AP Laboratories Objectives

(from http:// www.apcentral.collegeboard.com)

Laboratory 1- Diffusion & Osmosis

Overview

In this laboratory, students will investigate

· the processes of diffusion and osmosis in a model of a membrane system.

· the effect of solute concentration on water potential as it relates to living plant tissues.

Objectives: Students should be able to

• measure the water potential of a solution in a controlled experiment;
• determine the osmotic concentration of living tissue or an unknown solution from experimental data;
• describe the effects of water gain or loss in animal and plant cells; and
• relate osmotic potential to solute concentration and water potential.

Laboratory 2- Enzyme Catalysis

Overview

In this laboratory, students will observe the conversion of hydrogen peroxide (H₂O₂) to water and oxygen gas by the enzyme catalase. They will then measure the amount of oxygen generated and calculate the rate of enzyme-catalyzed reaction.

Objectives:

Students should be able to:

• measure the effects of changes of temperature, pH, enzyme concentration, and substrate concentration on reaction rates of an enzyme catalyzed reaction in a controlled experiment; and
• explain how environmental factors affect the rate of enzyme-catalyzed reactions.

Laboratory 3- Mitosis and Meiosis

Overview

In this laboratory, students will investigate the process of mitosis and meiosis. The first part is a study of mitosis. They will use prepared slides of onion root tips to study plant mitosis and to calculate the relative duration of the phases of mitosis in the meristem of root tissue. Prepared slides of the whitefish blastula will be used to study meiosis in animal cells and to compare animal mitosis with plant mitosis. The second part is a study of meiosis. Students will simulate the stages of meiosis by using chromosome models. They will study the crossing over and recombination that occurs during meiosis. They will observe the arrangements of ascospores in the asci from a cross between wild type Sordaria fimicola and mutants for tan spore coat color in the fungus. These arrangements will be used to estimate the percentage of crossing over that occurs between the centromere and the gene that controls the tan spore color.

Objectives:

• recognize the stages of mitosis in a plant or animal cell;
• calculate the relative duration of the cell cycle stages;
• describe how independent assortment and crossing over can generate genetic variation among the products of meiosis;
• use chromosome models to demonstrate the activity of chromosomes during meiosis I and meiosis II;
• relate chromosome activity to Mendelian segregation and independent assortment;
• demonstrate the role of meiosis in the formation of gametes in a controlled experiment, using a model organism;
• compare and contrast the results of meiosis and mitosis in plant cells; and
• compare and contrast the results of meiosis and mitosis in animal cells.

Laboratory 4- Plant Pigments and Photosynthesis

Overview:

In this laboratory, students will separate plant pigments using chromatography. They will also measure the rate of photosynthesis in isolated chloroplasts. The measurement technique involves the reduction of the dye, DPIP. The transfer of electrons during the light-dependent reactions of photosynthesis reduces DPIP, and it changes from blue to colorless.

Objectives:

The students will be able to:

• separate pigments and calculate their Rf values;
• describe a technique to determine photosynthesis rates;
• compare photosynthetic rates at different temperatures, or different light intensities, or different wavelengths of light using controlled experiments; and
• explain why the rate of photosynthesis varies under different environmental conditions.

Laboratory 5- Cell Respiration

Overview:

In this experiment, students will work with seeds that are living but dormant. A seed contains an embryo plant and a food supply surrounded by a seed coat. When the necessary conditions are met, germination occurs, and the rate of cellular respiration greatly increases. In this laboratory, students will measure oxygen consumption during germination. They will measure the change in gas volume in respirometers containing either geminating or nongerminating peas. In addition they will measure the respiration of these peas at two different temperatures.

Objectives:

The students will be able to:

• calculate the rate of cell respiration from experimental data;
• relate gas production to respiration rate; and
• test the effects of temperature on the rate of cell respiration in ungerminated versus germinated seeds in a controlled experiment.

Laboratory 6- Molecular Biology

Overview:

In this laboratory, students will investigate some basic principles of genetic engineering. Plasmids containing specific fragments of foreign DNA will be used to transform Escherichia coli cells, conferring antibiotic (ampicillin) resistance. Restriction enzyme digests of phage lambda DNA will also be used to demonstrate techniques for separating and identifying DNA fragments using gel electrophoresis.

Objectives:

The student should be able to:

• use plasmids as vectors to transform bacteria with a gene for antibiotic resistance in a controlled experiment;
• demonstrate how restriction enzymes are used in genetic engineering;
• use electrophoresis to separate DNA fragments;
• describe the biological process of transformation in bacteria;
• calculate transformation efficiency;
• be able to use multiple experimental controls;
• design a procedure to select positively for antibiotic resistant transformed cells; and
• determine unknown DNA fragment sizes when given DNA fragments of known size.

Laboratory 7-Genetics of Organisms

Overview:

In this laboratory students will use living organism to do genetic crosses. They will learn how to collect and manipulate the organism, collect data from F1 and F2 generations, and analyze the results from a monohybrid, dihybrid, or sex-linked cross. This lab will be conducted using Wisconsin Fast Plants.

Objectives:

The student will be able to:

• investigate the independent assortment of two genes and determine whether the two genes are autosomal or sex-linked using a multi-generation experiment; and
• analyze the data from their genetic crosses using chi-square analysis techniques.

Laboratory 8- Population Genetics and Evolution

Overview:

In this activity, students will learn about the Hardy-Weinberg law of genetic equilibrium and study the relationship between evolution and changes in allele frequency by using their class to represent a sample population.

Objectives:

The students will be able to:

• calculate the frequencies of alleles and genotypes in the gene pool of a population using the Hardy-Weinberg formula; and
• discuss natural selection and other causes of microevolution as deviations from the conditions required to maintain Hardy-Weinberg equilibrium.

Laboratory 9- Traspiration

Overview:

In this laboratory, students will apply what they learned about water potential from the Osmosis-Diffusion lab to the movement of water within a plant. They will measure the transpiration under different laboratory conditions. They will also study the organization of the plant stem and leaf as it relates to these processes by observing sections of tissue.

Objectives:

The student will be able to:

• test the effects of environmental variables on rates of transpiration using a controlled experiment; and
• make thin sections of stem, identify the xylem and phloem cells, and relate the function of these vascular tissues to the structures of their cells.

Laboratory 10- Physiology of the Circulatory System

Overview:

In the first part of this study, students will learn how to measure blood pressure. In the second part, they will measure pulse rate under different conditions: standing, reclining, after the baroreceptor reflex, and during and immediately after exercise. The blood pressure and pulse rate will be analyzed and related to an index of relative fitness. In the third part of this study, they will measure the effect of temperature on the heart rate of the water flea, Daphnia magna.

Objectives:

The student will be able to:

• measure heart rate and blood pressure in a human volunteer;
• describe the effect of changing body position on hear rate and blood pressure;
• explain how exercise changes heart rate;
• determine a human’s fitness index;
• analyze cardiovascular data collected by the entire class; and
• discuss and explain the relationship between heart rate and temperature.

Laboratory 11- Animal Behavior

Overview:

In this laboratory, students will observe some aspects of animal behavior. In part 1 theyh will observe pillbugs and design an experiment to investigate their response to environmental variables. In part 2, they will also observe and investigate mating behavior in fruit flies.

Objectives:

The student will be able to:

• ‘describe some aspects of animal behavior, such as orientation behavior, agonistic behavior, dominance display, or mating behavior; and
• understand the adaptiveness of the behaviors they studied

Laboratory 12- Dissolved Oxygen and Aquatic Primary Productivity

Overview:

;In part 1, students will measure and analyze the dissolved oxygen (DO) concentration in Water samples at varying temperatures. In part 2, they will measure and analyze the primary productivity of natural waters or laboratory cultures using screens to simulate the attenuation of light with increasing depth.

Objectives:

The student will be able to:

• measure primary productivity based on changes in dissolved oxygen in a controlled experiment; and
• investigate the effects of changing light intensity and/or inorganic nutrient concentrations on primary productivity in a controlled experiment.