Exploring Creation with Biology: Module 1

2nd Edition. Terms & Definitions.

Metabolism

The sum total of all processes in an organism which convert energy and matter from outside sources and use that energy and matter to sustain the organism's life functions.

Anabolism

The sum total of all processes in an organism which use energy and simple chemical building blocks to produce large chemicals and structures necessary for life.

Catabolism

The sum total of all processes in an organism which break down chemicals to produce energy and simple chemical building blocks.

Photosynthesis

the process by which green plants and some other organisms use the energy of sunlight and simple chemicals to produce their own food.

Herbivores

Organisms that eat only plants.

Carnivores

Organisms that eat only organisms other than plants.

Omnivores

Organisms that eat both plants and other organisms.

Producers

Organisms that produce their own food.

Consumers

Organisms that eat living producers and/or other consumers for food.

Decomposers

Organisms that break down the dead remains of other organisms.

Autotrophs

Organisms that are able to make their own food.

Heterotrophs

Organisms that depend on other organisms for their food.

Receptors

Special structures that allow living organisms to sense the conditions of their internal or external environment.

Asexual reproduction

Reproduction accomplished by a single organism.

Sexual reproduction

Reproduction that requires two organisms.

Inheritance

The process by which physical and biological characteristics are transmitted from the parent (or parents) to the offspring.

Mutation

An abrupt and marked change in the DNA of an organism compared to that of its parents.

Hypothesis

An educated guess that attempts to explain an observation or answer a question.

Theory

A hypothesis that has been tested with a significant amount of data.

Scientific law

A theory that has been tested by and is consistent with generations of data.

Microorganisms

Living creatures that are too small to see with the naked eye.

Abiogenesis

The idea that long ago, very simple life forms spontaneously appeared through chemical reactions.

Prokaryotic cell

A cell that has no distinct, membrane-bounded organelles.

Eukaryotic cell

A cell with distinct, membrane-bounded organelles.

Species

A unit of one or more populations of individuals that can reproduce under normal conditions, produce fertile offspring, and are reproductively isolated from other such units.

Taxonomy

The science of classifying organisms.

Binomial nomenclature

Naming an organism with its genus and species name.