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Description of the Examination

The Biology examination covers material that is usually taught in a one-year college general biology course. The subject matter tested covers the broad field of the biological sciences, organized into three major areas: molecular and cellular biology, organismal biology, and population biology.

The examination gives approximately equal weight to these three areas. The examination contains approximately 115 questions to be answered in 90 minutes. Some of these are pretest questions that will not be scored. Any time candidates spend on tutorials and providing personal information is in addition to the actual testing time.

Knowledge and Skills Required

Questions on the Biology examination require candidates to demonstrate one or more of the following abilities.

 Knowledge of facts, principles, and processes of biology

 Understanding the means by which information is collected, how it is interpreted, how one hypothesizes from available information, how one draws conclusions and makes further predictions

 Understanding that science is a human endeavor with social consequences

The subject matter of the Biology examination is drawn from the following topics. The percentages next to the main topics indicate the approximate percentage of exam questions on that topic.

33%Molecular and Cellular Biology

 Chemical composition of organisms

 Simple chemical reactions and bonds

 Properties of water

 Chemical structure of carbohydrates, lipids, proteins, nucleic acids

 Origin of life

Cells

 Structure and function of cell organelles

 Properties of cell membranes

 Comparison of prokaryotic and eukaryotic cells

Enzymes

 Enzyme-substrate complex

 Roles of coenzymes

 Inorganic cofactors

 Inhibition and regulation

Energy transformations

 Glycolysis, respiration, anaerobic pathways

 Photosynthesis

Cell division

 Structure of chromosomes

 Mitosis, meiosis, and cytokinesis in plants and animals

Chemical nature of the gene

 Watson-Crick model of nucleic acids

 DNA replication

 Mutations

 Control of protein synthesis: transcription, translation, posttranscriptional processing

 Structural and regulatory genes

 Transformation

 Viruses

34%Organismal Biology

 Structure and function in plants with emphasis on angiosperms

 Root, stem, leaf, flower, seed, fruit

 Water and mineral absorption and transport

 Food translocation and storage

 Plant reproduction and development

 Alternation of generations in ferns, conifers, and flowering plants

 Gamete formation and fertilization

 Growth and development: hormonal control

 Tropisms and photoperiodicity

Structure and function in animals with emphasis on vertebrates

 Major systems (e.g., digestive, gas exchange, skeletal, nervous, circulatory, excretory, immune)

 Homeostatic mechanisms

 Hormonal control in homeostasis and reproduction

Animal reproduction and development

 Gamete formation, fertilization

 Cleavage, gastrulation, germ layer formation, differentiation of organ systems

 Experimental analysis of vertebrate development

 Extraembryonic membranes of vertebrates

 Formation and function of the mammalian placenta

 Blood circulation in the human embryo

Principles of heredity

 Mendelian inheritance (dominance, segregation, independent assortment)

 Chromosomal basis of inheritance

 Linkage, including sex-linked

 Polygenic inheritance (height, skin color)

33%Population Biology

Principles of ecology

 Energy flow and productivity in ecosystems

 Biogeochemical cycles

 Population growth and regulation (natality, mortality, competition, migration, density, r- and K-selection)

 Community structure, growth, regulation (major biomes and succession)

 Habitat (biotic and abiotic factors)

 Concept of niche

 Island biogeography

 Evolutionary ecology (life history strategies, altruism, kin selection)

Principles of evolution

 History of evolutionary concepts

 Concepts of natural selection (differential reproduction, mutation, Hardy-Weinberg equilibrium, speciation, punctuated equilibrium)

 Adaptive radiation

 Major features of plant and animal evolution

 Concepts of homology and analogy

 Convergence, extinction, balanced polymorphism, genetic drift

 Classification of living organisms

 Evolutionary history of humans

Principles of behavior

 Stereotyped, learned social behavior

 Societies (insects, birds, primates)

Social biology

 Human population growth (age composition, birth and fertility rates, theory of demographic transition)

 Human intervention in the natural world (management of resources, environmental pollution)

 Biomedical progress (control of human reproduction, genetic engineering)