Students experiment with a new material—aerogel. Aerogel is a synthetic (human-made) porous ultra-light (low-density) material, in which the liquid component of a gel is replaced with a gas. In this activity, student pairs use aerogel to simulate the environmental engineering application of cleaning up oil spills. In a simple and fun way, this activity incorporates density calculations, the material effects of surface area, and hydrophobic and hydrophilic properties.

Biology 2e is designed to cover the scope and sequence requirements of a typical two-semester biology course for science majors. The text provides comprehensive coverage of foundational research and core biology concepts through an evolutionary lens. Biology includes rich features that engage students in scientific inquiry, highlight careers in the biological sciences, and offer everyday applications. The book also includes various types of practice and homework questions that help students understand—and apply—key concepts. The 2nd edition has been revised to incorporate clearer, more current, and more dynamic explanations, while maintaining the same organization as the first edition. Art and illustrations have been substantially improved, and the textbook features additional assessments and related resources.

By the end of this section, you will be able to do the following:

Understand the cell membrane fluid mosaic model
Describe phospholipid, protein, and carbohydrate functions in membranes
Discuss membrane fluidity

By the end of this section, you will be able to do the following:

Describe the properties of water that are critical to maintaining life
Explain why water is an excellent solvent
Provide examples of water’s cohesive and adhesive properties
Discuss the role of acids, bases, and buffers in homeostasis

Concluding a two-part lab activity, students use triple balance beams and graduated cylinders to take measurements and calculate densities of several household liquids and compare them to the densities of irregularly shaped objects (as determined in Part 1). Then they create density columns with the three liquids and four solid items to test their calculations and predictions of the different densities. Once their density columns are complete, students determine the effect of adding detergent to the columns. After this activity, present the associated Density & Miscibility lesson for a discussion about why the column layers do not mix.

After students conduct the two associated activities, Density Column Lab - Parts 1 and 2, present this lesson to provide them with an understanding of why the density column's oil, water and syrup layers do not mix and how the concepts of density and miscibility relate to water chemistry and remediation. Topics covered include miscibility, immiscibility, hydrogen bonds, hydrophobic and hydrophilic. Through the density column lab activities, students see liquids and solids of different densities interact without an understanding of why the resulting layers do not mix. This lesson gives students insight on some of the most fundamental chemical properties of water and how it interacts with different molecules.

Students learn the concept behind the engineering design of a polymer brush—a coating consisting of polymers that is “tethered” to a particular surface. Polymer brushes can be used on water filtration membranes as an antifouling coating. After designing a model that represents an antifouling polymer brush coating for a water filtration surface, students take on the challenge to engineer their brush design on the surface of a Styrofoam block (which serves as a model for a surface filter) using various materials.

This activity is an easy way to demonstrate the fundamental properties of polar and non-polar molecules (such as water and oil), how they interact, and the affect surfactants (such as soap) have on their interactions. Students see the behavior of oil and water when placed together, and the importance soap (a surfactant) plays in the mixing of oil and water which is why soap is used every day to clean greasy objects, such as hands and dishes. This activity is recommended for all levels of student, grades 3-12, as it can easily be scaled to meet any desired level of difficulty.

Students observe how water acts differently when placed on hydrophilic and hydrophobic surfaces. They determine which coatings are best to cause surfaces to shed water quickly or reduce the "fogging" caused by condensation.

Students investigate the property dependence between liquid and solid interfaces and determine observable differences in how liquids react to different solid surfaces. They compare copper pennies and plastic "coins" as the two test surfaces. Using an eye dropper to deliver various fluids onto the surfaces, students determine the volume and mass of a liquid that can sit on the surface. They use rulers, scales, equations of volume and area, and other methods of approximation and observation, to make their own graphical interpretations of trends. They apply what they learned to design two super-surfaces (from provided surface treatment materials) that arecapable of holding the most liquid by volume and by mass. Cost of materials is a parameter in their design decisions.

This lesson will provide an understanding of the chemical and physical nature of water. It is 1 of 4 in the series titled "The Properties of Water."

In this scrollable interactive, the four levels of protein folding are explored in detail by exploring the structure of hemoglobin.

Students are introduced to superhydrophobic surfaces and the "lotus effect." Water spilled on a superhydrophobic surface does not wet the surface, but simply rolls off. Additionally, as water moves across the superhydrophobic surface, it picks up and carries away any foreign material, such as dust or dirt. Students learn how plants create and use superhydrophobic surfaces in nature and how engineers have created human-made products that mimic the properties of these natural surfaces. They also learn about the tendency of all superhydrophobic surfaces to develop water droplets that do not roll off the surface but become "pinned" under certain conditions, such as water droplets formed from condensation. They see how the introduction of mechanical energy can "unpin" these water droplets and restore the desirable properties of the superhydrophobic surface.

Students learn about the basics of molecules and how they interact with each other. They learn about the idea of polar and non-polar molecules and how they act with other fluids and surfaces. Students acquire a conceptual understanding of surfactant molecules and how they work on a molecular level. They also learn of the importance of surfactants, such as soaps, and their use in everyday life. Through associated activities, students explore how surfactant molecules are able to bring together two substances that typically do not mix, such as oil and water. This lesson and its associated activities are easily scalable for grades 3-12.

Students see how different levels of surface tension affect water's ability to move. Teams "race" water droplets down tracks made of different materials, making measurements, collecting data, making calculations, graphing results and comparing to their predictions and the properties of each surface, determining which surface exhibits the highest (or lowest) level of surface tension with water. They apply their results to make engineering recommendations for real-world applications.