Intro to Biology

Question 1

What is biology?

Answer 1

Biology is the study of life. Combining zoology, microbiology, botany, mycology, and ecology.

Question 2

What is evolution?

Answer 2

process of change that allows organisms to adapt to their environment.

Question 3

Common feature amoung all life forms?

Answer 3

Complex organization (highly complex structure), very regulated internal environment (inernal environment is constant despite constantly changing outside environment), ability to grow and develop (inherited genes control growth and development), ability to take in and utilize energy (energy is used to maintain cell function), ability to respond to environmental changes and stimuli, the ability to reproduce ones own kind.

Question 4

Evolution of adaptation says…

Answer 4

traits best suited for their environment will be passed on to the offspring (over many generations)

Question 5

Hierarchy of organization

Answer 5

1) Biosphere
2) Ecosysytem
3) Community
4) Population
5) Organism
6) Organs and organ sysytems
7) Tissues
8) Cells
9) Organelles
10) Molecules

Question 6

Reductionism

Answer 6

Reduction of complex systems to more manageable components.

Question 7

Biosphere

Answer 7

All environments on earth that support life, eveything on earth is apart of the biosphere.

Question 8

Ecosystem

Answer 8

All living and non-living components within a certain area (includes all non-living components with which the living interact)

Question 9

Community

Answer 9

A group of diverse organisms that live in a certain area

Question 10

Population

Answer 10

All of the organisms within a set species in a certain area

Question 11

Organism

Answer 11

The individual unit of a population

Question 12

Organ system

Answer 12

Group of organs within an organism that sustain life

Question 13

Organ

Answer 13

Indivdual unit of and organ system comprised of tissues.

Question 14

Tissue

Answer 14

Grouping of cells, each tissue is comprised of cells of similar composistion, each tissue has a specific function

Question 15

Cell

Answer 15

Membrane bound structure that form the individual units of living matter, smallest unit of life

Question 16

Organelles

Answer 16

Individual functional components of the cell

Question 17

Molecules

Answer 17

Cluster of atoms ex) DNA, sugar etc

Question 18

Producers

Answer 18

Provide food for other organisms

Question 19

Consumers

Answer 19

Eat plants and other animals within the ecosysytem

Question 20

Decomposers

Answer 20

Breakdown waste and dead organisms recycling nutrients so they can be used for biosynthesis

Question 21

How does energy enter an ecosystem?

Answer 21

Sunlight

Question 22

Which two ways can ecosystems be characterized?

Answer 22

Recycling of chemical nutrients (basic chemical components of life flow from air to soil to producers, consumers and decomposers from soil back to air), energy flow (energy is constatntly gained and lost by the ecosystem, entering as sunlight and exiting as heat)

Question 23

What is related to the structure of a cell?

Answer 23

It’s function

Question 24

All living things are composed of either…

Answer 24

Prokaryotes or Eukaryotes

Question 25

Taxonomy

Answer 25

Branch of biology that names and characterizes species

Question 26

Three domains

Answer 26

1) Domain archea
2) Domain bacteria
3) Domain Eukarya

Question 27

Within the domain eukarya what are the 3 kingdoms?

Answer 27

1) Kingdom Plantae
2) Kingdom Fungi
3) Kingdom Animalia
*Kingdom protist no longer exists

Question 28

Biology is made up of which 2 scientific approaches?

Answer 28

Discovery Science and Hypothesis-based science

Question 29

Discovery Science

Answer 29

Result of verifiable observations and measurements, result of inductive reasoning (conclusions which are drawn from a large number of observations.)

Question 30

Hypothesis based science

Answer 30

Observations of discovery science resulting in questions forming a hypothesis, result of deductive reasoning (moves from a general statement down to a specific conclusion)

Question 31

What is the difference between hypothesis and theory?

Answer 31

Hypotheisi is much more specific whereas theory is broad and describes many observations.