Unit One- Themes of Biology

biology

The study of living things. ("bio" means life, "ology" means to study)

metabolism

all of the chemical reactions that an organism uses in order to get and use energy in order to stay alive

the seven themes of biology

cellular structure and function, reproduction, metabolism, homeostasis, heredity, evolution, interdependence

heredity

passing of traits from a parent organism to its offspring during reproduction ("her" means to stick and "ity" means state, so heredity is the state of sticking traits to offspring)

cell

small structures that make up all living things (like bricks make up a wall), some living things are made up of one cell and some are made up of many cells, it is the smallest structure that can carry on life processes such as reproduction and metabolism

evolution

the change(s) in a species over many generations (millions of years), resulting in the many different types of living organisms that we have today

interdependence

the need that one organism in a community has for another (for food, protection, etc.), the study of how organisms in a community are related and rely on one another is called ecology

homeostasis

when a living thing keeps its internal (inside) conditions (like temperature or pH) the same, even if external (outside) conditions change. ("homeo" means same and "stasis" means condition or state, so homeostasis is the keeping the same state)

reproduction

when an organism makes more of its own kind