Chapter 1: Introduction to the Animal Sciences

Introduction to Animal Science

Agriculture

The combination of science and art used to cultivate and grow crops and livestock and process the products

Domestic

Those species that have been brought under human controland that have adapted to life with humans.

Animal Science

The combination of disciplines that together comprise the study of domestic animals.

Culture

In the context, culture refers to the set of occupational activities, economic structures, beliefs/values, social forms, and material traits that define our actions and activities

Hunter-gatherer

Hunter-gatherer people support their needs by hunting game, fishing, and gathering edible and medicinal plants.

Farmer

Anyone who practices agriculture by managing and cultivating livestock and/or crops

Civilization

In modern context, this refers to what we consider a fairly high level of cultural and technological development

Genetics

The science of heredity and the variation of inherited characteristcs

Heredity

The transmission of genetic characteristics from parent to offspring

Animal breeding

The use of biometry and genetics to improve farm animal production

Genetic code

The set of rules by which information encoded in genetic material (DNA and RNA sequences) is translated into proteins (amino acid sequences) by living cells.

Nutrition

The study of nutrients and how the body uses them.

Physiology

The study of the physical and chemical processes of an animal or any of the body systems or cells of the animal.

Animal health

The study and practice of maintaining animals as near to a constant state of health as is possible and feasible.

Animal behavior

The study of animal welfare assessment, optimizing production, behavioral control, behavioral disorders, and behavioral genetics

Meat science

The science of handling, distributing, and marketing meat and meat products.

Meat

The flesh of animals used as food.

Dairy product science

The science of providing milk and milk products as food

Biotechnology

A collective set of tools and applications of living organisms, or parts of organisms, to make or modify products, improve plants or animals, or develop microorganisms for specific uses.

Renewable resources

Those resources that can be replaced or produced by natural ecological cycles or management systems.

Omnivore

An animal that eats both aniaml- and plant-based feeds

Nutrient density

A measurement of the nutrients provided in a food compared to the calories it contains.

Diet

The total of the foods and water being consumed by an individual or group.

Essential amino acids

Those amino acids required by the body that must be consumed in the diet.

Undernourished

Receiving inadequate nourishment for proper health and growth.

Draft animal

An animal whose major purpose is to perform work that involves hauling or pulling. An ox or a horse pulling a plow or wagon is a draft animal.

Livestock revolution

Large increases in supply and demand of livestock and animal products worldwide at the end of the 20th century and into the 21st century.

Green revolution

Dramatic improvements in grain production in developing countries during the 1960s to the 1980s because of technological innovation and application.

Per capita

Per unit of population: by or for each person.

Biofuel

Gas or liquid fuel made from biological materials such as crops and animal waste.