1.1 - Life Flashcards
What is an atom?
An atom is the basic building block of matter, consisting of a nucleus at its center (made up of protons and neutrons) and electrons orbiting around the nucleus
It is the basic unit of a chemical element
What particles make up an atom?
Protons, neutrons, and electrons
What are complex biological molecules? (biomolecules)
Organic molecules that are essential for the growth and development of the cells, and, by extension, the organism itself
(Carbs, lipids/fats, proteins, nucleic acids)
What are the 4 groups of biomolecules?
Carbohydrates, proteins, nucleic acids, and lipids/fats
What are subcellular organelles?
Structures existing within a cell that have one or more specific jobs to perform
List some examples of subcellular organelles?
Nuclei, mitochondria, ribosomes
What are cells?
The simplest complete unit of structure and function of life
- Every living thing is made up of cells
What are tissues?
Groups of cells with similar structure and function (ex: heart muscle)
What are organs?
Groups of tissues that perform a similar function (ex: heart)
What are organ systems?
Groups of organs performing an overall function (ex: circulatory system)
What are complex organisms?
Total living creatures composed of many systems (ex: human)
What is a population?
A localized group of organisms belonging to the same species
What is a community?
Populations of species living in the same area
What is a species?
A group of organisms with similar structural and functional characteristics that freely interbreed and produce fertile offspring.
What is an ecosystem?
An energy producing system of community interaction that include abiotic factors such as soil, temperature, and water
What are biomes?
Large scale communities classified by predominant vegetation type and distinctive combinations of plants and animals
What is a biosphere?
The sum of all planet’s ecosystems
What are the 6 requirements for life?
- Organization
- Energy utilization
- Internal constancy
- Grow, develop, reproduce
- React to environment
- Evolution
What does life being organized mean?
Things in biology are arranged from simple to more complex, like how cells are the basic units of life. This arrangement is called hierarchical organization.
What does life requiring energy mean?
Living systems must acquire and use energy to maintain their highly organized state (i.e, organisms must have a metabolism, the biochemical reactions that acquire/use energy).
- Organisms take and transform energy to do work, including the maintenance of their ordered states
What does life maintaining an internal constancy mean?
Living things need to keep themselves stable in temperature, moisture level, chemistry, etc. (i.e, must maintain homeostasis).
- Organisms regulate their internal environment to maintain a steady-state, even in the face of a fluctuating external environment
What does life growing, developing, and reproducing mean?
Growth/development: heritable programs are stored in DNA which direct the species-specific pattern of growth/development. Plants grow indefinitely, animals develop then stop growing.
Reproduction: organisms reproduce their own kind; life comes from life (biogenesis). Sexual reproduction = production of gametes, asexual reproduction = binary fission
What does life reacting to environmental changes mean?
Organisms respond to stimuli from their environment. Reaction may be immediate (ex: reaction to extreme heat) or longer (change in leaf colour as a response to day length), but certainly occurs during the lifetime of the individual.
Behaviour: moves towards or away from stimuli (change in metabolism/development)
What does life evolving/adapting mean?
Changes are made in a population over several generations. Inherited characteristics/behaviours enable an individual to live/reproduce with greater success than other members of their population in a given environment. These adaptations become more frequent in the population over several generations (survival of the fittest)
What are the 3 ways that life has unity?
There is unity in the diversity of life forms at the lower levels of organization:
- A universal genetic code (ACGT)
- Similar metabolic pathways (glycolysis; energy production)
- Similarities of cell structure (ex: mammalian sperm cells)
