UNIT 1: Evolution, the Themes of Biology, and Scientific Inquiry Flashcards
What are the 5 unifying themes in Biology?
- Organization
- Information
- Energy & Matter
- Interactions
- Evolution
Can life be defined?
No, it can only be characterized.
Features of living things
- contain nucleic acids, proteins, carbohydrates, and lipids
- composed of cells
- reproduce
- use energy/raw materials and conduct metabolic activities
- respond to the environment
- maintain homeostasis
- evolutionary adaptation
List the organizational groups of life from most to least complex
- the biosphere
- ecosystems
- communities
- populations
- organisms
- organs
- tissues
- cells
- organelles
- molecules
define biosphere
entire portion of earth inhabited by life; the sum of all the planet’s ecosystems
define ecosystem
all the organisms in a given area as well as the abiotic factors with which they interact aka one or more communities and the physical environment around them
define communities
all the organisms that inhabit a particular area aka an assemblage of populations of different species living close enough together for potential interaction
define populations
a group of individuals of the same species that live in the same area and interbreed, producing fertile offspring
define organisms
individual living things
define organs & organ systems
a group of organs that work together in performing vital body functions
define tissues
an integrated group of cells with a common structure, function, or both
define cells
Life’s fundamental unit of structure and function
define organelles
any of several membrane-enclosed structures with specialized functions suspended in the cytosol of eukaryotic cells
define molecules
2 or more atoms held together by covalent bonds
define reductionism
scientific approach that reduced complex systems to simple components that are manageable to study
define emergent properties
opposite direction of reductionism, new properties that arise with each step upward in the hierarchy of
life, owing to the arrangement and interactions of parts as complexity increases.
The reductionist approach studies the _____ components of the living system.
isolated
To explore emergent properties, biologists complement reductionism with _____ _____.
systems biology
define systems biology
analysis of the interactions among the parts of a biological system, can be used to study life at all levels
At each level of biological hierarchy, we find a correlation between _____ and _____.
STRUCTURE & FUNCTION
Cell theory states that all living organisms are made from cells, therefore…
if something is not made from at least one cell then it is not alive, and all living things expire
The cells of bacteria and archaea are ____, while all other forms of life are composed of _____ cells.
PROKARYOTIC, EUKARYOTIC
define eukaryotic cell
has membrane enclosed organelles, the larges of which is usually the nucleus
define prokaryotic cell
simpler, smaller, typically does not contain a nucleus or other membrane enclosed organelles and instead have a nucleoid region.
