Chapter 1 Science Words Flashcards
Autotrophs
Capture light energy from sunlight and convert it to chemical food energy
Heterotrophs:
Must get energy by eating autotrophs or heterotrophs
Decomposers
recycle dead organisms by breaking them down
Scientific Methods
A series of procedures for organization
d functions.
Hypothesis
A prediction that can be tested
Control
The standard to which the outcome of a test is compared
Variable
Something in an experiment that can change
Theory
An explanation of things or events based on scientific knowledge that is the result of many past experiments
Law
A statement of how things work in nature that seems to be true all the time
Spontaneous Generation
The idea that living things could come from Non-living things
Organism
Any living thing
Cell
The smallest unit of an organism that carries out the functions of life
Homeostasis
An organism’s ability to keep the proper conditions inside no matter what is going on outside the organism
Experiment
using controlled condition to test a prediction
Raw materials
Substances needed by organisms to make other necessary substances
Contaminate
To make impure by coming into contact with an unwanted substance
Biogenesis
The theory that living things only came from other things
Common Name
A non-scientific term that may vary from region to region
Phylogeny
The evolutionary history of an organism or how it has changed over time
Kingdom
1st and largest category
Binomial Nomenclature
Two-name naming system that gives all organisms their scientific name
Taxonomy
• Taxonomy: concerned with classification in ordered categories
Phylogenetic Tree
• Phylogenetic Tree: A tree like chart showing the evolutionary relationships among various biologic species
A clade
A group of organisms that include an ancestor and all descendants of it
Dichotomous Key
A tool that allows the user to determine the identity of items in the natural world.
Classification
Grouping of living organisms according to similar structures and functions.
