Biol 0010

What is taxonomy?

Definition of taxonomy: the naming and orderly classification of living things, according to their characteristics, similarities and natural relationships.

Prokaryotic vs. Eukaryotic cells

Eukaryotic cells have nucleus and membrane bound organelles. Prokaryotic cells (BACTERIA) are unorganized and don't have a nucleus

3 Domains: Bacteria, Archaea, Eukarya (characteristics and differences)

Characteristics of Domain Bacteria: Kingdom Bacteria This kingdom only contains prokaryotic single-celled living things. Bacteria can be found virtually everywhere in our environment: in the air, the soil, and water, and in and on plants and animals, including humans. Not all bacteria is harmful to humans. Bacteria can be found in three main shapes: rod, sphere, spiral. Characteristics of Domani Archaea: Kingdom Archaea Differ from bacteria in some of their chemical composition . The Archaea, are single-celled organisms without nuclei and include many extremophiles that live in harsh environments like hot springs. Contains of only prokaryotic single-celled living things. Types of Archaea: Thermophiles like unusually hot temperatures. A few species have been found to survive even above 110 degrees Celsius (water boils at 100 degrees Celsius). Psychrophiles like extremely cold temperatures (even down to -10 degrees Celsius). Halophiles thrive in unusually salty habitats. Some can thrive in water that's 9% salt; sea water contains only 0.9% salt. Acidophiles prefer acidic conditions; Alkaliphiles prefer very alkaline environs. Domain Eukarya: 4 Kingdoms - Protista, Fungi, Plantae, Animalia In this domain, we find examples of both single-celled and multi-celled living things. All of the living things in this domain are made up of eukaryotic cells (the types of cells that have a complex structure, have membrane-bound nucleus, and organelles). Characteristics of Kingdom Protista 1. The majority of living things in this kingdom are single-celled, and therefore are microscopic 2. Examples of single-celled life forms: Pond water organisms such as Euglena. 3. There are also multi celled forms of life in this kingdom, such as seaweeds: Characteristics of Kingdom Fungi 1. All life forms in this kingdom are heterotopic (must obtain energy from other sources by feeding on organic matter) 2. Consists primarily of multicellular life forms such as mushroom and molds. Picture of mold growing on bread 3. There are also single-celled life forms in this kingdom, such as various species of yeast cells. Characteristics of Kingdom Plantea 1. All living things in this kingdom are multicellular. 2. All living things in this kingdom are autotrophs through the process of photosynthesis (make their own energy rich molecules from inorganic matter) 3. The majority of the living things in this kingdom live on land such as: trees, moss, etc... Picture of a Giant Sequoia tree: Picture of moss growing on a rock 4. A few examples of plans float of water, such as the lily pads: 5. A few examples of plants live fully submerged under water, such as the Elodea. These are called aquatic plants,( not to be confused with the seaweeds, which are classified under Kingdom Protista). The Elodea is often times sold in pet stores, to be placed inside of fish aquariums. Characteristics of Kingdom Animalia 1. This kingdom consists of only multicellular living thigs, that live on land in water. 2. All species are heterotrophs, and most of them are capable of movement. Here are some examples of living things that belong to Kingdom Animalia: Tiger, fish, zebra, duck, dog, humans.

Cellular Level

atoms, molecules, macromolecules. organelles, cells

3 shapes of bacteria

bacilli, cocci, spirilla

8 Properties of life:

order/organization, sensitivity/response to stimuli, reproduction, adaptation, growth and development, regulation, homeostasis, energy processing. 1. Order / Organization- All living organisms are composed of at least one cell. Atoms make up molecules, molecules make up cells. 2. Sensitivity/Response to Stimuli - movement towards of away from a stimulus-positive/negative response 3. Reproduction - The production of offspring. All living things reproduce - making more of their own kind. 4. Adaptation - characteristics and traits that living things exhibit in order to adapt to their environment. 5. Growth and Development - all living things grow and develop according to a specific set of instructions encoded in their DNA molecules/genes. 6. Regulation - regulatory mechanism coordinate internal functions of the body. Example: cardiovascular system transports nutrients absorbed by the digestive system. 7. Homeostasis - Living things maintain stable internal conditions. 8. Energy processing - Living things require and use energy and raw materials. Some are able to capture sunlight energy. Other obtain energy from molecules they consume. PreviousNext

Populational Level

population, species, community, ecosystem, biome, biosphere

Organismal Level

tissues, organs, organ systems, organism

Are viruses currently classified as living or non-living things?

A branch of biology called virology studies viruses, which exhibit some of the characteristics of living things but lack others. It turns out that although viruses can attack living organisms, cause diseases, and even reproduce, they do not meet the criteria that biologists use to define life. Characteristics of Viruses: Non-Cellular Have a nucleic acid that consists of either DNA or RNA (not both). The structure of a virus consist of a spherical protein shell/coat that is called the capsid. Sometimes the protein shell is covered by a lipid layer. They have protein fillaments on the ouside of the caspid, that enables viruses to attach to cell, and infect them. The reason viruses infect cells if for the purpose to reproduce. Capable of reproducing only when inside a living cell that serves as a host. Viruses sit on the fence between life and nonlife. They exhibit some, but not all characteristics of living organisms Currently, viruses are classified as non-living.

Are all bacteria harmful to humans?

All species are single celled. Cells are prokaryotic. Some are helpful (digestive), and some are harmful.

Viruses basic structure and characteristics

All viruses contain nucleic acid, either DNA or RNA (but not both), and a protein coat, which encases the nucleic acid. Some viruses are also enclosed by an envelope of fat and protein molecules. In its infective form, outside the cell, a virus particle is called a virion.

autotrophic

An organism capable of synthesizing its own food from inorganic substances, using light or chemical energy. Green plants, algae, and certain bacteria are autotrophs.

Science

An organized way of gathering and analyzing evidence about the natural world. Latin meaning knowledge.

6 kingdoms of life

Bacteria, Archaea, Plantae, Animalia, Fungi, Protista (examples of all kingdoms)

Scientific name of living things: Genus + species

Binomial Nomenclature Usually written inLatin, it includes thegenus namefollowed by thespecies name. Bothnamesare always written in italics, and thegenus nameis always capitalized. For example, the humanspeciesis named Homo sapiens.

Diversity of Life: (names and examples of all domains)

Biologists divide all living organisms into three great groups, termed domains: The Domains are further subdivided into groups called kingdoms. Here is the list of the three domains, and the corresponding kingdoms that those include. Note that the first two domains each have only one kingdom, and the name of the domain and kingdoms are the same. Domain Bacteria : 1 Kingdom - Bacteria Domain Archaea: 1 Kingdom - Archaea Domain Eukarya: 4 Kingdoms - Protista, Fungi, Plantaea, Animalia Both the Bacteria and Archaea are prokaryotes, a name for cells without a nucleus. Both of these domains consist of only unicellular/single-celled living things. The domain Eukarya are eukaryotes, a name for organisms that have cells with nuclei. This domain contains living things that are both unicellular/single-celled and multicellular living things.

Three types of scientific fields of study:

Formal Science- the study of logic, mathematics, which use an a priori, as opposed to empirical, methodology. Natural Science- the study of natural phenomena (including cosmological, geological, physical, chemical, and biological factors of the universe). Natural science can be divided into two main branches: physical science and life science (or biological science). There are also cross-disciplines, such as "biophysics", which integrate different aspects of multiple subjects. Includes: Chemistry Earth Science- Astronomy Physics Biology Social Science-the study of human behavior and societies.

Scientific name of humans

Homo sapiens

heterotrophic

Organisms that are unable to construct their own food from inorganic sources, and therefore must consume other organisms or organic molecules from the outside environment. Function as consumers or decomposers in food chains.

Structural organization

The biological levels of organization of living things arranged from the simplest to most complex are: organelle, cells, tissues, organs, organ systems, organisms, populations, communities, ecosystem, and biosphere. 1-The atom is the smallest and most fundamental unit of matter. It consists of a nucleus surrounded by electrons. 2- Atoms form molecules. A molecule is a chemical structure consisting of at least two atoms held together by a chemical bond. Many molecules that are biologically important are macromolecules, large molecules that are typically formed by combining smaller units called monomers. An example of a macromolecule is deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA), which contains the instructions for the functioning of the organism that contains it. 3- Some cells contain aggregates of macromolecules surrounded by membranes; these are called organelles. Organelles are small structures that exist within cells and perform specialized functions. 4- All living things are made of cells (a cell itself is the smallest fundamental unit of living things. (This requirement is why viruses are not considered living: they are not made of cells. To make new viruses, they have to invade and hijack a living cell; only then can they obtain the materials they need to reproduce.) Some organisms consist of a single cell (and are called unicellular)and others are many cells (and are called multicellular). Cells are classified as prokaryotic or eukaryotic. Prokaryotes are single-celled organisms that lack organelles surrounded by a membrane and do not have nuclei surrounded by nuclear membranes; in contrast, the cells of eukaryotes do have membrane-bound organelles and nuclei. 5- In most multicellular organisms, cells combine to make tissues, which are groups of similar cells carrying out the same function. 6- Organs are collections of tissues grouped together based on a common function. Organs are present not only in animals but also in plants. 7- An organ system is a higher level of organization that consists of functionally related organs. For example vertebrate animals have many organ systems, such as the circulatory system that transports blood throughout the body and to and from the lungs; it includes organs such as the heart and blood vessels. 8- Organisms are individual living entities. For example, each tree in a forest is an organism. Single-celled prokaryotes and single-celled eukaryotes are also considered organisms and are typically referred to as microorganisms. 9- All the individuals of a species living within a specific area are collectively called a population. For example, a forest may include many white pine trees. All of these pine trees represent the population of white pine trees in this forest. Different populations may live in the same specific area. For example, the forest with the pine trees includes populations of flowering plants and also insects and microbial populations. 10- A community is the set of populations inhabiting a particular area. For instance, all of the trees, flowers, insects, and other populations in a forest form the forest's community. The forest itself is an ecosystem. 11- An ecosystem consists of all the living things in a particular area together with the abiotic ( non-living), parts of that environment such as nitrogen in the soil or rainwater;the biotic refers to all the living factors in an ecosystem. 12- At the highest level of organization, the biosphere is the collection of all ecosystems, and it represents the zones of life on Earth. It includes land, water, and portions of the atmosphere.

Biology

The study of life

Viruses, mechanism of reproduction

There are two processes used by viruses to replicate: the lytic cycle and lysogenic cycle. Some viruses reproduce using both methods, while others only use the lytic cycle. In the lytic cycle, the virus attaches to the host cell and injects its DNA.