Anyone good in Biology?

[Antisocial Virge]

Just say it works by intelligent design and scream about freedom of speech and religion when they give you an F.

<-- Honors Bsc Wildlife Biology with a Minor in Nutritional Sciences.

 

[Turnpike]

You're screwed for putting this off for so long. Here's as basic as I can get:

Glycolsis: one 6 carbon glucose molecule is split into 2 3 carbon pyruvates. You spend 2 atp and get 4 atp, netting 2 ATP out of it. This is anaerobic.

Krebs (aka TCA): Those pyruvates are first changed to Acetyl-CoA's which go thru a big cycle and spit out NADH and FADH's (these are important for later). You don't get energy here.

Electron Transport Chain (aka oxidative phosphorylation): All those FADH and NADH's are used to push free H+'s into an enclosed space. Because the concentration of H+'s is so high it creates an "electo-chemical" gradient. All the H+'s want to go out. It's like water built up before a dam. And there's a turbine (the enzyme that I forgot the name of) that uses the energy of these H+'s spilling out to turn itself and make ADP to ATP. This aerobic because oxygen catches all these H+'s giving you water (H2O)!

Anyways thats the big picture. You have to read your text and notes to fill in the details.

 

[raz3000]

As a junior in college (last year) I had to memorize EVERY reaction in the Citric Acid Cycle (i.e. Krebs cycle), and here they are for an upper-level biochemistry class. That was not fun. BTW Turnpike's explanation is right on.

 

[StevenYoo]

Originally posted by: Turnpike
You're screwed for putting this off for so long. Here's as basic as I can get:

Glycolsis: one 6 carbon glucose molecule is split into 2 3 carbon pyruvates. You spend 2 atp and get 4 atp, netting 2 ATP out of it. This is anaerobic.

Krebs (aka TCA): Those pyruvates are first changed to Acetyl-CoA's which go thru a big cycle and spit out NADH and FADH's (these are important for later). You don't get energy here.

Electron Transport Chain (aka oxidative phosphorylation): All those FADH and NADH's are used to push free H+'s into an enclosed space. Because the concentration of H+'s is so high it creates an "electo-chemical" gradient. All the H+'s want to go out. It's like water built up before a dam. And there's a turbine (the enzyme that I forgot the name of) that uses the energy of these H+'s spilling out to turn itself and make ADP to ATP. This aerobic because oxygen catches all these H+'s giving you water (H2O)!

Anyways thats the big picture. You have to read your text and notes to fill in the details.

what he said.

 

[Xyo II]

How to become a genius:

1. Buy lots of this
2. Search here

 

[ed21x]

back in college, when we were tested on metabolism, the archetypcal question was to follow a carbon all the way from Acetyl CoA through the three cycles, and see where that one carbon ends up in the final product. It was f'ing hard, but the trick was not to memorize the entire cycle, but to only memorize at what point the carbon moved from within the backbone. It cut donw the work 75%. other than that, don't try to straight memorize it. It's easier to memorize if you actually understand the organic chemistry behind it, and what the actual terms/names mean.

 

[Raiden256]

Something like 6CO2 or something....I know theres an FADH involved. lol at how much I can't remember this. Went to med school even. God I suck.

<-- won the Biology award at HS graduation

 

[ShOcKwAvE827]

Pretty good stuff. Theres a way to think of it as Hydrogens are the "energy" of life. It is the job of glycolysis and the TCA cycle to "harvest" hydrogens (creating NADH FADH2) using dehydrogenases.

All these fancy dehydrogenase products converge to go into the electron transport chain where electrons from hydrogen are passed from complex to complex while pushing hydrogens out of the mitochondrial matrix. This is pumped to do the high affinity towards the final electron acceptor, O2 which is then reduced to water.

You then have what you need to make ATP. Since you pumped out all that H+ the matrix will be very negatively charged. There is as ADP/ATP transporter that takes out ATP-4 as soon as it's made and trades that for an ADP-3. The negative charge of the matrix also facilitates this because it wants to get rid of the extra negative charge. The hydrogens sitting outside of the matrix from the ETC then can go down their concentration and electrochemical gradient to crank up F1 -ATPase to convert ADP +Pi -->ATP. Remember the antiport system of ADP/ATP I mentioned before. This is crucial to dilute the product and concentrate the reactants so the reaction will actually favor ATP production.

Remember the TCA cycle and oxidative phosphorylation are tightly coupled. You need the ETC to be working to regenerate NAD+ to be used in Krebs dehydrogenase reactions. If one dies the other goes with it.

Originally posted by: Turnpike
You're screwed for putting this off for so long. Here's as basic as I can get:

Glycolsis: one 6 carbon glucose molecule is split into 2 3 carbon pyruvates. You spend 2 atp and get 4 atp, netting 2 ATP out of it. This is anaerobic.

Krebs (aka TCA): Those pyruvates are first changed to Acetyl-CoA's which go thru a big cycle and spit out NADH and FADH's (these are important for later). You don't get energy here.

Electron Transport Chain (aka oxidative phosphorylation): All those FADH and NADH's are used to push free H+'s into an enclosed space. Because the concentration of H+'s is so high it creates an "electo-chemical" gradient. All the H+'s want to go out. It's like water built up before a dam. And there's a turbine (the enzyme that I forgot the name of) that uses the energy of these H+'s spilling out to turn itself and make ADP to ATP. This aerobic because oxygen catches all these H+'s giving you water (H2O)!

Anyways thats the big picture. You have to read your text and notes to fill in the details.

 

[jamerdean]

I'm a AP bio teacher. what do you need to know?
jam

 

[jamerdean]

EDIT of QUOTE

Glycolsis: one 6 carbon glucose molecule is split into 2 3 carbon pyruvates. You spend 2 atp and get 4 atp, netting 2 ATP out of it. This is anaerobic.

Oxydation of Pyruvate - creates 2 NADH's and Acetyl-CoA's

Krebs (aka TCA): Those pyruvates are first changed to Acetyl-CoA's which go thru a big cycle and spit out 6NADH and 2FADH's (these are important for later). You don't get energy here.

Electron Transport Chain (aka oxidative phosphorylation): All those FADH and NADH's are used to push free H+'s into an enclosed space. Because the concentration of H+'s is so high it creates an "electo-chemical" gradient. All the H+'s want to go out. It's like water built up before a dam. And there's a turbine (the enzyme that I forgot the name of) that uses the energy of these H+'s spilling out to turn itself and make ADP to ATP. This aerobic because oxygen catches all these H+'s giving you water (H2O)!

ETC produces a total of 32 ATPS

all of cellular respiration produces 36 atps


2 things can happen if there is no oxygen. Alcohol fermentation and Lactic Acid (lactate) fermentation.

In alcohol fermentation the pyruvate (pyruvic acid) is transformed into acetyldyhydrase (sp?) instead of Acetyl-CoA. and in the process produces 2 NADH's and 2 Ethanol molecules (this happens in yeast and other organisms)

Lactic acid fermentation happens in animal muscle tissue - end result is 2 NADH's and Lactic acid in the muscles. this causes cramps in athletes.


-jam

 

[AznAnarchy99]

Originally posted by: The Godfather
God i hate that class! Its impossible.

We're learning the Calvin Cycle, Krebs Cycle, Cellular Respiration and we have a test tomorrow.

I'm in Honors and everyone has a C or a D.

Anyone willing to help me out? Give me the basics. The book and the notes she gave us are totally insane. I need a simpler explanation.

Tnx.

duuuude im in the exact same boat, they stuck me in Biology honors, i have a test tomorrow on the calvin cycle, krebs, and respiration... omg. i Have like a D-

http://forums.anandtech.com/messageview...atid=38&threadid=1740293&enterthread=y

 

[acemcmac]

Originally posted by: AznAnarchy99

Originally posted by: The Godfather
God i hate that class! Its impossible.

We're learning the Calvin Cycle, Krebs Cycle, Cellular Respiration and we have a test tomorrow.

I'm in Honors and everyone has a C or a D.

Anyone willing to help me out? Give me the basics. The book and the notes she gave us are totally insane. I need a simpler explanation.

Tnx.

duuuude im in the exact same boat, they stuck me in Biology honors, i have a test tomorrow on the calvin cycle, krebs, and respiration... omg. i Have like a D-

http://forums.anandtech.com/messageview...atid=38&threadid=1740293&enterthread=y

I was about to say, OP and AznAnarchy99 should team up

 

[AznAnarchy99]

Originally posted by: jamerdean
EDIT of QUOTE

Glycolsis: one 6 carbon glucose molecule is split into 2 3 carbon pyruvates. You spend 2 atp and get 4 atp, netting 2 ATP out of it. This is anaerobic.

Oxydation of Pyruvate - creates 2 NADH's and Acetyl-CoA's

Krebs (aka TCA): Those pyruvates are first changed to Acetyl-CoA's which go thru a big cycle and spit out 6NADH and 2FADH's (these are important for later). You don't get energy here.

Electron Transport Chain (aka oxidative phosphorylation): All those FADH and NADH's are used to push free H+'s into an enclosed space. Because the concentration of H+'s is so high it creates an "electo-chemical" gradient. All the H+'s want to go out. It's like water built up before a dam. And there's a turbine (the enzyme that I forgot the name of) that uses the energy of these H+'s spilling out to turn itself and make ADP to ATP. This aerobic because oxygen catches all these H+'s giving you water (H2O)!

ETC produces a total of 32 ATPS

all of cellular respiration produces 36 atps


2 things can happen if there is no oxygen. Alcohol fermentation and Lactic Acid (lactate) fermentation.

In alcohol fermentation the pyruvate (pyruvic acid) is transformed into acetyldyhydrase (sp?) instead of Acetyl-CoA. and in the process produces 2 NADH's and 2 Ethanol molecules (this happens in yeast and other organisms)

Lactic acid fermentation happens in animal muscle tissue - end result is 2 NADH's and Lactic acid in the muscles. this causes cramps in athletes.


-jam

thanks that actually helped a bit.. i have one of those teachers who talk and you dont understand him for the whole hour.. and then tells you "You must study 10 hours a day to be successful in life, and be smart or there will be CHAOS!! you dont want Chaos in the world do YOU!?"

exact quote..he says it every day lol...

 

[Raiden256]

Come on.... somebody take the time to write out the big in->out formula!

 

[vexingv]

o god...i'm reviewing all of my biochemistry for an nbme course exam in a couple of weeks. theres just way too much crap. (sorry i had to vent, and i should be studyign.,.)

 

[TDY2KN01]

Here is something I memorize to help me remember the molecules involve in the TCA cycle.

Officer Can I Keep Selling Sex For Money
O = Oxaloacetate
C = Citrate
I = Isocitrate
K = alpha-ketoglutarate
S = succinyl-CoA
S = Succinate
F = Fumarate
M = Malate

There are just so many info you need to know. Learning the basic things on a forums wont get u the grade you want.

Good luck on your studies.

 

[BD2003]

Originally posted by: goku
Ah, I remember when I took biology during the year, first semester, goofed off and I got a D+, second semester, tried really hard, got the same grade Took it over the summer and the first semester I got a B despite working my ass off, second semester I got a C... It shows that even retaking the class for the second semester was of no use because it's just a hard class. Well Tough it out, go over your notes, if I've learned anything from taking that class is that your notes at a billion times more useful than just reading the farking book.

Study notes
Study concepts in your notes
Memorize
Test your self,
Go over stuff the teacher told you to go over (likely in your notes)
good luck.

Ive found quite the opposite. I learn more listnening in class and not taking notes, and reading the book later. But at this point, to be perfectly honest, I never go to class, and still score upper 90s on the tests, just with the book.

Go to class
Read book
Do problems
Read book again
Do more problems
read book again

The key is to read slowly and carefully. Dont go on to the next section until youve got everything from the last one. Its not literature. Dont ignore the diagrams, they are more important than the text. Do as many practice problems as you possibly can. The teacher isnt going to tell you much that the book wont. The difference is you can go back when you dont understand something with the book.

More help than anything in the world is the animations contained on the CD that came with your book.

And most importantly, learn it to learn it, not to pass the test. When youre learning to understand it, youll do better, no matter what.

And there is no simpler explanation. The super complex one you already have is probably vastly simplified.

What book are you using?

 

[Turnpike]

Originally posted by: BD2003

Originally posted by: goku
Ah, I remember when I took biology during the year, first semester, goofed off and I got a D+, second semester, tried really hard, got the same grade Took it over the summer and the first semester I got a B despite working my ass off, second semester I got a C... It shows that even retaking the class for the second semester was of no use because it's just a hard class. Well Tough it out, go over your notes, if I've learned anything from taking that class is that your notes at a billion times more useful than just reading the farking book.

Study notes
Study concepts in your notes
Memorize
Test your self,
Go over stuff the teacher told you to go over (likely in your notes)
good luck.

Ive found quite the opposite. I learn more listnening in class and not taking notes, and reading the book later. But at this point, to be perfectly honest, I never go to class, and still score upper 90s on the tests, just with the book.

Go to class
Read book
Do problems
Read book again
Do more problems
read book again

The key is to read slowly and carefully. Dont go on to the next section until youve got everything from the last one. Its not literature. Dont ignore the diagrams, they are more important than the text. Do as many practice problems as you possibly can. The teacher isnt going to tell you much that the book wont. The difference is you can go back when you dont understand something with the book.

More help than anything in the world is the animations contained on the CD that came with your book.

And most importantly, learn it to learn it, not to pass the test. When youre learning to understand it, youll do better, no matter what.

And there is no simpler explanation. The super complex one you already have is probably vastly simplified.

What book are you using?

if everyone studied like you there would be no need for lectures. most people will only learn if spoon-fed. good points.

 

[BD2003]

I really dont study as much as it sounds. Probably an hour or two or three per chapter total, and I skip lecture. Just the key is to not read it like a book...but to make sure you *understand* before you move on to the next step, otherwise the next step wont make any sense. If you dont know a word, look it up, dont ignore it.

The problem with lecture is severalfold. First, youre in a class of several hundred most likely, and its not that easy to stop the class if you dont understand something. Distractions are everywhere (fine asses, in other words), and if you stop listening for a second, you cant have it repeated. Miss enough, and youll fall behind and stop paying attention. Sometimes it goes too slow, and youll stop paying attention. Its always at the same time of the day, typically at ungodly hours.

You cant ask the book questions, but you can read it over again.

 

[knivox]

Maybe you need to go for a waltz around the cycle

 

[yhelothar]

Originally posted by: BD2003

Originally posted by: goku
Ah, I remember when I took biology during the year, first semester, goofed off and I got a D+, second semester, tried really hard, got the same grade Took it over the summer and the first semester I got a B despite working my ass off, second semester I got a C... It shows that even retaking the class for the second semester was of no use because it's just a hard class. Well Tough it out, go over your notes, if I've learned anything from taking that class is that your notes at a billion times more useful than just reading the farking book.

Study notes
Study concepts in your notes
Memorize
Test your self,
Go over stuff the teacher told you to go over (likely in your notes)
good luck.

Ive found quite the opposite. I learn more listnening in class and not taking notes, and reading the book later. But at this point, to be perfectly honest, I never go to class, and still score upper 90s on the tests, just with the book.

Go to class
Read book
Do problems
Read book again
Do more problems
read book again

The key is to read slowly and carefully. Dont go on to the next section until youve got everything from the last one. Its not literature. Dont ignore the diagrams, they are more important than the text. Do as many practice problems as you possibly can. The teacher isnt going to tell you much that the book wont. The difference is you can go back when you dont understand something with the book.

More help than anything in the world is the animations contained on the CD that came with your book.

And most importantly, learn it to learn it, not to pass the test. When youre learning to understand it, youll do better, no matter what.

And there is no simpler explanation. The super complex one you already have is probably vastly simplified.

What book are you using?

That must depend on your teacher/professor then.
In college, professors generally give out lecture note packets that contain everything that's on the test. My professor even says that you don't even need to buy the textbook.
Anyways for my bio class here's what I have to memorize for my next test:
Know the anatomy of:
Porifera(sponges) - know the ostia, incurrent canal, prosopyle, radial canal, apopyle, spongocoel, osculum.. just to give you an idea what the parts are named - not exactly familiar terms.
3 different flatworms, including nematoda, tuberillans, trematoda - again, like 8-10 more parts EACH
Oligochaeta(earthworm) - 11 parts
Polychaeta(sandworm) - 8 parts
Cnidaria(hydras and sea jellies) - another 8 parts
Bivalva(mussels) - you have to know like 6 different muscles that all look identical, on top of all the regular organs.
Arthopoda(crayfish) - 22 FVCKING PARTS including their 5 mouth parts in which my professor describes as "looks like nothing"
Hexapoda(grasshopper) - 19 FVCKING PARTS!
Echinodermata(seastar) - 10 parts
Ostiechthyes(fish) - ANOTHER 19 PARTS!
Anurun(frog) - another 19 parts, including being able to identify 5 different parts of the frog brain!! cerebrun, olfactory lobe, optic lobe, medulla oblongata, spinal chord..
Aves(bird)
Mammalia(mice)

Yes and memorizing all these big terms ISN'T ALL. There are still FIVE CHAPTERS OF CONCEPTS TO LEARN!!
We get 3 weeks to learn ALL of these. I'll take cellular respiration ANYDAY over this. Learning cellular respiration is like knowing the anatomy of ONE of these animals.

You have it easy now. Just wait for level 2 bio in college, then you'll want to die.

 

[BD2003]

Same here. I am just talking about the lecture part of class. The lab practicals are obviously a lot different, and you cant just read the book, and Ive got much of the same as you to memorize.

Regardless of what the professor tells you, you should get the textbook. We also get lecture notes, powerpoint slides etc..the book is just the most useful that puts it all together...the rest are just...notes. There is also plenty of online resources like wikipedia.

I could memorize all of that in a day. Just relax, sit back, and try and remember the diagrams.

Ive been in college for years. I find 200 and 300 level classes easier. Less intro and unfamiliar concepts, just expanding on what you already know, or should know. Ive dissected and been forced to memorize and identify half of what youre already complaining about for one of my three intros. Doing it all over again the next year and throwing a few more animals on top of it is cake.

 

[yhelothar]

Originally posted by: BD2003
Same here. I am just talking about the lecture part of class. The lab practicals are obviously a lot different, and you cant just read the book, and Ive got much of the same as you to memorize.

Regardless of what the professor tells you, you should get the textbook. We also get lecture notes, powerpoint slides etc..the book is just the most useful that puts it all together...the rest are just...notes. There is also plenty of online resources like wikipedia.

I could memorize all of that in a day. Just relax, sit back, and try and remember the diagrams.

Ive been in college for years. I find 200 and 300 level classes easier. Less intro and unfamiliar concepts, just expanding on what you already know, or should know. Ive dissected and been forced to memorize and identify half of what youre already complaining about for one of my three intros. Doing it all over again the next year and throwing a few more animals on top of it is cake.

I'm too lazy to read the textbook anyways
Yeah we get powerpoint presentations too, he puts it on his website.
So you have to only memorize half, double that and it's about 10x harder to memorize all that stuff.
It's not like a worm, a clam, a seastar, and a frog look ANYWHERE alike, nor do they even have the same parts. Hardly an expansion.
Anyways, I personally find introductory classes much easier. The information is a lot more general. Learning how a cell gets energy is a lot more interesting than memorizing 5 different clam muscles that look the same and that you don't give two fvcking shits about.

 

[BD2003]

By half I mean one of each major group. A earthworm is basically a flatworm for instance.

I'm sure all schools do it differently, but mine does it very comprehensively - 3 lecture and 3 lab intro courses, which covers just about everything.

You said it yourself though, youre too lazy to read the book. Instead of complaining about how hard it is, take that mental energy and use it positively. Its only hard if you make it out to be hard.

 

[DaiShan]

I was going to reply that I got a 5 on the AP when I was in high school and that I could break out the old notes and point you in the right direction, but we all know that wikipedia > me so in that same vein.... Have fun