Vocab 1-40

Front 1

pH

Back 1

Negative logarithm of the hydrogen concentration of H+ ions. A measure of acidity of a solution.

Front 2

Monomer

Back 2

A small molecule, two or more of which can be combined to form oligomers or polymers.

Front 3

Molecule

Back 3

a chemical substance made up of 2 or more atoms joined by covalent bonds or ionic attractions

Front 4

Base

Back 4

A substance that can accept a hydrogen ion in a solution

Front 5

Acid

Back 5

A substance that can release hydrogen ions in solution

Front 6

Buffer

Back 6

A substance that can transiently accept or release hydrogen ions and thereby resist changes in pH

Front 7

Ion

Back 7

An electorally charged particle that forms when an atom gains or losses one or more electrons

Front 8

Element

Back 8

A substance that cannot be converted to a simpler substance by ordinary chemical means

Front 9

Compound

Back 9

A substance made up of atoms of more than one element

Front 10

Hypothesis

Back 10

A tentative answer to a question, from which testable predictions can be generated

Front 11

Atom

Back 11

Consists of a dense, positively charged nucleus around which one or more negatively charged elections move

Hint 11

Front 12

Life

Back 12

All organisms descended from a single celled ancestor

Front 13

Water

Back 13

Substance that allows chemical reactions to occur inside living organisms and it's necessary for the formation of certain biological structures

Front 14

Carbon

Back 14

Versatile, organic element that can bond itself with 4 potential covalent atoms

Front 15

Tree of Life

Back 15

A term that encompasses the evolutionary history of all life, or graphic representation of that history.

Front 16

Chemistry

Back 16

Deals with the identification of the substances of which matter is composed; the investigation of their properties and the ways in which they interact, combine, and change.

Front 17

Cell

Back 17

The smallest unit with the capacity to live and reproduce, independently or a part of a multicellular organism

Front 18

Theory of Evolution

Back 18

A change in allele frequency in a population over time

Front 19

Biology

Back 19

The scientific study of living things

Front 20

Polymer

Back 20

A larger molecule made up of similar or prudential subunits called monomers

Front 21

Polymerization

Back 21

In polymer chemistry, polymerization is a process of reacting monomer molecules together in a chemical reaction to form polymer chains or three-dimensional networks.

Front 22

Protein

Back 22

Long chain polymer of amino acids w/ 20 different common side chains. "True workhorses of the cell - do almost everything, versatile"

Front 23

Amino Acid

Back 23

An organic compounds containing both NH² and COOH groups. Proteins are polymers of amino acids.

Front 24

Peptide

Back 24

Naturally occurring biological molecules. They are short chains of amino acid monomers linked by peptide (amide) bonds.

Front 25

Carbohydrate

Back 25

Made up of a large group of molecules that all have similar atomic compositions but differ greatly in size, chemical properties, and biological functions. Ex: sugars, starch, and cellulose. Organic compounds containing carbon, hydrogen, and oxygen in the ratio 1:2:1

Front 26

Lipid

Back 26

Non-polar, hydrophobic molecules that include fats, oils, waxes, steroids, and the phospholipids that make up biological membranes.

Front 27

Nucleic Acid

Back 27

A polymer made up of nucleotides, specialized for the storage, transmission, and expression of genetic information. DNA and RNA are nucleic acids.

Front 28

Nucleotide

Back 28

The basic chemical unit in nucleic acids, consisting of pentose sugar, a phosphate group, and a nitrogen- containing base.

Front 29

Nitrogenous base

Back 29

A nitrogen containing molecule that has the same chemical properties as a base. They make up the building blocks of DNA and RNA.

Front 30

Theory

Back 30

An explanation of facts that is supported by a wide body of evidence, with no contradictions, and is scientifically accepted as a fact.

Front 31

Scientific law

Back 31

A statement based on repeated experimental observations that describes some aspects of the universe.

Front 32

Biomolecule

Back 32

Any molecule that is present in living organisms, including large macromolecules such as proteins, polysaccharides, lipids, and nucleic acids

Front 33

Prokaryote

Back 33

Unicellular organisms that do not have nuclei or other membrane- enclosed organelles. Includes bacteria and archaea.

Front 34

Eukaryote

Back 34

Organisms whose cells contain their genetic material inside a nucleus. Includes all life other than viruses, archaea, and bacteria.

Front 35

Organelle

Back 35

Any of the membrane enclosed structures w/in a eukaryotic cell. Ex: nucleus, endoplasmic reticulum, and mitochondria.

Front 36

Diffusion

Back 36

Random movement of molecules or other particles, resulting in even distribution of particles when no barriers are present.

Front 37

Osmosis

Back 37

Movement of water across a differentially permeable membrane, from one region to another region where the water potential is more negative.

Front 38

Hormone

Back 38

A chemical signal produced in minute amounts at one site in a multicellular organism and transported to another site where it acts on target cells.

Front 39

Receptor

Back 39

A protein that can bond to a specific molecule, or detect a specific stimulus, within a cell or in the cell's external environment.

Front 40

Energy

Back 40

The capacity to do work or move matter against an opposing force. The capacity to accomplish change in physical and chemical systems.

Front 41

Enzymes

Back 41

A catalytic protein that speeds up a biochemical reaction.

Front 42

Inhibition

Back 42

Input from a neuron that causes hyperpolarization of the recipient cell.