Campbell Biology in Focus Chapter 1

adapted

matched to the local environment

evolution

descent with modification; the idea that living species are descendants of ancestral species that were different from the present-day ones; also defined more narrowly as the change in the genetic composition of a population from generation to generation

biology

the scientific study of life

reductionism

the approach of reducing complex systems to simpler components that are more manageable to study

biosphere

the entire portion of earth inhabited by life; the sum of all the planet's ecosystems

ecosystem

all the organisms in a given area as well as the abiotic factors with which they interact; one or more communities and the physical environment around them

community

all the organisms that inhabit a particular area; an assemblage of populations of different species living close enough together for potential interaction

population

a group of individuals of the same species that live in the same area and interbreed, producing fertile offspring

organism

an individual living thing

organ

a specialized center of body function composed of several different types of tissues

organ system

a group of organs that work together in performing vital body functions

tissue

an integrated group of cells with a common structure, function, or both

cell

life's fundamental unit of structure and function

organelle

any of several kinds of membrane-enclosed structures with specialized functions, suspended in the cytosol of eukaryotic cells

molecule

two or more atoms held together by covalent bonds

atom

the smallest unit of matter that retains the properties of an element

emergent properties

new properties that arise with each step upward in the hierarchy of life, owing to the arrangement and interactions of parts as complexity increases

systems biology

an approach to studying biology that aims to model the dynamic behavior of whole biological systems based on a study of the interactions among the system's parts

eukaryotic cell

a type of cell with a membrane-enclosed nucleus and membrane-enclosed organelles and include protists, plants, fungi, and animals

prokaryotic cell

a type of cell lacking a membrane-enclosed nucleus and membrane-enclosed organelles and include bacteria and archaea

DNA

a nucleic acid molecule, usually a double-helix, in which each polynucleotide strand consists of nucleotide monomers with a deoxyribose sugar and the nitrogenous bases adenine (a), cytosine (c), guanine (g), and thymine (t); capable of being replicated and determining the inherited structure of a cell's proteins

replication

the process of copying DNA before a cell divides

gene

a discrete unit of hereditary information consisting of a specific nucleotide sequence in DNA (or RNA, in some viruses)

gene expression

the process by which information encoded in DNA directs the synthesis of proteins or, in some cases, RNAs that are not translated into proteins and instead function as RNAs

genome

the genetic material of an organism or virus; the complete complement of an organism's or virus's genes along with its noncoding nucleic acid sequences

genomics

the study of whole sets of genes and their interactions within a species, as well as genome comparisons between species

bioinformatics

the use of computers, software, and mathematical models to process and integrate biological information from large data sets

Bacteria

one of two prokaryotic domains, the other being Archaea

Archaea

one of two prokaryotic domains, the other being Bacteria

Eukarya

the domain that includes all eukaryotic organisms

natural selection

a process in which individuals that have certain inherited traits tend to survive and reproduce at higher rates than other individuals because of those traits

science

an approach to understanding the natural world

inquiry

the search for information and explanation, often focusing on specific questions

data

recorded observations

qualitative data

a type of recorded observation that is descriptive and not numerical

quantitative data

a type of recorded observation that is numerical and often organized into tables and graphs

inductive reasoning

a type of logic in which generalizations are based on a large number of specific observations

hypothesis

a testable explanation for a set of observations based on the available data and guided by inductive reasoning; narrower in scope than theory

deductive reasoning

a type of logic in which specific results are predicted from a general premise

controlled experiment

an experiment in which an experimental group is compared with a control group that varies only in the factor being tested

theory

an explanation that is broader in scope than a hypothesis, generates new hypotheses, and is supported by a large body of evidence

technology

the application of scientific knowledge for a specific purpose, often involving industry or commerce but also including uses in basic research