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Chapter 1 Section 2
Themes in Biology
| Term | Definition |
|---|---|
| Domain | In a modern taxonomic system, the broadest category; the category that contains kingdoms |
| Kingdom | In traditional taxonomic system, the highest taxonomic category, which contains a group of similar phyla |
| Ecology | The study of the interactions between organisms and the other living and nonliving components of their environment |
| Ecosystem | A community of organisms and their abiotic environment |
| Evolution | A heritable change in the characteristics within a population from one generation to the next; the development of new types of organisms from preexisting types of organisms over time |
| Natural Selection | The process by which individuals that are better adapted to their environment survive and reproduce more successfully than less well adapted individuals do; a theory to explain the mechanism of evolution |
| Adaptation | The process of becoming adapted to an environment ; an anatomical, physiological, or behavioral trait that improves an organism's ability to survive and reproduce |