High School Science IAS Standards

Life Cycle, the Reproductive System

Absorption and Excretion, the Urinary System

Absorption and Excretion, the Respiratory System

Absorption and Excretion, the Digestive System

Transport, the Lymphatic System and Immune Mechanisms

Transport, Blood and the Cardiovascular System

Integration and Coordination, the Endocrine System

Integration and Coordination, Somatic and Special Senses

Integration and Coordination, the Nervous System

Movement and Support, the Muscular System

Movement and Support, the Skeletal System

Movement and Support, the Integumentary System

Levels of Organization in the Human Body

Plan and conduct and investigation to provide evidence that feedback mechanisms maintain homeostasis in humans.

Develop and use a model to illustrate the hierarchical organization of structural body systems that provide specific functions within the Human Body.

Compare and contrast the relationships among the various tissue types as well as the molecular and cellular composition of these tissues.

Compare and contrast the histological structure between the 4 basic tissue types.

Compare and contrast the major organ systems and describe their basic functional importance.

Identify anatomical terms (including anatomical orientation, regions, planes) on a diagram, model, or through dissection.

Identify and locate major and accessory organs of the digestive system and investigate their physiological functions.

Construct an explanation for enzymes involved in the processing of, digestion of and absorbance of macromolecules.

Compare and contrast mechanical and chemical digestion.

Differentiate between metabolic and respiratory acidosis and alkalosis.

Identify and locate major organs of the respiratory system and discuss their functions. Differentiate between the components of the upper and lower respiratory systems.

Observe the anatomical structures and explain the physiological processes involved in inspiration & expiration.

Analyze data to investigate how percentages and partial pressure gradients of oxygen and carbon dioxide impact net gas exchange.

Construct an explanation for maintaining blood pH via specialized carbon dioxide receptors and the respiratory response.

Identify and locate major organs of the urinary system and discuss their functions.

Observe and identify the structures of the kidney; then construct an explanation for maintaining blood volume via kidney function.

Develop a model of the nephron to explore its structural components, associated hormones, and the functional processes of filtration, excretion, secretion, and reabsorption.

Identify and locate major and accessory organs of the female and male reproductive systems and discuss their functions.

Create a diagram or model to analyze the role of hormones in the male and female reproductive system.

Describe how spermatozoa move through the female reproductive tract and describe the process of fertilization.

Construct an explanation of the rise of the three primary germ layers via zygote creation, blastocyst development and gastrulation process.

Analyze the structural characteristics and functional importance of the integumentary system to maintain homeostasis of the body.

Evaluate and explain the consequence of injury (e.g., Burns) and/or disease (e.g., skin cancer, vitiligo) to the functionality of the integumentary system.

Develop a model to illustrate the microscopic structure, development of, maintenance of, and function of compact and spongy bone.

Observe the characteristics of a bone from the axial or appendicular skeleton. Then construct an argument to support how the structure determines the function

Locate and identify individual bones of the axial and appendicular skeleton and unique features of bones.

Compare and contrast the different types of bone (e.g., long, short, flat, and irregular.

Compare and contrast the major types of joints and construct an argument how these structural components influence functional mobility and stability.

Compare and contrast between the structural and functional characteristics of skeletal, cardiac, and smooth muscle.

Develop a model to illustrate the components of a muscle fiber and how they interact in contraction and relaxation.

Conduct an investigation to analyze the molecular processes involved in sliding filament models to explain and identify changes in disease-related illnesses.

Describe how a neuromuscular junction functions. Design an experiment to determine how motor recruitment influences the force and velocity of contraction.

Use a diagram, model, or dissection to identify major muscle groups.

Compare and contrast between isotonic and isometric contractions and construct an explanation for the causes of hypertrophy and atrophy of muscles.

Develop a model that illustrates the structural components and functional subdivisions of the nervous system.

Observe and identify the structure and function of the various neurons and neuroglia. Explain how the varying structures determine the specified function.

Compare and contrast the actions, origins, and pathways of nerve fibers in the parasympathetic and sympathetic divisions of the autonomic nervous system.

Identify and model how action potentials are generated, via neurotransmitters, the ions and channel protein involved, and the basic structural and functional aspects which allow for synaptic connection.

Identify the various classification of neurotransmitters and their associated functions. Describe how certain disease states can be caused by interruption of neurotransmitters.

Compare and contrast the somatic, visceral, and special senses, the prominent sensory receptor types of each, and their functional operation.

Make and/or use a model of the anatomy of the eye; then construct an explanation for hyperopia, myopia and astigmatism using the model.

Make and/or use a model of the anatomy of the ear. Construct an explanation for sensorineural and conductive hearing loss using the basic structure and function of the ear.

Investigate the structure and function of the endocrine system and develop models showing how changes in prominent hormone levels impact homeostasis throughout the body systems.

Assess the structural and functional differences between an endocrine gland and an exocrine gland.

Compare and contrast the hormones of the hypothalamus-pituitary complex. Analyze the function of each hormone and connect them to feedback signals for the gonads, thyroid, and adrenal cortex.

Construct an explanation to show the impact of stress on the hypothalamus-pituitary complex, sympathetic nervous system, and the adrenal medulla.

Construct an explanation for maintaining blood sugar levels via endocrine and exocrine functions of the pancreas.

Perform an investigation to identify the composition and function of whole blood components, and the role they play in maintaining homeostasis.

Conduct an investigation to learn about the ABO blood type. Discuss how the surface-antigens and plasma antibodies allow and/or disallow for certain blood transfusions.

Investigate the primary structures of the cardiovascular system and explore their functional importance to maintaining homeostasis.

Create a model of vasoconstriction and vasodilation to demonstrate the structural and functional difference between arteries and veins.

Use a diagram and/or a model of the heart to illustrate the external and internal structures, the vessels entering and exiting, unidirectional blood flow and how the heart supports pulmonary and cardiac circulation.

Construct a model of hypertension to model the regulation of the cardiac cycle.

Design an experiment to illustrate how the cardiovascular system maintains homeostasis.

Identify the primary structural and functional components of the lymphatic system.

Analyze the relationship of the components of the lymphatic system with bone marrow and the thymus gland.

Differentiate between innate and acquired immunity.

Construct an explanation for defense against foreign pathogens using cellular and non-cellular components of the immune response.

Describe the stages of embryonic development after gastrulation, up to the birth of a baby.

Biological Evolution: Unity and Diversity

Heredity: Inheritance and Variation of Traits

Ecosystems: Interactions, Energy, and Dynamics

From Molecules to Organisms: Structures and Processes

Match different cell types to the specific functions they perform. (E)

Identify evidence to support an explanation of the relationship among DNA and genes in making the different proteins needed for cells to function. (E)

Use a model to identify a part of a multicellular organism and the process it performs.

Identify the components in a model of interacting hierarchical systems that perform specific functions within multicellular organisms.

Conduct an investigation and use evidence to describe how positive and negative feedback mechanisms maintain homeostasis.

Given a model, describe that cellular division (mitosis) and/or differentiation leads to producing and/or maintaining complex organisms. (E)

Use a model to describe how photosynthesis results in the transformation of light energy to stored chemical energy. (E)

Use evidence or a model to show that organisms take in matter and rearrange elements and molecules for growth and/or maintenance of large carbon-based molecules. (E)

Use a model to illustrate the chemical processes in cellular respiration.

Use a graphical representation to explain changes in the population size of an animal species over time.

Connect the limits of an ecosystem's carrying capacity (the number of organisms it can support) to the availability of living and nonliving resources and other challenges (e.g., predation, competition, disease).

Use mathematical representations (e.g., trends, averages, graphs) to support how biodiversity is dependent on the resources available in its ecosystem.

Explain the expected effect on the number and/or types of organisms in an ecosystem given a modest versus an extreme change/disturbance.

Use evidence to explain that energy is the driving force in the cycling of matter in aerobic or anaerobic conditions. (E)

Identify the changes in the amount of matter (biomass) as it travels through a food web.

Identify the changes in the amount of energy as it travels through an ecosystem using a model (e.g., energy pyramid, food chains, food webs, and biomass pyramids).

Illustrate the path of carbon as it is exchanged between living and nonliving systems (biosphere, atmosphere, hydrosphere, geosphere) using a model.(E)

Identify relevant components (i.e., inputs and outputs of photosynthesis; inputs and outputs of cellular respiration) of a model of the exchange of carbon between organisms and the environment.

Explain how living things in an ecosystem are affected by changes in the environment based on provided data.

Support or refute a claim regarding how a modest change versus an extreme change will affect stability of an ecosystem using evidence.

Describe how human activity affects Earth's environment and biodiversity and how people can help reduce their impact. [Clarification Statement: Examples of human activities can include urbanization, building dams, and dissemination of invasive species.] (E)

Identify evidence supporting the outcome of group (flocking, schooling, herding) or cooperative (hunting, migrating, and swarming) behavior on species’ chances to survive and reproduce.

Explain that DNA molecules in all cells contain the instructions (genes) for traits passed from parents to offspring.

Use evidence to defend a claim that parents and offspring may have different traits as a result of genetic combinations, errors during replication, or mutations caused by environmental factors.

Classify examples of variations of traits in a population (mutations in DNA) caused by new genetic combinations (meiosis), errors during replication, and/or mutations caused by environmental factors.

Calculate the probability of a particular trait in an offspring or the occurrence of a variation in a population.

Identify patterns of (homologous) structures (e.g., fossil records, DNA sequences, amino acid sequences, anatomical and embryological evidence) as evidence to a claim of common ancestry and biological evolution.

Identify evidence that biological evolution results from (1) potential for a species to increase in number, (2) heritable genetic variation of individuals in a species, (3) competition for limited resources, and (4) organisms with advantageous traits are better able to survive and reproduce in the environment. (E)

Use data to explain how organisms' traits that allow them to survive better in a specific environment are more common in the population.

Use calculations to explain how the population of organisms with advantageous heritable traits will increase over time to organisms without these traits.

Explain the cause-and-effect relationship between natural selection due to specific biotic and abiotic differences in ecosystems (e.g., ranges of seasonal temperature, long-term climate change, acidity, light, geographic barriers, evolution of other organisms) that leads to an increasing proportion of individuals within a population with advantageous characteristics (adaptation).

Use evidence to describe the cause-and-effect relationship of changes in the environment to the emergence of a new species or changes in the number, survival, or extinction of some species.

Generate a solution addressing adaptation to reduce the effects of a human activity that decreases biodiversity.

Determine which human actions help versus harm a threatened or endangered species.

Biological Evolution: Unity and Diversity

Heredity: Inheritance and Variation of Traits

Ecosystems: Interactions, Energy and Dynamics

From Molecules to Organisms: Structures and Processes

Construct an explanation based on evidence for how the structure of DNA determines the structure of proteins which carry out the essential functions of life through systems of specialized cells.

Develop and use a model to illustrate the hierarchical organization of interacting systems that provide specific functions within multicellular organisms.

Plan and conduct an investigation to provide evidence that feedback mechanisms maintain homeostasis.

Use a model to illustrate the role of cellular division (mitosis) and differentiation in producing and maintaining complex organisms.

Use a model to illustrate how photosynthesis transforms light energy into stored chemical energy.

Construct and revise an explanation based on evidence for how carbon, hydrogen, and oxygen from sugar molecules may combine with other elements to form amino acids and/or other large carbon-based molecules.

Use a model to illustrate that cellular respiration is a chemical process whereby the bonds of food molecules and oxygen molecules are broken and the bonds in new compounds are formed resulting in a net transfer of energy.

Use mathematical and/or computational representations to support explanations of factors that affect carrying capacity of ecosystems at different scales.

Use mathematical representations to support and revise explanations based on evidence about factors affecting biodiversity and populations in ecosystems of different scales.

Construct and revise an explanation based on evidence for the cycling of matter and flow of energy in aerobic and anaerobic conditions.

Use mathematical representations to support claims for the cycling of matter and flow of energy among organisms in an ecosystem.

Develop a model to illustrate the role of photosynthesis and cellular respiration in the cycling of carbon among the biosphere, atmosphere, hydrosphere, and geosphere.

Evaluate the claims, evidence, and reasoning that the complex interactions in ecosystems maintain relatively consistent numbers and types of organisms in stable conditions, but changing conditions may result in a new ecosystem.

Design, evaluate, and refine a solution for reducing the impacts of human activities on the environment and biodiversity.

Evaluate the evidence for the role of group behavior on individual and species' chances to survive and reproduce.

Ask questions to clarify relationships about the role of DNA and chromosomes in coding the instructions for characteristic traits passed from parents to offspring.

Make and defend a claim based on evidence that inheritable genetic variations may result from: (1) new genetic combinations through meiosis, (2) viable errors occurring during replication, and/or (3) mutations caused by environmental factors.

Apply concepts of statistics and probability to explain the variation and distribution of expressed traits in a population.

Communicate scientific information that common ancestry and biological evolution are supported by multiple lines of empirical evidence.

Construct an explanation based on evidence that the process of evolution primarily results from four factors: (1) the potential for a species to increase in number, (2) the heritable genetic variation of individuals in a species due to mutation and sexual reproduction, (3) competition for limited resources, and (4) the proliferation of those organisms that are better able to survive and reproduce in the environment.

Apply concepts of statistics and probability to support explanations that organisms with an advantageous heritable trait tend to increase in proportion to organisms lacking this trait.

Construct an explanation based on evidence for how natural selection leads to adaptation of populations.

Evaluate the evidence supporting claims that changes in environmental conditions may result in: (1) increases in the number of individuals of some species, (2) the emergence of new species over time, and (3) the extinction of other species.

Create or revise a simulation to test a solution to mitigate adverse impacts of human activity on biodiversity.

Energy

Matter and its Interactions

Use the periodic table as a model to predict the relative properties of elements based on the patterns of electrons in the outermost energy level of atoms.

Analyze data to support the claim that the combined gas law describes the relationships among volume, pressure and temperature for a sample of an ideal gas.

Construct and revise an explanation for the outcome of a simple chemical reaction based on the outermost electron states of atoms, trends in the periodic table, and knowledge of the patterns of chemical properties.

Plan and conduct an investigation to gather evidence to compare the structure of substances at the bulk scale to infer the strength of electrical forces between particles.

Develop a model to illustrate that the release or absorption of energy from a chemical reaction system depends upon the changes in total bond energy.

Apply scientific principles and evidence to provide an explanation about the effects of changing the temperature or concentration of the reacting particles on the rate at which a reaction occurs.

Refine the design of a chemical system by specifying a change in conditions that would produce increased amounts of products at equilibrium.

Use mathematical representations to support the claim that atoms, and therefore mass, are conserved during a chemical reaction.

Develop models to illustrate the changes in the composition of the nucleus of the atom and the energy released during the processes of fission, fusion, and radioactive decay.

Use mathematical representations to describe the composition and properties of individual solutions and solutions involved in chemical reactions.

Create a computational model to calculate the change in the energy of one component in a system when the change in energy of the other component(s) and energy flows in and out of the system are known.

Develop and use models to illustrate that energy at the macroscopic scale can be accounted for as a combination of energy associated with the motions of particles (objects) and energy associated with the relative positions of particles (objects).

Plan and conduct an investigation to provide evidence that the transfer of thermal energy when two components of different temperature are combined within a closed system results in a more uniform energy distribution among the components in the system (second law of thermodynamics).

Engineering, Technology, and the Application of Science

Physical Science

Earth and Space Science

Life Science

Matter and Its Interactions

Earth's Place in the Universe

Earth's Systems

Earth and Human Activity

Criteria and constraints also include satisfying any requirements set by society, such as taking issues of risk mitigation into account, and they should be quantified to the extent possible and stated in such a way that one can tell if a given design meets them.

Humanity faces major global challenges today, such as the need for supplies of clean water and food or for energy sources that minimize pollution, which can be addressed through engineering. These global challenges also may have manifestations in local communities.

When evaluating solutions it is important to take into account a range of constraints including cost, safety, reliability and aesthetics and to consider social, cultural and environmental impacts.

Both physical models and computers can be used in various ways to aid in the engineering design process. Computers are useful for a variety of purposes, such as running simulations to test different ways of solving a problem or to see which one is most efficient or economical; and in making a persuasive presentation to a client about how a given design will meet his or her needs.

Criteria may need to be broken down into simpler ones that can be approached systematically, and decisions about the priority of certain criteria over others (trade offs) may be needed.

The star called the sun is changing and will burn out over a lifespan of approximately 10 billion years.

The study of stars' light spectra and brightness is used to identify compositional elements of stars, their movements, and their distances from Earth.

The Big Bang theory is supported by observations of distant galaxies receding from our own, of the measured composition of stars and non-stellar gasses, and of the maps of spectra of the primordial radiation (cosmic microwave background) that still fills the universe.

Other than the hydrogen and helium formed at the time of the Big Bang, nuclear fusion within stars produces all atomic nuclei lighter than and including iron, and the process releases electromagnetic energy. Heavier elements are produced when certain massive stars achieve a supernova stage and explode.

Kepler's laws describe common features of the motions of orbiting objects, including their elliptical paths around the sun. Orbits may change due to the gravitational effects from, or collisions with, other objects in the solar system.

Cyclical changes in the shape of Earth's orbit around the sun, together with changes in the tilt of the planet's axis of rotation, both occurring over hundreds of thousands of years, have altered the intensity and distribution of sunlight falling on the earth. These phenomena cause a cycle of ice ages and other gradual climate changes.

Continental rocks, which can be older than 4 billion years, are generally much older than the rocks of the ocean floor, which are less than 200 million years old.

Although active geologic processes, such as plate tectonics and erosion, have destroyed or altered most of the very early rock record on Earth, other objects in the solar system, such as lunar rocks, asteroids, and meteorites, have changed little over billions of years. Studying these objects can provide information about Earth's formation and early history.

Earth's systems, being dynamic and interacting, cause feedback effects that can increase or decrease the original changes.

Current models predict that, although future regional climate changes will be complex and varied, average global temperatures will continue to rise. The outcomes predicted by global climate models strongly depend on the amounts of human-generated greenhouse gasses added to the atmosphere each year and by the ways in which these gasses are absorbed by the ocean and biosphere.

The many dynamic and delicate feedbacks between the biosphere and other Earth systems cause a continual co-evolution of Earth's surface and the life that exists on it.

Evidence from deep probes and seismic waves, reconstructions of historical changes in Earth's surface and its magnetic field, and an understanding of physical and chemical processes lead to a model of Earth with a hot but solid inner core, a liquid outer core, a solid mantle and crust. Motions of the mantle and its plates occur primarily through thermal convection, which involves the cycling of matter due to the outward flow of energy from Earth's interior and gravitational movement of denser materials toward the interior.

The geological record shows that changes to global and regional climate can be caused by interactions among changes in the sun's energy output or Earth's orbit, tectonic events, ocean circulation, volcanic activity, glaciers, vegetation, and human activities. These changes can occur on a variety of time scales from sudden (e.g., volcanic ash clouds) to intermediate (ice ages) to very long-term tectonic cycles.

The radioactive decay of unstable isotopes continually generates new energy within Earth's crust and mantle, providing the primary source of the heat that drives mantle convection. Plate tectonics can be viewed as the surface expression of mantle convection.

Plate tectonics is the unifying theory that explains the past and current movements of the rocks at Earth's surface and provides a framework for understanding its geologic history.

The abundance of liquid water on Earth's surface and its unique combination of physical and chemical properties are central to the planet's dynamics. These properties include water's exceptional capacity to absorb, store, and release large amounts of energy, transmit sunlight, expand upon freezing, dissolve and transport materials, and lower the viscosities and melting points of rocks.

The foundation for Earth's global climate systems is the electromagnetic radiation from the sun, as well as its reflection, absorption, storage, and redistribution among the atmosphere, ocean, and land systems, and this energy's re-radiation into space.

Gradual atmospheric changes were due to plants and other organisms that captured carbon dioxide and released oxygen.

Changes in the atmosphere due to human activity have increased carbon dioxide concentrations and thus affect climate.

Resource availability has guided the development of human society.

All forms of energy production and other resource extraction have associated economic, social, environmental, and geopolitical costs and risks as well as benefits. New technologies and social regulations can change the balance of these factors.

Natural hazards and other geologic events have shaped the course of human history; [they] have significantly altered the sizes of human populations and have driven human migrations.

The sustainability of human societies and the biodiversity that supports them requires responsible management of natural resources.

Scientists and engineers can make major contributions by developing technologies that produce less pollution and waste and that preclude ecosystem degradation.

Though the magnitudes of human impacts are greater than they have ever been, so too are human abilities to model, predict, and manage current and future impacts.

Through computer simulations and other studies, important discoveries are still being made about how the ocean, the atmosphere, and the biosphere interact and are modified in response to human activities.

Systems of specialized cells within organisms help them perform the essential functions of life.

All cells contain genetic information in the form of DNA molecules. Genes are regions in the DNA that contain the instructions that code for the formation of proteins, which carry out most of the work of cells.

Multicellular organisms have a hierarchical structural organization, in which any one system is made up of numerous parts and is itself a component of the next level.

Feedback mechanisms maintain a living system's internal conditions within certain limits and mediate behaviors, allowing it to remain alive and functional even as external conditions change within some range. Feedback mechanisms can encourage (through positive feedback) or discourage.

In multicellular organisms individual cells grow and then divide via a process called mitosis, thereby allowing the organism to grow. The organism begins as a single cell (fertilized egg) that divides successively to produce many cells, with each parent cell passing identical genetic material (two variants of each chromosome pair) to both daughter cells. Cellular division and differentiation produce and maintain a complex organism, composed of systems of tissues and organs that work together to meet the needs of the whole organism.

The process of photosynthesis converts light energy to stored chemical energy by converting carbon dioxide plus water into sugars plus released oxygen.

The sugar molecules thus formed contain carbon, hydrogen, and oxygen: their hydrocarbon backbones are used to make amino acids and other carbon-based molecules that can be assembled into larger molecules (such as proteins or DNA), used for example to form new cells.

As matter and energy flow through different organizational levels of living systems, chemical elements are recombined in different ways to form different products.

As a result of these chemical reactions, energy is transferred from one system of interacting molecules to another and releases energy to the surrounding environment and to maintain body temperature. Cellular respiration is a chemical process whereby the bonds of food molecules and oxygen molecules are broken and new compounds are formed that can transport energy to muscles.

Ecosystems have carrying capacities, which are limits to the numbers of organisms and populations they can support. These limits result from such factors as the availability of living and nonliving resources and from such challenges such as predation, competition, and disease. Organisms would have the capacity to produce populations of great size were it not for the fact that environments and resources are finite. This fundamental tension affects the abundance (number of individuals) of species in any given ecosystem.

Photosynthesis and cellular respiration (including anaerobic processes) provide most of the energy for life processes.

Plants or algae form the lowest level of the food web. At each link upward in a food web, only a small fraction of the matter consumed at the lower level is transferred upward, to produce growth and release energy in cellular respiration at the higher level. Given this inefficiency, there are generally fewer organisms at higher levels of a food web. Some matter reacts to release energy for life functions, some matter is stored in newly made structures, and much is discarded. The chemical elements that make up the molecules of organisms pass through food webs and into and out of the atmosphere and soil, and they are combined and recombined in different ways. At each link in an ecosystem, matter and energy are conserved.

Photosynthesis and cellular respiration are important components of the carbon cycle, in which carbon is exchanged among the biosphere, atmosphere, oceans, and geosphere through chemical, physical, geological, and biological processes.

A complex set of interactions within an ecosystem can keep its numbers and types of organisms relatively constant over long periods of time under stable conditions. If a modest biological or physical disturbance to an ecosystem occurs, it may return to its more or less original status (i.e., the ecosystem is resilient), as opposed to becoming a very different ecosystem. Extreme fluctuations in conditions or the size of any population, however, can challenge the functioning of ecosystems in terms of resources and habitat availability.

Moreover, anthropogenic changes (induced by human activity) in the environment—including habitat destruction, pollution, introduction of invasive species, overexploitation, and climate change—can disrupt an ecosystem and threaten the survival of some species.

Group behavior has evolved because membership can increase the chances of survival for individuals and their genetic relatives.

Each chromosome consists of a single very long DNA molecule, and each gene on the chromosome is a particular segment of that DNA. The instructions for forming species' characteristics are carried in DNA. All cells in an organism have the same genetic content, but the genes used (expressed) by the cell may be regulated in different ways. Not all DNA codes for a protein; some segments of DNA are involved in regulatory or structural functions, and some have no as-yet known function.

In sexual reproduction, chromosomes can sometimes swap sections during the process of meiosis (cell division), thereby creating new genetic combinations and thus more genetic variation. Although DNA replication is tightly regulated and remarkably accurate, errors do occur and result in mutations, which are also a source of genetic variation. Environmental factors can also cause mutations in genes, and viable mutations are inherited.

Environmental factors also affect expression of traits, and hence affect the probability of occurrences of traits in a population. Thus the variation and distribution of traits observed depends on both genetic and environmental factors.

Genetic information provides evidence of evolution. DNA sequences vary among species, but there are many overlaps; in fact, the ongoing branching that produces multiple lines of descent can be inferred by comparing the DNA sequences of different organisms. Such information is also derivable from the similarities and differences in amino acid sequences and from anatomical and embryological evidence.

Humans depend on the living world for the resources and other benefits provided by having adverse impacts on biodiversity through overpopulation, overexploitation, habitat destruction, pollution, introduction of invasive species, and climate change. Thus sustaining biodiversity so that ecosystem functioning and productivity are maintained is essential to supporting and enhancing life on Earth. Sustaining biodiversity also aids humanity by preserving landscapes of recreational or inspirational value.

Natural selection occurs only if there is both (1) variation in the genetic information between organisms in a population and (2) variation in the expression of that genetic information—that is, trait variation—that leads to differences in performance among individuals.

The traits that positively affect survival are more likely to be reproduced, and thus are more common in the population.

Evolution is a consequence of the interaction of four factors: (1) the potential for a species to increase in number, (2) the genetic variation of individuals in a species due to mutation and sexual reproduction, (3) competition for an environment's limited supply of the resources that individuals need in order to survive and reproduce, and (4) the ensuing proliferation of those organisms that are better able to survive and reproduce in that environment.

Natural selection leads to adaptation, that is, to a population dominated by organisms that are anatomically, behaviorally, and physiologically well suited to survive and reproduce in a specific environment. That is, the differential survival and reproduction of organisms in a population that have an advantageous heritable trait leads to an increase in the proportion of individuals in future generations that have the trait and to a decrease in the proportion of individuals that do not.

Adaptation also means that the distribution of traits in a population can change when conditions change.

Changes in the physical environment, whether naturally occurring or human induced, have thus contributed to the expansion of some species, the emergence of new distinct species as populations diverge under different conditions, and the decline–and sometimes the extinction–of some species.

Species become extinct because they can no longer survive and reproduce in their altered environment. If members cannot adjust to change that is too fast or drastic, the opportunity for the species' evolution is lost.

Biodiversity is increased by the formation of new species (speciation) and decreased by the loss of species (extinction).

Each atom has a charged substructure consisting of a nucleus, which is made of protons and neutrons, surrounded by electrons.

The periodic table orders elements horizontally by the number of protons in the atom's nucleus and places those with similar chemical properties in columns. The repeating patterns of this table reflect patterns of outer electron states.

The structure and interactions of matter at the bulk scale are determined by electrical forces within and between atoms.

Stable forms of matter are those in which the electric and magnetic field energy is minimized. A stable molecule has less energy than the same set of atoms separated; one must provide at least this energy in order to take the molecule apart.

Chemical processes, their rates, and whether or not energy is stored or released can be understood in terms of the collisions of molecules and the rearrangements of atoms into new molecules, with consequent changes in the sum of all bond energies in the set of molecules that are matched by changes in kinetic energy.

In many situations, a dynamic and condition-dependent balance between a reaction and the reverse reaction determines the numbers of all types of molecules present.

The fact that atoms are conserved, together with knowledge of the chemical properties of the elements involved, can be used to describe and predict chemical reactions.

Nuclear processes, including fusion, fission, and radioactive decays of unstable nuclei, involve release or absorption of energy. The total number of neutrons plus protons does not change in any nuclear process.

Spontaneous radioactive decay follows a characteristic exponential decay law. Nuclear lifetimes allow radiometric dating to be used to determine the ages of rocks and other materials.

Newton's second law accurately predicts changes in the motion of macroscopic objects.

Momentum is defined for a particular frame of reference; it is the mass times the velocity of the object. In any system, total momentum is always conserved.

If a system interacts with objects outside itself, the total momentum of the system can change; however, any such change is balanced by changes in the momentum of objects outside the system.

Newton's law of universal gravitation and Coulomb's law provide the mathematical models to describe and predict the effects of gravitational and electrostatic forces between distant objects.

Forces at a distance are explained by fields (gravitational, electric, and magnetic) permeating space that can transfer energy through space. Magnets or electric currents cause magnetic fields; electric charges or changing magnetic fields cause electric fields.

Attraction and repulsion between electric charges at the atomic scale explain the structure, properties, and transformations of matter, as well as the contact forces between material objects.

…and "electrical energy" may mean energy stored in a battery or energy transmitted by electric currents.

Energy is a quantitative property of a system that depends on the motion and interactions of matter and radiation within that system. That there is a single quantity called energy is due to the fact that a system's total energy is conserved, even as, within the system, energy is continually transferred from one object to another and between its various possible forms.

Although energy cannot be destroyed, it can be converted to less useful forms—for example, to thermal energy in the surrounding environment.

Solar cells are human-made devices that likewise capture the sun's energy and produce electrical energy.

The main way that solar energy is captured and stored on Earth is through the complex chemical process known as photosynthesis.

Nuclear Fusion processes in the center of the sun release the energy that ultimately reaches Earth as radiation.

At the macroscopic scale, energy manifests itself in multiple ways, such as in motion, sound, light, and thermal energy.

These relationships are better understood at the microscopic scale, at which all of the different manifestations of energy can be modeled as either motions of particles or energy stored in fields (which mediate interactions between particles). This last concept includes radiation, a phenomenon in which energy stored in fields moves across space.

Conservation of energy means that the total change of energy in any system is always equal to the total energy transferred into or out of the system.

Energy cannot be created or destroyed, but it can be transported from one place to another and transferred between systems.

Mathematical expressions, which quantify how the stored energy in a system depends on its configuration (e.g. relative positions of charged particles, compression of a spring) and how kinetic energy depends on mass and speed, allow the concept of conservation of energy to be used to predict and describe system behavior.

The availability of energy limits what can occur in any system.

Uncontrolled systems always evolve toward more stable states—that is, toward more uniform energy distribution (e.g., water flows downhill, objects hotter than their surrounding environment cool down).

When two objects interacting through a field change relative position, the energy stored in the field is changed.

The wavelength and frequency of a wave are related to one another by the speed of travel of the wave, which depends on the type of wave and the medium through which it is passing.

Information can be digitized (e.g., a picture stored as the values of an array of pixels); in this form, it can be stored reliably in computer memory and sent over long distances as a series of wave pulses.

Waves can add or cancel one another as they cross, depending on their relative phase (i.e., relative position of peaks and troughs of the waves), but they emerge unaffected by each other. (Boundary: The discussion at this grade level is qualitative only; it can be based on the fact that two different sounds can pass a location in different directions without getting mixed up.)

Geologists use seismic waves and their reflection at interfaces between layers to probe structures deep in the planet.

Electromagnetic radiation (e.g., radio, microwaves, light) can be modeled as a wave of changing electric and magnetic fields or as particles called photons. The wave model is useful for explaining many features of electromagnetic radiation, and the particle model explains other features.

When light or longer wavelength electromagnetic radiation is absorbed in matter, it is generally converted into thermal energy (heat). Shorter wavelength electromagnetic radiation (ultraviolet, X-rays, gamma rays) can ionize atoms and cause damage to living cells.(HS-PS4-4)

Photovoltaic materials emit electrons when they absorb light of a high- enough frequency.

Atoms of each element emit and absorb characteristic frequencies of light. These characteristics allow identification of the presence of an element, even in microscopic quantities.

Multiple technologies based on the understanding of waves and their interactions with matter are part of everyday experiences in the modern world (e.g., medical imaging, communications, scanners) and in scientific research. They are essential tools for producing, transmitting, and capturing signals and for storing and interpreting the information contained in them.

From Molecules to Organisms: Structures and Processes

Ecosystems: Interactions, Energy, and Dynamics

Heredity: Inheritance and Variation of Traits

Biological Evolution: Unity and Diversity

Matter and Its Interactions

Motion and Stability: Forces and Interactions

Energy

Waves and Their Applications in Technologies for Information Transfer

Earth and Human Activity

Earth's Systems

From Molecules to Organisms: Structures and Processes

Explain that the sun has a life span, which means that it is changing and will eventually burn out. (E)

Use a model to describe how energy generated by the sun is transferred to the Earth through radiation. (E)

Use evidence (e.g., red shift of light from galaxies, cosmic microwave background, observed composition of ordinary matter) to support the Big Bang theory.

Use evidence to explain the chemical processes over stars' life cycles that produce elements.

Explain that some orbiting objects move in an elliptical pattern around the sun.

Use a representation to predict a change in orbits due to various effects (e.g., gravitational effects from, or collisions with, other objects).

Use evidence to describe how the movements of rocks at Earth's surface over time (i.e., plate tectonics) explains the ages of continental and oceanic crustal rocks. (E)

Use evidence to explain how objects in the solar system can provide information about Earth’s formation and early history. (E)

Use a model to compare the impact of Earth's internal and surface processes at various scales and timeframes on the formation of continental and ocean-floor features.

Use geoscience data to support the claim that Earth's systems are interconnected, illustrating how changes to Earth's surface can result in feedbacks to other Earth systems. (E)

Use a model of Earth to describe that the motion of the mantle and its plates occurs primarily through thermal convection.

Use a model to illustrate how radioactive decay functions as the primary source of heat within Earth's crust, driving thermal convection.

Explain that seismic waves and their reflection are used to learn about the structure of the Earth. [Clarification Statement: Emphasis is on both a one-dimensional model of Earth, with radial layers determined by density, and a three-dimensional model, which is controlled by mantle convection and the resulting plate tectonics. Examples of evidence include maps of Earth’s three-dimensional structure obtained from seismic waves, records of the rate of change of Earth’s magnetic field (as constraints on convection in the outer core), and identification of the composition of Earth’s layers from high-pressure laboratory experiments.]

Use a model to describe how variations in the Earth's orbit and tilt affects climate on a very long-term scale.

Use evidence to describe the properties of water and the effects of water on Earth materials and surface processes. (E)

Create a model to describe the cycling of carbon among the hydrosphere, atmosphere, geosphere, and biosphere.

Use evidence to support claims related to the coevolution of Earth's systems and life on Earth.

Use evidence to describe relationships between human activity and the availability of natural resources, occurrence of natural hazards, or changes in climate. (E)

Compare cost-benefit ratios of design solutions for developing, managing, and utilizing energy and mineral resources.

Use data to describe the relationships among management of natural resources, the sustainability of human populations, and biodiversity.

Evaluate or refine technological solutions by comparing how each solution addresses the impact of human activity on natural systems. Examples for limiting future impacts could range from local efforts (such as reducing, reusing, and recycling resources) to large-scale geoengineering design solutions (such as altering global temperatures by making large changes to the atmosphere or ocean).

Use evidence from data and global climate models to predict the future impact of global or regional climate change on Earth systems. (E)

Use representations to illustrate how the relationships among Earth systems are changed by human activities. An example of the impacts from human activity is how an increase in atmospheric carbon dioxide results in an increase in photosynthetic biomass on land and an increase in ocean acidification, with resulting impacts on sea organism health and marine populations.

Human Interaction with Earth's Systems

Earth's Systems

Earth's Place in the Universe

Develop a model based on evidence to illustrate the life span of the sun and the role of nuclear fusion in the sun's core to release energy in the form of radiation.

Construct an explanation of the Big Bang theory based on astronomical evidence of light spectra, motion of distant galaxies, and composition of matter in the universe.

Communicate scientific ideas about the way stars, over their life cycle, produce elements.

Use mathematical or computational representations to predict the motion of orbiting objects in the solar system. [

Evaluate evidence of the past and current movements of continental and oceanic crust and the theory of plate tectonics to explain the ages of crustal rocks.

Apply scientific reasoning and evidence from ancient Earth materials, meteorites, and other planetary surfaces to construct an account of Earth's formation and early history.

Develop a model to illustrate how Earth's internal and surface processes operate at different spatial and temporal scales to form continental and ocean-floor features. [

Analyze geoscience data to make the claim that one change to Earth's surface can create feedbacks that cause changes to other Earth systems.

Develop a model based on evidence of Earth's interior to describe the cycling of matter by thermal convection.

Use a model to describe how variations in the flow of energy into and out of Earth's systems result in changes in climate.

Plan and conduct an investigation of the properties of water and its effects on Earth materials and surface processes.

Develop a quantitative model to describe the cycling of carbon among the hydrosphere, atmosphere, geosphere, and biosphere.

Construct an argument based on evidence about the simultaneous coevolution of Earth's systems and life on Earth.

Construct an explanation of how heat (energy) and water (matter) move throughout the oceans causing patterns in weather and climate.

Construct an explanation for how energy from the Sun drives atmospheric processes and how atmospheric currents transport matter and transfer energy.

Construct an explanation based on evidence for how the availability of natural resources, occurrence of natural hazards, and changes in climate have influenced human activity.

Evaluate competing design solutions for developing, managing, and utilizing energy and mineral resources based on cost-benefit ratios.

Create a computational simulation to illustrate the relationships among management of natural resources, the sustainability of human populations, and biodiversity.

Evaluate or refine a technological solution that reduces impacts of human activities on natural systems.

Analyze geoscience data and the results from global climate models to make an evidence-based forecast of the current rate of global or regional climate change and associated future impacts to Earth systems.

Use a computational representation to illustrate the relationships among Earth systems and how those relationships are being modified due to human activity.

Environmental Policy

The Effect of Human Population and Activities on the Environment

Biodiversity

Natural Hazards

Flow of Matter and Energy

Environmental Systems

Use evidence to evaluate how interactions in ecosystems can contribute to stable conditions, lead to changes (e.g., moderate hunting, seasonal flood, volcanic eruption, sea level rise), or result in a new ecosystem.

Use a computational representation to support the claim that human activities can alter ecosystems.

Use a computational representation to illustrate how the ocean, atmosphere, or biosphere are changed by human activities.

Use graphical or mathematical representations to illustrate the relationships among the hydrosphere, atmosphere, cryosphere, and/or biosphere.

Use representations to determine how the relationships among Earth systems are changed by human activities.

Use data to compare Earth systems in equilibrium to Earth systems in disequilibrium.

Use data from a diagram of Earth's global climate system to describe how feedback loops stabilize changes in the system.

Use data to evaluate, measure, and communicate a factor (e.g., biological, chemical, physical) within an ecosystem.

Use a model to locate and describe the major Earth biomes based on descriptions.

Use a model to describe that there is a relationship between the major Earth biomes and Earth's global climate system.

Use a model to observe the difference between weather and climate.

Use a model to demonstrate how absorption, reflection, and redistribution of solar energy influence climate systems.

Analyze data to predict the impact of climate change (e.g., precipitation, temperature) on Earth Systems.

Use a diagram of sources and sinks to identify the movement of matter.

Identify evidence which supports claims about energy transfer through sources and sinks.

Use mathematical representations to support claims regarding the movement of matter and energy through an ecosystem in a food web.

Use a model to describe how variations in Earth's orbit and tilt can lead to changes in climate by affecting the amount of sunlight reaching the Earth.

Use a model to describe interactions relating to the flow of energy into and out of Earth's systems that have changed the Earth's climate at a variety of time scales from sudden (e.g., volcanic ash clouds) to intermediate (e.g., ice ages) to very long-term (e.g., tectonic cycles).

Use data to compare the benefits and disadvantages of various energy forms (e.g., fossil fuels, nuclear energy, hydroelectric, wind, solar, geothermal, and biofuels).

Use a model or simulation to analyze how fossil fuels are formed and the environmental effects of burning fossil fuels.

Use a model or simulation to analyze how the availability of fossil fuels has shaped where people live and their way of life.

Compare cost-benefit ratios of design solutions for developing, managing, and utilizing energy and mineral resources.

Use data to evaluate how tools and other technologies used to manage natural resources address human cultural needs and sustainability issues, including the trade-offs of these tools.

Use evidence to explain that natural Earth hazards (e.g. earthquakes, tornadoes, and hurricanes) can have both short-term and long-term effects on the environment and human activity. [Clarification Statement: Discuss the hazard, exposure, and vulnerability of human populations based upon the development of society].

Use a model or simulation to support explanations based on evidence about factors affecting biodiversity and populations in ecosystems of different scales.

Describe how human activity affects Earth's environment and biodiversity and how people can help reduce their impact.

Analyze data to describe the effect of an economic, political, religious, technological, or environmental factor on the size of the human population.

Identify why biodiversity in an ecosystem is important (e.g., humans depend on the Earth for resources; supports and enhances life on Earth; aids humanity by preserving landscapes of recreational or inspirational value).

Use data to describe the relationships among management of natural resources, the sustainability of human populations, and biodiversity.

Design and evaluate a technological solution that reduces impacts of human activities on natural systems. [Clarification Statement: Examples of data on the impacts of human activities could include the quantities and types of pollutants released, changes to biomass and species diversity, or areal changes in land surface use (such as for urban development, agriculture and livestock, or surface mining). Examples for limiting future impacts could range from local efforts (such as reducing, reusing, and recycling resources, including water conservation efforts) to large-scale geoengineering design solutions (such as altering global temperatures by making large changes to the atmosphere or ocean).]

Interpret data from an environmental policy and/or organization (Clean Water Act, Clean Air Act, Endangered Species Act, Species Survival Plan, Resource Conservation and Recovery Act, Department of Energy, and the World Health Organization) to explain the intended outcome of the policy and/or organization.

Use evidence to explain positive and negative effects of environmental policies/decisions on people, societies, and/or the environment.

Environmental Policy

The Effect of Human Population and Activities on the Environment

Biodiversity

Natural Hazards

Flow of Matter and Energy

Environmental Systems

Evaluate the claims, evidence, and reasoning that the complex interactions in ecosystems maintain relatively consistent numbers and types of organisms in stable conditions, but changing conditions may result in a new ecosystem.

Use a computational representation to illustrate that humans are part of Earth's ecosystems and how human activities can, deliberately or inadvertently, alter ecosystems.

Use a computational representation to illustrate the relationships among Earth systems and how those relationships are being modified due to human activity.

Analyze data regarding differences between systems in equilibrium and systems in disequilibrium. Use corresponding data to support how steady state is achieved through negative and positive feedback loops.

Evaluate, measure, and communicate biological, chemical, and physical (abiotic and biotic) factors within an ecosystem.

Use a model to locate and describe the major Earth biomes. Analyze data to assess how biomes are determined by climate (temperature and precipitation patterns) that support specific kinds of plants.

Observe the difference between weather and climate.

Observe how weather can be influenced by global climatic patterns, such as El Niño and La Niña.

Use a model or simulation to observe the factors that influence weather and climate, the action of gravitational forces, and the rotation of the Earth.

Analyze geoscience data and the results from global climate models to make an evidence-based forecast of the current rate of global or regional climate change and associated future impacts to Earth systems.

Construct and revise an explanation based on evidence for the cycling of matter through sources and sinks and how energy is transferred.

Use mathematical representations to support claims for the cycling of matter and flow of energy among organisms in an ecosystem. (These mathematical representations may include ecological pyramids of number, biomass, and energy.)

Use a model to describe how variations in the flow of energy into and out of Earth's systems result in changes in climate.

Analyze and interpret the data on the benefits and disadvantages of the different sources of energy including fossil fuels, nuclear energy, hydroelectric, wind, solar, geothermal and biofuels.

Use a model or simulation to analyze how layers of energy-rich organic material have been gradually turned into great coal beds and oil pools by the pressure of the overlying earth. Observe that by burning these fossil fuels, people are passing stored energy back into the environment as heat and releasing large amounts of matter such as carbon dioxide and other air pollutants.

Evaluate competing design solutions for developing, managing, and utilizing energy and mineral resources based on cost-benefit ratios.

Analyze computational tools and other technologies that allow for the management of natural resources. Evaluate the trade-offs of these tools regarding human physical and cultural needs versus sustainability and biodiversity.

Construct an explanation based on evidence for how natural Earth hazards, such as earthquakes, tornadoes, and hurricanes, affect the environment and human activity on both a short-term and long-term scale.

Use a model or simulation to support and revise explanations based on evidence about factors affecting biodiversity and populations in ecosystems of different scales.

Design, evaluate, and refine a solution for reducing the impacts of human activities on the environment and biodiversity.

Analyze and interpret data on how the size and rate of growth of the human population in any location is affected by economic, political, religious, technological, and environmental (resource availability) factors.

Create a computational simulation to illustrate the relationships among management of natural resources, the sustainability of human populations, and biodiversity.

Design, evaluate and refine a technological solution that reduces impacts of human activities on natural systems.

Use a computational representation to illustrate the relationships among Earth systems and how those relationships are being modified due to human activity.

Conduct an investigation to evaluate the effectiveness of environmental policies and/or organizations (Clean Water Act, Clean Air Act, Endangered Species Act, Species Survival Plan, Resource Conservation and Recovery Act, Department of Energy, and the World Health Organization).

Construct an argument to explain that environmental policies/decisions have negative and positive impacts on people, societies, and the environment.

Waves and their Applications in Technologies for Information Transfer

Energy

Forces

Matter and its Interactions

Use the periodic table as a model to predict the relative properties of elements based on the patterns of electrons in the outermost energy level of atoms.

Construct and revise an explanation for the outcome of a simple chemical reaction based on the outermost electron states of atoms, trends in the periodic table, and knowledge of the patterns of chemical properties.

Plan and conduct an investigation to gather evidence to compare the structure of substances at the bulk scale to infer the strength of electrical forces between particles.

Develop a model to illustrate that the release or absorption of energy from a chemical reaction system depends upon the changes in total bond energy.

Develop models to illustrate the changes in the composition of the nucleus of the atom and the energy released during the processes of fission, fusion, and radioactive decay.

Analyze data to support the claim that Newton's second law of motion describes the mathematical relationship among the net force on a macroscopic object, its mass, and its acceleration.

Quantitatively analyze various scenarios to describe how the change of energy in one component in a system responds to the change in energy of the other components and flow of energy into and out of the system are known.

Develop and use models to illustrate that energy at the macroscopic scale can be accounted for as a combination of energy associated with the motions of particles (objects) and energy associated with the relative positions of particles (objects).

Design, build, and refine a device that works within given constraints to convert one form of energy into another form of energy.

Develop and use a model of two objects interacting through electric or magnetic fields to illustrate the forces between objects and the changes in energy of the objects due to the interaction.

Gather data to build a model to describe and explain the flow of current through series and parallel electric circuits.

Use mathematical representations to support a claim regarding relationships among the frequency, wavelength, and speed of waves.

Electromagnetic Radiation

Wave Properties

Energy

Forces and Interactions

Analyze data to support the claim that Newton's second law of motion describes the mathematical relationship among the net force on a macroscopic object, its mass, and its acceleration.

Use mathematical representations to support the claim that the total momentum of a system of objects is conserved when there is no net force on the system.

Apply scientific and engineering ideas to design, evaluate, and refine a device for example, one that minimizes the force on a macroscopic object during a collision.

Use mathematical representations of Newton's Law of Gravitation and Coulomb's Law to describe and predict the gravitational and electrostatic forces between objects.

Use mathematical representations to represent simple harmonic motion and pendulums.

Create a computational model to calculate the change in the energy of one component in a system when the change in energy of the other component(s) and energy flows in and out of the system are known.

Develop and use models to illustrate that energy at the macroscopic scale can be accounted for as a combination of energy associated with the motions of particles (objects) and energy associated with the relative positions of particles (objects).

Design, build, and refine a device that works within given constraints to convert one form of energy into another form of energy.

Develop and use a model of two objects interacting through electric or magnetic fields to illustrate the forces between objects and the changes in energy of the objects due to the interaction.

Design, develop and analyze simple circuits and circuit elements.

Use mathematical representations to support a claim regarding relationships among the frequency, wavelength, and speed of waves traveling in various media.

Evaluate the claims, evidence, and reasoning behind the idea that electromagnetic radiation can be described either by a wave model or a particle model, and that for some situations one model is more useful than the other.

Evaluate the validity and reliability of claims in published materials of the effects that different frequencies of electromagnetic radiation have when absorbed by matter.

Modern Physics

Particle and Wave Nature of Light

Geometric Optics

Electromagnetic Induction

Magnetism

Simple and Complex Circuits

Electricity

Fluids

Temperature and Thermal Energy Transfer

Energy and Momentum in Two Dimensions

For a system consisting of a single object with a net external force applied, qualitatively and quantitatively predict changes in its linear momentum using the impulse-momentum theorem and in its translational kinetic energy using the work-energy theorem.

For a system consisting of two objects with no net external forces applied, qualitatively and quantitatively analyze a two-dimensional interaction (i.e., collision or separation) to show that the total linear momentum of the system remains constant

For a system consisting of two objects moving in two dimensions with no net external forces applied, apply the principles of conservation of linear momentum and of mechanical energy to quantitatively predict changes in the linear momentum, velocity, and kinetic energy after the interaction between the two objects.

Classify interactions between two objects moving in two dimensions as elastic, inelastic, and completely inelastic.

Describe the Standard Model and explain the composition and decay of subatomic particles using the Standard Model and Feynman diagrams.

Explain the stability of the nucleus considering the electromagnetic repulsion in the nucleus and how forces govern binding energy and radioactive decay for different elements.

Qualitatively compare and contrast how particle interactions, fission, and fusion can convert matter into energy and energy into matter and calculate the relative amounts of matter and energy in such processes.

Apply the conservation of mass, conservation of charge, and conservation of linear momentum principles to describe the results of a radioactive particle undergoing either alpha or beta decay.

Know and describe how a particle accelerator functions and how current high energy particle physics experiments are being used to develop the Standard Model.

Develop graphical and mathematical representations that describe the relationship among the temperature, thermal energy, and thermal energy transfer (i.e., heat) in the kinetic molecular theory and apply those representations to qualitatively and quantitatively describe how changing the temperature of a substance affects the motion of the molecules.

Describe the process of the transfer of thermal energy (i.e., heat) that occurs during the heating cycle of a substance from solid to gas and relate the changes in molecular motion to temperature changes that are observed.

Cite evidence from everyday life to describe the transfer of thermal energy by conduction, convection, and radiation.

Develop graphical and mathematical representations that describe the relationship among the volume, temperature, and number of molecules of an ideal gas in a closed system and the pressure exerted by the system and apply those representations to qualitatively and quantitatively describe how changing any of those variables affects the others.

Describe the slope of the graphical representation of pressure vs. the product of: the number of particles, temperature of the gas, and inverse of the volume of the gas in terms of the ideal gas constant.

Using PV graphs, qualitatively and quantitatively determine how changes in the pressure, volume, or temperature of an ideal gas allow the gas to do work and classify the work as either done on or done by the gas.

For a static, incompressible fluid, develop and apply graphical and mathematical representations that describe the relationship between the density and the pressure exerted at various positions in the fluid, and apply those representations to qualitatively and quantitatively describe how changing the depth or density affects the pressure.

Qualitatively and quantitatively determine how the density of fluid or volume of fluid displaced is related to the force due to buoyancy acting on either a floating or submerged object as described by Archimedes' principle of buoyancy.

Develop and apply the principle of constant volume flow rate to determine the relationship between cross-sectional area of a pipe and the velocity of an incompressible fluid flowing through a pipe.

Develop and apply Bernoulli's principle and continuity equations to predict changes in the speed and pressure of a moving incompressible fluid.

Describe how a change in the pressure of as static fluid in an enclosed container is transmitted equally in all directions (Pascal's Principle) and apply Pascal's Principle to determine the mechanical advantage of a hydraulic system.

Describe the methods of charging an object (i.e., contact, induction, and polarization) and apply the principle of conservation of charge to determine the charges on each object after charge is transferred between two objects by contact.

For a single isolated charge, develop and apply graphical and mathematical representations that describe the relationship between the amount of charge, the distance from the charge and the strength of the electric field created by the charge and apply those representations to qualitatively and quantitatively describe how changing either the amount of charge or distance from the charge affects the strength of the electric field.

Using Coulomb's law, pictorially and mathematically describe the force on a stationary charge due to other stationary charges. Understand that these forces are equal and opposite as described by Newton's third law and compare and contrast the strength of this force to the force due to gravity.

For a single isolated charge, develop graphical and mathematical representations that describe the relationship between the amount of charge, the distance from the charge and the electric potential created by the charge and apply those representations to qualitatively and quantitatively describe how changing either the amount of charge or distance from the charge affects the electric potential.

Map electric fields and equipotential lines, showing the electric field lines are perpendicular to the equipotential lines, and draw conclusions about the motion of a charged particle either between or along equipotential lines due the electric field.

Distinguish between electric potential energy and electric potential (i.e., voltage).

Apply conservation of energy to determine changes in the electric potential energy, translational kinetic energy, and speed of a single charged object (i.e., a point particle) placed in a uniform electric field.

Relate the idea of electric potential energy to electric potential (i.e., voltage) in the context of electric circuits.

Develop graphical and mathematical representations that describe the relationship between the between the amount of current passing through an ohmic device and the amount of voltage (i.e., EMF) applied across the device according to Ohm's Law. Apply those representations to qualitatively and quantitatively describe how changing the current affects the voltage and vice versa for an ohmic device of known resistance.

Describe the slope of the graphical representation of current vs. voltage or voltage vs. current in terms of the resistance of the device.

Define and describe a device as ohmic or non-ohmic based on the relationship between the current passing through the device and the voltage across the device based on the shape of the curve of a current vs. voltage or voltage vs. current graphical representation.

Explain and analyze simple arrangements of electrical components in series and parallel DC circuits in terms of current, resistance, voltage, and power. Use Ohm's and Kirchhoff's laws to analyze DC circuits.

Describe the magnetic properties of ferromagnetic, paramagnetic, and diamagnetic materials on a macroscopic scale and atomic scale.

Develop and apply a mathematical representation that describes the relationship between the magnetic field created by a long straight wire carrying an electric current, the magnitude of the current, and the distance to the wire.

Describe the motion of a charged or uncharged particle through a uniform magnetic field.

Determine the magnitude of the magnetic force acting on a charged particle moving through a uniform magnetic field and apply the right hand rule to determine the direction of either the magnetic force or the magnetic field.

Describe the practical uses of magnetism in motors, electronic devices, mass spectroscopy, MRIs, and other applications.

Given the magnitude and direction of a uniform magnetic field, calculate the flux through a specified area in terms of the field magnitude and the size and orientation of the area with respect to the field.

Develop graphical and mathematical representations that describe the relationship between the rate of change of magnetic flux and the amount of voltage induced in a simple loop circuit according to Faraday's Law of Induction and apply those representations to qualitatively and quantitatively describe how changing the voltage across the device affects the current through the device.

Apply Ohm's Law, Faraday's Law, and Lenz's Law to determine the amount and direction of current induced by a changing magnetic flux in a loop of wire or simple loop circuit.

Develop graphical, mathematical, and pictorial representations (e.g., ray diagrams) that describe the relationships between the focal length, the image distance, and the object distance for planar, converging, and diverging mirrors and apply those representations to qualitatively and quantitatively describe how changing the object distance affects the image distance.

Develop graphical, mathematical, and pictorial representations (e.g., ray diagrams) that describe the relationship between the angles of incidence and refraction of monochromatic light passed between two different media and apply those representations to qualitatively and quantitatively describe how changing the angle of incidence affects the angle of refraction.

Develop graphical, mathematical, and pictorial representations (e.g., ray diagrams) that describe the relationships between the focal length, the image distance, and the object distance for both converging and diverging lenses and apply those representations to qualitatively and quantitatively describe how changing the object distance affects the image distance.

Describe an image as real or virtual for both a curved mirror and lens system based on the position of the image relative to the optical device.

Develop the relationship among frequency, wavelength, and energy for electromagnetic waves across the entire spectrum.

Explain how electromagnetic waves interact with matter both as particles (i.e., photons) and as waves and be able to apply the most appropriate model to any particular scenario.

Develop graphical and mathematical representations that describe the relationship between the frequency of a photon and the kinetic energy of an electron emitted through the photoelectric effect and apply those representations to qualitatively and quantitatively describe how changing the frequency or intensity of light affect the current produced in the photoelectric effect.

Describe the slope of the graphical representation of the kinetic energy of a photoelectron vs. frequency in terms of Planck's constant.

Develop graphical and mathematical representations that describe the relationship between the wavelength of monochromatic light, spacing between slits, distance to screen, and interference pattern produced for a double-slit scenario and apply those representations to qualitatively and quantitatively describe how changing any of the independent variables affects the position of the bright fringes.

Develop graphical and mathematical representations that describe the relationship between the angle between two polarizing filters and the intensity of light passed through the filters from an unpolarized light source and apply those representations to qualitatively and quantitatively describe how changing the angle between polarizing filters affects the intensity of light passing through both filters.

Asking questions and defining problems in 9–12 builds on K–8 experiences and progresses to formulating, refining, and evaluating empirically testable questions and design problems using models and simulations.

Ask questions<ul><li>that arise from careful observation of phenomena, or unexpected results, to clarify and/or seek additional information</li><li>that arise from examining models or a theory, to clarify and/or seek additional information and relationships.</li><li>to determine relationships, including quantitative relationships, between independent and dependent variables.</li><li>to clarify and refine a model, an explanation, or an engineering problem</li></ul>

Evaluate a question to determine if it is testable and relevant.

Ask questions that can be investigated within the scope of the school laboratory, research facilities, or field (e.g., outdoor environment) with available resources and, when appropriate, frame a hypothesis based on a model or theory.

Ask and/or evaluate questions that challenge the premise(s) of an argument, the interpretation of a data set, or the suitability of a design.

Define a design problem that involves the development of a process or system with interacting components and criteria and constraints that may include social, technical, and/or environmental considerations.

Modeling in 9–12 builds on K–8 experiences and progresses to using, synthesizing, and developing models to predict and show relationships among variables between systems and their components in the natural and designed worlds.

Evaluate merits and limitations of two different models of the same proposed tool, process, mechanism or system in order to select or revise a model that best fits the evidence or design criteria.

Design a test of a model to ascertain its reliability.

Develop, revise, and/or use a model based on evidence to illustrate and/or predict the relationships between systems or between components of a system.

Develop and/or use multiple types of models to provide mechanistic accounts and/or predict phenomena, and move flexibly between model types based on merits and limitations.

Develop a complex model that allows for manipulation and testing of a proposed process or system.

Develop and/or use a model (including mathematical and computational) to generate data to support explanations, predict phenomena, analyze systems, and/or solve problems.

Planning and carrying out investigations in 9-12 builds on K-8 experiences and progresses to include investigations that provide evidence for and test conceptual, mathematical, physical, and empirical models.

Plan an investigation or test a design individually and collaboratively to produce data to serve as the basis for evidence as part of building and revising models, supporting explanations for phenomena, or testing solutions to problems.

Consider possible confounding variables or effects and evaluate the investigation's design to ensure variables are controlled.

Plan and conduct an investigation individually and collaboratively to produce data to serve as the basis for evidence, and in the design: decide on types, how much, and accuracy of data needed to produce reliable measurements and consider limitations on the precision of the data (e.g., number of trials, cost, risk, time), and refine the design accordingly.

Plan and conduct an investigation or test a design solution in a safe and ethical manner including considerations of environmental, social, and personal impacts.

Select appropriate tools to collect, record, analyze, and evaluate data.

Make directional hypotheses that specify what happens to a dependent variable when an independent variable is manipulated.

Manipulate variables and collect data about a complex model of a proposed process or system to identify failure points or improve performance relative to criteria for success or other variables.

Analyzing data in 9–12 builds on K–8 experiences and progresses to introducing more detailed statistical analysis, the comparison of data sets for consistency, and the use of models to generate and analyze data.

Analyze data using tools, technologies, and/or models (e.g., computational, mathematical) in order to make valid and reliable scientific claims or determine an optimal design solution.

Apply concepts of statistics and probability (including determining function fits to data, slope, intercept, and correlation coefficient for linear fits) to scientific and engineering questions and problems, using digital tools when feasible.

Consider limitations of data analysis (e.g., measurement error, sample selection) when analyzing and interpreting data.

Compare and contrast various types of data sets (e.g., self-generated, archival) to examine consistency of measurements and observations.

Evaluate the impact of new data on a working explanation and/or model of a proposed process or system.

Analyze data to identify design features or characteristics of the components of a proposed process or system to optimize it relative to criteria for success.

Mathematical and computational thinking in 9- 12 builds on K-8 experiences and progresses to using algebraic thinking and analysis, a range of linear and nonlinear functions including trigonometric functions, exponentials and logarithms, and computational tools for statistical analysis to analyze, represent, and model data. Simple computational simulations are created and used based on mathematical models of basic assumptions.

Create and/or revise a computational model or simulation of a phenomenon, designed device, process, or system.

Use mathematical, computational, and/or algorithmic representations of phenomena or design solutions to describe and/or support claims and/or explanations.

Apply techniques of algebra and functions to represent and solve scientific and engineering problems.

Use simple limit cases to test mathematical expressions, computer programs, algorithms, or simulations of a process or system to see if a model "makes sense" by comparing the outcomes with what is known about the real world.

Apply ratios, rates, percentages, and unit conversions in the context of complicated measurement problems involving quantities with derived or compound units (such as mg/mL, kg/m3 , acre-feet, etc.).

Constructing explanations and designing solutions in 9–12 builds on K–8 experiences and progresses to explanations and designs that are supported by multiple and independent student-generated sources of evidence consistent with scientific ideas, principles, and theories.

Make a quantitative and/or qualitative claim regarding the relationship between dependent and independent variables.

Construct and revise an explanation based on valid and reliable evidence obtained from a variety of sources (including students' own investigations, models, theories, simulations, peer review) and the assumption that theories and laws that describe the natural world operate today as they did in the past and will continue to do so in the future.

Apply scientific ideas, principles, and/or evidence to provide an explanation of phenomena and solve design problems, taking into account possible unanticipated effects.

Apply scientific reasoning, theory, and/or models to link evidence to the claims to assess the extent to which the reasoning and data support the explanation or conclusion.

Design, evaluate, and/or refine a solution to a complex real-world problem, based on scientific knowledge, student-generated sources of evidence, prioritized criteria, and trade off considerations.

Engaging in argument from evidence in 9–12 builds on K–8 experiences and progresses to using appropriate and sufficient evidence and scientific reasoning to defend and critique claims and explanations about the natural and designed world(s). Arguments may also come from current scientific or historical episodes in science.

Compare and evaluate competing arguments or design solutions in light of currently accepted explanations, new evidence, limitations (e.g., trade-offs), constraints, and ethical issues.

Evaluate the claims, evidence, and/or reasoning behind currently accepted explanations or solutions to determine the merits of arguments.

Respectfully provide and/or receive critiques on scientific arguments by probing reasoning and evidence, challenging ideas and conclusions, responding thoughtfully to diverse perspectives, and determining additional information required to resolve contradictions.

Construct, use, and/or present an oral and written argument or counter-arguments based on data and evidence.

Make and defend a claim based on evidence about the natural world or the effectiveness of a design solution that reflects scientific knowledge and student-generated evidence.

Evaluate competing design solutions to a real-world problem based on scientific ideas and principles, empirical evidence, and/or logical arguments regarding relevant factors (e.g. economic, societal, environmental, ethical considerations).

Obtaining, evaluating, and communicating information in 9–12 builds on K–8 experiences and progresses to evaluating the validity and reliability of the claims, methods, and designs.

Critically read scientific literature adapted for classroom use to determine the central ideas or conclusions and/or to obtain scientific and/or technical information to summarize complex evidence, concepts, processes, or information presented in a text by paraphrasing them in simpler but still accurate terms.

Compare, integrate and evaluate sources of information presented in different media or formats (e.g., visually, quantitatively) as well as in words in order to address a scientific question or solve a problem.

Gather, read, and evaluate scientific and/or technical information from multiple authoritative sources, assessing the evidence and usefulness of each source.

Evaluate the validity and reliability of and/or synthesize multiple claims, methods, and/or designs that appear in scientific and technical texts or media reports, verifying the data when possible.

Communicate scientific and/or technical information or ideas (e.g. about phenomena and/or the process of development and the design and performance of a proposed process or system) in multiple formats (i.e., orally, graphically, textually, mathematically).

Asking Questions and Defining Problems

Developing and Using Models

Planning and Carrying out Investigations

Analyzing and Interpreting Data

Using Mathematics and Computational Thinking

Constructing Explanations and Designing Solutions

Engaging in Argument from Evidence

Obtaining, Evaluating and Communicating Information