Chapter 1: lecture

These flashcards cover key concepts and themes from Chapter 1 of the biology lecture about the study of life, properties of living organisms, and foundational principles of biology.

What is the study of life called?

Biology

What are the seven properties of life?

Order, reproduction, growth and development, energy processing, regulation, response to the environment, and evolutionary adaptation.

How do snowy owls adapt to their environment?

They have feathers for insulation, keen vision, and acute hearing.

What does Darwin's theory refer to?

Descent with modification and natural selection as the mechanism of evolution.

What are producers, consumers, and decomposers?

Producers make their own food (e.g., plants), consumers eat other organisms, and decomposers recycle nutrients in the ecosystem.

What is the difference between prokaryotic and eukaryotic cells?

Prokaryotic cells are simpler, smaller, and do not have a nucleus, while eukaryotic cells are more complex, larger, and contain a nucleus.

What is a scientific hypothesis?

A proposed explanation for a set of observations that can be tested.

What is the role of DNA in living organisms?

DNA contains genetic information that dictates traits and cellular functions.

What are emergent properties in biology?

New properties that arise at each step in the hierarchy of biological organization.

What domain of life includes all organisms with eukaryotic cells?

Eukarya.

What is the main mechanism by which evolution occurs according to Darwin?

Natural selection.

What are the two types of reasoning used in scientific inquiry?

Inductive reasoning and deductive reasoning.

What is a scientific theory?

A well-substantiated explanation based on a body of evidence that has withstood testing.

In the hierarchy of life, what comes after the ecosystem?

Community.

What two processes are primarily involved in an ecosystem's function?

Recycling of chemical nutrients and one-way flow of energy.

What is systems biology?

The study of biological systems and their dynamic behavior.

What is artificial selection?

The process by which humans breed organisms for desired traits.

What are two types of data that scientists collect?

Qualitative data and quantitative data.

How do you define an organism?

An individual living thing.