The New AP Bio Test Format

The 4 Big Ideas! 1) The process of evolution drives the diversity and unity of life 2) Biological systems utilize free energy and molecular building blocks to grow, to reproduce, and to maintain dynamic homeostasis 3) Living systems store, retrieve, transmit, and respond to information essential to life processes 4) Biological systems interact, and these systems and their interactions possess complex properties

AP Exam Format Section I Question Type Number of Questions Timing Part A: Multiple Choice63 90 minutes Part B: Grid-In6 Section II Long Free Response2 80 minutes minute reading period Short Free Response6

Sample Multiple Choice Questions

Things You MUST KNOW for the AP … so far…

Things you Don’t Need for the AP Test  Specific steps, names of enzymes and intermediates of the pathways of burning sugars, fats, and proteins  The specific steps of the Calvin cycle, structure of the molecules, and the names of enzymes (except ATP synthase)  The steps of glycolysis or the Krebs cycle, or the structures of molecules and enzyme names involved  Names of Electron Carriers in the ETC  Details on any Cyclin-Cdk complex or growth factor  Memorizing the names of mitosis  The molecular structures of nucleotides, amino acids, lipids, and carbohydrates  Functions of smooth ER in specialized cells  Phospholipid synthesis or enzymes inside lysosomes, peroxisomes, and secretory vesicles  Specific examples of how lysosomes digest material  The molecular structure of chlorophyll  No specific cofactors or coenzymes

What You Need to Know for the Mid-term…  Functional groups (properties/structures)  Polymers  monomers; how they form  4 Major Organic Molecules  structure/function  Proteins  how they fold and what effects structure/function  Free Energy  Metabolic pathways  Kinase/Phosphatase  Enzymatic reactions  Enzyme structure  Enzyme inhibition  Microscopy  Types of cells and their characteristics  Cell membranes many many jobs  Cell Organelles  structure and function  Types of membrane proteins  Membrane Experiments  Active vs. Passive Transport  Diffusion and Osmosis  Calculating Water Potential  Exo/Endocytosis

What You Need to Know for the Mid-term…  Types of Cell signaling  Steps to signaling  Types of signals  Protein kinase and Amplification  Receptor Tyrosine Kinase vs. G-proteins  cAMP vs. IP 3 /DAG  Steps of Cellular Respiration  Regulation of Glycolysis  Krebs Cycle and alternative energy  Electron transport chain  ATP Synthase  Fermentations  Steps to Photosynthesis  Where does O go?  Chlorophyll and Carotenoids  Types of Chlorophyll  Photosystems I and II  Calvin Cycle  Rubisco  C 4 and CAM  Photorespiration  Cell Cycle and Checkpoints  Stages of Mitosis  Cyclin/Cdks  Oncogenes and Cancer