Chapter 1: Invitation to Biology - Key Vocabulary

Vocabulary flashcards based on Chapter 1 of Biology: The Unity and Diversity of Life (15th Edition), covering fundamental principles of life, levels of biological organization, organism classification, taxonomy, and scientific methods.

Biology

The scientific study of life.

Species

Unique types of organisms.

Pinocchio frog

A tiny tree frog discovered by biologist Paul Oliver perched on a sack of rice during a cloud forest survey in New Guinea.

Emergent properties

Characteristics of a system that do not appear in any of its individual components.

Atoms

Fundamental building blocks of all substances.

Molecules

Structures that consist of two or more atoms.

Molecules of life

Lipids, proteins, RNA, DNA, and complex carbohydrates.

Cell

The smallest unit with the emergent property of life.

Tissue

Specific cell types organized in a particular pattern.

Organ

A group of tissues that collectively carry out a task or set of tasks.

Organ system

A set of interacting organs.

Organism

An individual that consists of one or more cells.

Population

A group of interbreeding individuals of the same species in the same area.

Community

All populations of all species in a given area.

Ecosystem

A community interacting with its environment.

Biosphere

All regions of Earth where organisms live.

Nutrients

Substances that an organism needs for growth and survival but cannot make for itself.

Producers

Organisms that acquire energy and nutrients from the environment and make their own food.

Consumers

Organisms that cannot make their own food and get energy by feeding on other organisms.

Homeostasis

The process by which organisms keep conditions in their internal environment within ranges that favor cell survival by sensing and adjusting to change.

DNA (deoxyribonucleic acid)

The genetic material that guides development, growth, and reproduction.

Inheritance

The transmission of DNA from parent to offspring.

Biodiversity

The scope of variation among living organisms.

Nucleus

A sac with two membranes that encloses and protects DNA.

Bacteria and Archaea

Single-celled organism types whose DNA is not contained within a nucleus.

Prokaryotes

An older term for organisms without a nucleus.

Eukaryotes

Organisms whose DNA is contained within a nucleus.

Protists

The simplest eukaryotes.

Fungi

Single-celled or multicellular eukaryotic organisms, such as yeast and mushrooms.

Plants

Multi-celled eukaryotes, most of which are photosynthetic producers living on land, typically having roots, stems, and leaves.

Animals

Multi-celled, eukaryotic consumers that actively move about during part or all of their life cycle and develop through stages leading to an adult form.

Taxonomy

The system of naming and classifying species.

Carolus Linnaeus

The individual who standardized the two-part naming system (genus and specific epithet) used in modern taxonomy.

Traits

Inherited characteristics shared by members of a species.

Taxon

A rank or group of organisms sharing a set of traits.

Domains of Life

The three broad categories of life: Bacteria, Archaea, and Eukaryotes.

Critical thinking

The deliberate process of judging the quality of information before accepting it by considering evidence, bias, and alternate interpretations.

Hypothesis

A testable explanation for a natural phenomenon.

Inductive reasoning

Arriving at a conclusion based on one's observations, used to form hypotheses.

Independent variable

A condition or variable defined or controlled by the experimenter.

Dependent variable

A variable influenced by the independent variable in an experiment.

Experimental group

A set of individuals that have a certain characteristic or receive a certain treatment in an experiment.

Control group

A group identical to the experimental group except for one independent variable being tested.

Olestra

A fat replacement added to potato chips that was tested in an experiment to determine if it caused stomach cramps.

Sampling error

The difference between results obtained from a subset and results obtained from the whole population.

Probability

A measure of the chance that a particular outcome will occur, usually expressed as a percentage.

Statistically significant

Refers to an experimental result that is very unlikely to have occurred by chance alone.

Scientific theory

A hypothesis that has withstood years of tests, is consistent with all gathered data, and can be disproven by a single inconsistent observation.

Law of nature

A phenomenon that has been observed to occur in every instance without fail, though its underlying scientific explanation may be incomplete.

Pseudoscience

A claim, argument, or method presented as science that does not follow scientific practices or principles of accuracy, honesty, repeatability, and objectivity.