General Science Flash Card Set 762880

Cards 10
Topics Acidity, Arteries, Atomic Number, Carbohydrates, Cell Division, Filtering Air, Genetic Type, Plate Tectonics, Veins

Study Guide

Acidity

An acid is a substance that gives up positively charged hydrogen ions (H+) when dissolved in water. A base (alkaline) gives up negatively charged hydroxide ions (OH-) when dissolved in water. pH is a scale that measures of how basic or acidic a solution is. Numbered from 0 to 14, solutions with a pH of 7 are neutral, less than 7 are acidic, more than 7 are alkaline.

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.

Atomic Number

The Periodic Table of the Elements categorizes elements primarily by the number of protons in their nucleus (atomic number) and secondarily by the characteristics they exhibit.

Carbohydrates

Carbohydrates are major sources of energy for the body and are found in sugars (fruit, cane sugar, beets) and starches (bread, rice, potatoes, pasta).

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
Filtering Air

After air enters through the nose, it passes through the nasal cavity which filters, moistens, and warms it. Further filtering takes place in the pharynx, which also helps protect against infection, and then in the trachea which is just past the epiglottis, responsible for preventing food from entering the airway.

Genetic Type

A person's genotype is their genetic makeup and includes both dominant and recessive alleles. Phenotype is how the genes express themselves in physical characteristics.

Plate Tectonics

The crust and the rigid lithosphere (upper mantle) is made up of approximately thirty separate plates. These plates more very slowly on the slightly more liquid mantle (asthenosphere) beneath them. This movement has resulted in continental drift which is the gradual movement of land masses across Earth's surface. Continental drift is a very slow process, occurring over hundreds of millions of years.

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.