Introduction to Biology Flashcards
What is Biology?
It is the study of life
What are the two main branches of Biology?
Cellular Biology
Molecular Biology
What is the difference between Cellular and Molecular Biology?
Cellular biology is the study of cells and the structures inside cells such as mitochondria, membrane, nucleus etc…
Molecular biology studies molecular structures of the cell such as DNA, chromosomes and genes.
What are living things?
highly organized and structured and they follow a hierarchy on a scale from small to large.
What is an atom?
is the smallest and most fundamental unit of matter.
consists of a nucleus surrounded by electrons, and they form molecules.
What is a molecule?
a chemical structure consisting of at least 2 atoms held together by a chemical bond.
What are the most biologically important molecules
Macromolecules
What are macromolecules?
Are large molecules that are typically formed by combining smaller units called monomers.
What are monomers?
small combining units such as glucose, amino acids etc…
What is one major example of a macromolecule?
Deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) which is an instruction manual for an organism.
What are cells?
the fundamental unit of living organisms (building blocks)
Cell biology has been studied since_______.
the 16th century
Why are viruses not considered alive?
They are not considered living because they are not made of cells and they have to invade & hijack a living cell in order to obtain materials to reproduce.
What does the learning of cells allow?
It allows for us to see the similarities and differences among organisms.
What can cells be classified as?
Prokaryotic and Eukaryotic
What are prokaryotes?
are single - celled organisms that lack membrane bounded organelles and nuclei.
What are eukaryotes?
They are multicellular organisms that have membraned bounded organelles and nuclei.
What do cells combine to make?
They combine to make Tissues.
What are organs?
Are collections of tissues grouped together based on common function.
What is an organ system?
it is a higher level of organization that consists of functionally related organs.
What are organisms?
Are individual living entities.
Who developed the first light microscope?
Jansen in 1595
Who described cells in cork?
Hooke - 1655
Who described cell’s nucleus from the orchid?
Brown- 1833
Who proposed the cell theory (all organisms are comprised of cells)?
Schleiden & Schwann - 1839
Who discovered that cells develop only from pre-existing cells by a process called cell division?
Rudolf Virchow - 1858
Who first described the mitochondria?
Altmann- 1894
Who described chromosomes behavior during mitosis?
Flemming - 1874
Who described the Golgi apparatus?
Golgi- 1898
Who described the basic structure of the plasma membrane?
Gorter & Grendel- 1925
Who pioneered in the field of electron microscopy and were the first to identify the E.R & many elements of the cytoskeleton?
Porter et.al - 1945
What is the Modern Cell Theory?
- All living things are made up of cells.
- The cell is the structural & fxnal unit of all living things.
- All cells come from pre-existing cells by division.
- Cells contain hereditary info. which is passed from cell to cell during cell division.
- Cells are similar in chemical composition.
- All energy flow of life (metabolism & biochemistry) occurs w/in cells.
Who first proposed the organizing hierarchical taxonomy?
Carl Linnaeus
What is a genus?
A group of species that are most similar to each other.
What are the 8 levels of the taxonomic system?
Domain Kingdom Phylum Class Order Family Genus Species
What is the Binomial Naming System?
The name of a specie that consists of 2 unique names.
Is made of the genus name and the species name.
