Chapter 3 - Characteristics of Life & Introduction to Evolution

A collection of vocabulary flashcards derived from the lecture notes covering fundamental biology concepts related to characteristics of life, evolution, and color vision.

Characteristics of Life

All living organisms share five distinctive features: they are cellular, they evolve, they process information, they use energy, and they reproduce.

Theory of Evolution

A comprehensive explanation for the diversity of life on Earth, primarily attributed to the process of natural selection and descent with modification from common ancestors.

Heritable Characteristics

Traits that are transmitted from parents to offspring through genetic information.

Artificial Selection

The intentional breeding of organisms by humans to cultivate desirable traits, which often leads to increased agricultural productivity.

Evolution

A change in the traits of populations over time due to mechanisms like natural selection, genetic drift, and mutations.

Color Vision

The ability to perceive differences in wavelengths of light as different colors, involving specialized photoreceptor cells in the retina.