Chapter 1-3 Bio terms-Midterm Exam
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ashleigh2014158 on December 12, 2010
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72 terms
Terms | Definitions |
|---|---|
 Biology | the study of living things |
| Homeostasis | process of organisms maintaining stable internal conditions that support its life |
| Pseudoscience | Claims presented as scientific that are based on observation but not supported by scientific explanation |
| Peer review | the process in which experts in a given field examine the results and conclusions of a scientist's study before that study is accepted for publication |
| Inference | logical conclusions made by combining previously observations and inquiry |
| Observation | direct form of gathering information in an orderly fashion |
| Science literacy | combines understanding of science and processes with reasoning-involves ethics |
| Hypothesis | a proposal intended to explain certain facts or observations - an educated guess based on cause and effect which must be falsifiable |
| Serendipity | occurrence of accidentally discovered yet fortunate research |
| Control group | In a controlled experiment, it does not receive the variable |
| Experimental group | In a controlled experiment, it does receive the variable |
| Abiotic Factor | any nonliving factors in an organism's environment |
| Biotic Factor | living factors in an organism's environment |
| Biological community | all the interacting populations of different species that live in the same geographic location at the same time |
| Biome | large group of ecosystems that share the same climate and have similar types of communities |
| Biosphere | the small portion of earth that supports life |
| Commensalism | a symbiotic relationship in which one organism is benefits and the second is neither harmed nor benefited |
| Ecology | scientific study of interactions that take place between organisms and their environments |
| Ecosystem | a biological community and all the nonliving factors that affect it |
| Habitat | physical area in which an organism lives |
| Mutualism | symbiotic relationship in which both organisms benefit |
| Niche | role or position of an organism in its environment |
| Parasitism | a symbiotic relationship in which one organism benefits at the expense of another |
| Population | group of organisms of the same species that occupy the same geographic place at the same time |
| Predation | act of one organism feeding on another organism |
| Symbiosis | close association between two or more species that live together. 3 types-mutualism, commensalism, and parasitism |
| Autotroph | organism that captures sunlight or organic substances to produce its own food - a producer |
| Biomass | total mass of living matter at each trophic level |
| Carnivore | heterotroph that preys on other heterotrophs |
| Detritivore | heterotroph that decomposes organic material and returns it to the soil, air, and water, so it is available for other organisms to use |
| Food chain | simplified model that shows a single path for energy flow through an ecosystem |
| Food web | model that shows many interconnected food chains and pathways in which energy and matter flow through an ecosystem |
| Herbivore | heterotroph that only eats plants |
| Heterotroph | organism that obtains food by feeding on other organisms - a consumer |
| Omnivore | heterotroph that consumes both plants and animals |
| Trophic Level | each step in a food chain or food web |
| Biogeochemical cycle | exchange of matter through the biosphere involving living organisms, chemical processes, and geological processes |
| Denitrification | process in which fixed nitrogen compounds are converted back into nitrogen gas and then returned to the atmosphere |
| Matter | anything that takes up space and has mass |
| Nitrogen Fixation | process in which nitrogen is captured and converted into a form plants can use |
| Nutrient | chemical substance that living organisms obtain from the environment to carry out life processes and sustain life |
| Climax community | stable, mature ecological community with little change in the composition of species |
| Community | group of interacting populations that live in the same geographic area at the same time |
| Ecological succession | the process by which one community replaces another community because of changing biotic and abiotic factors |
| Limiting factor | biotic factor that restricts the number, distribution, or reproduction of a population within a community |
| Primary succession | establishment of a community in an area of bare rock or sand, where no topsoil is present |
| Secondary succession | orderly change that occurs in a place where soil remains after a community of organisms has been removed |
| Tolerance | an organism's ability to survive biotic and abiotic factors |
| Boreal forest | biomes south of the tundra with dense evergreen forests and long, cold, dry winters |
| Climate | average weather conditions in a specific area determined by latitude, elevation, ocean currents, and other factors |
| Desert | area with low rainfall (evaporation exceeds precipitation) and supports some organisms adapted to extreme temperatures |
| Grassland | biome characterized by fertile soils with a thick cover of grasses |
| Latitude | distance of a point on the Earth's surface north or south of the equator |
| Temperate forest | biomes south of the boreal forest characterized by broad-leaved deciduous trees, well-defined seasons, and an annual precipitation of 75-150cm |
| Tropical rain forest | hot, wet biome with year-round humidity, contains Earth's most diverse species of plants and animals |
| Tropical savanna | biome characterized by grasses and scattered trees and herds of animals (ex. zebras) |
| Tropical seasonal forest | biome characterized by deciduous and evergreen trees, a dry season, and organisms such as monkeys and elephants |
| Tundra | treeless biome with permanently frozen soil under the surface and approximately 15-25cm of annual precipitation |
| Weather | atmospheric conditions such as temperature and precipitation at a specific place and time |
| Woodland | biome characterized by small trees and mixed shrub communities with an annual precipitation of approximately 38-100cm |
| Abyssal zone | deepest, very cold region of the open ocean |
| Aphotic zone | open-ocean zone through which sunlight cannot penetrate |
| Benthic zone | ocean-floor area consisting of sand, silt, and dead organisms |
| Estuary | unique, transitional ecosystem that supports diverse species and is formed where freshwater and ocean water merge |
| Intertidal zone | narrow band of shoreline where the ocean and land meet and is partially submerged because of changing tides |
| Limnetic zone | well-lit, open water area of lake or pond |
| Littoral zone | area of pond or lake closest to shore |
| Photic Zone | open-ocean zone shallow enough for sunlight to penetrate |
| Plankton | tiny, floating marine organisms that are autotrophs and are a keystone species |
| Profundal zone | deepest, coldest area of a lake or pond with little light and limited biodiversity |
| Sediment | material deposited by water, wind, or glaciers |
| Wetlands | water-saturated land that supports aquatic plants |
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