Bio

• Binomial system

  Allows scientists to accurately identify individual species
• Scientific names always have two words
• More accurate methods to classify organisms

  • Studying amino acids in proteins
  • Studying sequences of bases in DNA
• Morphology

  The outward appearance of an organism
• Anatomy

  The internal structure of an organism
• Dichotomous key

  A way of identifying an organism, by working through pairs of statements that lead you to its name
• Kingdoms


  • Animal kingdom
  • Plant kingdom
• Groups within kingdoms


  • Species (smallest group)
  • Kingdoms (largest group)
• Characteristic features of animals

  • Cells have a nucleus, but no cell walls or chloroplasts
  • Feed on organic substances made by other living organisms
  • Have a nucleus, cell membrane, cytoplasm
• Characteristic features of plants

  • Cells have a nucleus and cell walls made of cellulose, often contain chloroplasts
  • Feed by photosynthesis
  • May have roots, stems and leaves (but some plants do not have these organs)
• Five kingdoms


  • Animals
  • Plants
  • Fungi
  • Prokaryotes (bacteria)
  • Protists
• Cell characteristics

  • Number
  • Chloroplasts
  • Nutrition
  • Cell wall
  • Vacuole
• Characteristic features of fungi

  • Usually multicellular but some (yeast) unicellular
  • Have chitin cell wall
  • Have nuclei & cell walls, not made of cellulose
  • Don't have chlorophyll
  • Feed by digesting waste
• Characteristic features of prokaryotes

  • Usually unicellular
  • Have no nucleus, no mitochondria
  • Have cell walls, not made of cellulose
  • Have circular loop of DNA, often have plasmids
  • Contain ribosomes to provide energy for the cell
• Characteristic features of amphibians

  • Smooth & moist skin with no scales
  • Eggs have no shell & are laid in water
  • Tadpoles live in water, but adults live on land
  • Tadpoles have gills for gas exchange, but adults have lungs
• Characteristic features of reptiles

  • Dry scaly skin
  • Lay eggs with soft shell
• Characteristic features of mammals

  • Have hair or fur on skin
  • Young develop in a uterus, attached to the mother by a placenta
  • Females have mammary glands that produce milk
  • Have teeth, pinnae (ear flaps), sweat glands, diaphragm
• Characteristic features of arthropods

  • Jointed legs
  • Segmented body
  • Exoskeleton
• Four types of arthropods

  • Insects
  • Crustaceans
  • Arachnids
  • Myriapods
• Features of insects

  • 3 pairs of jointed legs
  • Two pairs of wings (one or both may be vestigial)
  • 3 body parts (head, thorax and abdomen)
  • One pair of antennae
  • Breathe through tubes called tracheae
• Features of crustaceans

  • More than four pairs of jointed legs
  • Two pairs of antennae
• Features of arachnids


  • 8 legs (four pairs of jointed legs)
  • No wings, no antennae
  • Two body parts (cephalothorax and abdomen)
• Features of myriapods


  • Many segments & jointed legs
  • One pair of antennae
• Types of flowering plants

  • Ferns
  • Dicotyledons
  • Monocotyledons
• Ferns

  • Grow from a rhizome (a thick underground stem)
  • Have roots
• Dicotyledons

  • Have two cotyledons
  • Broad leaves
  • Network of veins
  • Ring of vascular bundles
  • Flower parts in multiples of five or four
• Monocotyledons

  • Have a single cotyledon
  • Long narrow leaves
  • Veins are parallel
  • Vascular bundles scattered
  • Flower parts in multiples of three