Study+Questions+09

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Plants and People
What are primary and secondary plant compounds and why are they so important to people?

Define secondary plant compounds and give three examples and the plants that synthesize them. Choose one of the examples and explain its human and ecological benefit.

Discuss in detail, how secondary compounds are used by a plant and what benefits these compounds have for humans. Discuss the role biotechnology plays in the production of these compounds with regards to species survival.

Explain why a healthy diet must include legumes and grasses. Explain several advantages that legumes have over grains for nutrition to humans as well as their ease and cost of cultivation.

Legumes and grains are extremely important food sources for humans. Different cultures use a combination of a legume and a grain for better health. What are the biochemical reasons for this pairing?

List the two most important food crop types and explain why each one cannot by itself satisfy the nutritional needs of a human population.

Why were/are citrus fruits so important in the human diet, especially sailors in the time of ocean exploration?

What components of the morphology of a fruit give it an advantage in transferring the seed to a good location for germination?

Explain why the appearance of a diet consisting of grains and legumes has evolved independently in various geographic areas.

Explain the differences in leaf structure – adaptations, etc. based on its location on a plant.

Explain the difference between a superior and inferior positioned fruit (draw diagram if you wish). Describe how an accessory fruit varies from a true or aggregate fruit.

Explain the differences between monocots and dicots. Explain the truth about dicots. Describe three external features that would allow you to determine whether a plant is a monocot or dicot.

Alternation of generations still occurs in today’s more primitive plants such as the fern. Why is this cycle of stages not prevalent in the modern plants?

Polyploidy occurs in plants naturally, why is this an evolutionary advantage?

Describe different pathways plants have taken in ovary modification for dispersal.

Design an experiment that tests whether the affinity of different dyes for a cotton T-shirt.

Explain how a teacher could use a variety of plants to describe how stems develop.

Give an example of a evolutionary symbiotic relationship between a plant and another organism.

Identify one positive and one negative of alkaloids.

Explain why dosage is so important when administering a drug.

Why are toxicity trials so important when determining dosage of a herbal medication.

What percentage of medicinal plants are used in today’s society?

What are the limitations of using GMOs to solve agricultural problems? What are some of the costs and benefits of using genetically modified crops? List the pros and cons of GMCs.

Describe the general process for brewing beer. What’s the importance in germinating barley before beer production?

Plants and people have an intricate relationship. Using the plants discussed in class this week, describe one beneficial and one detrimental relationship between plants and humans.

What was the green revolution and what were some of the positive and negative aspects of it? Discuss the Green Revolution and discuss the relative effectiveness and some of the impact the Green Revolution has had on world food sources.

Describe to a non-scientist the Penn State Monarch study and why it didn’t work.

What are genetically modified foods? What are some of the ways biotechnology makes GM foods? Discuss controversies surrounding GM foods.

Discuss why the introduction of GMCs into LDC’s and Europe can be difficult.

What are the implications of designing a gm plant and introducing it into an environment?

What are the limiting factors in photosynthesis and what strategies have plants evolved to maximize photosynthesis under different environmental conditions?

Explain the photosynthetic reaction and compare how 2 species have traded off with respect to light limitation and water limitations.

Provide the hypotheses that Brad Oberly was proposing for the speciation of the Shooting Star.

When thinking about plant ecophysiology and the photosynthetic process, discuss the limiting factors of growth and development and at least three ways it can determine a species’ survival.

Explain the importance of fruit in the life cycle of plants.

Explain the agricultural importance of hybridization of citrus.

Explain the importance of hybridization in creating plant diversity/more rigorous stock.

Describe Nigel Taylor’s basic project in modifying the cassava. What challenges has the team faced – both cultural and scientific.

Compare and contrast the potential benefits and concerns of biotechnology and biodiversity from the manufacturing to distribution of GM Crops.

Describe the process of entering a gene into a plant using a plasmid.

Explain why an understanding of basic plant anatomy and physiology can be critical to taxonomy.

How has the classification of plants been altered due to technological advances?

How is the knowledge of the phylogenic relationships of different plants useful to plant researchers today?

What reproductive strategies have grains employed that are unique to them among other angiosperms?

What are the major crops that have been modified to date and why?

Explain the difference between herbal nutritional supplements and plant-derived drugs?

Describe 2 or 3 examples of specific herbal supplements or herbal medicines and explain how they may be harmful or beneficial to human health.

Pick one of the following plants and give a brief history of how it was used as an herbal and explain its current use as the base for synthetic drugs: Chaulmougra oil from Hydnocarpus, Kurzii, Cinchona tree (quinine), Ephedra, Black Willow, or coca tree.

Explain what causes differences in solubility in the color extracts of plants. For example, what makes red pigments of plants more soluble in an alcohol solution versus yellow pigments?

Name four major modifications that may occur in plants due to climate change.

__**Review Questions for Ecology & Environmental Science**__

Describe the difference between top down and bottom up regulation of biomass in ecosystems. How does this relate to a trophic cascade? In what ways do the ponds at Tyson illustrate a trophic cascade?

Given the following data (provided by you), calculate the t-value and determine whether your calculations is statistically valid.

Why must a scientist run a statistical test on the data?

Describe some examples where species exhibit a trade-off between foraging and anti-predatory behavior.

Given the following data, the life stage information provided, and the following matrix, predict the outcomes of the next  generations.

Use the following elasticity matrix to determine where you would put your greatest energies in managing this invasive species.

Use the twin ponds to design an experiment that might answer one of the questions we had after doing our investigation. State your question and then outline the design of the experiment.

What makes Monarda such a good species for pollination studies?

How has habitat fragmentation supported the spread of invasive species?

What are the major reasons that invasive species can become invasive? Give an example of how an invasive species becomes established.

Distinguish between an alien and invasive species. Give an example of each.

Give reasons why more diversity could defend against an invasive.

Give reasons why more diversity could defend against disease.

Why is mathematical modeling important to ecological studies? What are some uses of population ecology models? What are the advantages and disadvantages of the use of models to study populations in ecosystems?

Give an example of how Modern Synthesis how has forged new fields of study.

Explain the competitive exclusion principle.

How can species coexist if they are located in the same environment and compete for the same resources?

Explain what it means when r>1, r<1 and r=1.

Explain why a population with an r>1 can still go extinct.

What type of productivity would you expect with large amounts of diversity and why?

Describe how species diversity and area are related. Why is it so important to try to hold onto large, intact areas?

Explain the concept of island biogeography and why it is important to an ecologist who does not study island communities? How does a new volcanic island’s location affect its diversity? Explain why a near and large island should have more species than any other combination of size and distance.

Explain the role of a keystone predator in an ecosystem.