Tetanus is a bacterial infection that is commonly acquired from puncture wounds. Why do you need to be vaccinated against the flu every year, but you only need a virus booster against tetanus every 10 years?
A. Antibody production against viruses drops
off about 10 times faster than antibody
production against bacterial infections, so you
need to be vaccinated 10 times more
frequently against the flu.
B. The flu is everywhere but bacterial
infections are incredibly rare, so you don't
need to be as careful in maintaining your
immunity against them.
C. There is a higher rate of mutation in
viruses than in bacteria, so you need to
change the antibodies you are producing
(through vaccination) every year for the flu.
D. Infections that enter the body through the
bloodstream (like tetanus) are much less
toxic than infections that enter the body
through binding to epithelial cells (like the flu).
C
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A fish detects vibrations in the water by means of its _________, which contains numerous ____________.
A. lateral line; hair cells B. ear; statocysts C. swim bladder; stretch receptors D. skin; mechanoreceptors E. lateral line; thermoreceptors
In the process of aerobic metabolism, carbon containing molecules are broken down and the energy
from the electrons is used for what purpose?
a. to directly supply the energy needs of an organism b. to generate a proton gradient c. to alter enzyme structure d. to heat the organism in a cold environment e. to heat stored fat
Why is common descent considered a scientific theory?
A) There is overwhelming evidence to support it from many areas of biology. B) Scientists are reasonably sure it's true, but there's little evidence to support it. C) It's an idea from more than 100 years ago and thus is not a modern idea. D) It's the only idea about life on Earth that can be tested by observation of the material universe.
How is the four-letter language of nucleic acids converted into the twenty-word language of amino acids?
a. The four nucleic acid bases combine in two-letter combinations that define different amino acids. b. The four nucleic acid bases combine in three-letter sequences that define different amino acids. c. Triplets of the two-letter nucleic acid bases are translated into the twenty different amino acids. d. The four bases each specify one amino acid, which in combination give rise to the remaining sixteen amino acids. e. The four bases are first converted into tRNA molecules, which can each attach to five amino acids.