Vocab Quiz Set 3 Flashcards
A law that generalizes a body of observations. At the time it is made, no exceptions have been found to a law. It explains things but does not describe them; serves as the basis of scientific principles.
Law (scientific)
Chemical or physical factor that limits the existence, growth, abundance, or distribution of an individual organism or a population.
Limiting factor
A group of organic compounds composed mostly of carbon and hydrogen including a proportionately smaller amount of oxygen; are insoluble in water, serve as a source of stored energy, and are a component of cell membranes.
Lipids
A polymer with a high molecular mass. Within organisms there are four main groups: carbohydrates, lipids, proteins, and nucleic acids.
Macromolecule
Features of behaviors, morphology, or genetics which serve to prevent mating or breeding between two different species
Isolating mechanism
The combination of components and processes that serve a common function.
Mechanism
A two phase nuclear division that results in the eventual production of gametes with half the normal number of chromosomes.
Meiosis
The permanent movement of genes into or out of a population resulting in a change in allele frequencies
Migration
A membrane bound organelle found in most eukaryotic cells; site of cellular respiration.
Mitochondrion
A nuclear division resulting in the production of two somatic cells having the same genetic complement as the original cell.
Mitosis
The smallest particle of a substance that retains the chemical and physical properties of the substance and is composed of two or more atoms held together by chemical forces.
Molecule
A molecule of any compound that can react with other molecules of the same or different compound to form a polymer. Each biological macromolecule has characteristic monomers.
Monomer
Made up of more than one cell.
Multicellular
More than two forms of a gene controlling the expression of a trait.
Multiple alleles
A permanent transmissible change of genetic material (e.g., chromosomal mutations and gene mutations).
Mutation
A process in nature in which organisms possessing certain inherited traits are better able to survive and reproduce compared to others of their species.
Natural selection
The process in which sister chromatids fail to separate during and after mitosis or meiosis.
Nondisjunction
A species normally living outside a distribution range that has been introduced through either deliberate or accidental human activity; also can be known as introduced, invasive, alien, nonindigenous, or exotic.
Nonnative species
A biological macromolecule (DNA or RNA) composed of the elements C, H, N, O, and P that carries genetic information.
Nucleic acid
A membrane bound organelle in eukaryotic cells functioning to maintain the integrity of the genetic material and, through the expression of that material, controlling and regulating cellular activities.
Nucleus
An anatomical unit composed of tissues serving a common function.
Organ
An anatomical system composed of a group of organs that work together to perform a specific function or task.
Organ system
A subunit within a cell that has a specialized function.
Organelle
A molecule containing carbon that is a part of or produced by living systems.
Organic molecule
A form of life; an animal, plant, fungus, protist or bacterium.
Organism
The movement of water or another solvent through permeable membranes from an area of higher water concentration (dilute) to an area of lower water concentration (concentrated).
Osmosis
The transportation of materials across a plasma membrane without using energy.
Passive transport
The measure of acidity or alkalinity (basicity) of an aqueous solution scaling from 1 (highly acidic) to 14 (highly alkaline) with a midpoint of 7 (neutral).
pH
The observable expression of a genotype.
Phenotype
A process in which solar radiation is chemically captured by chlorophyll molecules and through a set of controlled chemical reactions resulting in the potential chemical energy in the bonds of carbohydrate molecules.
Photosynthesis
A thin, phospholipid and protein molecule bilayer that encapsulates a cell and controls the movement of materials in and out of the cell through active or passive transport.
Plasma membrane
A group of membrane bound organelles commonly found in photosynthetic organisms and mainly responsible for the synthesis and storage of food.
Plastids
A single base substitution causing the replacement of a single base nucleotide with another nucleotide (e.g., silent mutation, in which there is no change in an amino acid; missense mutation, in which there is a different amino acid; and nonsense mutation, in which there is an insertion of a stop codon in the amino acid which stops protein synthesis).
Point mutation
A trait in which the phenotype is controlled by two or more genes at different loci on different chromosomes.
Polygenic trait
A group of individuals of the same species living in a specific geographical area and reproducing.
Population
The study of short and long term changes in the number of individuals for a given population, as affected by birth, death, immigration, and emigration.
Population dynamics
A concept based on scientific laws and axioms (rules assumed to be present, true, and valid) where general agreement is present.
Principle
An organism that uses a primary energy source to conduct photosynthesis or chemosynthesis.
Producer
A single celled organism that lacks a membrane bound nucleus and specialized organelles.
Prokaryote
A macromolecule that contains the principal components of organisms: carbon, hydrogen, oxygen, and nitrogen; performs a variety of structural and regulatory functions for cells.
Protein
The process in which amino acids are arranged in a linear sequence through the processes of transcription of DNA and to RNA and the translation of RNA to a polypeptide chain.
Protein synthesis
Any of several molecular mechanisms in which ions or molecules are transported across a cellular membrane requiring the use of an energy source (e.g., glucose, sodium [Na+], calcium [Ca+], and potassium [K+]).
Pumps
A proposed explanation in evolutionary biology stating that species are generally stable over long periods of time. Occasionally there are rapid changes that affect some species which can quickly result in a new species.
Punctuated equilibrium
A pattern of inheritance in which the phenotypic effect of one allele is only expressed within a homozygous genotype. In a heterozygous condition with a dominant allele, it is not expressed in the phenotype.
Recessive inheritance
A cellular structure composed of RNA and proteins that is the site of protein synthesis in eukaryotic and prokaryotic cells.
Ribosome
