BIOL 101 - Introduction Study Guide: The Scientific Study of Life

Comprehensive vocabulary flashcards covering the characteristics of life, the scientific method, fitness tracker technology, and human physiology based on the BIOL 101 Introduction Study Guide.

Organization

One of the 5 characteristics of life involving a hierarchy of living things including atoms, molecule, organelle, cell, tissue, and organ.

Emergent properties

Characteristics that arise at each level of biological organization.

Homeostasis

The process by which a cell or organism maintains internal equilibrium.

Bacteria

A domain of life consisting of prokaryotes with no nucleus that are unicellular.

Archaea

A domain of life consisting of unicellular prokaryotes.

Eukarya

A domain of life characterized by having a nucleus; includes both unicellular and multicellular organisms.

Independent variable

A variable that an investigator manipulates to determine whether it influences the dependent variable.

Dependent variable

A variable that an investigator measures to determine whether it is affected by the independent variable.

Standardized variable

Any variable that an investigator intentionally holds constant for all subjects in an experiment, including the control group.

Control group

A baseline used for comparison in an experiment, often a set of subjects receiving no treatment or a placebo.

Scientific Theory

A broad explanation for a natural phenomenon.

Angraecum sesquipedale

An orchid with elongated nectar tubes that led Charles Darwin to predict the existence of a moth with an equally long tongue.

Coevolution

The process where species evolve in response to each other, such as the cheetah and the gazelle.

Accelerometer sensor axes

The three axes detected by the sensor: $X$ (side-to-side), $Y$ (up-and-down), and $Z$ (forward-and-backward).

PurePulse

A smartwatch sensor function that detects blood flow to determine heart rate and cardio fitness.

SmartTracker

A smartwatch sensor function that detects motion and intensity.

Photoplethysmography sensor

A sensor element used to track blood.

Algorithm

A series of mathematical formulas that are used to analyze a data set.

Barometer

The element of a Fitbit smartwatch that detects the vertical movement of climbing stairs.

Calorie

The amount of energy needed to raise $100\,g$ of water $1^\circ\text{C}$ at sea level.

Organ system

A collection of organs that work together to perform a general function.

Cell

The basic unit of living things.

Endocrine system

The organ system considered the control center of homeostasis which uses hormones to regulate the whole body.

Epithelial tissue

Covers the body surfaces (both internal and external), lines the cavities of the body (such as the abdominal cavity), and forms glands.

Connective tissue

Binds, connects, and supports the parts of the body.

Muscular tissue

Allows for the movement of body parts.

Nervous tissue

Receives stimuli (both internal and external) and transmits information as nerve impulses.

Arteries

Muscular vessels that carry the blood under pressure to the tissues of the body.

Capillaries

Narrow, thin-walled blood vessels where the majority of the exchange of gases, nutrients, and waste takes place.

Veins

Vessels that return the blood to the heart and usually have interior valves to keep blood moving under low pressure.

Cellular respiration

An aerobic pathway that is much slower than other pathways and produces the most $ATP$.

Fermentation

An anaerobic pathway that converts glycogen to lactate, releasing small amounts of $ATP$.

EKG

A measurement that provides a visual indication of the electrical events occurring in the heart.