Flashcards: Foundations of Biology — 40 cards

What is biology the scientific study of?

Life.

What questions does biology address about organisms?

How cells form organisms, body systems function, and organisms interact in communities.

What are the seven characteristics of life?

Order, regulation, energy processing, growth and development, reproduction, response to environment, evolutionary adaptation.

What is the status of viruses like SARS-CoV-2 in defining life?

Whether they are considered living remains a question.

What are the five themes that unify biology?

Organization of life, flow of information, flow of energy and cycling of matter, evolution and diversity, and interaction.

Which theme in biology involves the cycling of matter?

Flow of energy and cycling of matter.

Which theme in biology addresses evolution?

Evolution and diversity.

To which major global issues is biology connected?

Medicine, agriculture, and the environment.

What is an emergent property in biology?

A property of an organized whole greater than the sum of its parts.

What is an example of an emergent property?

Consciousness emerging from neural networks.

What is the highest level in the biological hierarchy of organization?

The biosphere.

What is the lowest level in the biological hierarchy of organization?

The molecule.

How do organisms interact with their environment?

By exchanging matter and energy.

What distinguishes prokaryotic cells from eukaryotic cells?

Prokaryotic cells lack a nucleus and membrane-bound organelles, unlike eukaryotic cells.

Which organisms are included in prokaryotic cells?

Bacteria and archaea are prokaryotic cells.

Which organisms are included in eukaryotic cells?

Plants, animals, fungi, and protists are eukaryotic cells.

What is a gene?

A gene is a unit of inheritance transferring information from parents to offspring.

What do chromosomes contain?

Chromosomes contain DNA.

What role does DNA play in organisms?

DNA controls the development and maintenance of organisms.

When does genetic continuity occur?

Genetic continuity occurs when DNA from both parents is copied in embryo cells and passed to offspring.

What is preserved by genetic continuity?

Inherited traits are preserved by genetic continuity.

What does evolution mean in biology?

Living species descend from ancestral species.

What is natural selection in evolution?

The mechanism of inheritance with modification.

What is evolutionary adaptation?

Accumulation of advantageous traits in a population over time.

How does evolution explain the unity of life?

Through common ancestry.

How does evolution explain the diversity of life?

By modification as species separate from ancestors.

What is the estimated total number of species on Earth?

8.7 million species.

How many species have been identified and named?

More than 1.3 million species.

Who authored 'On the Origin of Species by Means of Natural Selection' in 1859?

Charles Darwin.

What is the first step in hypothesis-based science?

Observation and a question.

What is the hypothesis in the mimicry case study?

Mimicry reduces the risk of harmless animals being eaten by predators.

How does discovery-based science reach general conclusions?

Through inductive reasoning from many specific observations.

What conclusion did 200 years of microscopic observations support?

All organisms are composed of cells.

What follows a hypothesis in hypothesis-based science?

Experiment, data interpretation or prediction, conclusion, and a new question.

Which disciplines is biology increasingly connected with?

Chemistry, physics, mathematics, computer science, and social sciences.

What biological phenomenon involves coral-algae symbiosis?

Coral bleaching.

Which chemical factor is involved in coral bleaching?

Ocean acidification.

Which physical factor contributes to coral bleaching?

Rising seawater temperature.

Which social science aspects relate to coral bleaching?

Policy and economic value.

What increases the importance of transdisciplinary biology?

The need to study phenomena across biological, chemical, physical, and social dimensions.