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OhioBiology

B.C: Cells

6 dot points across 6 inquiry questions. Click any dot point for a focused answer with worked past exam questions where available.

How does the structure of each organelle suit the job it does in the cell?

Describe the major organelles of prokaryotic and eukaryotic cells and explain how each cell structure corresponds to its function (Ohio's Learning Standards for Science, Biology, B.C.3).
A standard-level answer on cell structure for Ohio's Biology EOC: the major organelles as structure-and-function pairs, the difference between prokaryotic and eukaryotic cells, and the extra structures that plant cells have but animal cells do not.
14 min answer →

What is cell theory, and how do we know that all living things are made of cells?

Use evidence and models to explain the three parts of cell theory and the basic split between prokaryotic and eukaryotic cells (Ohio's Learning Standards for Science, Biology, B.C).
A standard-level answer on cell theory for Ohio's Biology EOC: the three parts of cell theory, how it was built over 150 years as microscopes improved, what this shows about the nature of science, and the split between prokaryotic and eukaryotic cells.
13 min answer →

How do cells release the energy stored in glucose to power life?

Use a model to describe how cellular respiration releases the chemical energy in glucose as ATP, comparing aerobic respiration with anaerobic respiration and fermentation (Ohio's Learning Standards for Science, Biology, B.C.2).
A standard-level answer on cellular respiration for Ohio's Biology EOC: the word and balanced equations, the role of the mitochondrion, ATP, the difference between aerobic and anaerobic respiration, fermentation, and the link to photosynthesis.
13 min answer →

How do plants capture light energy and store it as chemical energy in glucose?

Use a model to describe how photosynthesis converts light energy into the chemical energy of glucose, and identify its reactants, products, and site (Ohio's Learning Standards for Science, Biology, B.C.2).
A standard-level answer on photosynthesis for Ohio's Biology EOC: the word and balanced equations, the role of the chloroplast and chlorophyll, the light-dependent and light-independent reactions, and how photosynthesis links to cellular respiration.
13 min answer →

How does a cell divide for growth and repair, and what happens when that control is lost?

Use a model of the cell cycle to explain how cell division and differentiation support growth, maintenance, and repair, and how a loss of control leads to cancer (Ohio's Learning Standards for Science, Biology, B.C.1).
A standard-level answer on the cell cycle and mitosis for Ohio's Biology EOC: interphase and the phases of mitosis (PMAT), how mitosis supports growth and repair, cell differentiation, and how a mutation in cell-cycle genes leads to cancer.
13 min answer →

How does the cell membrane control what enters and leaves, and how does this keep the cell stable?

Explain how the selectively permeable cell membrane uses passive and active transport to move substances and maintain homeostasis (Ohio's Learning Standards for Science, Biology, B.C.2).
A standard-level answer on the cell membrane and transport for Ohio's Biology EOC: the phospholipid bilayer, diffusion, osmosis, facilitated diffusion, active transport, the tonicity rules for cells in solution, and how transport maintains homeostasis.
14 min answer →