Autotrophs are the organisms that synthesize their own food from photosynthesis. This means they produce glucose in order to feed themselves. A couple examples of these are plants, such as oak trees, algae, and the blue dragon sea slug. These organisms use sunlight in order to synthesize glucose.

The name given to the organisms that use aerobic respiration exclusively to break down glucose are obligate aerobes. They can only survive in environments that contain oxygen, because these organisms oxidize fats and sugars in order to obtain energy. Almost all animals are obligate aerobes. Some examples of these organisms are the Bacillus bacteria, humans, and fish.

Cells that do not use oxygen to meet their energy needs are considered anaerobic organisms. These cells use the fermentation process as their way of obtaining energy. The way they do this is the following: glycosis produces pyruvate, and ATP from glucose, creating lactic acid. Some organisms produce alcohol instead of lactic acid. It is important to note the fermentation produces a considerable amount of less energy than respiration.
Human muscles use fermentation to get energy and certain kinds of yeast create alcohol from fermentation, thus creating beer.

Enzymes are molecules made of proteins, which in turn are made of amino acids. Although enzymes are not direct participants in a chemical reaction they do however how the characteristic that they accelerate the reaction, up to a million times faster than its original rate. Some examples of enzymes are amylase and sucrase.

References

Examples of Cellular Enzymes. (n.d.). Cellular Enzymes. Retrieved May 23, 2009,
from http://faculty.southwest.tn.edu/jiwilliams/examples_of_enzymes.htm

Schulte McMenamin, D. L. (1990). The garden of Ediacara. In The Emergence of
Animals . Retrieved May 24, 2009, from http://books.google.com/
books?id=pBEkPTUCVtEC&pg=PA106&lpg=PA106&dq=list+of+autotrophic+organisms+%22some
+autotrophic+organisms+are%22&source=bl&ots=rvRaHi_CYq&sig=73pMjCpOqNXlegsuH-zOG4
O94xM&hl=en&ei=uf4ZSrbXO4OstgfkpdnuDA&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=1#PPA1
07,M1

Obligate Aerobes. (2008, October 10). Biology Online. Retrieved May 24, 2009,
from http://www.biology-online.org/dictionary/Obligate_aerobe

Tigers
Consequences of their extinction

Tigers are known to be one of the world’s best predators. Their skeleton, their body, their teeth, tail and stomach are all made for hunting. Tigers consume on average 50 animals per year, each (Busch Entertainment Corporation, 2002). Tigers mostly hunt wild boar, wildebeest, gazelles, and several species of deer, such as nigali, chital, and sambar. They inhabit dense forests, as this serves them as cover since they usually attack by stalking their prey and then suffocating them by pressing down their throat. Although they are great predators, they are currently an endangered species. Currently, there are 3 species of tigers that are extinct: Bali, Javan and Caspian. They all disappeared in the 20th century. Nowadays, the remaining species of tigers only occupy a mere 7% of the land they have historically been known to roam for prey (National Fish and Wildlife Foundation 2009). If we have a population of 100 or 150 tigers in a selected environment, and a larger population of prey, tigers will maintain a balance of the area’s resources and population, and this maintains a harmonious balance in the area. Also, this promotes survival of the fittest and makes for stronger prey and they make stronger offspring.
But, what happens to the population of the prey and the resources of the area if tigers extinct? Do tigers maintain a balance on the resources of the particular area they hunt in? My hypothesis is that by hunting, tigers help maintain a balance and a control on the population of their prey and the area’s resources.
If tigers go extinct, then several things would happen:
· Overgrowth of prey population
· Depletion of area’s resources: water, grass
· Barren lands: absence of carcasses to fertilize the land
In my example of a controlled experiment, two areas will be designated as protected areas for certain species: Wildebeest, Wild boars, deer and antelope. These are all either omnivores or herbivores and will feed off the natural resources of the area, such as grass, nuts, insects and small reptiles.
In area A, there will be all the above species and there will be tigers. This will be the control group for the experiment and will serve as a guide for the normal circumstances in which nature develops and tigers interact with the species around them.
In Area B, there will be the above species, but there will be no tigers. This means that the omnivores and herbivores will roam and reproduce freely; also they will have indiscriminate use of the resources available in the area.
There will be a total amount of 500 animals of these species in each protected area. There will be 7 tigers, 4 female and 3 male.The experiment will be conducted over an extensive period of time, 5 years. During this time, the population of the existing species in the area and their reproduction will be closely monitored. Most importantly, the abundance of natural resources, such as water, plants, fruits, and grass, will also be monitored. If, despite the absence of tigers, the environment still maintains a steady progression and the resources still abound, then the hypothesis is proven to be false.
During the experiment, we were able to observe the following: In the protected area A, where there were tigers, there were approximately 350 animals hunted by the tigers. However, due to the reproduction of the species, their population maintained an even balance since there were 400 births. There were also several cubs added to the tiger’s population, and ultimately we see that all the populations grow at a controlled rate. The natural resources of the area maintained an even level, as plants, water and food were never scarce, but never overgrown or overpopulated.In the protected area B, we were able to prove that if there is no hunt, the prey population overgrows and then depletes the natural resources available in the area. Water is scarce, plants’ fruits are few, and there are too many animals to be feed. Also, there are too many animals for the area, since 400 animals were birthed but only 100 died.
Based on the results of the experiment, we can say that the hypothesis was proven correct. By hunting, tiger maintain a balance on the resources and population of their prey and this in turn balances the natural resources available to all the inhabitants to the area.
The results of this experiment can be used as further evidence as to why we need to protect tigers from extinction and also as to why there must be a predator in a protected area. Further experimentation can be done to see which type of tiger manages to maintain a higher control of the population and resources based on their hunt, and also on how different prey can bring different results.
References
Busch Entertainment Corporation. (2002). Tigers. In Tigers. Retrieved May 4, 2009, from http://www.seaworld.org/infobooks/tiger/diettiger.html
National Fish and Wildlife Foundation. (2009). Tiger Conservation Landscapes. In Save The Tiger Fund. Retrieved May 4, 2009, from http://www.savethetigerfund.org/Content/NavigationMenu2/Initiatives/TCL/ default.htm

1. Analyze the nutritional components of the food you select and in your own words, answer the following questions using the USDA Nutrient Data Laboratory website. http://www.nal.usda.gov/fnic/foodcomp/search/
   1. What was the food and portion size you chose?
   2. Describe its composition in terms of carbohydrates, lipids, and proteins.
   3. How many calories are in your food item? (Found in the Database as Energy – kcal)
   4. List some of the most common vitamins and minerals in this food item.
   5. Are there other important nutritional components of this food item? If so, list these. If not, say so.

2. How much of your food item is water? Provide one reason why water is important for life.

3. State the highest category of biological molecule in your food - Carbohydrates, Lipids, or Proteins. Describe the structure of this type of molecule, and its primary function(s).
4. After identifying the nutritional components discuss WHY you would or would not recommend this food item as part of a healthy diet. Use references and guidelines such as the Food Pyramid and Recommended Daily Allowances to support your recommendations. Here is a link to the USDA interactive Food Pyramid resource, http://www.mypyramid.gov/ to help you analyze nutritional needs.

_______________________________________________________________________________________

Nutritional Data
Raw Peaches

I chose a peach, raw. The portion size was 1 medium peach, 2-2/3” of diameter and approximately 150g in weight. The peach is mostly composed of protein and carbohydrates. There is 1.36g of protein in raw peaches, 14.31g of carbohydrates and 0.38g of lipids. There are 58 calories in a peach.

Some of the vitamins and minerals that are found in peaches are Vitamins C, K, and E, Niacin, Chorine, Beta Carotene, Potassium, Phosphorus, and Magnesium. In peaches we can also find 2.29g of fructose and 2.2g of fiber.

There is 133.31g of water in a medium sized peach. One of the main reasons why water is so important is because it is such a good solvent. Water can dissolve many substances, such as proteins, salts and sugars. (Audesirk, T., Audesirk, G., and Byers, B.E., 2008)

Carbohydrates consist of the elements carbon (C), hydrogen (H) and oxygen (O) with a ratio of hydrogen twice that of carbon and oxygen. Carbohydrates include sugars, starches, cellulose and many other compounds found in living organisms (Zamora, 2005).

The main functions of carbohydrates are short-term and mid-term energy storage. (Bio 113- Carbohydrates, n.d.)

Based on the Food Pyramid by the USDA, some of the benefits of eating fruit are reduction of the risk of cardiovascular diseases, diabetes 2, and also helps repair of all body tissues, helps heal cuts and wounds, and keeps teeth and gums healthy.

Peaches are a good source of vitamin C and are also a rich in potassium and phosphorus. They are low in calories and contain mostly water. Peaches are a good item to include in any diet because it has a good source of vitamins and minerals and also a good item to consume in order to reach the USDA guideline for fruit intake.

References

Audesirk, T., Audesirk, G., and Byers, B.E. (2008). Biology Life on Earth with Physiology. (8^th ed.). Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson Prentice Hall. Retrieved May 2, 2009, from AIU Online, Virtual Campus. SCI206 Biology. SCI2060902A:16 website.

Zamora, A. (2005). Carbohydrates - Chemical Structure. In Scientific Psychic.
Retrieved May 3, 2009, from http://www.scientificpsychic.com/fitness/
carbohydrates.html

Bio 113- Carbohydrates. (n.d.). WKU BIO 113- Carbohydrates. Retrieved May 3,
2009, from http://bioweb.wku.edu/courses/BIOL115/Wyatt/Biochem/Carbos.htm