Unit 1 (Chapter 1, Part 1) Flashcards
What do you call the study of life?
Biology
What are the first 5 levels of biological organization?
- Atoms
- Molecules and Macromolecules
- Cells
- Tissue
- Organs
What are the last 5 levels of biological organization?
- Organisms
- Population
- Community
- Ecosystem
- Biosphere
At which level of biological organization would you place a herd of buffalo?
Population
What is the smallest unit of an element that has the chemical properties of the element?
Atom. All matter is composed of atoms.
The smallest functional unit of matter that forms all chemical substances and cannot be further broken down into other substances by ordinary chemical or physical means.
What do atoms make when bonding with each other?
Molecules.
Two or more atoms that are connected by chemical bonds.
What are many molecules bonded together to form a polymer?
Macromolecule.
What are some examples of a macromolecule?
Carbohydrates, proteins, and nucleic acids (DNA, RNA)
Lipids are not true macromolecules because the monomers are not covalently bonded together. Simple lipids are composed of subunits made of fatty acids covalently bonded to a triose sugar – glycerol.
What exactly does polymer mean?
Poly- means “many repeating” and -Mer means “basic units.”
This is a fancy way of naming a really big macromolecule.
What is the definition of cells?
The simplest unit of life.
What is the difference between a unicellular and a multicellular organism?
Unicellular organisms consist of one cell while a multicellular organisms, like plants and animals, have many cells.
What is the very basic characteristics of a cell?
It has a membrane and contains many molecules and macromolecules.
What is a part of an animal or plant consisting of a group of cells having a similar structure and function?
Tissue. For examples, muscle tissue.
In complex multicellular organisms, what is a collection of two or more tissues that performs a specific function or set of functions?
An organ. For example, the heart is composed of several types of tissues, including muscle, nervous, and connective tissue.
What is a living thing that maintains an internal order that is separated from the environment?
Organism
What do you call a group of related organisms that share a distinctive set of attributes in nature and are capable of interbreeding?
how is this definition different than population?
Species (smallest group of complete organisms capable of breeding)
What is a group of individuals of the same species that occupy the same environment and can interbreed with one another?
Population
What is the definition of a community?
An assemblage of populations of different species that live in the same place at the same time.
What do you call the biotic community of organisms in an area, as well as the abiotic environment affecting the community?
Ecosystem
What do you call the regions on the surface of the Earth and in the atmosphere where living organisms exist?
Biosphere
What are the (5) core concepts of biology?
- Evolution
- Structure and Function
- Information flow, exchange, and storage
- Pathways and transformations of energy and matter
- Systems
For evolution, the diversity of life evolved over time by process of (3)?
Mutation, natural selection, and genetic exchange.
Ex. an anteater’s snout to reach ants in tough places
What core concept of biology revolves around the basic units of structure defining the function of all living things?
Structure and function.
Ex. Aquatic and terrestrial birds have different feet. Webbed for paddling and not webbed better adapted for grasping food, perching on branches and running on the ground. “Structure determines function”
How would you explain the core concept of biology - Information flow, exchange, and storage?
The growth and behavior of organisms are activated through the expression of genetic information.
Ex. Genetic material composed of DNA (deoxyribonucleic acid; one of two nucleic acids) provides a blueprint for the organization, development, and function of ALL living things. During reproduction a copy of this blueprint is transmitted from parents to offspring.
What core concept in biology pertains to biological systems growing and changing via processes that are based on chemical transformation pathways and are governed by the laws of thermodynamics?
Pathways and transformations of energy and matter.
Ex. All living organisms acquire energy and matter from the environment and use them to synthesize essential molecules and maintain the organization of their cells and bodies. Sunflowers need sunlight and carbon dioxide to make carbohydrates which provides energy and organic molecules so the plants can grow and produce beautiful flowers.
What core concept in biology explains living systems interconnectedness and interactions?
Systems.
Ex. When the parts of an organism interact with each other or with the external environment to create novel structures and functions, the resulting characteristics are called emergent properties.
The human eye is composed of many different types of cells that are organized to sense incoming light and transmit signals to the brain. Our ability to see is an emergent property of this complex arrangement of different cell types. Biologists use the term systems biology to describe the study of how new properties of life arise by complex interactions of its individual parts.
What is the definition of biological evolution or, simply, evolution?
The heritable change in a population of organisms from one generation to the next.
What can provide key insights into the structure and function of an organism’s body?
Understanding the evolutionary history of a species because evolutionary change frequently involves modifications of characteristics in pre-existing populations.
Where does evolution make its changes?
In the genetic material, which is composed of DNA.
What property in DNA allows it to be passed from cell to cell and from parent to offspring?
Heritable property.
