Chapter Questions
How are bacterial and archaeal cells similar, and how are they different?
How do prokaryotic cells obtain nutrients, and how does this process put constraints on their size?
How does surface area and volume of a cell change with its size?
In eukaryotes, sexual reproduction is the main process thatgenerates new gene combinations. How do bacteria generate newgene combinations in the absence of sexual reproduction?
How can photosynthesis occur without the production of oxygen,and how can respiration occur without requiring oxygen?
How do photoautotrophs such as cyanobacteria differ from photoheterotrophs such as heliobacteria?
How did the biological carbon cycle work on the early Earth, where oxygen gas was essentially absent from the atmosphereand oceans?
What are the roles of bacteria and archaeons in the sulfur andnitrogen cycles?
How would the nitrogen cycle operate in the absence of bacteria and archaeons?
Name and describe three major groups of Bacteria.
What are three environmental extremes where Archaea thrive?
If early branches on the bacterial and archaeal trees are dominated by hyperthermophilic microorganisms, does this meanthat the early oceans were very hot?
What is the age of the Earth, and when is life thought to have firstoriginated?