First Quarter Test Flashcards
Biology
the study of living organisms
Scientific Method
A method of procedure that has characterized natural science
Hypothesis
a supposition or proposed explanation made on the basis of limited evidence as a starting point for further investigation
Data
facts and statistics collected together for reference or analysis
theory
a supposition or a system of ideas intended to explain something
biosphere
the regions of the surface, atmosphere, and hydrosphere of the earth
ecology
the branch of biology that deals with the relations of organisms to one another and to their physical surroundings
species
a group of living organisms consisting of similar individuals capable of exchanging genes or interbreeding
population
all the inhabitants of a particular town, area, or country
ecosystem
a biological community of interacting organisms and their physical environment
biotic factor
a living organism that shapes its environment
abiotic factor
a nonliving part of an environment that shapes its environment
climate
the weather conditions prevailing in an area in general or over a long
weather
the state of an atmosphere at a place and time as regards heat, dryness, sunshine, wind, rain, etc.
greenhouse effect
the trapping of the sun’s warmth in a planet’s lower atmosphere, due to the greater transparency of the atmosphere to visible radiation from the sun than to infrared radiation emitted from the planet’s surface
autotroph
an organism that is able to form nutritional organic substances from simple inorganic substances such as carbon dioxide
heterotroph
an organism deriving its nutritional requirements from complex organic substances
food chain
a series or organisms each depend on the next as a source of food
food web
a system of interlocking food chains
population density
a measurement of population per unit area
population distribution
the way in which people are spread across a given area
immigration
the action of coming to live permanently in a foreign country
emigration
the act of leaving one’s own country to settle permanently in another
limiting factor
a variable of a system that causes a noticeable change in output or another measure of a type of system
demography
the study of statistics as births, deaths, income, or the incidence of disease
habitat
the natural home
resource
a stock or supply of money
keystone species
the species on which species in an ecosystem largely depend
symbiosis
interaction between two different organisms living in close physical association
commensalism
an association between two organisms in which one benefits and the other derives neither nor harm
mutualism
the doctrine that mutual dependence is necessary to social well-being
parasitism
relationship between two species of plants or animals in which one benefits at
atom
the basic unit of a chemical element
nucleas
the central and most important part of an object, movement, or group
electron
a stable subatomic particle with a charge of negative electricity
element
a part or aspect of something abstract
compound
a thing that is composed of two or more separate elements
molecule
a group of atoms bonded together
ionic bond
a type of chemical bonding that involves the electrostatic attraction between oppositely charged ions
covalent bond
a chemical bond that involves the sharing of electron pairs between atoms
cohesion
the action or fact of forming a united hole
adhesion
the action or process of adhering to a surface or object
chemical reaction
a process that involves rearrangement of the molecular or ionic structure of a substance
reactant
a substance that is present at the start of a chemical reaction
product
a substance that is present at the end of a chemical reaction
catalyst
a substance that increases the rate of a chemical reaction without itself undergoing any permanent chemical change
enzyme
a substance produced by a living organism that acts as a catalyst to bring about a specific biochemical reaction
substrate
the surface or material on or from which an organism lives, grows, or obtains its nourishment
