Week 38

Students finished with MCAS and will begin reviewing for their final exam.  The exam will cover everything in Terms 3 and 4 (Semester 2) that we covered, not information from the entire year. Topics include: DNA replication, Transcription and Translation, Cell Division (Meiosis and Mitosis), Genetics (Punnett squares, dominant, recessive, incomplete dominance, co-dominance, sex-linked traits), Human Genetics (karyotype, pedigree), Evolution, Ecology.

Week 37

This week we will spend time reviewing for both the Ecology test and MCAS.  Ecology is the study of how organisms interact with each other and their environment.  It also includes how nutrients are cycled through the environment and how organisms contribute to this process.  Food webs show how organisms use different resources and the predator/prey relationships of the organisms involved.  When one or more organisms is taken out of the food web, the entire ecosystem can be affected.  Populations can be affected dramatically and food organisms can crash or grow based on the role of the organism that is originally impacted.