General Science Flash Card Set 725571

Cards 10
Topics Arteries, Blood Cells, Cell Division, Central & Peripheral Nervous Systems, Curved Lenses, Minerals, Power, Veins, Weight

Study Guide

Arteries

The aorta is the body's largest artery and receives blood from the pulmonary vein via the left ventricle. From there, blood is circulated through the rest of the body through smaller arteries called arterioles that branch out from the heart. Finally, blood is delivered to bodily tissues through capillaries.

Blood Cells

Blood is created in bone marrow and is made up of cells suspended in liquid plasma. Red blood cells carry oxygen, white blood cells fight infection, and platelets are cell fragments that allow blood to clot.

Cell Division

Cell division is the process by which cells replicate genetic material in the nucleus. Cell division consists of several phases:

Phase Major Process
interphase chromosomes replicate into chromatids and the cell grows
prophase chromatids pair up
metaphase paired chromatids move to opposite sides of the cell
anaphase cell elongates and nucleus begins to separate
telophase separation of nucleus is complete resulting in two new nuclei
cytokinesis cytoplasm and cell membranes complete their separation resulting in two separate cells
Central & Peripheral Nervous Systems

The nervous system consists of the brain and spinal cord (central nervous system) and the peripheral nervous system which is the network of nerve cells (neurons) that collect and distribute signals from the central nervous system throughout the body.

Curved Lenses

Unlike curved mirrors that operate on the principle of reflection, lenses utilize refraction. A convex lens is thicker in the middle than on the edges and converges light while a concave lens is thicker on the edges than in the middle and diffuses light. A common use for curved lenses is in eye glasses where a convex lens is used to correct farsightedness and a concave lens is used to correct nearsightedness.

Minerals

Small quantities of certain minerals like iron, calcium, magnesium, and salt are important for nutrition and health.

Power

Power is the rate at which work is performed or work per unit time: \(P = {w \over t}\) and is measured in watts (W).

Veins

Veins carry blood back to the heart from the body. While arteries are thick-walled because they carry oxygenated blood at high pressure, veins are comparatively thin-walled as they carry low-pressure deoxygenated blood. Like the heart, veins contain valves to prevent blood backflow.

Weight

Weight is a force that describes the attraction of gravity on an object. Force is measured in newtons (N) with 1 N being the force required to impart an acceleration of 1 m/s2 to a mass of 1 kg.