Cell Theory and the Characteristics of Life

A comprehensive set of vocabulary flashcards covering the introduction to biology, characteristics of life, and the historical development of the cell theory.

Biology

The study of living things and their interactions with one another and their environments, derived from the Greek words bios (life) and logos (study).

Aristotle

The Father of Biology.

Cell Theory (Principle)

The principle that all living things are made of fundamental units called cells, and all cells come from preexisting cells.

Gene Theory

The principle that all living things have DNA, molecules that code the structures and functions of cells and get passed to offspring.

Homeostasis

The principle that all living things maintain a state of balance that enables organisms to survive in their environment.

Evolution

The principle that describes how all living things can change to have traits that enable them to survive better in their environments, often through natural selection.

Unicellular

Organisms that are made of only one cell.

Multicellular

Organisms that are made of many cells.

Irritability

The characteristic of living organisms to show responsiveness to external or internal stimuli.

Asexual Reproduction

A type of reproduction involving only one parent, such as binary fission.

Sexual Reproduction

A type of reproduction requiring two parents and involving fertilization.

Anabolism

A metabolic process that requires energy to grow and build.

Catabolism

A metabolic process that uses energy to break down materials.

Autotroph

An organism that can make its own food.

Heterotroph

An organism that must eat or consume food to obtain energy.

Decomposer

An organism that breaks down dead material for food.

Robert Hooke

English scientist who first coined the term 'cells' in 1665 in his book Micrographia after observing a slice of cork.

Anton van Leeuwenhoek

Dutch scientist and Father of Microbiology who observed 'animalcules,' including bacteria and sperm cells.

Henri Dutrochet

French physiologist who suggested that the cell is not only a structural unit of life but also a physiological one.

Felix Dujardin

French scientist who identified that all living things contain a thick jelly fluid called 'sarcode'.

Robert Brown

Scottish scientist who discovered the nucleus of the cell.

Matthias Schleiden

German botanist who proposed in 1838 that all plants are made up of cells.

Theodor Schwann

German zoologist who proposed in 1839 that all animals are composed of cells and products of cells.

Robert Remak

Polish scientist who claimed that cells arise from pre-existing cells through cell division, disputing the crystallization hypothesis.

Rudolf Virchow

German scientist who popularized the phrase 'Omnis cellula e cellula' and concluded that cells come from pre-existing cells.

Johannes Purkinje

Czechoslovakian scientist who coined the term 'protoplasm' for the living matter of the cell.

Louis Pasteur

Founder of Microbiology known for the process of pasteurization.

Omnis cellula e cellula

A Latin phrase meaning 'all cells from cells,' used by Rudolf Virchow in his essay 'Cell Pathology.'