Macomb Community College, South Campus

BIOL 1000
Lab Practical I Review Sheet

Exercise 1: The Metric System

Upon successful completion of this lab, students should be able to:
 List the fundamental units of length or distance, weight or mass, volume, and temperature.
 Demonstrate proper use of metric rulers, balances, thermometers, and graduated cylinders to
obtain accurate measurements.
 Calculate the volume of a cube or rectangular prism.
 Perform unit conversions between metric units, without the use of a calculator or conversion
table.

Exercise 2: Diversity of Life

Upon successful completion of this lab, students should be able to:
 Describe the difference between an autotroph and a heterotroph.
 Describe the difference between prokaryotic and eukaryotic organisms.
 Describe the distinguishing characteristics of organisms within Domains Bacteria and Eukarya.
 Describe the distinguishing characteristics of organisms within Kingdoms Protista, Fungi,
Plantae, and Animalia.
 Distinguish between basic bacterial cell shapes (i.e., bacillus, coccus, and spirillum).
 Identify observed specimens and classify them into the proper Domain and Kingdom.
 Within Kingdom Plantae, identify and describe the distinguishing characteristics of each
specimen (i.e., nonvascular vs. vascular, non-seeded vs. seeded, and gymnosperm vs.
angiosperm).

Exercise 3: Taxonomy
Upon successful completion of this lab, students should be able to:
 List the taxa in order from most inclusive to most exclusive.
 Identify and describe traits used in the identification of tree leaves (leaf shapes, leaf margins,
leaf arrangement, simple vs. compound, etc.).
 Use a dichotomous key to correctly identify a leaf.
 Write scientific names in the proper format using binomial nomenclature.

Exercise 4: Microscopy
Upon successful completion of this lab, students should be able to:
 Identify the parts of a binocular compound microscope and describe their functions.
 Calculate the total magnification for each objective lens.
 Demonstrate proper technique to focus prepared specimens with the microscope.
 Demonstrate proper technique to prepare and focus a wet mount with the microscope.
 Describe the correct procedures for handling, storing, and cleaning microscopes.

Exercise 5: Cells
Upon successful completion of this lab, students should be able to:
 Explain cell theory.
 Identify and describe the structure and function of the major organelles of cells.
  Describe structural differences between plant and animal cells.
 Describe the difference between a cell membrane and a cell wall, and list which cell types have
each structure.
 Identify and differentiate between animal cells and plant cells under the microscope.
 Explain the difference between unicellular, colonial, and multicellular organisms.
 Identify the following unicellular and colonial organisms: Amoeba, Paramecium, Euglena, and
Spirogyra and their structures.
 Identify the structures used by Amoeba, Paramecium, and Euglena for movement and describe
how movement occurs.

Exercise 6: The Molecules of Life

Upon successful completion of this lab, students should be able to:
 List the four major classes of organic molecules found in cells.
 Explain the significance of positive (+) and negative (-) controls.
 List the reagents used to detect the presence of sugar, starch, protein, and lipid.
 Describe (and identify) the positive (+) and negative (-) outcomes for detection of sugar, starch,
protein, and lipid.
 Analyze a solution for the presence of sugar, starch, protein, and lipid.

Exercise 7: Membrane Transport

Upon successful completion of this lab, students should be able to:
 Explain the use of the model to demonstrate the importance of the surface area to volume ratio
to cell transport.
 Define solution, solute, solvent, diffusion, osmosis, and equilibrium.
 Describe how molecular size affects rate of diffusion.
 Define hypotonic, isotonic, and hypertonic solutions and describe the effects of each type of
solution on animal and plant cells.
 Explain the process of plasmolysis and describe the appearance of a plant cell that has
undergone plasmolysis.
 Describe the methods and list the reagents used to detect the movement of water, salt, and
starch across a selectively permeable membrane.
 Describe (and identify) the positive (+) and negative (-) outcomes for detection of salt and
starch.
 Analyze a solution for the presence of salt and starch.

Exercise 8: The Action of Enzymes

Upon successful completion of this lab, students should be able to:
 Define catalyst, variable, hydrolysis, substrate, product, active site, conformation, inhibitor,
denatured, and metabolism.
 Explain the hydrolysis reaction catalyzed by the enzyme amylase, making sure to identify the
substrate and product.
 Explain how the starch test can be used to indicate amylase activity.
 List the reagent used to detect amylase activity.
 Describe (and identify) the positive (+) and negative (-) outcomes for detection of starch.
 Interpret results of a starch test to detect starch hydrolysis and assess amylase activity.
 Describe how amylase activity is affected by time, temperature, pH, and copper.
Exercise 9: Cellular Respiration
Upon successful completion of this lab, students should be able to:
 Distinguish between aerobic and anaerobic respiration.
 Write the overall balanced equation for aerobic cellular respiration.
 Write the overall balanced equations for alcohol and lactic acid fermentation.
 State the gas produced during yeast fermentation.
 Assess which carbohydrates can be used during yeast fermentation.
 State and explain the effects of nutrient source on fermentation.
 Define titration.
 Explain how carbonic acid can be used as a measure of respiration.
 Explain the roles of phenolphthalein and sodium hydroxide in the titration experiment.
 Explain the role of resazurin in the resazurin dye reduction test.
 Explain the reason for color change that was observed in the spoiled milk sample.
 Describe (and identify) the positive (+) and negative (-) outcomes for the resazurin dye
reduction test.
 Identify a spoiled sample of milk by using the resazurin dye reduction test.
 List the major product of lactic acid fermentation.
 List at least two organisms that perform lactic acid fermentation.
 Measure the pH of different solutions with pH paper.

Exercise 10: Photosynthesis

Upon successful completion of this lab, students should be able to:
 Write the overall balanced equation for photosynthesis.
 Identify the source of energy for photosynthesis.
 Identify photosynthetic organisms.
 Define producer, photoautotroph, consumer, and heterotroph.
 Explain and label the basic structures of a leaf.
 Describe and label the structures of a chloroplast.
 State the gas produced during photosynthesis.
 Evaluate and explain the effects of light intensity and color on photosynthesis.
 Explain the source of carbon dioxide for aquatic plants.
 Monitor and identify photosynthesis performed by aquatic plants by using the indicator phenol
red.
 Describe and explain the color changes observed with the indicator phenol red.
 Identify and evaluate the solubility of photosynthetic pigments using paper chromatography.