ABC Biology Book

By Vallie Bulow
Period 6
Introduction
I chose the words in this book because they are words that I learned this year that
are very important in my opinion. The ABC Biology Book is made to show my
understanding of the topics we learned this semester in biology. It is also made to
give other people the opportunity to learn more about biology.
A
Mitosis/Meiosis

Is For Anaphase

Anaphase is the third part of mitosis when the

centromeres and being pulled apart by spindle fibers
on each side of the cell. One sister chromatid from
each chromosome heads to the opposite side of the
cell.
B
DNA/RNA

Is For Base

Our DNA is made up of nucleotides that are made of

three parts: phosphate, deoxyribose sugar, and a
nitrogenous base. There are four different bases that
are named Adenine, Thymine, Guanine, and Cytosine.
These bases are matched together with their partner,
Adenine is matched with Thymine and Guanine is
matched with Cytosine, and connected with hydrogen
bonds.
C
Cladograms

Is For Cladograms

Cladograms are charts that show how organisms are

related to each other and show common ancestry. They
show the order of the development of traits and show
when a specific trait appears. I also can show when an
organism branches off and becomes an independent
species.
D
DNA Replication

Is For DNA Replication

DNA replication is the process of producing two
identical copies of a DNA strand. DNA replication has
three main steps:

1. Unzip the DNA. Hydrogen bonds between bases

are broken by the DNA helicase.
2. Free nucleotides around the DNA bond with the
unzipped DNA. They are attached together with
the DNA polymerase.
3. This continues until all the DNA in the strand are
replicated.
E
Evolution

Is For Evolution
Evolution is any change in the heritable traits within a
population across generations. This is how species
change to have different features. We evolve to be
different.

https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Human_evoluti
on.svg
F
Taxonomy

Is For Family

Family is a word that helps to categorize organisms in

taxonomy. It is classified between order and genus.
G
Genetics

Is for Genetics

Often, you may have heard of your gene making you

the way you are. Your genetics are your features and
traits that you have from your genes. Genes are a
section of your DNA put together that make you the
way you are.
H
Natural Selection

Is For Heritability

Heritability is when variations are inherited from the

parents to the offspring. The variations in genetics
are important because they help the species to
evolve and adapt to their environment. Having
heritability helps us be unique and different from the
living things around us just like the flower in the
picture to the right.
I
Protein Synthesis

Is For Introns

Introns are “junk DNA.” They are sequences of non-coding

DNA. This means that the nucleotides in this an intron
don’t code for anything they are there just to be there and
to connect each extron together in a DNA strand.
J
Evolution

Is for Jean Baptiste Lamarck

Jean Baptiste Lamarck was a very important person who

helped with discovering evolution. He believed that evolution
is due to the traits that organisms acquired during their
lifetime. He also believed that organisms selected what
structures or organs they used and that is what made the
organisms acquire or lose their traits.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jean-Baptiste_L
amarck
K
Taxonomy

Is For Kingdom

Kingdom is the word in taxonomy that represents the

kingdoms in biology. There are five kingdoms. The five
kingdoms are:
● Animal
● Plant
● Fungi
● Protist
● Monera
L
HeLa Book Read

Is for Lacks

Lacks is the last name of the person that gave scientist

the first immortal cell line. Her name was Henrietta
Lacks and these cells came from one of her cervical
cancer tumors. These cells weren’t taken with her
consent but they have provided so many opportunities
scientists and have helped create many vaccines for
many diseases.

https://www.nytimes.com/2013/08/08/science/after-
decades-of-research-henrietta-lacks-family-is-asked
-for-consent.html
M
Mitosis

Is For Mitosis

Mitosis is the process after interphase in the cell cycle.

This process is when the nucleus divides into two parts.
Mitosis consists of four stages:

1. Prophase
2. Metaphase
3. Anaphase
4. Telophase
N
Natural Selection

Is For Natural Selection

Natural Selection is the process by which traits become

more or less common in a population. There are four
principles of natural selection which are variation,
heritability, overproduction, and reproductive
advantages. Natural selection helps a species live in
their environment just like rock pocket mice which have
used natural selection to be able to camouflage
themselves from predators.

https://www.smithsonianmag.com/science-nature/evoluti
on-in-black-and-white-50053448/
O
Taxonomy

Is For Order

Order is a word in taxonomy that breaks down and

organizes a species. There are fourteen different
sections of order.
P
Cycles

Is For Phosphorus Cycle

All organisms need the phosphorus cycle and require

it for growth and development. The phosphorus cycle
cycles through rocks, water, and soil. Some
organisms get their phosphorus from soil and others
get it from eating other organisms.

https://www.britannica.com/science/phosphorus-cycle
Q
Protein Synthesis

Is For Quaternary

A quaternary is when multiple amino acid chains are

bonded together. This connects proteins together and
makes a quaternary.

https://www.mun.ca/biology/scarr/iGen3_06-04.html
R
Evolution

Is For Redi’s Experiment

Redi’s experiment was a test that disproved

spontaneous generation. In this experiment he put
meat into jars that were uncovered and jars that were
covered. He found that the uncovered meat produced
maggots, but the covered meat did not. This proved
that live can’t just appear on its own spontaneously.
S
Complex Systems

Is For (Complex) Systems

Complex systems are systems that contain many parts

that work together to create a whole system. Each part
of the system is an organism that has an individual role,
but it completes its role while thinking with its
surroundings. This is like a flock of birds; they each do
their individual parts but work together to make a whole

https://www.livescience.com/32812-why-do-bird-flocks-mo
ve-in-unison.html
T
Protein Synthesis

Is For tRNA

tRNA is a shorter name for transfer RNA. Transfer RNA brings

specific amino acids to the ribosome and matches up with the
mRNA, messenger RNA, the amino acid sequence of the
protein. tRNA is found in the cytoplasm attached to the amino
acid.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Transfer_RNA
U
DNA/RNA

Is For Uracil

Uracil is a base in RNA that pairs up andenine. When

RNA gets paired with a strand of DNA, uracil takes
the place of thymine.
V
Evolution

Is For Vestigial Structures

Vestigial structures are structures that come from our

ancestors that we don’t need anymore. Our ancestors
needed them in their environment but we no longer
need them. This is like the human appendix.

https://www.webmd.com/digestive-disorders/picture-of-the-appendix
W
Evolution

Is For Wallace

Alfred Wallace was a scientist that discovered natural

selection at the same time as Darwin. He studied
biogeography which is geographical distribution of plants
and animals.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alfred_Russel_Wallace
X
Pedigrees

Is For X Chromosome

The X chromosome is a chromosome that both males and

females have. Females have two of these chromosomes.
Males only have one.
Y
Pedigrees

Is For Y Chromosome

The Y chromosome is what make males males. Males

have one X chromosome and one Y chromosome, but
females have two X chromosomes. The X and Y
chromosomes can be differentiated by their size; the Y
chromosome is smaller than the X chromosome.
Z
Protein Synthesis

Is For Zipping Up

Zipping up relates to protein synthesis because in the

process of transcription, the RNA polymerase unzips the
DNA, reads the DNA, and codes for the complementary
RNA chain. After transcription, the DNA must be put back
together or in other words, zipped up.

https://www.visiblebody.com/blog/dna-and-rna-basics-replication-trans
cription-and-translation
Conclusion
My favorite topic from this semester was DNA and RNA. I thought that learning
about DNA and its replication process, its matching pairs, and RNA’s ability to read
the DNA and code for amino acids was amazing. There is so much in DNA and
each little part of it make learning about it magical.
DOK Q&A
3rd Quarter:
Compare and contrast transcription and
translation.- In protein synthesis, transcription is
the process of copying DNA using RNA bases.
Translation is the process of reading the mRNA
and decoding them to make protein. Both these
processes work together to make the outcome
of protein synthesis, but they are different
because one, transcription, works with DNA and
the other has nothing to do with DNA.
Translation works with the mRNA created in the
process of transcription.
4th Quarter:
Predict what will happen to a population of mice
as their environment is changed.- If a population
of mice has a change in environment, I predict
that the mouse population will evolve to fit in
with its surroundings. Mutations may occur and
through natural selection the population may
change to have those mutations so that they
can survive better. Natural selection is a huge
part of evolution because natural selection is
what makes the population change.
Works Cited
- Wolcott, H (2021) Biology Class Materials
- All photos are cited on the page they are used on
Extra Credit Slides
C
Cell Cycles

Is for Cytokinesis

Cytokinesis is the part of the cell cycle when the cells

completely split apart. Cytokinesis happens in a short
amount of time right after mitosis. Remember, telophase
starts breaking the cells into separate cells with two
nuclei, but cytokinesis is completely pulling the cells
apart.

https://bio.libretexts.org/Bookshelves/Introductory_and
_General_Biology/Book%3A_Introductory_Biology_(C
K-12)/02%3A_Cell_Biology/2.35%3A_Mitosis_and_Cyt
okinesis
A
DNA/RNA

Is For Adenine

Adenine is one of the nitrogen bases in DNA. It pairs

with thymine, but if it’s opposite is RNA instead of DNA,
it is matched with uracil.