Biology 101 Final

• Scientific Method


  A series of steps in which the investigator develops a hypothesis, tests its predictions by performing experiments, and then changes or discards the hypothesis if its predictions are not supported by the results of the experiments.
• Scientific Hypothesis


  An educated guess that seeks to explain observations of nature.
• Inclusive Test


  The hypothesis is neither supported nor refuted.
• Observation


  A description measurement or record of any object or phenomenon.
• Variable


  Any aspect of nature that is capable of changing.
• Correlation


  Two or more aspects of the natural world behave in an interrelated manner.
• Experiment


  A repeatable manipulation of one or more aspects of the natural world.
• Independent Variable


  The single variable that is manipulated in a typical scientific experiment.
• Dependent Variable


  A variable that responds or could potentially respond, to the changes in the independent variable.
• Controlled Experiment


  A common and particularly useful experimental design.
• Control group


  Maintained under a standard set of conditions with no change in the independent variable.
• Experimental group


  Maintained under the same standard set of conditions as the control group BUT is manipulated in a way that changes the independent variable.
• Scientific Theory


  A major explanation to the natural world that has been confirmed through extensive testing in diverse ways by independent researchers.
• Microbe


  A minute organism visible only with one microscope.
• Cell


  The smallest and most basic unit of life, the fundamental building block of all living things.
• Plasma Membrane


  The phospholipid bilayer that forms the outer boundary of any cell.
• Cytoplasm


  Known as the interior of a cell which is a thick, aqueous(water-based) fluid studded with several structures that have specialized functions.
• Reproduction


  The ability of to produce offspring.
• Single-celled organisms


  Can reproduce by dividing into cells that are virtually identical copies of the original cell.
• Sexual Reproduction


  Sperm fuses with eggs to produce a zygote in the process known as fertilization.
• Fertilization


  Fusion of two different haploid gametes (egg cell and sperm) to produce a diploid zygote (the fertilized egg).
• Development


  The process when the zygote is divided many times to produce a juvenile offspring that matures into an adult.
• Asexual Reproduction


  Without the involvement of specialized reproductive cells such as sperm and eggs.
• DNA


  Made up of many atoms held together in a ladder-like pattern and twisted into a spiral along it length a structure known as the double helix.
• Nucleus


  The organelle in a eukaryotic cell that contains the genetic blueprint in the form of DNA.
• Metabolism


  The capture, storage, and use of energy by living organisms.
• Producers


  Organisms that obtain metabolic energy from the nonliving part of their environment.
• Photosynthesis


  The capture of light energy in a metabolic process.
• Consumers


  Organisms that acquire food from the living part of their environment.
• Behavior


  Sensing and responding to external cues.
• Homeostasis


  The process of maintaining appropriate and constant conditions inside cells.
• Biological Evolution


  Refers to a change in the overall genetic characteristics of a group of organisms from one generation to the next.
• Artificial Selection


  An evolutionary change caused by humans; it occurs when we select plants and animals with preferred traits for breeding.
• Natural Selection


  An evolutionary mechanism that changes the over genetic composition of a population from one generation to the next by favoring the survival and reproduction of individuals best suited to their environment.
• Adaptive traits


  Favored to survive and reproduce.
• Adaptation


  Refers to a good match between a population and its particular habitat.
• Domain


  Reference to biological classification systems, the highest level in the Linnaean hierarchy, immediately above kingdom.
• The three domains are


  Bacteria, Archaea, and Eukarya
• Prokaryotes


  Single-celled organism that does not have a nucleus.
• Eukarya


  Include both single-celled and multicellular forms.