Question 1

What are covalent bonds?

Accepted Answer

A bond between two atoms where electrons are shared between the atoms

(holds together individual water molecules)

Question 2

What are chemical reactions?

Accepted Answer

The process of substances being converted to different substances

Question 3

What are acidic solutions?

Accepted Answer

Solutions that donate hydrogen ions

(citric acid in lemons)

Question 4

What are basic solutions?

Accepted Answer

Solutions that receive hydrogen ions

(usually slippery, like soap)

Question 5

What is alkalinity?

Accepted Answer

The capacity of a liquid to neutralize acid

Question 6

What are neutral solutions?

Accepted Answer

Solutions that are neither acidic nor basic

(water)

Question 7

What does the pH scale measure?

Accepted Answer

Acidity and alkalinity

Question 8

What value is a neutral pH?

Accepted Answer

7

Question 9

What is hydrophobic?

Accepted Answer

"water-hating" - molecules that are repelled and don't mix with water

(oil and vinegar)

Question 10

What is hydrophillic?

Accepted Answer

"water-loving" - molecules that are attracted to and mix with water

Question 11

What is capillary action?

Accepted Answer

Liquids flowing in narrow spaces, often while defying gravity

Question 12

What is surface tension?

Accepted Answer

The ability of a liquid to resist outside changes

(caused by internal cohesion; allows some small animals to walk on water)

Question 13

What is heat capacity?

Accepted Answer

The ability of a substance to resist temperature changes

Question 14

Why does water expand when it freezes?

Accepted Answer

Its molecules become more spread apart and align themselves in a lattice

Question 15

Why is ice less dense than water?

Accepted Answer

Frozen water molecules are more spaced out than liquid ones

Question 16

What are the four major unique properties of water?

Accepted Answer

Dissolves almost everything (universal solvent)

Has cohesive and adhesive properties

High heat capacity

Expands when it freezes

Question 17

What are organic compounds?

Accepted Answer

Compounds that contain carbon AND hydrogen atoms

Question 18

What are inorganic compounds?

Accepted Answer

Compounds without either carbon or hydrogen atoms

Question 19

What are the three main particles in atoms?

Accepted Answer

Protons, neutrons, and electrons

Question 20

What is the core of the atom called?

Accepted Answer

The nucleus

Question 21

What is the charge of protons?

Accepted Answer

Positive (+)

Question 22

What is the charge of neutrons?

Accepted Answer

Neutral

Question 23

What is the charge of electrons?

Accepted Answer

Negative (-)

Question 24

What are ionic bonds?

Accepted Answer

A bond between two atoms when electrons are transferred from one to the other

(one atom loses electrons and becomes positively charged; the other gains electrons and becomes negatively charged)

Question 25

What are covalent bonds?

Accepted Answer

A bond between two atoms when electrons are shared between the atoms

Question 26

What are hydrogen bonds?

Accepted Answer

Weak bonds between a hydrogen atom (with a partial positive charge) and another electronegative atom (such as oxygen or nitrogen)

Question 27

Why are hydrogen bonds important?

Accepted Answer

They hold together water multiple water molecules

Question 28

What is an element?

Accepted Answer

A substance that cannot be broken down any further (by chemical means)

Question 29

What are the four most common elements in living organisms?

Accepted Answer

Oxygen, carbon, hydrogen, nitrogen

Question 30

What are trace elements?

Accepted Answer

An element only required in small amounts

(in humans: iron, iodine, copper)

Question 31

What are isotopes?

Accepted Answer

Variants of a chemical element that differ in neutron number

(same charge; every element has at least one isotope)

Question 32

What is radiometric dating?

Accepted Answer

Method for determining the age of materials from the decay of radioactive elements

Question 33

What are chemical compounds?

Accepted Answer

A combination of elements in a fixed ratio

Question 34

What are the four major macromolecules?

Accepted Answer

Carbohydrates, proteins, lipids, nucleic acids

Question 35

What are carbohydrates?

Accepted Answer

Sugars and starches used for energy

Question 36

What are the common categories of carbohydrates?

Accepted Answer

Monosaccharides, disaccharides, and polysaccharides

(mono=1; dia=2; poly=many; saccharide=sugar)

Question 37

What is dehydration synthesis?

Accepted Answer

Formation of larger molecules from smaller ones, while losing water

(in carbohydrates: monosaccharides combine into disaccharides and lose water)

Question 38

What is hydrolysis?

Accepted Answer

Separating a compound by adding water

(in carbohydrates: disaccharides can sometimes be separated into monosaccharides by adding water)

Question 39

What are the two most common examples of monosaccharides?

Accepted Answer

Glucose and fructose

Question 40

What are the most common examples of polysaccharides?

Accepted Answer

Starch, cellulose, and glycogen

Question 41

Why are proteins important?

Accepted Answer

They perform work in your cells and regulate tissues and organs

Question 42

What are amino acids?

Accepted Answer

Building blocks of proteins

Question 43

What is the name of bonds between amino acids?

Accepted Answer

Peptide bonds

Question 44

What are chaperone proteins (chaperonins)?

Accepted Answer

Proteins that help another protein fold properly and efficiently

Question 45

Why are lipids important?

Accepted Answer

Energy storage, structural components, and insulation

Question 46

What is an ester linkage?

Accepted Answer

The link between glycerol and fatty acids

(occurs in triglycerides after dehydration synthesis is used to create the fat)

Question 47

What is the biological difference between saturated and unsaturated fats?

Accepted Answer

Saturated fats have hydrocarbon chains connected by single bonds only, while unsaturated fats have one or more double bonds

Question 48

What are amphipathic molecules?

Accepted Answer

Molecules with polar and non-polar sections

(such as fatty acids)

Question 49

What is the purpose of cholesterol?

Accepted Answer

Regulates cell membrane fluidity in various temperatures

Helps make vitamin D and hormones

Question 50

What are nucleic acids?

Accepted Answer

Chemical compounds that carry information in cells

Question 51

What are nucleic acids made of?

Accepted Answer

Nucleotides

Question 52

What are nucleotides?

Accepted Answer

The building blocks of nucleic acids

Question 53

What are the two most common nucleic acids?

Accepted Answer

Deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) and ribonucleic acid (RNA)

Question 54

What is denaturation of a protein?

Accepted Answer

A process where the protein loses its shape and function

Question 55

What are polar molecules?

Accepted Answer

Molecules that have positive and negative sides

Question 56

What is cohesion?

Accepted Answer

Attraction of similar molecules

(water is attracted to water)

Question 57

What is adhesion?

Accepted Answer

Attraction of dis-similar molecules

(water is attracted to glass)

Question 58

What are cells?

Accepted Answer

The building block of living organisms

Question 59

What is the smallest unit of living material that can still be considered alive?

Accepted Answer

A single cell

Question 60

What is the surface-area-to-volume ratio?

Accepted Answer

The amount of surface area an object has, compared to the amount of volume it has

(limits the maximum size of cells; bigger objects have a lower surface-area-to-volume area)

Question 61

Why can't giant cells exist?

Accepted Answer

If the cell gets too big, its membrane is too small for nutrients to pass through and feed the increased cellular volume

(because of the surface-area-to-volume ratio)

Question 62

What are the two types of cells?

Accepted Answer

Prokaryotes and eukaryotes

Question 63

What is an optical/light microscope?

Accepted Answer

A device that focuses light on an object, magnifying it

Question 64

What are electron microscopes?

Accepted Answer

A microscope that uses a beam of electrons to illuminate an object

(used to parts of a cell where light can't reach)

AP Biology Flashcards