new bio
cology Vocabulary
Population: A group of individuals of the same species living in a specific area at the same time.
Community: All the populations of different species living and interacting in the same area.
Ecosystem: A system of interacting organisms (biotic factors) and their physical environment (abiotic factors).
Biotic Factors: All living components in an ecosystem, such as plants, animals, fungi, and bacteria.
Abiotic Factors: Non-living components in an ecosystem, such as sunlight, temperature, soil, and water.
Energy Flow Vocabulary
Producer: An organism (usually a plant or algae) that produces its own food using sunlight or chemical energy.
Consumer: An organism that obtains energy by eating other organisms.
Decomposer: An organism that breaks down dead matter, recycling nutrients into the ecosystem.
Autotroph: An organism that makes its own food through photosynthesis or chemosynthesis (e.g., plants, algae).
Heterotroph: An organism that relies on consuming other organisms for energy.
Herbivore: A consumer that eats only plants.
Carnivore: A consumer that eats only animals.
Omnivore: A consumer that eats both plants and animals.
Predator: An organism that hunts and eats other organisms.
Prey: An organism that is hunted and eaten by a predator.
Energy Pyramid: A graphical representation showing energy flow through trophic levels in an ecosystem.
10% Rule: Only 10% of energy is transferred to the next trophic level; the rest is lost as heat or used for metabolism.
Primary Consumers: Herbivores that feed on producers.
Secondary Consumers: Carnivores or omnivores that feed on primary consumers.
Tertiary Consumers: Top-level carnivores that feed on secondary consumers.
Nutrient Cycles Vocabulary
Photosynthesis: A process in which plants and other autotrophs use sunlight, carbon dioxide, and water to produce glucose and oxygen.
Respiration: A process in which organisms break down glucose to produce energy, releasing carbon dioxide and water as byproducts.
Fossil Fuels: Carbon-rich energy sources (coal, oil, natural gas) formed from decomposed organisms over millions of years.
Combustion: The burning of substances (like fossil fuels) that releases carbon dioxide into the atmosphere.
Evaporation: The process where liquid water turns into water vapor due to heat.
Condensation: The process where water vapor cools and turns into liquid droplets, forming clouds.
Precipitation: Water falling from the atmosphere to Earth in the form of rain, snow, sleet, or hail.
Transpiration: The release of water vapor from plant leaves into the atmosphere.
Runoff: Water that flows over the surface of the land, returning to rivers, lakes, or oceans.
Global Climate Change Vocabulary
Greenhouse Effect: The natural process where greenhouse gases trap heat in Earth’s atmosphere, keeping the planet warm enough for life.
Greenhouse Gases: Gases that trap heat in the atmosphere, such as carbon dioxide (CO₂), methane (CH₄), nitrous oxide (N₂O), and water vapor (H₂O).
Carbon Dioxide (CO₂): A greenhouse gas released through respiration, fossil fuel combustion, and deforestation.
Methane (CH₄): A powerful greenhouse gas emitted from livestock digestion, landfills, and wetlands.
Nitrous Oxide (N₂O): A greenhouse gas produced by agricultural activities and industrial processes.
Water Vapor (H₂O): The most abundant greenhouse gas, naturally cycling through evaporation and condensation.
Fluorinated Gases: Synthetic greenhouse gases (e.g., CFCs) used in refrigeration and industrial processes, with a high warming potential.
Deforestation: The removal of forests, reducing the number of trees that absorb carbon dioxide and releasing stored carbon into the atmosphere.
Complete List of Biology Terms and Definitions:
1. Primary Succession:
The process of ecological succession that occurs in areas where no soil exists, such as after a volcanic eruption or glacier retreat.
2. Secondary Succession:
The process of ecological succession that occurs in areas where soil remains, such as after a forest fire or farming.
3. Pioneer Species:
The first species to colonize barren or disrupted ecosystems, helping to create soil for other plants to grow (e.g., lichens, mosses).
4. Climax Community:
A stable, mature ecosystem that has reached the final stage of ecological succession.
5. Homeostasis:
The ability of an organism to maintain a stable internal environment despite changes in the external environment.
6. Positive Feedback:
A feedback mechanism that amplifies or increases the change or output in a system (e.g., childbirth contractions).
7. Negative Feedback:
A feedback mechanism that counteracts or reduces the change or output to maintain stability (e.g., body temperature regulation).
8. Thermoregulation:
The process of maintaining a stable internal body temperature under different external conditions.
9. Stimulus:
An external or internal signal that triggers a response in an organism.
10. Signal:
The message sent by the body to respond to a stimulus, often involving hormones or nerve impulses.
11. Response:
The action or change in behavior resulting from a stimulus.
12. Nervous System:
A body system that sends and receives signals using nerve cells to control body functions.
13. Circulatory System:
The body system that circulates blood, delivering oxygen and nutrients to cells and removing waste products.
14. Respiratory System:
The body system responsible for gas exchange, taking in oxygen and releasing carbon dioxide.
15. Digestive System:
The body system that breaks down food into nutrients that can be absorbed and used by the body.
16. Urinary System:
The body system that removes waste products from the blood and regulates water balance.
17. Capillaries:
Small blood vessels where the exchange of gases, nutrients, and waste occurs between the blood and body tissues.
18. Ocular Lens:
The eyepiece lens on a microscope, typically magnifying 10x.
19. Objective Lenses:
The lenses near the slide on a microscope, with varying magnifications (e.g., 4x, 10x, 40x).
20. Coarse Adjustment Knob:
The large knob on a microscope used for general focusing on low power.
21. Fine Adjustment Knob:
The small knob on a microscope used for precise focusing, especially on high power.
22. Slide:
A flat glass or plastic surface where specimens are placed for microscope observation.
23. Coverslip:
A thin piece of glass or plastic placed over the specimen on a slide to protect it and improve clarity.
24. Prokaryote:
A simple cell without a nucleus or membrane-bound organelles (e.g., bacteria).
25. Eukaryote:
A complex cell with a nucleus and membrane-bound organelles (e.g., plant and animal cells).
26. Nucleus:
The organelle that stores genetic material (DNA) and controls the cell's activities.
27. Mitochondria:
The organelle responsible for energy production (ATP) through cellular respiration.
28. Ribosome:
The organelle that synthesizes proteins needed for cell functions.
29. Cell Membrane:
The outer barrier of the cell that regulates what enters and exits.
30. Cell Wall:
A rigid structure outside the cell membrane found in plant cells, providing support and protection.
31. Central Vacuole:
A large storage organelle in plant cells that holds water, nutrients, and waste.
32. Chloroplast:
An organelle found in plant cells that converts sunlight into energy through photosynthesis.
33. Hypothesis:
A testable prediction about the outcome of an experiment.
34. Independent Variable:
The factor that is purposely changed in an experiment.
35. Dependent Variable:
The factor that is measured in response to changes in the independent variable.
36. Experimental Group:
The group exposed to the independent variable in an experiment.
37. Control Group:
The group not exposed to the independent variable, used as a baseline for comparison.
38. Constant:
Factors that remain the same for all groups in an experiment to ensure a fair test.
Let me know if you need further clarification or more terms! 😊