U4 - COMPLETA Flashcards
What is Classification?
Classification is the grouping of information or objects based on similarities.
What is Taxonomy?
Taxonomy is the science of grouping and naming organisms.
Why classify organisms?
To represent relationships among organisms, to make things easier to find, identify, and study, and to understand our own evolution.
Why use a scientific name?
We use scientific names to avoid confusion as many common names vary from region to region and country to country.
Who was Aristotle?
A Greek philosopher that proposed all creatures be arranged in a hierarchy of complexity.
What is the scala naturae?
The dominance of humans over all living things, described as the ‘ladder of nature’.
Who was Carolus Linnaeus?
A Swedish botanist/physician known as ‘The Father of Taxonomy’ who adopted a system of classifying and naming organisms.
What is Binomial Nomenclature?
A two name system for writing scientific names.
What are the components of Binomial Nomenclature?
Genus name – written first and always capitalized; Species name – written second and never capitalized.
How should Binomial Nomenclature be formatted?
Both words are to be italicized if typed, or underlined if handwritten.
What are the advantages of Binomial Nomenclature?
Indicates similarities in anatomy, embryology, and evolutionary ancestry.
What is an example of Binomial Nomenclature?
The North American black bear (Ursus americanus) and the grizzly bear (Ursus horribilis) are closely related.
Similar organisms are grouped into the same genus – in this case, Ursus.
What are the levels of classification?
7 levels known as taxa: Kingdom, Phylum, Class, Order, Family, Genus, Species.
What happens as one goes from Kingdom to Species?
An increase in the similarity between organisms occurs and there are fewer numbers of different kinds of organisms.
How are Kingdoms divided?
Kingdoms are divided into groups called phyla, which are subdivided into classes, orders, families, genera, and species.
What is the classification of humans?
Kingdom: Animalia, Phylum: Chordata, Class: Mammalia, Order: Primates, Family: Hominidae, Genus: Homo, Species: sapiens.
What is Phylogenetics?
Based on common evolutionary descent.
What is Phylogeny?
A representation of organisms based on and describing evolutionary relationships.
What is Systematics?
The study of the evolution of biological diversity.
What evidence is used in Phylogenetics?
Fossil record, morphology, embryological patterns of development, chromosomes, and DNA.
What are Autotrophs?
Organisms that make their own food by photosynthesis.
What are Heterotrophs?
Organisms that use organic materials for energy and growth.
What are Chemotrophs?
Organisms that get food by breaking down inorganic matter.
What are Prokaryotic organisms?
Unicellular organisms that have no nucleus and no membrane-bound organelles.