Chapter 1: What is Biology? 08/29/23 Flashcards
What is biology?
The scientific study of life
What is the most important characteristic of life?
That it is made up of one or more cells
What is the fundamental unit of LIFE?
A cell
What are characteristics of living things?
- Made up of one or more cells
- contains genetic information
- uses genetic information to reproduce the organism and its cells
- convert molecules obtained from environment into biological molecules(like food)
- use energy from environment into biological work
- can regulate their internal temperature(homeostasis)
- can counteract the effects of entropy
What is biological magnification?
When toxins make their way into the food chain.
What is the smallest unit of MATTER?
An atom
What are the levels of life?
- atom
- molecule
- organelles
- cells
- tissues
- organs
- organ systems (digestive)
- organism
- population
- community
- ecosystem
- biosphere
What is a population?
A group of individuals that are the same species that are in a specific space and time.
What is a community?
The interaction of different populations(or species) in an area
What is an ecosystem?
The interaction of communities and non-living components of an area.
What is the process of the scientific method?
- make an observation
- ask a question
- make an educated guess(hypothesis)
- test the hypothesis (experiment)
- obtain results
- draw a conclusion
What is a controlled experiment?
Where there are variables that are being manipulated to obtain a result.
What is a single blind experiment?
Where participants are blind to procedure
What is a double blind experiment?
Where both the participants and researchers are blind to procedure
What are single and double blind experiments useful for?
Removing bias
