AICE general paper #44 vocab words

apex

the highest point or most successful part of something

archipelago

a group of small islands or an area of sea in which there are many small islands

basalt

a type of black rock that comes from a volcano

behemoth

something that is extremely large and often extremely powerful

bioluminescence

light produced inside the body of a living organism by a chemical reaction, found, for example, in some sea creatures and insects such as fireflies

carapace

a hard layer that covers and protects animals such as crabs and turtles

to cleave

to stick or hold firmly onto something; to continue to believe firmly in something

coalesce

to combine into a single group or thing

cognition

the use of conscious mental processes

colloquial

language that is characteristic of familiar and informal conversation

denizen

an animal, plant, or person that lives in or is often in a particular place

electroreceptor

a sensory receptor that detects electrical fields, used by some fish to locate prey or navigate

environs

the area surrounding a place

erroneously

in a way that is wrong or false

formidable

tending to inspire awe or wonder—or fear

frivolous

(of people) behaving in a silly and foolish way; or (of activities or objects) silly or unimportant

furrows, furrowed

a long, narrow cut or fold in the surface of something

gaff

a stick with a hook or barbed spear, for landing large fish; to gaff—seize or impale with a gaff

inadvertently

in a way that is not intentional

labyrinth

a confusing set of connecting passages or paths in which it is easy to get lost

neoteny

also called juvenilization, neoteny is the delaying or slowing of the physiological or somatic development of an organism, typically an animal; the retention of juvenile features in an adult

pelagic

related to or living in areas of the ocean away from the land

photogrammetry

the art, science and technology of obtaining reliable information about physical objects through processes of recording and interpreting photographic images

phylogeny

the study of evolutionary histories and relationships among species or groups of organisms, essentially mapping out the "family tree" of life

placebo

a substance that is not medicine, but that is given to someone who is told that it is a medicine, used to test the effect of a drug or to please a patient

ram ventilation

a breathing method used by sharks (and other fish) where they must keep swimming with their mouths open to force water over their gills to extract oxygen

to relish

to like or enjoy something

rendition

a performance or interpretation of something, such as a song

replete (as in “replete with…”)

full; well supplied

scalloped

having an edge consisting of a row of curves

site fidelity

an animal's tendency to return to or stay at a previously occupied location

telemetry

the automatic collection and transmission of data from remote points or systems for monitoring and analysis

tomography

a type of imaging by sections or sectioning that uses any kind of penetrating wave

to undulate

to have a continuous up and down shape or movement, like waves on the sea

ubiquity

the fact that something or someone seems to be everywhere