Merry Christmas To All of You

DNA and Evolution

We have been looking at the evolution of our common ancestor - the first eukaryotic cell. Earlier this week we did an online activity to review the organelles of a cell. That activity can be found at Mrs. Sliwinski's site in the biology folder - Virtual Cell Tour. Today we are going to look at the role DNA plays in evolution. There are two web based activities that you are going to do to introduce you to this idea. The directions for the activity can by found by CLICKING HERE.

Common Ancestors December 9, 2008

We have spent the last week of class assembling a cladogram of caminacules so that we could begin to understand the process of evolution by looking at lineage and common ancestry. Today we are going to begin to look at our common ancestors and our evolutionary cladogram by starting at the beginning with the evolution of eukaryotic cells.

We will be doing THIS ACTIVITY in the computer lab today.

Highlights of Evolution

Here are the notes from class on the basic concepts that make up the bigger theory of Evolution.

Introduction to Evolution Nov. 21, 2008

Today in the computer lab we will be working on the basic processes that lead to evolution. The assignment is at THIS LINK.



Articles to use for research journals that relate to this topic
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/11/081120130531.htm
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/11/081119122634.htm
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/11/081119140712.htm

Cladograms Week of November 17

We have spent the last week working on creating Cladograms. Cladograms are a way to classify living things by using genetic traits, common traits and common ancestors. Students in class had the opportunity to create cladograms to help classify pieces of hardware, animals by amino acid sequences for amylase and nodnols.

To find out more about cladograms, we used THIS SITE.

Fossil Record Assessment

Take the following quiz. Mrs Shryock will assign you a number code to enter as your name. When you are done, you can start on this assignment . Now you are going to do an activity to help you better understand the ides of THE TREE OF LIFE. To start the activity CLICK HERE. There a 5 folders to work through - we will have more than one day to do this activity. Set up your notes so that you have a section for each of the folders. You should have definitions for all the purple words AND facts about each topic.

Lab Assessment for unit 3 Fossil Record » Quiz Question Maker

Fossils and Collecting

We had a guest paleontologist in our class today to share info with our classes.

How can we tell the difference between a fossil and a rock? First we had a chance to guess at the identify of a large fossil. Fossil bone may be porous. We had a chance to look at a whale vertebrae - from the Eocine/Miocine period - so it about 50 million years old. Index fossils can also help us to identify a fossil. The index fossils found with the vertebrae were shark teeth - so we know that the fossil came from an aquatic environment.

Next we got to look at a mammoth tooth.

We learned that some common beliefs people have about fossils aren't really true- most people don't find dinosaurs in their backyard.
The truth is - fossils are found on every continent and in every state except Hawaii
In the US, we can find fossils from all geologic time periods
In Ohio, only fossils from Ordovician to Permian can be found - the glaciers eroded away the other rock layers. If you look at a map of rock time periods in Ohio - you will see that there are older rocks in the glaciated side (western ) and the newer rocks are in the unglaciated side (eastern)

Scientists don't agree on exact start and end points for geologic time periods. Rock layers are mostly consistent across the world - but local exceptions occur, which lead to different boundaries.

Fossil collectors need safety equipment like hard hats, safety goggles, rock dust masks and safety vests. There is always a danger of rock slides in the areas they might be working in.

Fossil collectors use pry bars, sledge hammers, pick axes, rock hammers and rock saws to collect the stone material that contains fossils. Some locations allow you to sift for fossils using a screen.

Fossil hunters go any where there is exposed rock - quarries, road beds, river and stream beds are all good locations. You can't hunt on private property without permission. Some locations require you to have a permit. Some fossil hunters do ground collection - finding fossils that are eroded out and lying on the ground or along the water's edge.

Diatoms can leave behind microscopic fossils - these organisms were sensitive to water temp and salinity changes so they can give scientists information on what the early ocean might have been like.

In lab, we are going to have a chance to look at crinoid fossils, brachiopods, trilobites and more.

Sometimes paleontologists find fossils that have body plans that don't exist anymore - so scientist know very little about them - how they moved, how they reproduced, what they ate.

Fossil collecting is a great hobby - it gives you the opportunity to find life forms that may not exist anymore. It is a chance to be outside and to meet new people. There are clubs that you can belong to. In our area, the North Coast Fossil Club holds regular meetings. There are between 100 and 200 members. There is a guest speaker at each meeting.

Scientists can gather a lot of information from a fossil - body plan, structure and even x-ray images that show internal details.

Resource Links To Learn More About This Science
http://www.fossils-facts-and-finds.com/
http://cmnh.org/site/ResearchandCollections/InvertebratePaleontology.aspx

Is there life in my bottle?

What are the indicators that living things are present?
What are the traits of living things?
What is the minimum required for life to exist?

We did an experiment with yeast, water and sugar in a bottle to observe what indicators of life were observable. We used microscopes to view cells, collected gas in a balloon and looked at sugar use in the bottle.

Happy Halloween

Happy Halloween

Today's online activity is a Halloween grab bag of fun...use the links on the page below to earn a yummy, bloody body part treat from my coffin of gore...

http://docs.google.com/Doc?id=dc39nfhs_284c73v98dq

Timelines and Life on Earth

Today in class we reviewed the online assignment from Thursday and Friday. There are 4 key concepts that we can take away from this assignment
1. The Earth has changed in its 4.5 billion year history and we need to understand these changes if we are to understand how life has evolved on the Earth
2. There are some living things that have remained unchanged for billions of years
3. There are some living things that became extinct after millions of years
4. The diversity of life increases as we move forward through time.

We then talked about the characteristics of living things

There will be a quiz on the timelines and on the characteristics of living things on Thursday.

Origins of Life Websearch

You have had the opportunity to create a timeline showing the beginnings of life on Earth. Today we are going to look at the characteristics of life - and examples of life from each time period. We will be using THIS WEBSITE The science that we are studying is called PaleoBiology.

Here is the assignment to go with it - you can do this as a hard copy or write the info in your notes or create your own word doc with the answers.

October 20 AND 21

We are creating timelines of Earth showing key developments in the origin and evolution of life. Students may use their book or online book to help with this.

Your assignment today is to learn more about the history of Life on Earth. You may choose one of four ways of doing this:

Choice Number 1 – create an illustrated timeline of event in the history of life on Earth using two sheets of plain paper taped together side by side longways, colored pencils and your textbook.



Taped papers

For the timeline:
Start with 4.6 billion years ago - page 423 – top of 424
Then p. 426
Then p. 427
Then p. 428
Then p 429-434

For each time period – you should write the date (in billion years ago, million years ago or thousands of years ago) write a short description of what Earth was looking like and what life -or conditions for life was looking like. Include any key events that occurred during the time period (for example mass extinction)

Choice Number 2 – Make a comic book about key events and types of life over the history of Earth – using pages 423, 424, 426-434. Use plain paper, colored pencils and the textbook

Choice Number 3 – Write a short story about a biologist from the future who is sent backwards through time back to the beginning of Earth to collect samples of life and the molecules that might have lead to life beginning on Earth. Include key events and dates for each time period.

Choice Number 4 – Think of your own way to show or describe the history of life on our Earth using pages 423-434 in the textbook and your online packet from Friday as a reference.

Timeline of the Earth

Today we are looking at the timeline of Earth's history. We will be making a model of this with toilet paper next week - yes I said toilet paper.

Use THIS LINK to complete the packet for today.

Origins of Life

We are beginning a new unit that will exam how life first began on Earth, basic cells and how scientists classify life and use the fossil record to look at our past.

Here are the classnotes from today

Introduction to Life On Earth

Tomorrow we have a test on macromolecules - proteins, carbohydrates, nucleic acids, lipids and pH. It is a closed not test. I will be checking notebooks. The following should be in your notebook:
Notes on Lipids
Notes on Proteins
Notes on Carbohydrates
Notes on Nucleic Acids and RNA code activity
pH notes
pH lab
Molecular behavior - solubility
Solubility lab
Molecular behavior - bonds
Balancing equations
Microscope History
Microscope intro lab
Scientific method
Mentos lab notes
Molecule cut outs

There is a lecture this Thursday evening at the Cleveland Museum of Natural History on Astro Chemistry that ties directly to what we will be discussing in class this week. If you attend the lecture, I will give you credit for 2 Research Journals.

October 10 Fat Friday Assignment

Today we finish up our week of molecules by looking at LIPIDS. Remember that next Tuesday we have test on molecules and pH.

Macromolecule Week

This week we are working on macromolecules. Tuesday we learned about Carbohydrates. Wednesday we focused on Nucleic Acids. Thursday we will be studying Proteins and Friday we will be doing an online activity about lipids.

Links about macromolecules
http://www.sci.uidaho.edu/bionet/biol115/t2_basics_of_life/lesson2.htm#Macromolecules

Links about Carbohydrates
http://www.nutramed.com/nutrition/carbohydrates.htm
http://www.chem4kids.com/files/bio_carbos.html



Links about Nucleic Acids
http://www.chem4kids.com/files/bio_nucleicacids.html
http://learn.genetics.utah.edu/content/begin/dna/transcribe/
http://genetics.gsk.com/overview.htm

pH Lab October 4

We will be experimenting today with pH using a natural indicator.

Organic Molecules and pH

Tomorrow we are going to be doing a pH lab using an indicator made from Red Cabbage. Here is a quick video about pH. Today you are going to do an online interactive to learn more about pH. By the end of the period, you should be able to explain what pH is, how it is measured and the difference between and acid and a base. When you are done, you may work on your project which is due tomorrow or a research journal - which is due today.

Part 1
Define pH In the lab section of your notebook, write down the definition of pH and give an example of an acid, neutral and base. Use the following information to write a definition in your own words.

pH
Under the Brønsted-Lowry definition, both acids and bases are related to the concentration of hydrogen ions present. Acids increase the concentration of hydrogen ions, while bases decrease the concentration of hydrogen ions (by accepting them). The acidity or basicity of something therefore can be measured by its hydrogen ion concentration.

In 1909, the Danish biochemist Sören Sörensen invented the pH scale for measuring acidity.A solution with [H⁺] = 1 x 10^-7 moles/liter has a pH equal to 7 (a simpler way to think about pH is that it equals the exponent on the H⁺ concentration, ignoring the minus sign). The pH scale ranges from 0 to 14. Substances with a pH between 0 and less than 7 are acids (pH and [H⁺] are inversely related - lower pH means higher [H⁺]). Substances with a pH greater than 7 and up to 14 are bases (higher pH means lower [H⁺]). Right in the middle, at pH = 7, are neutral substances, for example, pure water. The relationship between [H⁺] and pH is shown in the table below alongside some common examples of acids and bases in everyday life.

	[H+]	pH	Example
Acids	1 X 100	0	HCl
	1 x 10-1	1	Stomach acid
	1 x 10-2	2	Lemon juice
	1 x 10-3	3	Vinegar
	1 x 10-4	4	Soda
	1 x 10-5	5	Rainwater
	1 x 10-6	6	Milk
Neutral	1 x 10-7	7	Pure water
Bases	1 x 10-8	8	Egg whites
	1 x 10-9	9	Baking soda
	1 x 10-10	10	Tums® antacid
	1 x 10-11	11	Ammonia
	1 x 10-12	12
	1 x 10-13	13
	1 x 10-14	14	NaOH

Part 2 Explain how the number of Hydrogen ions changes as the pH number changes. Use this site to help you pH and the power of 10

Part 3 Explain why acids and bases act differently when they are added to water. Hint - think about H ions and OH ions. Use this site to help you pH and water

Astrobiology Project Due October 3

We will be working on an astrobiology project this week. It will be focusing on Carbon, Nitrogen and Hydrogen and what role these elements play in the development of carbohydrates, lipids and proteins.




Project Rubric

Carbohydrate fact pages from class
Fats and Protein fact pages from class

Additional Resources You Can Use
http://scienceaid.co.uk/biology/fundamentals/carbohydrates.html
http://scienceaid.co.uk/biology/fundamentals/lipids.html
http://scienceaid.co.uk/biology/fundamentals/proteins.html
http://www.cyberlipid.org/cyberlip/desc0004.htm#top
http://askabiologist.asu.edu/research/buildingblocks/index.html
http://www.space.com/scienceastronomy/051018_science_tuesday.html
http://www.ciw.edu/news/building_blocks_life_formed_mars
http://organic-chemistry.suite101.com/article.cfm/what_are_organic_molecules
http://kidshealth.org/kid/nutrition/food/protein.html
http://kidshealth.org/kid/nutrition/food/carb.html

September 23 Chapter 2 Guided Reading

We had class time today to finish chapter two guided reading. Tomorrow you will need to bring a nickel to class with you - we are going to look at the properties of water. We already have made observations dealing with solubility. Later this week we will be looking at pH and we will be starting a astrobiology project.

September 22 2008 Molecule Behavior Part 2

Today we are going to do a quick experiment with sugar and water and starch and water. Then we will review the types of bonds atoms can form with one another.

How Molecules Behave Part 1 September 17 2008

For the past three days you have been working on a guided reading packet for Chapter 2 of our book. Today we are going to do some observations on how molecules behave and create a list of questions based on our observations

Monday September 15, 2008

For the next two weeks we are going to look at why life couldn't exist without chemical reactions. To start, we are going to review balancing equations and learn more about the basic elements of life - Oxygen, Carbon, Nitrogen, Hydrogen, Phosphorous . Keep your work in your class notes section of your binder.

Activity 1 - Do the balancing equations problems on worksheet 1 using this website
Activity 2 Learning about Carbon

1. Write down the element symbol, atomic number and atomic weight.
2. Write down where it can be found in nature
3. Scroll down and write a description of what the element looks like
   

Activity 3 Learn about Carbon and biology - answer these questions

1. How much is in your body - (change it from kilograms to pounds before calculating)
2. What is the ppb of the element in the human body?
3. What is the biological role of the element?

Activity 4 Learning about Oxygen

1. Write down the element symbol, atomic number and atomic weight.
2. Write down where it can be found in nature
3. Scroll down and write a description of what the element looks like
   

Activity 5 Learning about Oxygen and biology

1. How much is in your body - (change it from kilograms to pounds before calculating)
2. What is the ppb of the element in the human body?
3. What is the biological role of the element?

Activity 6 Learning about Nitrogen

1. Write down the element symbol, atomic number and atomic weight.
2. Write down where it can be found in nature
3. Scroll down and write a description of what the element looks like

Activity 7 Learning about Nitrogen and biology

1. How much is in your body - (change it from kilograms to pounds before calculating)
2. What is the ppb of the element in the human body?
3. What is the biological role of the element?

Activity 8 Learning about Hydrogen

1. Write down the element symbol, atomic number and atomic weight.
2. Write down where it can be found in nature
3. Scroll down and write a description of what the element looks like

Activity 9 Learning about Hydrogen and biology

1. How much is in your body - (change it from kilograms to pounds before calculating)
2. What is the ppb of the element in the human body?
3. What is the biological role of the element?

Activity 10 Learning about Phosphorous

1. Write down the element symbol, atomic number and atomic weight.
2. Write down where it can be found in nature
3. Scroll down and write a description of what the element looks like

Activity 11 Learning about Phosphorous and biology

1. How much is in your body - (change it from kilograms to pounds before calculating)
2. What is the ppb of the element in the human body?
3. What is the biological role of the element?

September 9 Microscope Lab

Yesterday in the computer lab you had the chance to finish your online microscope activity. Today we are going to do a basic microscope lab with three stations. You will be taking notes on a lab sheet which will go in your notebook lab section. Just a reminder - you have a research journal arcticle on Thursday and a test on section 1.1 and 1.2 and the microscope on Thursday. You will be able to use your notes for this test.

Assignment for September 5

Today we had a shortened afternoon because of the great pep rally/tv appearance our school put on this morning - and I was happy to see so many of you up at 5:00 AM - I was very proud of our school.

Here is what we looked at 6 period today as a way of reviewing the scientific method.

Assignment for September 4

We will be working with information about mosquitoes today in preparation for the research project we will be participating in.

For the assignment, click here

For information on the research study, click here

Open House Presentation -What I told your parents

Open house is a great opportunity to meet your parents. I had a chance to share with them the work that you have already done in class as well as what we will be doing this year.

Slide show link

Parts of a microscope

Today in class we reviewed the parts of our student microscope and students got a diagram to include in their lab section of their binder. We also talked about micro measurement using millimeters and micrometers. Students used small rulers to measure the field of view using their 4x and 10x objective lenses.

Micro Field Trip - online September 2, 2008

Today we went to the computer lab and took a virtual field trip to the microscope museum. We wrote about what we learned in our class notes section of our binders.

Assignment from August 29. 2008

We used our textbook to review the parts of a controlled experiment, learn about spontaneous generation and look at four scientists who had a role in developing the idea that life does not just magically appear by spontaneous generation - that life has to come from existing life.

Click here to find the assignment document

The online textbook is available at httP//www.phschool.com click on successnet login the login is biology and the password is warriors

Creating a mentos experiment

Using our initial observations of the reaction caused by dropping mentos into diet coke, we created a list of questions and a hypothesis. Today we identified the variables for our experiment and created a procedure to test it.

To review what we did in class click here

August 27, 2008 Designing an experiment

Today in class we went through how to write a research journal and we wrote our first research journal which was collected.

Then we discussed independent and dependent variables and how to create an experiment using these variables.

Tuesday August 26 Observation and Hypothesis

What happens when you put Mentos into Diet Coke? Today we will find out as we learn about qualitative and quantitative data and where hypothesis come from.

Classroom Lesson Notes August 25, 2008

Today in class we set up our Biology notebooks, talked about Research Journals and did a lab activity that focused on the reason scientists need accurate procedures.
To find the directions for the research journals on the blog site, click here

Flashcards for Unit 1.1 quiz

Use these flashcards to help you study for the Unit 1.1 quiz

Powered By ProProfs: Create Flashcards

August 22 Intro to Unit 1 Understanding the Scientific Process - How to think like a scientist

We will be spending the next few days thinking about how scientists think and what it takes to create a scientific experiment. Some of our activities may be explosively fun. Below is the powerpoint from class.

Pre -test for Unit 1

Try this online quiz to see how well you do on some of the key ideas we are going to be covering in the next week.

Powered By ProProfs: Create A Quiz

Grade Contracts for 2008-2009

Grade contracts give students in my classes the opportunity to take responsibility for their own grade. By letting students know up front what quality level of work is expected of them and what needs to be included in an assignment to earn a certain score, they know exactly what they need to do to earn the grade they are comfortable with. Assignments are not worth "points". Instead they can receive a quality score of 2,3 or 4 based on the basic level, stretch level and challenge level work described below. I use a rubric system for all large assignments which is also based on the same quality score scale. Final grades are based on the average quality score that students have earned for the quarter (80%) along with their average team score (20%). Below is the PowerPoint I used in class to introduce grade contracts.

Research Journals

Sources for Research Journal Articles:

Science Daily
Science News For Kids

Format for Research Journals – Everyone must do 1 journal a week.
Journals should be kept in your class binder in the journal section.
They are due on Thursday of each week.

HEADING FORMAT
Title
Date
Source
Author (if stated)
Science Field (biology, genetics, environmental, biochemistry,botany,zoology)
Researcher’s Names
Institution or College that is sponsoring the research

Challenge Level -4
9-12 Sentence Summary of the research – what it is, how is it being conducted, how long has the research been conducted, what was the initial problem or question, are their finding supporting their hypothesis

2-3 Sentences explaining who will benefit from this research, or how it will effect our world

3-4 Sentences – What questions would you like to ask the researchers? What additional research might have to be done?

List any vocab words in the article that you didn’t understand and their definitions

Stretch Level-3
6-8 Sentence Summary of the research – what it is, how is it being conducted, how long has the research been conducted, what was the initial problem or question, are their finding supporting their hypothesis

1-2 Sentences explaining who will benefit from this research, or how it will effect our world

1-2 Sentences -What questions would you like to ask the researchers?

List any vocab words in the article that you didn’t understand and their definitions

Basic Level-2
3-5 Sentence summary of the research – what it is, how long has it been going on, what have they discovered.

1-2 Sentences explaining who will benefit from this research, or how it will effect our world

List any vocab words in the article that you didn’t understand and their definitions

Biology Day 1 Introduction

Welcome to Biology. This year we will be focusing on 4 major themes - Classification of Life, Genetics, Ecosystems and Environmental Biology. We are going to be using Prentice Hall Biology by Miller and Levine as our main textbook along with a wide variety of other materials. You will be able to access your textbook online. Assignments, resource links and class notes will be posted on this blog site. We will also be using Google Docs to share work with each other during the year. I have put our powerpoint from the first day into my Google Docs account, published it and pasted it into the HTML text of this blog for you to see - I am going to be teaching you how to do this too!

I am looking forward to working with all of you this year. For many of you, this is the third time we have worked together - so I have a good idea of what you already know and what your strengths are. For those of you who are new to my classes, I am excited about getting to know you as a student as we explore biology this year.

Footprints 2008 Editors Rebecca Mahalic and Lori Bejbl

Footprints is the literary magazine for Fairivew High School in Fairview Park, Ohio. It accepts submissions of poetry, short fiction, essays and artwork. This is the first year that it has been presented in a vcast format. To view the vcast, click the arrow in the middle of the window below. Please feel free to leave comments on the site.