AP Biology Laura Gehring

Name __________________
Reading Guide Date October
_____________
1st
Campbell 7th ed. Period _____
1
Chapter 2 & 3
The Chemical Context of Life
Water and the Fitness of the Environment

1. What are the most common elements in the human?

Oxygen, Carbon, Hydrogen, Nitrogen, Calcium, Phospohorus,
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Potassium, Sulfur, Chlorine, Magnesium.
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2. Helium has an atomic number of 2 and atomic mass of 4. Explain.

The number of protons that a certain element has is its atomic

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number. The mass number is the approximation of the total mass
of an atom, called its atomic mass. Therefore, the number of
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protons in helium is 2, so the number of neutrons and electrons
must be 2, also.
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3. Define isotope and give some examples.

An isotope is one of several atomic forms of an element, each
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containing a di!erent number of neutrons and a thus di!ering in
atomic mass. For example, the three isotopes of Carbon (atomic #:
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6), have di!erent numbers of neutrons. One has 6 neutrons, one
has 7, and one has 8.
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4. How are isotopes used in biology?

Studies of metabolism, drug utilization, and other reactions in living
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organisms can be done with isotopes. Carbon Dating, Tracers,
Tracking Kidney Disorders can be discovered by using isotopes.
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5. What happens when electrons change levels?

When an atom gains enough energy it jumps a level. When it begins

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to lose energy it goes down an energy level. When it goes down a
level it loses energy and creates a colored light.
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Adapted from the work of Ms. Foglia

 6. What is the significance of valence numbers?
Valance numbers represent the least number of electrons that
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particular atom needs to be fulfilled, or have a complete outer shell,
and is useful when determining bonding properties.
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7. Why do atoms form covalent vs. ionic bonds?

Covalent bonds are formed when atoms share electrons, they both
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need the shared electron(s) to fill their outer electron shell. Ionic
bonds are when one atom gives electron(s) to another atom, the
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atom that has given the electron(s) has a positive charge and the
atom that received the electron(s) has a negative charge.
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8. How do non-polar covalent bonds differ from polar covalent bonds?

Non-polar: A bond between 2 nonmetal atoms that have the same
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electronegativity and therefore have equal sharing of the bonding
electron pair. Polar:A bond between 2 nonmetal atoms
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that have different electronegativities and therefore have unequal
sharing of the bonding electron pair
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9. What is a hydrogen bond? How does it form and how is it different from a
covalent bond?

A________________________________________________________________________
hydrogen bond is a very weak bond between a positively charged
hydrogen atom and a negative atom. Hydrogen bonds, becasue they
are weak, are easily formed and broken. Covalent bonds are very
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strong bonds. It takes a lot of energy to break a bond.
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10. Sketch a few molecules of water, indicate their polarity, and where H bonds
form.

11. Why is H bonding so important to water’s properties?

This attraction holds molecules of water together. Without it, water

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would be a gas at room temperature and we would have not have
life as we know it.
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Adapted from the work of Ms. Foglia

12. List the “special” properties of water and give an example of why the property
may be important to living things.
a. __________________________________________________________
a) Polarity- Can easily surround/dissolve other substances.
This__________________________________________________________
is important to living as water can "carry" dissolved
minerals, nutrients, and chemicals throughout the body
and__________________________________________________________
is a medium for chemical reactions to take place.
b. __________________________________________________________

b) Water is denser liquid than solid- Ice floats above liquid

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water. The transparency allows light to pass through
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trapping heat underneath, allowing photosynthesis to take
place, preventing it all from freezing. If water were denser
c. __________________________________________________________
solid than liquid, ice would sink to the bottom and allow
the__________________________________________________________
ecosystem to freeze and die.
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c)
d. Cohesion- Water clumps together into droplets, it
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doesn't spread out thin. This is important to trees. When
water goes up the roots of, it pull one another upwards. If
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not, plants would have trouble taking water from their
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roots to their leaves.

d) Moderation of temperature- It takes a lot of energy to

increase the temperature of water because hydrogen bonds
must be broken first before the water molecules can move
faster (increase in temperature). Example: Coastal areas
have a mild climate because water resists temperature
changes

Adapted from the work of Ms. Foglia