Term | Definition |
biosphere | all organisms and the part of the earth where they exist |
biodiversity | variety of life within an area |
species | group of organisms so similar to one another that they can breed and produce fertile offspring |
biology | scientific study of all life forms |
organism | an individual living thing |
cell | basic unit of life |
metabolism | all chemical processes that synthesize or break down materials within an organism |
DNA | (deoxyribonucleic acid) molecule that stores genetic information in all organisms |
system | changing, organized group of related parts that interact to form a whole |
ecosystem | collection of organisms and nonliving things, such as climate, soil, water, and rocks, in an area |
science | knowledge obtained by observing natural events and conditions in order to discover facts and formulate laws and principles that can be verifies or tested |
homeostasis | maintenance of constant internal conditions in an organism |
evolution | change in living things over time |
adaptation | an inherited trait that gives an advantage to individual organisms and is passed on to future generations |
observation | using our senses to study the world |
data | observations that can be analyzed |
hypothesis | proposed answer for a scientific question |
experiment | process that tests a hypothesis by collecting information under controlled experiments |
independent variable | a condition that is manipulated or changed by a scientist |
dependent variable | experimental data collected through observation and measurement |
constant | the conditions that do not change during an experiment |
theory | a proposed explanation for a wide range of observations and experimental results that is supported by a wide range of evidence |
measurement | the determination of the dimensions of something using a standard unit |
accuracy | a description of how close a measurement is to the true value of the quantity measured |
precision | exactness of a measurement |
microscope | enlarges an image of an object |
gene | a segment of DNA that stores genetic information |
molecular genetics | study an manipulation of DNA on a molecular level |
genomics | study and comparison of genomes both within and across species |
biotechnology | the use of and application of livings things and biological processes |
transgenic | organisms that have genes for more than one species, or have altered copies of their own genes |