BIOLOGY CURRICULUM OUTLINE

I.  Introduction to Science

         A.  What is Biology?

                  i.  The Science of Biology

                  ii.   Biologists Study the Diversity of Life

                  iii.  Characteristics of Life

         B.  The Methods of Biology

                  i.  The Scientific Method

                  ii.  Parts of an Experiment

         C.  The Nature of Biology

                  i.  SI and Dimensional Analysis

                  ii.  Graphing

                  iii.  Technology and Ethics

II.  Principles of Ecology

         A.  Organisms and Their Environment

                  i.  What is Ecology?

                  ii.  The Biosphere

                           a. Abiotic Factors

                           b. Biotic Factors

                  iii.  Levels of Organization

                  iv.  Habitats and Niches

                  v.  Symbiosis

         B.  Nutrition and Energy Flow

                  i.  How Organisms Obtain Energy

                           a.  Autotrophs

                           b.  Heterotrophs

                  ii.  Food Chains and Food Webs

                  iii.  Ecological Pyramids

                  iv.  Cycles in Nature

                           a.  Water Cycle

                           b.  Carbon Cycle

                           c.  Nitrogen Cycle

                           d.  Phosphorus Cycle

III.  A View of the Cell

         A.  The Discovery of Cells 

                  i.  The History of the Cell Theory

                           a.  Light Microscopes

                           b.  The Cell Theory

                           c.  Electron Microscopes

                  ii.  Two Basic Cell Types

                           a.  Organelles

                           b.  Prokaryotes

                           c.  Eukaryotes

         B.  The Plasma Membrane

                  i.   Selective Permeability

                  ii.  Structure of Plasma Membrane

         C.  Eukaryotic Cell Structure

                  i.  Animal v. Plant

IV.  Cellular Transport and The Cell Cycle

         A.  Osmosis

                  i.    Isotonic Solution

                  ii.   Hypotonic Solution

                  iii.  Hypertonic Solution

         B.  Passive Transport

         C.  Active Transport

         D.  Cell Size Limitations

                  i.    Diffusion

                  ii.   DNA

                  iii.  Surface Area – to – Volume Ratio

         E.  Cell Reproduction

         F.  The Cell Cycle

                  i.    Interphase

                  ii.   Mitosis

                  iii.  Cytokinesis

         G.  Control of the Cell Cycle

                  i.    Cancer

V.  Mendel’s Laws of Heredity

         A.  Mendel’s Laws of Heredity

                  i.    Genetics

                  ii.   Fertilization and Pollination 

         B.  Monohybrid Crosses

                  i.    Purebred

                  ii.   Hybrid

                  iii.  Parent and Filial Generations

                  iv.   Alleles

                  v.   Dominant and Recessive Traits

                  vi.   Law of Segregation

         C.  Phenotypes and Genotypes

                  i.     Phenotype

                  ii.    Genotype

                  iii.   Homozygous

                  iv.   Heterozygous

         D.  Dihybrid Crosses

                  i.    Law of Independent Assortment

         E.  Punnett Squares

                  i.   Monohybrid Cross

                  ii.  Dihybrid Cross

         F.  Meiosis

                  i.   Genes, Chromosomes, and Numbers

                           a.  Diploid and Haploid Numbers

                           b.  Homologous Chromosomes

                           c.   Sexual Reproduction

                  ii.  Phases of Meiosis

                           a.  Crossing Over

                           b.  Tetrads

                           c.  Similarities to Mitosis

                  iii.  Genetic Recombination

                  iv.   Nondisjunction

  VI.  DNA and Genes

         A.  DNA:  The Molecule of Heredity

                  i.     Discovery of DNA

                  ii.    Structure of Nucleotides

                  iii.   Structure of DNA

                  iv.   Nucleotide Sequence        

                  v.    DNA Replication

         B.  From DNA to Protein

                  i.     RNA

                  ii.    Transcription

                  iii.   The Genetic Code

                  iv.    Translation          

         C.  Genetic Changes

                  i.     Mutations

                  ii.    Chromosomal Mutations

                  iii.   Causes of Mutations

VII.  The Theory of Evolution

         A.  Natural Selection and the Evidence for Evolution

                  i.     Charles Darwin and Natural Selection

                           a.  Galapagos Islands

                           b.  Artificial Selection

                           c.  Natural Selection

                  ii.    Adaptations: Evidence for Evolution

                           a.  Structural

                           b.  Physiological

                  iii.   Other Evidence for Evolution

                           a.  Fossils

                           b.  Anatomy

                           c.  Embryology

                           d.  Biochemistry

         B.  Mechanisms of Evolution

                  i.     Population Genetics and Evolution

                           a.  Gene Pool

                           b.  Genetic Equilibrium

                           c.  Genetic Drift

                  ii.    Natural Selection Acts on Variations

                           a.  Stabilizing Selection

                           b.  Directional Selection

                           c.  Disruptive Selection

                  iii.    The Evolution of Species

                           a.  Speciation

                           b.  Geographic Isolation

                           c.  Reproductive Isolation

                           d.  Polyploid        

                           e.  Speciation Rates

                  iv.    Patterns of Evolution

                           a.  Adaptive Radiation

                           b.  Divergent Evolution

                           c.  Convergent Evolution