AP BIOLOGY SUMMER ASSESSMENT

Biology

The study of life.

Biologist

A scientist who studies life.

Organism

A living individual.

Gene

A unit of hereditary information.

Genome

The complete set of genetic information in an organism.

Cell

The basic structural and functional unit of life.

Species

A group of organisms that can interbreed and produce fertile offspring.

Evolution

Change in populations over time.

Natural selection

A mechanism of evolution in which organisms with advantageous heritable traits are more likely to survive and reproduce.

Energy

The ability to do work.

Energetics

The study of energy and how organisms obtain and use it.

Deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA)

The molecule that stores and transmits genetic information.

Genetic information

Biological information encoded in DNA that provides instructions for cellular functions and inheritance.

System

A group of interacting components that function together as a whole.

Biotic

Relating to living components of an environment or system.

Abiotic

Relating to nonliving components of an environment or system.

Biological system

A system made up of interacting biological components.

Emergent property

A new property that results from interactions among components of a system and is not possessed by the individual components alone.

Systems interactions

Interactions among components of a biological system.

Robustness

The ability of a biological system to withstand, tolerate, or respond to changes in its environment.

Scientific inquiry

A deliberate and organized process of asking questions and seeking answers about the natural world.

Observation

Information obtained by observing the natural world.

Scientific literature

Published scientific information describing observations, experiments, and research.

Exploration

The part of scientific inquiry involving observations, questions, and examination of existing knowledge.

Investigation

The process of testing questions or hypotheses through experiments or further observations.

Communication

The sharing of scientific findings and conclusions with others.

Hypothesis

A tentative explanation of how nature functions that makes predictions that can be tested.

Prediction

An expected outcome based on a hypothesis.

Controlled experiment

An experiment in which variables are controlled so that the effect of a particular variable can be tested.

Test group

The group in an experiment that receives the variable or treatment being tested.

Experimental group

The group exposed to the experimental treatment or variable.

Control group

The group that does not receive the experimental variable and is used for comparison.

Independent variable

The factor deliberately changed by the researcher.

Dependent variable

The effect or result that is observed or measured.

Negative control group

A control group expected to show no effect from the experimental treatment.

Positive control group

A control group that receives a treatment known to produce an expected effect.

Null hypothesis

The hypothesis that an experimental treatment or intervention will have no effect.

Alternative hypothesis

The hypothesis that an experimental treatment or intervention will have an effect.

Theory

A broad scientific explanation supported by extensive evidence and repeated testing.

Guess

An unsupported idea or hunch; unlike a scientific hypothesis, it does not necessarily make testable predictions.

Unity of life

The idea that organisms share fundamental characteristics despite their diversity.

Diversity of life

The variety of organisms and biological characteristics found among living things.

Matter

Anything that has mass and occupies space.

Atom

The fundamental unit of matter.

Molecule

Two or more atoms joined by chemical bonds.

Organic molecule

A carbon-containing molecule associated with living organisms.

Nucleus

The dense central region of an atom containing protons and neutrons.

Proton

A positively charged subatomic particle found in the nucleus.

Neutron

A subatomic particle with no electrical charge found in the nucleus.

Electron

A negatively charged subatomic particle found outside the nucleus.