Gateway Topics Practice
*This is a required assignment for all students. By completing this assignment, you will be better prepared you for the main
topics the Gateway can cover. Remember: use prior knowledge (scientific vocabulary, examples, visuals) and the documents.
MAKE CONNECTIONS BETWEEN YOUR PRIOR KNOWLEDGE AND NEW INFORMATION (DOCUMENTS).
Take it seriously and pass it the first time ☺
**Put all ANSWERS ON A SEPARATE SHEET OF PAPER!!
1. Meiosis/Mitosis – Cell Division - Go to http://www.biology4kids.com/files/cell2_mitosis.html
a. What do mitosis and meiosis have in common?
b. What is the “big idea” about mitosis? Be specific.
c. What are the 5 phases of mitosis?
d. Go to http://www.biology4kids.com/files/cell2_meiosis.html What is the “big idea” about meiosis?
e. Complete this chart:
Mitosis
Meiosis
Purpose- be specific
# of divisions it has
# of cells you end up with
Amount of chromosomes in each cell
What the new cells are called (diploid or
haploid) ?
2. Energy/Matter Transformations
Compare and contrast respiration and photosynthesis. Discuss the global importance of both processes. Include in your
discussion:
a. The location in the cell where each reaction occurs
b. The overall chemical reaction (including reactants and products) of each
c. Explain whether the reaction releases (exothermic) or stores (endothermic) energy
d. Describe how the two reactions are cyclic in nature
3. Genetics/DNA
Go to this website: http://teachone.tripod.com/PPT_files/index.html Then, scroll down and select “DNA: structure”.
a. DNA contains the _____________________ for making __________________ within the cell.
b. List the two reasons why DNA is studied.
c. How are DNA and chromosomes connected?
d. The shape of a DNA molecule is called a ___________________ helix. Describe what it looks like.
e. The backbone of a DNA strand is ___________________________ and deoxyribose sugar. The parts that connect
the two strands are _________________ bases.
f. A nucleotide is made of one _____________________ with its _______________ and _________________.
g. DNA is made of four different bases. Name them and describe how they pair up in a strand of DNA.
h. What holds the bases together?
4. Cell Theory
Go to the website
http://learn.genetics.utah.edu/units/basics/cell/
Click “Inside a Cell”
Fill in the chart with the function of the function of the named cell parts.
Cell Part
Specific Job
Cell membrane
Cell Wall
Cytoplasm
Lysosome
Endoplasmic reticulum
Mitochondria
Chloroplasts
Golgi apparatus
Nucleus
Go to
http://teachone.tripod.com/PPT_files/index.html
Click on Introduction to the cell. Take notes on the Power point.
a. levels of cellular organization are cell, __________________, _________________, _______________ and
___________________,
b. List the statements in the cell theory.
i.
ii
iii
c. Name the two types of cells. How do they differ?
5. Adaptation
“All around the 2 wounded men, the battle for Gettysburg raged. A single shell burst had ended their war, blinding the
soldier in blue, crippling the man in gray. They lay sprawled, talking to each other to ease their plain and fear of dying; hesitantly
at first, then increasingly earnestly.
It occurred to them that thirst and exposure to more fire were their real enemies. If they could get to Spangler’s Spring
at the base of Culp’s Hill, they would have water and shelter.
The blind man supported the crippled man, the crippled man directed the blind man. Together they had the legs and
eyes it would take to survive in a hostile world in which neither could survive independently. Together they limped to water and
safety in order to live.”
Such partnerships seem very human but biology is filled with unions of organisms more different than the soldiers in this
story. What do we call biological partnerships between organisms of different species? Such arrangements between varied
organisms are called symbiosis.
Pick two organisms and describe what type of symbiotic relationships they have and how their relationship impacts the
environment. In that description include
a. Examples of commensalisms, mutualism, and parasitism, the three types of symbiosis
b. Feeding relationships within an ecosystem,
c. How cooperation and competition coexist in nature.
6. Basic Life Functions and Organization
Go to website: http://www.bbc.co.uk/schools/gcsebitesize/biology/cellprocesses/0lifeprocessesrev1.shtml
Read the introduction and three pages.
Complete the table,
Life Process and Definition
Animal Application
Plant Application
a. What is the mnemonic used to remember the seven basic life processes?
b. What words do the letters in the mnemonic represent?
7. Food Webs/Energy Transformations
Go to website: http://www.gould.edu.au/foodwebs/kids_web.htm
Choose and complete a Food Web Activity.
a. Diagram your completed food web.
b. Describe your food web in a few sentences. Use/underline these vocabulary words: producer, energy, herbivore,
omnivore, consumer, carnivore, and decomposer. Be sure to make it clear you understand the meaning of each of
these words.
c. This is an easy activity. Go to the website and do it. Record your score on this sheet
http://www.bbc.co.uk/schools/scienceclips/ages/10_11/interdependence.shtml
8. Solutions and Concentration
Use the solubility curve to explain the following questions.
a. Which substance is least affected by an increase in temperature?
b. Which substance appears to decrease in solubility as temperature increases?
o
c. Which substance is most soluble at 0 C?
o
d. Which substance is least soluble at 0 C?
Based on your knowledge of solubility of gases, answer the following questions.
a. Why would a restaurant owner instruct you to fill a glass with ice first and then soda?
b. In what season is a fish kill in a small lake more likely to occur?
9. Periodic Tendencies
You are given a periodic table with a space where chlorine should be. Using your knowledge of periodic trends and the
characteristics of chlorine, write a paragraph to explain the placement of chlorine in the periodic table. Include this vocabulary
(underline): atomic number, atomic mass, valance electrons, family, atomic size, ionization energy.
10. Acids and Bases
Using lemon juice and ammonia, outline an experiment to support your choice of each as either an acid or a base.
Describe the pH scale including an explanation of what pH measures.
11. Organic Chemistry
The substances your body needs in order to grow and maintain life come from the nutrients in food. There are 6 classes of
nutrients in food – carbohydrates, lipids, proteins, vitamins, minerals, and water. Carbohydrates, lipids, and proteins are the
major organic nutrients for the body and provide energy.
The total number of calories that should be consumed by this student based on their activity for the day is 1800 Calories.
Evaluate one meal from the Student Diet as what you might eat on a typical day. Be sure to include the following in your
evaluation:
a. total number of calories provided by the meal
b. percent of each nutrient for that meal
c. compare your calculations with another meal that you put together--which meal is the unhealthiest? why?
One Day Student Diet
Calories
Breakfast
Yogurt with fruit (8
oz)
Toast, 2 slices
white
Orange Juice, 1
cup
Lunch
Big Mac
Fries, small
Milkshake
Coke, 12 oz
Dinner
Pepperoni Pizza, 2
slices
Garden Salad
Milk, skim 8 oz
Cookies
Carbohydrates (g)
Proteins (g)
Lipids/Fats
(g)
240
43.0
9.0
3.0
124
23.2
2.0
0.0
111
25.8
1.74
0.5
500
220
324
159
42
26
66
40
25
3
12
0
26
12
2
0
413
36
26
20
254
86
156
7.8
12
18
5.4
8.3
1.5
23
0
9
12. Chemical and Physical Properties of Matter
Differentiate between physical and chemical properties and changes. Give examples of each. Be sure your discussion includes
how physical properties and changes are similar and how they are different form chemical properties and changes.