Transcript Biology: The Study of Life

Biology: The Study of
Life
Section 1.1: What is Biology?
p. 3 -10
The Science of Biology
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Biology
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The study of life
The Science of Biology
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Living things do not exist in ISOLATION;
they are all functioning parts of the delicate
balance of nature
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Living things rely upon other living things to
survive!
Living/Nonliving interactions
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Leaf cutter ants
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Pitcher plants
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Trap + eat insects
Seahorse
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Eat fungus from leaves
Blends into environment to
survive
Spadefoot toad
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Burrows underground to
prevent water loss from
body
The Diversity of Life
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The study of one living thing
always involves the interactions
with other living things
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Humans + plants
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Humans + animals
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Food, raw materials, tools
Biological research
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Food, raw materials, oxygen
Medical treatments, disease
prevention
The study of biology will teach how
humans function + fit in with the rest
of the natural world
Characteristics of Living Things
Organization
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Living things are organized
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Biologist will look for structure
Organization
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The way an organism is highly structured
Molecules – Cells – Organism
Reproduction
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Living things make more
living things
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Reproduction
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The production of offspring
Not essential to individual
organisms
Essential to species
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Group of organisms that can
interbreed + produce fertile
offspring in nature
Change…
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Living things change during
their lives
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Growth
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An increase in the amount of
living material and the
formation of new structures
Development
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All the changes that take place
during the life of an organism
Adjustments…
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Living things adjust to their surroundings
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“Environment”
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Air
Water
Weather
Other organisms
More Adjustments…
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Stimulus
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Anything in an organism’s
external or internal
environment that causes an
organism to react
Response
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The reaction to the stimulus
Still more Adjustments…
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Homeostasis
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Regulation of an organism’s
internal environment to
maintain conditions suitable
for its survival
Examples:
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Amount of water in cells
Amount of minerals in cells
Temperature regulation
Using Energy
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Energy
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The ability to do work or cause change
Comes from food
Adapting
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Adaptation
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An inherited structure, behavior, or internal
process that enables an organism to respond to
environmental factors + live to reproduce
Allows organisms to SURVIVE + REPRODUCE
Adaptations increase populations of organisms
Evolution
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Evolution
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Gradual change in a species over time through
adaptations