while and then slowly roll down. Water adheres to the wall (somewhat). </p>
<p>5) Water has a high specific heat. </p>
<p>Basically, water can absorb a lot of heat without experiencing a dramatic change in its temperature. Heat = total kinetic energy of the molecules. Temperature = average kinetic energy of the molecules. </p>
<p>6) Water is a good solvent. </p>
<p>Like dissolves like (in terms of polarity). Because water is polar, it is good at dissolving other polar substances. Note that water cannot dissolve lipids well as lipids are generally non-polar. </p>
<p>7) Water can evaporate at temperatures below its boiling point. </p>
<p>For water to evaporate, hydrogen bonds must be broken. Breaking these bonds requires an investment of heat energy. Any investment of heat energy takes away from the energy that is present in the liquid water. So water has evaporative cooling properties. </p>
<p>8) Water’s density decreases when it is frozen. When water is frozen, the molecules spread apart and lock themselves into a crystal lattice. This allows icebergs to float. </p>
<p>The importance of cohesion and adhesion</p>
<p>Water’s cohesive and adhesive properties are especially useful in the realm of plant life because these two forces allow water to travel up plants. As water evaporates from the leaves of a plant (transpiration) the water in the xylem and phloem are tugged up (remember that water sticks to itself well). The fact that water can adhere to the walls of the xylem and phloem further help its mission of reaching the extremities of the plant.</p>
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<p>You bring up some good examples. </p>
<p>OIL RIG: oxidation is the loss of electrons; reduction is the gain of electrons. Oxidation and reduction are useful terms to know when studying cellular respiration and photosynthesis.</p>
<p>In glycolysis, NAD+ is reduced to NADH; an electron is added. </p>
<p>In the electron transport chain, NADH and FADH2 are oxidized; both give up their electrons and become NAD+ and FAD+. </p>
<p>The final electron acceptor in cell respiration is oxygen. By accepting the electron, oxygen is reduced into water.</p>
<p>In the light-dependent reactions, NADP+ is reduced into NADPH. </p>
<p>In the light-independent reactions (Calvin cycle), NADPH is oxidized into NADP+.</p>
<p>NO ! … OIL RIG is in bio … redox reactions Shot me now lol … macromolecules are like lipids and protiens and nucleotides ? right … i think i remember from bio honors</p>
<p>@Twiggy22: OIL RIG is a tangential issue in biology. Redox is similarly a fringe topic. There is no messing around with redox equations :). I’m glad too because I HATED doing redox in chem.</p>
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