Unit 3 Reflection

       Unit 3 of biology was about the characteristics/structure of cells and how they function and create energy. The themes of this unit were how cells create energy, the different kinds of cells, the functions of cell organelles, and diffusion. Learning about osmosis and diffusion was easy because they are based of the principles of high and low concentration and how molecules move from low to high concentration. The vodcast on osmosis and diffusion helped to explain this, as it clearly showed how water diffuses to compensate for the size of other molecules. the egg diffusion lab clearly showed how osmosis works in real life conditions and gave a hands on experience into cellular biology. The vodcast on the different parts of the cell was interesting because it was done by someone else, and it gave a broader understanding of the functions of the different organelles. The microscope lab experiment helped to identify the different parts in cell and was very fun, though finding many of the organelles proved challenging. On the other hand, learning about photosynthesis and cellular respiration was harder than expected. Even though the vodcasts on these topics were very in depth, the complexity of the topics was much harder to remember. The text book notes gave an even deeper insight on the process that occurs in both, but the lack of background knowledge I had on both hurt me, as I didn't truly understand the reactions occurring in the cell. I still don't understand how exactly the cell converts light into energy, and weather the ATP is molecule or from of energy. This unit helped become a better student by forcing me to study and learn more about concepts I didn't understand. I previous years, I picked up and remembered lessons very quickly, so this unit was a change because I had to actually study on the topics of cellular respiration and photosynthesis. Some questions I have include: Is ATP and actual molecule or an invisible energy?; why do certain light waves have less energy than others?; If cells can still create energy without oxygen, how long can the body survive without oxygen?