Heredity, Adaptations, and the Fossil Record

Explain the cell as the fundamental unit of life, prepare and observe microscopic specimens, and describe the hierarchical organization of living things from cells to organ systems.

Analyze how specialized animal and plant cells perform unique functions, focusing on neuron anatomy and electrical impulse transmission.

Classify diverse organisms into major taxonomic groups using structural traits, and compare reproductive strategies and life cycles across animals and flowering plants.

Explain how the heart, blood vessels, and blood components transport nutrients, gases, and water throughout the human body.

Analyze biomechanical forces on the skeleton and muscles, and describe physical changes across the human lifespan through old age.

Evaluate the physiological effects of nutrition, exercise, beneficial and pathogenic microorganisms, and the harmful impacts of drugs, alcohol, tobacco, and caffeine.

Explain inheritance of traits with variation, examine structural and behavioral adaptations, and interpret fossil evidence across geological time.

Investigate plant photosynthesis, seed germination requirements, closed mesocosm ecosystems, and trophic energy flow in ecological food webs.