Biology study notes made from your own syllabus
Biology is vocabulary plus processes: dozens of new terms, and cycles where order matters. Attach your lecture slides or name your syllabus topic, and your agent writes compact notes with the key terms defined, each process as numbered steps, a comparison table for things students confuse, and exam-style questions to test yourself.
The prompt
- Make biology study notes on [TOPIC] for [COURSE OR EXAM BOARD]. Use my material first: [SLIDES, TEXTBOOK PAGES OR NOTES]. Include: a 3-sentence overview, key terms with one-line definitions, each process as numbered steps (with where in the cell it happens, inputs and outputs), a table comparing things students often mix up, a description of the diagram I should be able to draw and label, and 10 exam-style questions with a mark scheme at the end. Keep it to [LENGTH], plain language, and flag anything in my slides that goes beyond the syllabus. Send it as a PDF and also 20 flashcards as a CSV I can import into Anki or Quizlet.
What to change
- [TOPIC]: E.g. "cellular respiration", "mitosis vs meiosis", "the nephron", "photosynthesis".
- [COURSE OR EXAM BOARD]: E.g. "AP Biology", "AQA A-level Biology", "IB Biology HL", "Bio 101".
- [SLIDES, TEXTBOOK PAGES OR NOTES]: Attach lecture slides (PDF or PowerPoint) or photos of textbook pages. Or write "use the syllabus".
- [LENGTH]: E.g. "2 pages", "one page per stage".
Example result
- Cellular respiration (AP Biology, Unit 3)
- Overview
- Cells break down glucose to make ATP, the energy molecule they use for work. Aerobic respiration happens in four stages, uses oxygen as the final electron acceptor, and releases carbon dioxide and water. Most ATP is made in the mitochondria.
- Key terms
- • ATP: adenosine triphosphate, the cell's usable energy carrier
- • NADH / FADH2: electron carriers that take high-energy electrons to the electron transport chain
- • Substrate-level phosphorylation: ATP made directly by an enzyme in glycolysis and the Krebs cycle
- • Oxidative phosphorylation: ATP made by ATP synthase using a proton gradient
- • Chemiosmosis: protons flowing back across a membrane through ATP synthase
- The four stages
- 1. Glycolysis (cytoplasm, no oxygen needed)
- • Glucose (6C) is split into 2 pyruvate (3C)
- • Net gain: 2 ATP and 2 NADH
- 2. Pyruvate oxidation (mitochondrial matrix)
- • Each pyruvate loses a CO2 and becomes acetyl-CoA
- • Makes NADH
- 3. Krebs (citric acid) cycle (matrix)
- • Acetyl-CoA joins oxaloacetate; the cycle releases CO2
- • Per glucose: 2 ATP, 6 NADH, 2 FADH2
- 4. Electron transport chain and chemiosmosis (inner mitochondrial membrane)
- • NADH and FADH2 hand electrons down the chain; protons are pumped into the intermembrane space
- • Protons flow back through ATP synthase, making most of the ATP
- • Oxygen accepts the electrons and forms water
- Often confused
- • Aerobic: needs O2, full breakdown, much more ATP per glucose
- • Anaerobic (fermentation): no O2, only glycolysis makes ATP, NAD+ is recycled by making lactate (animals) or ethanol + CO2 (yeast)
- Diagram to practice
- Draw a mitochondrion and label: outer membrane, inner membrane (cristae), intermembrane space, matrix. Mark where the Krebs cycle and the ETC happen, and draw the proton flow through ATP synthase.
- Test yourself
- • 1. Why does glycolysis stop without NAD+? (2 marks)
- • 2. Explain how a proton gradient makes ATP. (3 marks)
- • 3. Where is CO2 released, and from which stages? (2 marks)
How to do it with todo.is
- Copy the prompt, add your topic and course, and attach your slides or textbook photos.
- Send it in todo.is on the Today screen, or to your agent on WhatsApp or Telegram.
- Download the PDF notes and the flashcard CSV, then import the cards into your flashcard app.
- Answer the exam questions without looking, then send your answers back and ask your agent to mark them against the mark scheme.
Tips for a better result
- Learn processes as "where, what goes in, what comes out". Most exam questions test exactly those three.
- Redraw the key diagram from memory and compare. Labeling from memory beats rereading notes.
- Name your exam board. AQA, OCR, AP and IB use different wording and expect different detail.
- Make it a recurring to-do: "every evening at 7, send me 5 biology questions from my notes on Telegram" for steady review before the exam.
biology study notes: FAQ
- Can it make notes from my lecture slides? Yes. Attach the PowerPoint or PDF (up to 50 MB) and your agent builds the notes from your lecturer's content first, so they match what will be tested.
- Are AI biology notes accurate? For standard school and first-year topics they are usually reliable, and the prompt asks it to stick to your material. Check numbers like ATP yields against your textbook, since sources round them differently.
- Can I get flashcards from the notes? Yes. The prompt asks for a CSV with term and definition columns that imports into Anki, Quizlet and most flashcard apps.
- Can it include diagrams? It describes each diagram to draw and label, and can make a simple labeled image on request. Always compare it with your textbook's diagram, because AI images can get labels wrong.
JavaScript is required to use the todo.is app.