Biology and The Tree of Life Practice Flashcards

A set of vocabulary flashcards covering the introductory concepts of biology, cell theory, DNA, and the tree of life.

Science

A systematic search for knowledge that focuses on the natural world through Biology, Chemistry, and Physics.

Scientific method

A method used to objectively explain the events of nature in a reproducible way.

Hypothesis

A proposed explanation for a phenomenon that is testable, informed by previous research, and can be refined with new information.

Scientific theory

A rigorous explanation of the natural world having the support of multiple hypotheses and extensive testing.

Biology

A natural science that studies life and living organisms, including their physical structure, physiology, development, and evolution.

Peter and Rosemary Grant

Scientists who conducted a 40-year research project on Daphne Major in the Galapagos Islands documenting bird speciation.

Organisms

The term used to refer to all living things.

Evolution

A change in the heritable characteristics of populations over time.

Robert Hooke

The scientist who in 1665 first used the term cell after observing small pores in cork tissue and published Micrographia.

Anton van Leeuwenhoek

A scientist who identified single-celled organisms in pond water, which he called animalcules, using a microscope with 10x more amplification than Hooke's.

Animalcules

The term Leeuwenhoek used for the tiny single-celled organisms he discovered, likely Paramecium and Rotifers.

Cell Theory

The theory stating that all organisms are made of cells, the cell is the basic unit of organization, and cells arise from pre-existing cells.

Spontaneous generation

The outdated belief held by early scientists that life could arise from non-living things.

Louis Pasteur

The scientist who used swan-necked flasks to demonstrate that cells only arise from pre-existing cells, disproving spontaneous generation.

Prokaryotic cells

Cells that do not have a nucleus or membrane-bound organelles, such as bacteria.

Eukaryotic cells

Cells that contain a nucleus and membrane-bound organelles and are generally larger than prokaryotes.

Deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA)

The molecule that carries genetic information from parents to offspring and contains genes for building proteins.

Central dogma of biology

The framework describing the flow of genetic information: $DNA \rightarrow RNA \rightarrow \text{protein}$.

Watson, Crick, and Franklin

The scientists who, in 1953, discovered the structure of DNA.

Natural selection

The main process of evolution where individual variation in heritable characteristics leads to differential survival and successful reproduction.

Phylogenetic tree

A diagram used to show relationships among organisms based on morphologies, DNA, RNA, and proteins.

Domains

The most inclusive level of classification for life, consisting of Bacteria, Archaea, and Eukarya.

Carolus Linnaeus

The scientist who in 1735 developed the binomial nomenclature naming system.

Binomial nomenclature

A two-name naming system consisting of the Genus and the Species that makes up the scientific name of an organism.

Genus

A classification level representing a closely related group of species, such as Homo, Anas, or Odocoileus.