Bio 181 Key Terms for Both Module 1 and 2

claim

an assertion about truth

dependent variable

a variable whose expected value depends on the value of another variable

evidence

information related to the accuracy of a claim

evolutionary theory

all organisms on Earth descended from a common ancestor

frequency

the number of times that a value within a range has been observed

frequency distribution

enables one to predict the probability of observing specific values of a variable

independent variable

a variable whose expected value remains independent of the values of other variables

intercept

a parameter that defines the value of the dependent variable when the value of the independent variable equals zero

linear relationship

an association between the values of two variables that produces a straight line when graphed

maximum

the highest value in a set of numbers

mean

a parameter that defines the most likely value of a variable

median

the central value in an ordered set of numbers

minimum

the lowest value in a set of numbers

reasoning

the process of logically relating evidence to a claim

relationship

an association between the values of two variables, such that the expected value of one variable depends on the observed value of the other variable

relative frequency

the proportion or percentage of times that a value within a range was observed

residual

the quantity remaining after some value has been subtracted

residual sum of squares

a measure of the deviations between observed values of a dependent variable and the expected values determined by a linear model

scientific argument

a chain of reasoning that connects evidence to a claim

slope

a parameter that defines how a change in the value of the independent variable affects the expected value of the dependent variable

standard deviations

a parameter that represents the uncertainty in the value of a variable

sum of squares

a measure of the deviations between observed values of a variable and the mean

system

a set of components that interact as a network; the structure of a system determines its function

variable

a characteristic or quantity that changes according to the situation

variance

changes according to the situation

active site

a region of an enzyme that binds a substrate during a reaction

atom

the smallest unit of matter that can participate in a chemical reaction, consisting of one or more protons and some number of electrons; atoms are categorized into types called elements

bond

an attraction that holds two atoms together

catalyst

a substance that increases the rate of a reaction without itself being consumed by that reaction; an enzyme catalyzes a reaction

chemical affinity

the likelihood that two molecules will interact, stemming from the electrical properties of their atoms; the greater the affinity between molecules, the greater the strength of an interaction

chemical reaction

a process in which molecules interact to form new molecules with different compositions

chemical specificity

the ability of a protein to bind a specific type of molecules; the fewer types of molecules a protein can bind, the greater its specificity

covalent bond

a strong attraction that occurs when two atoms share electrons

enzyme

a protein that speeds a chemical reaction by reducing the energy needed for the reaction to occur

hydrogen bond

a weak attraction between a hydrogen atom in one molecule and an atom with a partial negative charge in another molecule

hydrophilic

having an attraction to molecules of water

hydrophobic

having no attraction to molecules of water

ionic bond

an attraction between an atom with a positive charge and an atom with a negative charge

kinetic energy

energy related to the motion of an atom or molecule

ligand

a molecule that binds to a protein

molecule 

a group of atoms held together by one or more covalent bonds

monomer

a small molecule that bonds to similar molecules to form a polymer

peptide

a polymer of two or more amino acids

peptide bond

a covalent bond between two amino acids

polymer

a large molecule composed of similar units bonded together

protein

a large molecule consisting of one or more chains of repeated elements called amino acids

temperature

a measure of the mean kinetic energy of a system