Evolution, the Themes of Biology, and Scientific Inquiry

These flashcards cover the core concepts of Chapter 1, including the unifying themes of life, molecular biology, the history and mechanism of evolution, and the methods of scientific inquiry.

Biology

The scientific study of life.

Five Unifying Themes of Biology

Organization, Information, Energy and Matter, Interactions, and Evolution.

Reductionism

An approach that reduces complex systems to simple, manageable components to make them easier to study.

Emergent Properties

New properties that arise at each step of upward biological hierarchy due to the arrangement and interaction of parts as complexity increases.

Systems Biology

An approach that involves the analysis of interactions among the parts of a biological system to explore emergent properties.

The Cell

The basic unit of structure and function in an organism; it is the smallest unit of organization that can perform all activities required for life.

Cell Theory

The scientific theory stating that all living organisms are made from cells.

Eukaryotic Cell

A type of cell characterized by membrane-enclosed organelles, the largest of which is typically the nucleus.

Prokaryotic Cell

A type of cell found in bacteria and archaea that is generally smaller and simpler, lacking a nucleus or other membrane-enclosed organelles.

DNA (deoxyribonucleic acid)

Structures called chromosomes contain the genetic material formatted as this molecule.

Genes

The units of inheritance that encode the information required to build all the molecules synthesized within a cell.

Nucleotides

The four kinds of chemical building blocks that make up the two long chains of a DNA double helix, abbreviated as $A$, $G$, $C$, and $T$.

Gene Expression

The entire process of converting information from a gene into a cellular product by transcribing DNA into RNA and then translating it into a protein.

Genome

The entire "library" of genetic instructions that an organism inherits.

Genomics

The study of whole sets of genes in one or more species.

Proteomics

The study of whole sets of proteins and their specific properties.

Proteome

The complete set of proteins expressed by a given cell, tissue, or organ.

Bioinformatics

The use of computational tools to archive, retrieve, and process large volumes of biological data rapidly.

Producers

Photosynthetic organisms, such as plants, that generate chemical energy from sunlight.

Consumers

Organisms that feed on other organisms or their remains to obtain energy.

Energy Flow

A one-way process in an ecosystem where energy usually enters as light and exits as heat.

Chemical Cycling

The process by which chemicals are used and then recycled within an ecosystem, moving between the soil, air, and organisms.

Feedback Regulation

A biological process where the output or product of a process regulates that very process.

Negative Feedback

The most common form of feedback regulation in which the response reduces the initial stimulus.

Positive Feedback

A less common regulatory mechanism where an end product speeds up its own production.

Evolution

The core theme of biology and the scientific explanation for unity and diversity; the concept that living organisms are modified descendants of common ancestors.

Three Domains of Life

The primary classification of organisms: Bacteria, Archaea, and Eukarya.

Domain Eukarya Subgroups

Consists of Kingdom Plantae, Kingdom Fungi, Kingdom Animalia, and the Protists.

Natural Selection

A mechanism of evolution proposed by Charles Darwin where the environment "selects" for the propagation of beneficial traits through unequal reproductive success.

Qualitative Data

Recorded observations that take the form of descriptions rather than numerical measurements.

Quantitative Data

Recorded observations that are expressed as numerical measurements and often organized into tables or graphs.

Inductive Reasoning

A type of logic in which generalizations are derived from a large number of specific observations.

Hypothesis

An explanation based on observations and assumptions that leads to a testable prediction.

Deductive Reasoning

A type of logic that uses general premises to make specific predictions.

Controlled Experiment

A scientific test designed to compare an experimental group with a control group.

Independent Variable

The experimental factor that is manipulated by the researchers.

Dependent Variable

The factor being measured that is predicted to be affected by the independent variable.

Scientific Theory

A concept broader in scope than a hypothesis, general enough to lead to many new hypotheses, and supported by a large body of evidence.

Model Organism

A species that is easy to grow in the lab and lends itself particularly well to the questions being investigated, such as the fruit fly $\textit{Drosophila melanogaster}$.

Technology

The application of scientific knowledge for a specific purpose, as opposed to science, whose goal is to understand natural phenomena.