The Living World Lecture Notes

A set of vocabulary flashcards covering basic biological concepts, taxonomic hierarchy, and taxonomical aids based on the provided textbook transcript.

Ernst Mayr

A Harvard University evolutionary biologist known as 'The Darwin of the 20th century' who pioneered the currently accepted definition of a biological species.

Biology

The science of life forms and living processes.

Growth

A characteristic of living systems defined by twin characteristics: increase in mass and increase in number of individuals.

Metabolism

The sum total of all the chemical reactions occurring in the body of a living organism.

Consciousness

The ability of all organisms to sense their surroundings and respond to environmental stimuli; considered a defining property of living organisms.

Biodiversity

The number and types of organisms present on earth, ranging between $1.7-1.8$ million described species.

Nomenclature

The process of standardising the naming of living organisms such that a particular organism is known by the same name all over the world.

Identification

The process of correctly describing an organism so that the correct name can be attached to it.

ICBN

International Code for Botanical Nomenclature; provides the agreed principles and criteria for naming plants.

ICZN

International Code of Zoological Nomenclature; the system evolved by animal taxonomists for naming animals.

Binomial Nomenclature

A naming system used by biologists where each scientific name has two components: the Generic name and the specific epithet.

Taxonomy

The process of classification of all living organisms into different taxa based on their characteristics.

Systematics

A branch of study derived from the Latin word 'systema' that deals with the systematic arrangement of organisms and their evolutionary relationships.

Taxonomic Hierarchy

A series of steps representing ranks or categories, where all categories together constitute the complete taxonomic arrangement.

Taxon

A unit of classification representing a specific rank or category in the taxonomic hierarchy.

Species

A group of individual organisms with fundamental similarities; it is the lowest category in the taxonomic hierarchy.

Genus

A group of related species which has more characters in common in comparison to species of other genera.

Family

A taxonomic category containing a group of related genera with fewer similarities than the genus and species levels.

Order

A higher taxonomic category that is the assemblage of families exhibiting a few similar characters.

Class

A taxonomic category that includes related orders.

Phylum / Division

Categories comprising related classes; 'Phylum' is used for animals while 'Division' is used for plants.

Kingdom

The highest taxonomic category in the classification system (e.g., Kingdom Animalia or Kingdom Plantae).

Herbarium

A store house of collected plant specimens that are dried, pressed, and preserved on sheets, which carry labels with details like date and place of collection.

Botanical Gardens

Specialised gardens having collections of living plants grown for identification purposes and reference.

Museum

Institutes that have collections of preserved plant and animal specimens in preservative solutions, or as dry specimens, for study and reference.

Zoological Parks

Protected environments under human care where wild animals are kept to enable learning about their food habits and behavior.

Key

A taxonomical aid used for identification based on similarities and dissimilarities, generally using contrasting characters in pairs.

Couplet

The pair of contrasting characters used in a taxonomic key.

Lead

Each individual statement presented within a taxonomic key.

Flora

A publication containing the actual account of habitat and distribution of plants of a given area.

Manuals

Useful works providing information for the identification of names of species found in a particular area.

Monographs

Taxonomic aids containing information on any one specific taxon.