biosphere
the entire portion of Earth inhabited by life
the sum of all the planet's ecosystems
ecosystem
all the organisms in a given area, along with the nonliving (abiotic) factors with which they interact
a biological community & its physical environment
community
an assemblage of all the organisms living together and potentially interacting in a particular area
population
a group of individuals belonging to one species & living in the same geographic area
organism
an individual living thing, such as a bacterium, fungus, protist, plant, or animal
organ system
a group of organs that work together in performing vital body functions
organ
a structure consisting of several tissues adapted as a group to perform specific functions
tissue
an integrated group of cells with a common function, structure, or both
cell
a basic unit of living matter separated from its environment by a plasma membrane
the fundamental structural unit of life
organelle
a membrane-enclosed structure with a specialized function within a cell
molecule
a group of 2 or more atoms held together by covalent bonds
emergent properties
new properties that emerge with each step upward in the hierarchy of life, owing to the arrangement & interactions of parts as complexity increases
producer
an organism that makes organic food molecules from CO2, H2O, and other inorganic raw materials
a plant, alga, or autotrophic bacterium
consumer
an organism that obtains its food by eating plants or by eating animals that have eaten plants
systems biology
an approach to studying biology that aims to model the dynamic behavior of whole biological systems
prokaryotic cell
a type of cell lacking a membrane-enclosed nucleus & other membrane-enclosed organelles
found only in the domains Bacteria & Archaea
eukaryotic cell
a type of cell that has a membrane-enclosed nucleus & other membrane-enclosed organelles
all organisms except bacteria & archaea are composed of eukaryotic cells
gene
a discrete unit of hereditary information consisting of a specific nucleotide sequence in DNA (or RNA, in some viruses)
most of the genes of a eukaryote r located in its chromosomal DNA; a few are carried by the DNA of mitochondria & chloroplasts
species
a group whose members possess similar anatomical characteristics & have the ability to interbreed & produce viable, fertile offspring
domain
a taxonomic category above the kingdom level
the 3 domains of life: Archaea, Bacteria, & Eukarya
Bacteria
one of 2 prokaryotic domains of life, the other being Archaea
Archaea
1 of 2 prokaryotic domains of life, the other being Bacteria
Eukarya
the domain that includes all eukaryotic organisms
evolution
descent w/ modification
the idea that living species r descendants of ancestral species that were different from present-day ones
also the genetic changes in a population over generations
natural selection
a process in which organisms with certain inherited characteristics are more likely to survive and reproduce that r organisms w/ other characteristics
hypothesis
(hypotheses)
a tentative explanation a scientists propses for a specific phenomenon that has been observed
theory
a widely accepted explanatory idea that is broad in scope & supported by a large body of evidence
controlled experiment
a component of the process of science whereby a scientist carries out 2 parallel tests, an experimental test & a control test
the experimental test differs from the control by one factor, the variable
technology
the practical application of scientific knowledge
