Thinking About Biology

About our authors Mimi Bres, Ph.D, tenured Professor, Prince George's Community College, Largo, Marylan Dr. Bres has over 20 years experience with the development of curriculum materials designed to stimulate interest in science and to improve critical thinking skills. Of particular note is her recent work developing an interactive web and video-based curriculum, including a virtual field component, to teach environmental concepts without the need for student travel. Dr. Bres has also worked as a consultant to corporations and government agencies. She served as team leader and developer for the Environmental Protection Agency's Environmental Education Library, a series of video curriculum modules for college and high school classes which highlight hazardous chemical response and remediation projects carried out under the SuperFund Program. Dr. Bres has also served as a consultant to the Prince George's County School District in an initiative to improve the delivery of high school science courses. As a result of her expertise, Dr. Bres has been an invited speaker at a number of national meetings and seminars. Her work on the use of cooperative learning techniques has improved both student performance and interest in science. Dr. Bres' excellence in science education has been recognized by her selection for the National Award for Innovative Excellence in Teaching, Learning, and Technology by the Center for the Advancement of Teaching and Learning, the Teaching Recognition Award by the University of Maryland University College, and Outstanding Faculty Mentor of the Year by the science division students of Prince George's Community College. Recent books include: Thinking About Biology, 4th edition (a laboratory manual for general biology), Hands-On Biology: Laboratories for Distance Learning (a laboratory manual for online general biology courses), Human Biology: Condensed, 7th edition (a simplified lecture study guide that incorporates problem solving activities into the curriculum), and Cooperative Learning: Making Connections in General Biology (a collection of cooperative activities). Arnold Weisshaar, Professor Emeritus, Prince George's Community College, Largo, Maryland Professor Weisshaar has had a distinguished 36 year career in higher education. During his career, he has been the spearhead of several initiatives to improve science education and expand the College's program offerings. In the classroom, Professor Weisshaar has worked extensively with underprepared students of diverse social and ethnic backgrounds. In an attempt to improve instructional delivery, he has co-authored a variety of support materials for students. Recent publications include laboratory manuals for general biology, including: Thinking About Biology, 4th edition and Hands-On Biology: Laboratories for Distance Learning and a simplified lecture study guide that incorporates problem solving activities into the curriculum (Human Biology: Condensed, 7th edition).

Exercise 1 Introduction to the Scientific Method

Activity 1 Forming Hypotheses to Solve Problems
Activity 2 Testing Hypotheses
Activity 3 Interpreting Data
Activity 4 Performing an Experiment and Collecting Data
Activity 5 Graphing Your Results
Activity 6 Interpreting Data Using Simple Statistics

Exercise 2 Windows to a Microscopic World

Activity 1 Learning to Use the Dissecting Microscope
Activity 2 Making Observations with the Dissecting Microscope
Activity 3 Getting Familiar with the Compound Microscope
Activity 4 Parts of the Compound Microscope
Activity 5 Learning to Use the Compound Microscope
Activity 6 Preparing Temporary Slides - Wet Mounts
Activity 7 Using the Microscope to Answer a Question: What Do Aquarium Snails Eat?

Exercise 3 Functions and Properties of Cells

Activity 1 Cellular Organelles
Activity 2 Observing Living Cells
Activity 3 Amyloplasts in Potato Tubers
Activity 4 Stem Cells

Exercise 4 Movement of Molecules Across Cell Membranes

Activity 1 Water Molecules in Motion
Activity 2 Diffusion and Osmosis
Activity 3 Controls for the Diffusion and Osmosis Experiment
Activity 4 Completing the Diffusion and Osmosis Experiment
Activity 5 Osmosis in Elodea Cells

Exercise 5 Investigating Cellular Respiration

Activity 1 Do Microorganisms Perform Cellular Respiration?
Activity 2 Comparison of Classroom Air with Exhaled Air
Activity 3 Effect of Exercise on Carbon Dioxide Production
Activity 4 Alternatives to Aerobic Respiration
Activity 5 Anaerobic Respiration

Exercise 6 Photosynthesis

Activity 1 Absorption of Carbon Dioxide During Photosynthesis
Activity 2 Testing Leaves for Starch
Activity 3 Cells of the Leaf Epidermis

Exercise 7 Organic Molecules and Nutrition

Activity 1 Positive and Negative Indicator Tests
Activity 2 Testing Food Samples
Activity 3 An Embryo in a Peanut Seed
Activity 4 Dietary Intake and Good Health

Exercise 8 Factors that Affect Enzyme Activity

Activity 1 Demonstration of Enzyme Activity
Activity 2 Enzyme Activity in Food Vacuoles
Activity 3 Effect of Environmental Conditions on Protein Structure

Exercise 9 Introduction to Molecular Genetics

Activity 1 Removing DNA From Cells
Activity 2 The Basics of DNA Structure
Activity 3 Building a Model of DNA
Activity 4 Steps of Protein Synthesis
Activity 5 Building a Real Protein

Exercise 10 Mitosis and Asexual Reproduction

Activity 1 How Mitosis Works
Activity 2 Recognizing the Stages of Mitosis
Activity 3 Mitosis - The Real Thing!
Activity 4 Estimating the Duration of the Cell Cycle
Activity 5 Regeneration
Activity 6 Asexual Reproduction: Growing a Plant From a Cutting

Exercise 11 Connecting Meiosis and Genetics

Activity 1 Getting Started: Build a Pair of Chromosomes
Activity 2 Homologous Chromosomes Separate in Meiosis to Form Gametes
Activity 3 Fertilization: Nature's Equivalent to Rolling the Dice
Activity 4 What's Your Baby's Genotype?
Activity 5 Genotype Determines Phenotype
Activity 6 Passing On Traits
Activity 7 Practicing Genetics Problems

Exercise 12 Human Genetics

Activity 1 PTC Tasting
Activity 2 X-Linked Traits
Activity 3 Codominance and Sickle Cell Disease
Activity 4 A Family History of Sickle Cell Disease
Activity 5 Codominance and Multiple Alleles

Exercise 13 Evolution

Activity 1 Determining the Age of Rock Layers and Fossils
Activity 2 Reconstructing Fossil Evidence
Activity 3 Natural Selection

Exercise 14 Functions of Tissues and Organs

Activity 1 Skin: The Outer Protective Layer
Activity 2 The Epidermis
Activity 3 The Dermis
Activity 4 Hair Today, Gone Tomorrow
Activity 5 Below the Skin (the Hypodermis)
Activity 6 Touch Sensitivity

Exercise 15 The Cardiovascular System

Activity 1 Circulation of Blood Around the Body
Activity 2 A Closer Look at the Heart
Activity 3 Understanding Blood Pressure and Pulse Rate
Activity 4 Cardiovascular Disease

Exercise 16 Introduction to Anatomy: Dissecting the Fetal Pig

Activity 1 Getting Started
Activity 2 Following Anatomical Directions
Activity 3 External Anatomy of the Fetal Pig
Activity 4 Dissection of the Mouth
Activity 5 Dissection of the Neck
Activity 6 Dissection of the Thoracic Cavity
Activity 7 Measuring Lung Capacity

Exercise 17 Organs of the Abdominal Cavity

Activity 1 Dissection of the Abdominal Cavity
Activity 2 The Urinary System
Activity 3 Internal Structure of the Stomach
Activity 4 Examining the Small Intestine
Activity 5 The Importance of Surface Area
Activity 6 Earthworm Locomotion

Exercise 18 Introduction to Forensic Biology

Activity 1 Getting Started
Activity 2 Classifying Fingerprint Patterns
Activity 3 Analyzing Fingerprint Evidence
Activity 4 Blood Typing

Exercise 19 Biotechnology: DNA Analysis

Activity 1 Sources of DNA Evidence
Activity 2 Solving a Crime Using RFLP Fingerprints
Activity 3 The Use of PCR For STR Analysis
Activity 4 Solving a Criminal Case Using STR Evidence
Activity 5 Deciding a Paternity Suit Involving STR Analysis
Activity 6 DNA Barcodes

Exercise 20 Using Biotechnology to Assess Ecosystem Damage

Activity 1 Exploring Bioluminescence
Activity 2 Getting Started
Activity 3 Making Accurate Serial Dilutions
Activity 4 Preparing Bacterial Samples
Activity 5 Testing the Toxicity of Your Chemical

Exercise 21 Ecosystems

Activity 1 Food Chains
Activity 2 Loss of Energy in Food Chains
Activity 3 Food Chains Interact to Form Food Webs
Activity 4 Bioaccumulation

Exercise 22 Biodiversity and Conservation

Activity 1 Value of Biodiversity
Activity 2 Commercial Fishing as an Example of Tragedy of the Commons
Activity 3 Ecosystem Jenga®

Exercise 23 Population Ecology

Activity 1 Introduction to Sampling - An Ecological Tool
Activity 2 Sampling Quadrats to Estimate Population
Activity 3 The Mark and Recapture Technique for Estimating Population Size



APPENDICES

Game Cards for Exercise
Self Test Answers