honors bio final

Abiotic factor

A non-living component that affects the environment and organisms within it.

Adaptation

A trait that helps an organism survive and reproduce in its environment.

Allele

Different forms of a gene that can exist at a specific locus.

ATP

A molecule that carries energy within cells.

Autotroph

An organism that produces its own food from inorganic substances.

Behavioral Characteristic

A trait that involves the way an organism acts or behaves.

Biodiversity

The variety of life in the world or in a particular habitat.

Biome

A large geographic biotic unit, a major community of plants and animals with similar life forms and environmental conditions.

Biosphere

The global sum of all ecosystems; the zone of life on Earth.

Biotic factor

A living component that affects the population of another organism.

Calvin Cycle

The second stage of photosynthesis where carbon dioxide is converted into glucose.

Carnivore

An organism that primarily eats meat.

Cell

The basic structural, functional, and biological unit of all living organisms.

Cell Respiration

The process by which cells convert glucose and oxygen into energy.

Chloroplast

The organelle in plant cells that conducts photosynthesis.

Chromosome

A structure made of DNA that contains genetic information.

Cladogram / Phylogenetic Tree

A diagram that shows the evolutionary relationships among various biological species.

Claim

A statement or assertion that is open to challenge.

Commensalism

A type of symbiosis where one species benefits and the other is neither helped nor harmed.

Common Ancestor

An ancestral species from which multiple species have evolved.

Community

A group of different species that live together in one area.

Competition

The struggle between organisms for the same resources in an ecosystem.

Competitive Exclusion Principle

The principle that two species competing for the same resources cannot coexist.

Constant

A factor that remains fixed during an experiment.

Consumer

An organism that feeds on other organisms.

Control Group

The group in an experiment that does not receive treatment.

Controlled Experiment

An experiment where only one variable is changed at a time.

Decomposer

An organism that breaks down dead or decaying organisms.

Density-dependent/Density-independent

Factors that affect population size in relation to the population density.

Dependent Variable/Responding Variable

The variable that is measured in an experiment.

Derived Trait or Characteristic

A trait that is present in an organism but was absent in the last common ancestor.

Detritivore

An organism that feeds on dead organic material.

Ecology

The study of interactions between organisms and their environment.

Ecosystem

A biological community of interacting organisms and their physical environment.

Electron carrier

Molecules that transport electrons during cellular respiration and photosynthesis.

Electron Transport Chain

A series of complexes that transfer electrons to generate ATP.

Energy

The capacity to do work or produce change.

Eukaryote

An organism whose cells contain a nucleus and membrane-bound organelles.

Evidence

Data or information that supports a claim.

Experimental Groups

Groups in an experiment that receive treatment.

Fact

A statement that can be proven true or false.

FADH2

An electron carrier involved in cellular respiration.

Fitness

The ability of an organism to survive and reproduce in its environment.

Food Chain

A linear sequence of organisms through which nutrients and energy pass as one organism eats another.

Food Web

A complex network of feeding relationships among various organisms in an ecosystem.

Gene

A segment of DNA that contains the instructions for building a protein.

Genes

Units of heredity that contribute to an organism's traits.

Glycolysis

The first step in cellular respiration where glucose is broken down.

Golgi apparatus

An organelle that modifies, sorts, and packages proteins and lipids for secretion.

Greenhouse Gas

Gases that trap heat in the atmosphere and contribute to climate change.

Habitat

The natural home or environment of an organism.

Herbivore

An organism that primarily eats plants.

Heterotroph

An organism that cannot produce its own food and relies on consuming other organisms.

Homeostasis

The ability of an organism to maintain stable internal conditions.

Hypothesis

A proposed explanation for a phenomenon, to be tested.

Independent Variable/Manipulated Variable

The variable that is changed or controlled in a scientific experiment.

Inference

A conclusion reached based on evidence and reasoning.

Invasive Species

Non-native species that spread widely and cause harm to the environment.

Karyotype

A display of the chromosome pairs of a cell arranged by size and shape.

Keystone Species

A species that has a disproportionately large effect on its environment relative to its abundance.

Krebs Cycle

A series of chemical reactions used by all aerobic organisms to generate energy.

Law

A statement based on repeated experimental observations that describe some aspects of the universe.

Light Reaction

The first stage of photosynthesis where light energy is converted into chemical energy.

Limiting Factors

Environmental conditions that limit the growth, abundance, or distribution of an organism.

Mitochondria

The organelles that produce energy through cellular respiration.

Modeling

The process of creating a representation of a system or process.

Mutualism

A type of symbiosis where both species benefit from the relationship.

NADH

An electron carrier involved in cellular respiration.

NADPH

An electron carrier involved in photosynthesis.

Niche

The role or function of an organism or species within an ecosystem.

Niche Partitioning

The process by which competing species use the environment differently to coexist.

Nucleus

The membrane-bound organelle that contains the cell's chromosomes.

Nutrient Cycles

The movement and exchange of organic and inorganic matter back into the production of living matter.

Observation

The act of noticing and describing events or processes in a careful, orderly way.

Omnivore

An organism that eats both plants and animals.

Organelle

A specialized subunit within a cell that has a specific function.

Oxidative Phosphorylation

The process of ATP generation in mitochondria using the electron transport chain.

Parasitism

A type of symbiosis where one species benefits at the expense of the other.

Phenotype

The observable physical or biochemical characteristics of an organism.

Photosynthesis

The process by which green plants and some other organisms use sunlight to synthesize foods with the help of chlorophyll.

Photosystems

Complexes of proteins and pigments that capture light energy for photosynthesis.

Phylogeny

The evolutionary history and relationship among species.

Physical Characteristic

A trait that can be observed or measured, such as color, shape, or size.

Poaching

The illegal hunting or capturing of wild animals.

Population

A group of individuals of the same species living in a specific area.

Predator

An organism that hunts and eats other organisms.

Prey

An organism that is hunted and eaten by a predator.

Primary Succession

The series of community changes that occur on an entirely new habitat.

Producer

An organism that can make its own food, typically through photosynthesis.

Prokaryote

A unicellular organism that lacks a nucleus and membrane-bound organelles.

Qualitative Observation

An observation that describes qualities or characteristics.

Quantitative Observation

An observation that involves measurement or counting.

Reasoning

The process of forming conclusions, judgments, or inferences.

Ribosome

The cellular structure that synthesizes proteins.

Rough ER

The endoplasmic reticulum that is studded with ribosomes and involved in protein synthesis.

Secondary Succession

The series of community changes that occur after a disturbance in an existing ecosystem.

Selective pressure

Environmental factors that influence which individuals survive and reproduce.

Sex chromosome

A chromosome involved in determining the sex of an organism.

Smooth ER

The endoplasmic reticulum that lacks ribosomes and is involved in lipid synthesis.

Species

A group of similar organisms that can breed and produce fertile offspring.