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Biology

"Biological science" redirects here. It is not to be confused with life science.

For other uses, see Biology (disambiguation).

EscherichiaColi NIAID.jpg Thompson's Gazelle.jpeg

Goliath beetle.jpg Tree Fern.jpg

Biology deals with the study of the many living organisms.

(top: E. coli bacteria and gazelle)

(bottom: Goliath beetle and tree fern)

Biology is a natural science concerned with the study of life and living organisms, including their
structure, function, growth, evolution, distribution, and taxonomy.[1] Modern biology is a vast and
eclectic field, composed of many branches and subdisciplines. However, despite the broad scope of
biology, there are certain general and unifying concepts within it that govern all study and research,
consolidating it into single, coherent fields. In general, biology recognizes the cell as the basic unit of life,
genes as the basic unit of heredity, and evolution as the engine that propels the synthesis and creation of
new species. It is also understood today that all organisms survive by consuming and transforming
energy and by regulating their internal environment to maintain a stable and vital condition.

Subdisciplines of biology are defined by the scale at which organisms are studied, the kinds of organisms
studied, and the methods used to study them: biochemistry examines the rudimentary chemistry of life;
molecular biology studies the complex interactions among biological molecules; botany studies the
biology of plants; cellular biology examines the basic building-block of all life, the cell; physiology
examines the physical and chemical functions of tissues, organs, and organ systems of an organism;
evolutionary biology examines the processes that produced the diversity of life; and ecology examines
how organisms interact in their environment.[2]

History

Main article: History of biology

A Diagram of a fly from Robert Hooke's innovative Micrographia, 1665

Ernst Haeckel's Tree of Life (1879)

The term biology is derived from the Greek word βίος, bios, "life" and the suffix -λογία, -logia, "study
of."[3][4] The Latin form of the term first appeared in 1736 when Swedish scientist Carl Linnaeus (Carl
von Linné) used biologi in his Bibliotheca botanica. It was used again in 1766 in a work entitled
Philosophiae naturalis sive physicae: tomus III, continens geologian, biologian, phytologian generalis, by
Michael Christoph Hanov, a disciple of Christian Wolff. The first German use, Biologie, was in a 1771
translation of Linnaeus' work. In 1797, Theodor Georg August Roose used the term in a book, Grundzüge
der Lehre van der Lebenskraft, in the preface. Karl Friedrich Burdach used the term in 1800 in a more
restricted sense of the study of human beings from a morphological, physiological and psychological
perspective (Propädeutik zum Studien der gesammten Heilkunst). The term came into its modern usage
with the six-volume treatise Biologie, oder Philosophie der lebenden Natur (1802–22) by Gottfried
Reinhold Treviranus, who announced:[5]

The objects of our research will be the different forms and manifestations of life, the conditions and laws
under which these phenomena occur, and the causes through which they have been effected. The
science that concerns itself with these objects we will indicate by the name biology [Biologie] or the
doctrine of life [Lebenslehre].

Although modern biology is a relatively recent development, sciences related to and included within it
have been studied since ancient times. Natural philosophy was studied as early as the ancient
civilizations of Mesopotamia, Egypt, the Indian subcontinent, and China. However, the origins of modern
biology and its approach to the study of nature are most often traced back to ancient Greece.[6][7]
While the formal study of medicine dates back to Hippocrates (ca. 460 BC – ca. 370 BC), it was Aristotle
(384 BC – 322 BC) who contributed most extensively to the development of biology. Especially important
are his History of Animals and other works where he showed naturalist leanings, and later more
empirical works that focused on biological causation and the diversity of life. Aristotle's successor at the
Lyceum, Theophrastus, wrote a series of books on botany that survived as the most important
contribution of antiquity to the plant sciences, even into the Middle Ages.[8]

Scholars of the medieval Islamic world who wrote on biology included al-Jahiz (781–869), Al-Dīnawarī
(828–896), who wrote on botany,[9] and Rhazes (865–925) who wrote on anatomy and physiology.
Medicine was especially well studied by Islamic scholars working in Greek philosopher traditions, while
natural history drew heavily on Aristotelian thought, especially in upholding a fixed hierarchy of life.

Biology began to quickly develop and grow with Anton van Leeuwenhoek's dramatic improvement of the
microscope. It was then that scholars discovered spermatozoa, bacteria, infusoria and the diversity of
microscopic life. Investigations by Jan Swammerdam led to new interest in entomology and helped to
develop the basic techniques of microscopic dissection and staining.[10]
Advances in microscopy also had a profound impact on biological thinking. In the early 19th century, a
number of biologists pointed to the central importance of the cell. Then, in 1838, Schleiden and
Schwann began promoting the now universal ideas that (1) the basic unit of organisms is the cell and (2)
that individual cells have all the characteristics of life, although they opposed the idea that (3) all cells
come from the division of other cells. Thanks to the work of Robert Remak and Rudolf Virchow, however,
by the 1860s most biologists accepted all three tenets of what came to be known as cell theory.[11][12]

Meanwhile, taxonomy and classification became the focus of natural historians. Carl Linnaeus published
a basic taxonomy for the natural world in 1735 (variations of which have been in use ever since), and in
the 1750s introduced scientific names for all his species.[13] Georges-Louis Leclerc, Comte de Buffon,
treated species as artificial categories and living forms as malleable—even suggesting the possibility of
common descent. Though he was opposed to evolution, Buffon is a key figure in the history of
evolutionary thought; his work influenced the evolutionary theories of both Lamarck and Darwin.[14]

Serious evolutionary thinking originated with the works of Jean-Baptiste Lamarck, who was the first to
present a coherent theory of evolution.[15] He posited that evolution was the result of environmental
stress on properties of animals, meaning that the more frequently and rigorously an organ was used, the
more complex and efficient it would become, thus adapting the animal to its environment. Lamarck
believed that these acquired traits could then be passed on to the animal's offspring, who would further
develop and perfect them.[16] However, it was the British naturalist Charles Darwin, combining the
biogeographical approach of Humboldt, the uniformitarian geology of Lyell, Malthus's writings on
population growth, and his own morphological expertise and extensive natural observations, who forged
a more successful evolutionary theory based on natural selection; similar reasoning and evidence led
Alfred Russel Wallace to independently reach the same conclusions.[17][18] Although it was the subject
of controversy (which continues to this day), Darwin's theory quickly spread through the scientific
community and soon became a central axiom of the rapidly developing science of biology.

The discovery of the physical representation of heredity came along with evolutionary principles and
population genetics. In the 1940s and early 1950s, experiments pointed to DNA as the component of
chromosomes that held the trait-carrying units that had become known as genes. A focus on new kinds
of model organisms such as viruses and bacteria, along with the discovery of the double helical structure
of DNA in 1953, marked the transition to the era of molecular genetics. From the 1950s to present times,
biology has been vastly extended in the molecular domain. The genetic code was cracked by Har Gobind
Khorana, Robert W. Holley and Marshall Warren Nirenberg after DNA was understood to contain codons.
Finally, the Human Genome Project was launched in 1990 with the goal of mapping the general human
genome. This project was essentially completed in 2003,[19] with further analysis still being published.
The Human Genome Project was the first step in a globalized effort to incorporate accumulated
knowledge of biology into a functional, molecular definition of the human body and the bodies of other
organisms.
Foundations of modern biology

Cell theory

Human cancer cells with nuclei (specifically the DNA) stained blue. The central and rightmost cell are in
interphase, so the entire nuclei are labeled. The cell on the left is going through mitosis and its DNA has
condensed.

Main article: Cell theory

Cell theory states that the cell is the fundamental unit of life, and that all living things are composed of
one or more cells or the secreted products of those cells (e.g. shells, hairs and nails etc.). All cells arise
from other cells through cell division. In multicellular organisms, every cell in the organism's body
derives ultimately from a single cell in a fertilized egg. The cell is also considered to be the basic unit in
many pathological processes.[20] In addition, the phenomenon of energy flow occurs in cells in
processes that are part of the function known as metabolism. Finally, cells contain hereditary
information (DNA), which is passed from cell to cell during cell division.

Evolution

Natural selection of a population for dark coloration.

Main article: Evolution

A central organizing concept in biology is that life changes and develops through evolution, and that all
life-forms known have a common origin. The theory of evolution postulates that all organisms on the
Earth, both living and extinct, have descended from a common ancestor or an ancestral gene pool. This
last universal common ancestor of all organisms is believed to have appeared about 3.5 billion years ago.
[21] Biologists generally regard the universality and ubiquity of the genetic code as definitive evidence in
favor of the theory of universal common descent for all bacteria, archaea, and eukaryotes (see: origin of
life).[22]

Introduced into the scientific lexicon by Jean-Baptiste de Lamarck in 1809,[23] evolution was established
by Charles Darwin fifty years later as a viable scientific model when he articulated its driving force:
natural selection.[24][25][26] (Alfred Russel Wallace is recognized as the co-discoverer of this concept as
he helped research and experiment with the concept of evolution.)[27] Evolution is now used to explain
the great variations of life found on Earth.
Darwin theorized that species and breeds developed through the processes of natural selection and
artificial selection or selective breeding.[28] Genetic drift was embraced as an additional mechanism of
evolutionary development in the modern synthesis of the theory.[29]

The evolutionary history of the species—which describes the characteristics of the various species from
which it descended—together with its genealogical relationship to every other species is known as its
phylogeny. Widely varied approaches to biology generate information about phylogeny. These include
the comparisons of DNA sequences conducted within molecular biology or genomics, and comparisons
of fossils or other records of ancient organisms in paleontology.[30] Biologists organize and analyze
evolutionary relationships through various methods, including phylogenetics, phenetics, and cladistics.
(For a summary of major events in the evolution of life as currently understood by biologists, see
evolutionary timeline.)

Genetics

A Punnett square depicting a cross between two pea plants heterozygous for purple (B) and white (b)
blossoms

Main article: Genetics

Genes are the primary units of inheritance in all organisms. A gene is a unit of heredity and corresponds
to a region of DNA that influences the form or function of an organism in specific ways. All organisms,
from bacteria to animals, share the same basic machinery that copies and translates DNA into proteins.
Cells transcribe a DNA gene into an RNA version of the gene, and a ribosome then translates the RNA
into a protein, a sequence of amino acids. The translation code from RNA codon to amino acid is the
same for most organisms, but slightly different for some. For example, a sequence of DNA that codes for
insulin in humans also codes for insulin when inserted into other organisms, such as plants.[31]

DNA usually occurs as linear chromosomes in eukaryotes, and circular chromosomes in prokaryotes. A
chromosome is an organized structure consisting of DNA and histones. The set of chromosomes in a cell
and any other hereditary information found in the mitochondria, chloroplasts, or other locations is
collectively known as its genome. In eukaryotes, genomic DNA is located in the cell nucleus, along with
small amounts in mitochondria and chloroplasts. In prokaryotes, the DNA is held within an irregularly
shaped body in the cytoplasm called the nucleoid.[32] The genetic information in a genome is held
within genes, and the complete assemblage of this information in an organism is called its genotype.[33]

Homeostasis

Main article: Homeostasis

The hypothalamus secretes CRH, which directs the pituitary gland to secrete ACTH. In turn, ACTH directs
the adrenal cortex to secrete glucocorticoids, such as cortisol. The GCs then reduce the rate of secretion
by the hypothalamus and the pituitary gland once a sufficient amount of GCs has been released.[34]

Homeostasis is the ability of an open system to regulate its internal environment to maintain stable
conditions by means of multiple dynamic equilibrium adjustments controlled by interrelated regulation
mechanisms. All living organisms, whether unicellular or multicellular, exhibit homeostasis.[35]

To maintain dynamic equilibrium and effectively carry out certain functions, a system must detect and
respond to perturbations. After the detection of a perturbation, a biological system normally responds
through negative feedback. This means stabilizing conditions by either reducing or increasing the activity
of an organ or system. One example is the release of glucagon when sugar levels are too low.

Basic overview of energy and human life.

Energy

The survival of a living organism depends on the continuous input of energy. Chemical reactions that are
responsible for its structure and function are tuned to extract energy from substances that act as its food
and transform them to help form new cells and sustain them. In this process, molecules of chemical
substances that constitute food play two roles; first, they contain energy that can be transformed for
biological chemical reactions; second, they develop new molecular structures made up of biomolecules.

The organisms responsible for the introduction of energy into an ecosystem are known as producers or
autotrophs. Nearly all of these organisms originally draw energy from the sun.[36] Plants and other
phototrophs use solar energy via a process known as photosynthesis to convert raw materials into
organic molecules, such as ATP, whose bonds can be broken to release energy.[37] A few ecosystems,
however, depend entirely on energy extracted by chemotrophs from methane, sulfides, or other non-
luminal energy sources.[38]

Some of the captured energy is used to produce biomass to sustain life and provide energy for growth
and development. The majority of the rest of this energy is lost as heat and waste molecules. The most
important processes for converting the energy trapped in chemical substances into energy useful to
sustain life are metabolism[39] and cellular respiration.[40]

Study and research

Structural
Main articles: Molecular biology, Cell biology, Genetics and Developmental biology

Schematic of typical animal cell depicting the various organelles and structures.

Molecular biology is the study of biology at a molecular level.[41] This field overlaps with other areas of
biology, particularly with genetics and biochemistry. Molecular biology chiefly concerns itself with
understanding the interactions between the various systems of a cell, including the interrelationship of
DNA, RNA, and protein synthesis and learning how these interactions are regulated.

Cell biology studies the structural and physiological properties of cells, including their behaviors,
interactions, and environment. This is done on both the microscopic and molecular levels, for unicellular
organisms such as bacteria, as well as the specialized cells in multicellular organisms such as humans.
Understanding the structure and function of cells is fundamental to all of the biological sciences. The
similarities and differences between cell types are particularly relevant to molecular biology.

Anatomy considers the forms of macroscopic structures such as organs and organ systems.[42]

Genetics is the science of genes, heredity, and the variation of organisms.[43][44] Genes encode the
information necessary for synthesizing proteins, which in turn play a central role in influencing the final
phenotype of the organism. In modern research, genetics provides important tools in the investigation of
the function of a particular gene, or the analysis of genetic interactions. Within organisms, genetic
information generally is carried in chromosomes, where it is represented in the chemical structure of
particular DNA molecules.

Developmental biology studies the process by which organisms grow and develop. Originating in
embryology, modern developmental biology studies the genetic control of cell growth, differentiation,
and "morphogenesis," which is the process that progressively gives rise to tissues, organs, and anatomy.
Model organisms for developmental biology include the round worm Caenorhabditis elegans,[45] the
fruit fly Drosophila melanogaster,[46] the zebrafish Danio rerio,[47] the mouse Mus musculus,[48] and
the weed Arabidopsis thaliana.[49][50] (A model organism is a species that is extensively studied to
understand particular biological phenomena, with the expectation that discoveries made in that
organism provide insight into the workings of other organisms.)[51]

Physiological

Main article: Physiology

Physiology studies the mechanical, physical, and biochemical processes of living organisms by attempting
to understand how all of the structures function as a whole. The theme of "structure to function" is
central to biology. Physiological studies have traditionally been divided into plant physiology and animal
physiology, but some principles of physiology are universal, no matter what particular organism is being
studied. For example, what is learned about the physiology of yeast cells can also apply to human cells.
The field of animal physiology extends the tools and methods of human physiology to non-human
species. Plant physiology borrows techniques from both research fields.

Physiology studies how for example nervous, immune, endocrine, respiratory, and circulatory systems,
function and interact. The study of these systems is shared with medically oriented disciplines such as
neurology and immunology.

Evolutionary

Evolutionary research is concerned with the origin and descent of species, as well as their change over
time, and includes scientists from many taxonomically oriented disciplines. For example, it generally
involves scientists who have special training in particular organisms such as mammalogy, ornithology,
botany, or herpetology, but use those organisms as systems to answer general questions about
evolution.

Evolutionary biology is partly based on paleontology, which uses the fossil record to answer questions
about the mode and tempo of evolution,[52] and partly on the developments in areas such as
population genetics.[53] In the 1980s, developmental biology re-entered evolutionary biology from its
initial exclusion from the modern synthesis through the study of evolutionary developmental biology.
[54] Related fields often considered part of evolutionary biology are phylogenetics, systematics, and
taxonomy.

Systematic

A phylogenetic tree of all living things, based on rRNA gene data, showing the separation of the three
domains bacteria, archaea, and eukaryotes as described initially by Carl Woese. Trees constructed with
other genes are generally similar, although they may place some early-branching groups very differently,
presumably owing to rapid rRNA evolution. The exact relationships of the three domains are still being
debated.

The hierarchy of biological classification's eight major taxonomic ranks. Intermediate minor rankings are
not shown. This diagram uses a 3 Domains / 6 Kingdoms format

Main article: Systematics

Multiple speciation events create a tree structured system of relationships between species. The role of
systematics is to study these relationships and thus the differences and similarities between species and
groups of species.[55] However, systematics was an active field of research long before evolutionary
thinking was common.[56]

Traditionally, living things have been divided into five kingdoms: Monera; Protista; Fungi; Plantae;
Animalia.[57] However, many scientists now consider this five-kingdom system outdated. Modern
alternative classification systems generally begin with the three-domain system: Archaea (originally
Archaebacteria); Bacteria (originally Eubacteria) and Eukaryota (including protists, fungi, plants, and
animals)[58] These domains reflect whether the cells have nuclei or not, as well as differences in the
chemical composition of key biomolecules such as ribosomes.[58]

Further, each kingdom is broken down recursively until each species is separately classified. The order is:
Domain; Kingdom; Phylum; Class; Order; Family; Genus; Species.

Outside of these categories, there are obligate intracellular parasites that are "on the edge of life"[59] in
terms of metabolic activity, meaning that many scientists do not actually classify these structures as
alive, due to their lack of at least one or more of the fundamental functions or characteristics that define
life. They are classified as viruses, viroids, prions, or satellites.

The scientific name of an organism is generated from its genus and species. For example, humans are
listed as Homo sapiens. Homo is the genus, and sapiens the species. When writing the scientific name of
an organism, it is proper to capitalize the first letter in the genus and put all of the species in lowercase.
[60] Additionally, the entire term may be italicized or underlined.[61]

The dominant classification system is called the Linnaean taxonomy. It includes ranks and binomial
nomenclature. How organisms are named is governed by international agreements such as the
International Code of Nomenclature for algae, fungi, and plants (ICN), the International Code of
Zoological Nomenclature (ICZN), and the International Code of Nomenclature of Bacteria (ICNB). The
classification of viruses, viroids, prions, and all other sub-viral agents that demonstrate biological
characteristics is conducted by the International Committee on Taxonomy of Viruses (ICTV) and is known
as the International Code of Viral Classification and Nomenclature (ICVCN).[62][63][64][65] However,
several other viral classification systems do exist.

A merging draft, BioCode, was published in 1997 in an attempt to standardize nomenclature in these
three areas, but has yet to be formally adopted.[66] The BioCode draft has received little attention since
1997; its originally planned implementation date of January 1, 2000, has passed unnoticed. A revised
BioCode that, instead of replacing the existing codes, would provide a unified context for them, was
proposed in 2011.[67][68][69] However, the International Botanical Congress of 2011 declined to
consider the BioCode proposal. The ICVCN remains outside the BioCode, which does not include viral
classification.
Ecological and environmental

Mutual symbiosis between clownfish of the genus Amphiprion that dwell among the tentacles of tropical
sea anemones. The territorial fish protects the anemone from anemone-eating fish, and in turn the
stinging tentacles of the anemone protects the clown fish from its predators.

Main articles: Ecology, Ethology, Behavior and Biogeography

Ecology studies the distribution and abundance of living organisms, and the interactions between
organisms and their environment.[70] The habitat of an organism can be described as the local abiotic
factors such as climate and ecology, in addition to the other organisms and biotic factors that share its
environment.[71] One reason that biological systems can be difficult to study is that so many different
interactions with other organisms and the environment are possible, even on small scales. A microscopic
bacterium in a local sugar gradient is responding to its environment as much as a lion searching for food
in the African savanna. For any species, behaviors can be co-operative, competitive, parasitic, or
symbiotic. Matters become more complex when two or more species interact in an ecosystem.

Ecological systems are studied at several different levels, from individuals and populations to ecosystems
and the biosphere. The term population biology is often used interchangeably with population ecology,
although population biology is more frequently used when studying diseases, viruses, and microbes,
while population ecology is more commonly used when studying plants and animals. Ecology draws on
many subdisciplines.

Ethology studies animal behavior (particularly that of social animals such as primates and canids), and is
sometimes considered a branch of zoology. Ethologists have been particularly concerned with the
evolution of behavior and the understanding of behavior in terms of the theory of natural selection. In
one sense, the first modern ethologist was Charles Darwin, whose book, The Expression of the Emotions
in Man and Animals, influenced many ethologists to come.[72]

Biogeography studies the spatial distribution of organisms on the Earth, focusing on topics like plate
tectonics, climate change, dispersal and migration, and cladistics.

Basic unresolved problems in biology

Main article: List of unsolved problems in biology

Despite the profound advances made over recent decades in our understanding of life's fundamental
processes, some basic problems have remained unresolved. For example, one of the major unresolved
problems in biology is the primary adaptive function of sex, and particularly its key processes in
eukaryotes, meiosis and homologous recombination. One view is that sex evolved primarily as an
adaptation for increasing genetic diversity (see references e.g.[73][74]). An alternative view is that sex is
an adaptation for promoting accurate DNA repair in germ-line DNA, and that increased genetic diversity
is primarily a byproduct that may be useful in the long run.[75][76] (See also Evolution of sexual
reproduction).

Another basic unresolved problem in biology is the biologic basis of aging. At present, there is no
consensus view on the underlying cause of aging. Various competing theories are outlined in Ageing
Theories.

Branches

These are the main branches of biology:[77][78]

Aerobiology – the study of airborne organic particles

Agriculture – the study of producing crops and raising livestock, with an emphasis on practical
applications

Anatomy – the study of form and function, in plants, animals, and other organisms, or specifically in
humans

Histology – the study of cells and tissues, a microscopic branch of anatomy

Astrobiology (also known as exobiology, exopaleontology, and bioastronomy) – the study of evolution,
distribution, and future of life in the universe

Biochemistry – the study of the chemical reactions required for life to exist and function, usually a focus
on the cellular level

Bioengineering – the study of biology through the means of engineering with an emphasis on applied
knowledge and especially related to biotechnology

Biogeography – the study of the distribution of species spatially and temporally

Bioinformatics – the use of information technology for the study, collection, and storage of genomic and
other biological data

Biomathematics (or Mathematical biology) – the quantitative or mathematical study of biological

processes, with an emphasis on modeling

Biomechanics – often considered a branch of medicine, the study of the mechanics of living beings, with
an emphasis on applied use through prosthetics or orthotics
Biomedical research – the study of health and disease

Pharmacology – the study and practical application of preparation, use, and effects of drugs and
synthetic medicines

Biomusicology – the study of music from a biological point of view.

Biophysics – the study of biological processes through physics, by applying the theories and methods
traditionally used in the physical sciences

Biosemiotics – the study of biological processes through semiotics, by applying the models of meaning-
making and communication

Biotechnology – the study of the manipulation of living matter, including genetic modification and
synthetic biology

Synthetic biology – research integrating biology and engineering; construction of biological functions not
found in nature

Building biology – the study of the indoor living environment

Botany – the study of plants

Cell biology – the study of the cell as a complete unit, and the molecular and chemical interactions that
occur within a living cell

Cognitive biology – the study of cognition as a biological function

Conservation biology – the study of the preservation, protection, or restoration of the natural
environment, natural ecosystems, vegetation, and wildlife

Cryobiology – the study of the effects of lower than normally preferred temperatures on living beings

Developmental biology – the study of the processes through which an organism forms, from zygote to
full structure

Embryology – the study of the development of embryo (from fecundation to birth)

Ecology – the study of the interactions of living organisms with one another and with the non-living
elements of their environment

Environmental biology – the study of the natural world, as a whole or in a particular area, especially as
affected by human activity

Epidemiology – a major component of public health research, studying factors affecting the health of
populations

Evolutionary biology – the study of the origin and descent of species over time

Genetics – the study of genes and heredity.

Epigenetics – the study of heritable changes in gene expression or cellular phenotype caused by
mechanisms other than changes in the underlying DNA sequence
Hematology (also known as Haematology) – the study of blood and blood-forming organs.

Integrative biology – the study of whole organisms

Limnology – the study of inland waters

Marine biology (or Biological oceanography) – the study of ocean ecosystems, plants, animals, and other
living beings

Microbiology – the study of microscopic organisms (microorganisms) and their interactions with other
living things

Bacteriology - the study of bacteria

Mycology – the study of fungi

Parasitology – the study of parasites and parasitism

Virology – the study of viruses and some other virus-like agents

Molecular biology – the study of biology and biological functions at the molecular level, some cross over
with biochemistry

Nanobiology - the study of how nanotechnology can be used in biology, and the study of living organisms
and parts on the nanoscale level of organization

Neurobiology – the study of the nervous system, including anatomy, physiology and pathology

Population biology – the study of groups of conspecific organisms, including

Population ecology – the study of how population dynamics and extinction

Population genetics – the study of changes in gene frequencies in populations of organisms

Paleontology – the study of fossils and sometimes geographic evidence of prehistoric life

Pathobiology or pathology – the study of diseases, and the causes, processes, nature, and development
of disease

Physiology – the study of the functioning of living organisms and the organs and parts of living organisms

Phytopathology – the study of plant diseases (also called Plant Pathology)

Psychobiology – the study of the biological bases of psychology

Quantum biology - the study of quantum mechanics to biological objects and problems.

Sociobiology – the study of the biological bases of sociology

Structural biology – a branch of molecular biology, biochemistry, and biophysics concerned with the
molecular structure of biological macromolecules

Zoology – the study of animals, including classification, physiology, development, and behavior,
including:
Ethology – the study of animal behavior

Entomology – the study of insects

Herpetology – the study of reptiles and amphibians

Ichthyology – the study of fish

Mammalogy – the study of mammals

Ornithology – the study of birds

See also

References

Further reading

External links

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Terms of UsePrivacyINTRODUCTION: THE NATURE OF SCIENCE AND BIOLOGY

Table of Contents

Biology: The Science of Our Lives | Science and the Scientific Method | Theories Contributing to Modern
Biology

Development of the Theory of Evolution | The Modern View of the Age of the Earth | Development of
the Modern View of Evolution
Darwinian Evolution | The Diversity of Life | Characteristics of Living things | Levels of Organization |
Learning Objectives

Terms | Review Questions | Links | References

Biology: The Science of Our Lives | Back to Top

Biology literally means "the study of life". Biology is such a broad field, covering the minute workings of
chemical machines inside our cells, to broad scale concepts of ecosystems and global climate change.
Biologists study intimate details of the human brain, the composition of our genes, and even the
functioning of our reproductive system. Biologists recently all but completed the deciphering of the
human genome, the sequence of deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) bases that may determine much of our
innate capabilities and predispositions to certain forms of behavior and illnesses. DNA sequences have
played major roles in criminal cases (O.J. Simpson, as well as the reversal of death penalties for many
wrongfully convicted individuals), as well as the impeachment of President Clinton (the stain at least did
not lie). We are bombarded with headlines about possible health risks from favorite foods (Chinese,
Mexican, hamburgers, etc.) as well as the potential benefits of eating other foods such as cooked
tomatoes. Informercials tout the benefits of metabolism-adjusting drugs for weight loss. Many
Americans are turning to herbal remedies to ease arthritis pain, improve memory, as well as improve our
moods.

Can a biology book give you the answers to these questions? No, but it will enable you learn how to sift
through the biases of investigators, the press, and others in a quest to critically evaluate the question. To
be honest, five years after you are through with this class it is doubtful you would remember all the
details of meatbolism. However, you will know where to look and maybe a little about the process of
science that will allow you to make an informed decision. Will you be a scientist? Yes, in a way. You may
not be formally trained as a science major, but you can think critically, solve problems, and have some
idea about what science can and cannoit do. I hope you will be able to tell the shoe from the shinola.

Science and the Scientific Method | Back to Top

Science is an objective, logical, and repeatable attempt to understand the principles and forces operating
in the natural universe. Science is from the Latin word, scientia, to know. Good science is not dogmatic,
but should be viewed as an ongoing process of testing and evaluation. One of the hoped-for benefits of
students taking a biology course is that they will become more familiar with the process of science.
Humans seem innately interested in the world we live in. Young children drive their parents batty with
constant "why" questions. Science is a means to get some of those whys answered. When we shop for
groceries, we are conducting a kind of scientific experiment. If you like Brand X of soup, and Brand Y is on
sale, perhaps you try Brand Y. If you like it you may buy it again, even when it is not on sale. If you did not
like Brand Y, then no sale will get you to try it again.

In order to conduct science, one must know the rules of the game (imagine playing Monopoly and
having to discover the rules as you play! Which is precisely what one does with some computer or
videogames (before buying the cheatbook). The scientific method is to be used as a guide that can be
modified. In some sciences, such as taxonomy and certain types of geology, laboratory experiments are
not necessarily performed. Instead, after formulating a hypothesis, additional observations and/or
collections are made from different localities.

Steps in the scientific method commonly include:

Observation: defining the problem you wish to explain.

Hypothesis: one or more falsifiable explanations for the observation.

Experimentation: Controlled attempts to test one or more hypotheses.

Conclusion: was the hypothesis supported or not? After this step the hypothesis is either modified or
rejected, which causes a repeat of the steps above.

After a hypothesis has been repeatedly tested, a hierarchy of scientific thought develops. Hypothesis is
the most common, with the lowest level of certainty. A theory is a hypothesis that has been repeatedly
tested with little modification, e.g. The Theory of Evolution. A Law is one of the fundamental underlying
principles of how the Universe is organized, e.g. The Laws of Thermodynamics, Newton's Law of Gravity.
Science uses the word theory differently than it is used in the general population. Theory to most
people, in general nonscientific use, is an untested idea. Scientists call this a hypothesis.

Scientific experiments are also concerned with isolating the variables. A good science experiment does
not simultaneously test several variables, but rather a single variable that can be measured against a
control. Scientific controlled experiments are situations where all factors are the same between two test
subjects, except for the single experimental variable.

Consider a commonly conducted science fair experiment. Sandy wants to test the effect of gangsta rap
music on pea plant growth. She plays loud rap music 24 hours a day to a series of pea plants grown
under light, and watered every day. At the end of her experiment she concludes gangsta rap is conducive
to plant growth. Her teacher grades her project very low, citing the lack of a control group for the
experiment. Sandy returns to her experiment, but this time she has a separate group of plants under the
same conditions as the rapping plants, but with soothing Led Zeppelin songs playing. She comes to the
same conclusion as before, but now has a basis for comparison. Her teacher gives her project a better
grade.

Theories Contributing to Modern Biology | Back to Top

Modern biology is based on several great ideas, or theories:

The Cell Theory

The Theory of Evolution by Natural Selection

Gene Theory

Homeostasis

Robert Hooke (1635-1703), one of the first scientists to use a microscope to examine pond water, cork
and other things, referred to the cavities he saw in cork as "cells", Latin for chambers. Mattias Schleiden
(in 1838) concluded all plant tissues consisted of cells. In 1839, Theodore Schwann came to a similar
conclusion for animal tissues. Rudolf Virchow, in 1858, combined the two ideas and added that all cells
come from pre-existing cells, formulating the Cell Theory. Thus there is a chain-of-existence extending
from your cells back to the earliest cells, over 3.5 billion years ago. The cell theory states that all
organisms are composed of one or more cells, and that those cells have arisen from pre-existing cells.

Figure 1. James Watson (L) and Francis Crick (R), and the model they built of the structure of
deoxyribonucleic acid, DNA. While a model may seem a small thing, their development of the DNA
model fostered increased understanding of how genes work. Image from the Internet.

In 1953, American scientist James Watson and British scientist Francis Crick developed the model for
deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA), a chemical that had (then) recently been deduced to be the physical carrier
of inheritance. Crick hypothesized the mechanism for DNA replication and further linked DNA to
proteins, an idea since referred to as the central dogma. Information from DNA "language" is converted
into RNA (ribonucleic acid) "language" and then to the "language" of proteins. The central dogma
explains the influence of heredity (DNA) on the organism (proteins).
Homeostasis is the maintainence of a dynamic range of conditions within which the organism can
function. Temperature, pH, and energy are major components of this concept. Theromodynamics is a
field of study that covers the laws governing energy transfers, and thus the basis for life on earth. Two
major laws are known: the conservation of matter and energy, and entropy. These will be discussed in
more detail in a later chapter. The universe is composed of two things: matter (atoms, etc.) and energy.

These first three theories are very accepted by scientists and the general public. The theory of evolution
is well accepted by scientists and most of the general public. However, it remains a lightening rod for
school boards, politicians, and television preachers. Much of this confusion results from what the theory
says and what it does not say.

Development of the Theory of Evolution | Back to Top

Modern biology is based on several unifying themes, such as the cell theory, genetics and inheritance,
Francis Crick's central dogma of information flow, and Darwin and Wallace's theory of evolution by
natural selection. In this first unit we will examine these themes and the nature of science.

The Ancient Greek philosopher Anaxiamander (611-547 B.C.) and the Roman philosopher Lucretius (99-
55 B.C.) coined the concept that all living things were related and that they had changed over time. The
classical science of their time was observational rather than experimental. Another ancient Greek
philosopher, Aristotle developed his Scala Naturae, or Ladder of Life, to explain his concept of the
advancement of living things from inanimate matter to plants, then animals and finally man. This
concept of man as the "crown of creation" still plagues modern evolutionary biologists (See Gould, 1989,
for a more detailed discussion).

Post-Aristotlean "scientists" were constrained by the prevailing thought patterns of the Middle Ages --
the inerrancy of the biblical book of Genesis and the special creation of the world in a literal six days of
the 24-hour variety. Archbishop James Ussher of Ireland, in the late 1600's calculated the age of the
earth based on the geneologies from Adam and Eve listed in the biblical book of Genesis. According to
Ussher's calculations, the earth was formed on October 22, 4004 B.C. These calculations were part of
Ussher's book, History of the World. The chronology he developed was taken as factual, and was even
printed in the front pages of bibles. Ussher's ideas were readily accepted, in part because they posed no
threat to the social order of the times; comfortable ideas that would not upset the linked applecarts of
church and state.

Figure 2. Archbishop James Ussher. Image from the Internet.

Often new ideas must "come out of left field", appearing as wild notions, but in many cases prompting
investigation which may later reveal the "truth". Ussher's ideas were comfortable, the Bible was viewed
as correct, therefore the earth must be only 5000 years old.

Geologists had for some time doubted the "truth" of a 5,000 year old earth. Leonardo da Vinci (painter
of the Last Supper, and the Mona Lisa, architect and engineer) calculated the sedimentation rates in the
Po River of Italy. Da Vinci concluded it took 200,000 years to form some nearby rock deposits. Galileo,
convicted heretic for his contention that the Earth was not the center of the Universe, studied fossils
(evidence of past life) and concluded that they were real and not inanimate artifacts. James Hutton,
regarded as the Father of modern geology, developed the Theory of Uniformitarianism, the basis of
modern geology and paleontology. According to Hutton's work, certain geological processes operated in
the past in much the same fashion as they do today, with minor exceptions of rates, etc. Thus many
geological structures and processes cannot be explained if the earth was only a mere 5000 years old.

The Modern View of the Age of the Earth | Back to Top

Radiometric age assignments based on the rates of decay of radioactive isotopes, not discovered until
the late 19th century, suggest the earth is over 4.5 billion years old. The Earth is thought older than 4.5
billion years, with the oldest known rocks being 3.96 billion years old. Geologic time divides into eons,
eroas, and smaller units. An overview of geologic time may be obtained at
http://www.ucmp.berkeley.edu/help/timeform.html.

Figure 3. The geologic time scale, hilighting some of the firsts in the evolution of life. One way to
represent geological time. Note the break during the precambrian. If the vertical scale was truly to scale
the precambrian would account for 7/8 of the graphic. This image is from
http://www.clearlight.com/~mhieb/WVFossils/GeolTimeScale.html.

Development of the modern view of Evolution | Back to Top

Erasmus Darwin (1731-1802; grandfather of Charles Darwin) a British physician and poet in the late
1700's, proposed that life had changed over time, although he did not present a mechanism. Georges-
Louis Leclerc, Comte de Buffon (pronounced Bu-fone; 1707-1788) in the middle to late 1700's proposed
that species could change. This was a major break from earlier concepts that species were created by a
perfect creator and therefore could not change because they were perfect, etc.

Swedish botanist Carl Linne (more popularly known as Linneus, after the common practice of the day
which was to latinize names of learned men), attempted to pigeon-hole all known species of his time
(1753) into immutable categories. Many of these categories are still used in biology, although the
underlying thought concept is now evolution and not immutability of species. Linnean hierarchical
classification was based on the premise that the species was the smallest unit, and that each species (or
taxon) belonged to a higher category.

Kingdom Animalia

Phylum (Division is used for plants) Chordata

Class Mammalia

Order Primates

Family Hominidae

Genus Homo

species sapiens

This image is from http://linnaeus.nrm.se/botany/fbo/welcome.html.en.

Linneus also developed the concept of binomial nomenclature, whereby scientists speaking and writing
different languages could communicate clearly. For example Man in English is Hombre in Spanish,
Mensch in German, and Homo in Latin. Linneus settled on Latin, which was the language of learned men
at that time. If a scientist refers to Homo, all scientists know what he or she means.

William "Strata" Smith (1769-1839), employed by the English coal mining industry, developed the first
accurate geologic map of England. He also, from his extensive travels, developed the Principle of
Biological Succession. This idea states that each period of Earth history has its own unique assemblages
of fossils. In essence Smith fathered the science of stratigraphy, the correlation of rock layers based on
(among other things) their fossil contents. He also developed an idea that life had changed over time,
but did not overtly state that.

Abraham Gottlob Werner and Baron Georges Cuvier (1769-1832) were among the foremost proponents
of catastrophism, the theory that the earth and geological events had formed suddenly, as a result of
some great catastrophe (such as Noah's flood). This view was a comfortable one for the times and thus
was widely accepted. Cuvier eventually proposed that there had been several creations that occurred
after catastrophies. Louis Agassiz (1807-1873) proposed 50-80 catastrophies and creations.

Jean Baptiste de Lamarck (1744-1829) developed one of the first theories on how species changed. He
proposed the inheritance of acquired characteristics to explain, among other things, the length of the
giraffe neck. The Lamarckian view is that modern giraffe's have long necks because their ancestors
progressively gained longer necks due to stretching to reach food higher and higher in trees. According
to the 19th century concept of use and disuse the stretching of necks resulted in their development,
which was somehow passed on to their progeny. Today we realize that only bacteria are able to
incorporate non-genetic (nonheritable) traits. Lamarck's work was a theory that plainly stated that life
had changed over time and provided (albeit an erroneous) mechanism of change.

Additional information about the biological thoughts of Lamarck is available by clicking here.

Darwinian evolution | Back to Top

Charles Darwin, former divinity student and former medical student, secured (through the intercession
of his geology professor) an unpaid position as ship's naturalist on the British exploratory vessel H.M.S.
Beagle. The voyage would provide Darwin a unique opportunity to study adaptation and gather a great
deal of proof he would later incorporate into his theory of evolution. On his return to England in 1836,
Darwin began (with the assistance of numerous specialists) to catalog his collections and ponder the
seeming "fit" of organisms to their mode of existence. He eventually settled on four main points of a
radical new hypothesis:

Adaptation: all organisms adapt to their environments.

Variation: all organisms are variable in their traits.

Over-reproduction: all organisms tend to reproduce beyond their environment's capacity to support
them (this is based on the work of Thomas Malthus, who studied how populations of organisms tended
to grow geometrically until they encountered a limit on their population size).

Since not all organisms are equally well adapted to their environment, some will survive and reproduce
better than others -- this is known as natural selection. Sometimes this is also referred to as "survival of
the fittest". In reality this merely deals with the reproductive success of the organisms, not solely their
relative strength or speed.

Figure 4. Charles Darwin (right) and Alfred Wallace (left), the co-developers of the theory of evolution by
means of natural selection. Image of Charles Darwin from
http://zebu.uoregon.edu/~js/glossary/darwinism.html.Image of A.R. Wallace (right) is modified from
http://www.prs.k12.nj.us/schools/phs/science_Dept/APBio/Natural_Selection.html.

Unlike the upper-class Darwin, Alfred Russel Wallace (1823-1913) came from a different social class.
Wallace spent many years in South America, publishing salvaged notes in Travels on the Amazon and Rio
Negro in 1853. In 1854, Wallace left England to study the natural history of Indonesia, where he
contracted malaria. During a fever Wallace managed to write down his ideas on natural selection.

In 1858, Darwin received a letter from Wallace, in which Darwin's as-yet-unpublished theory of evolution
and adaptation was precisely detailed. Darwin arranged for Wallace's letter to be read at a scientific
meeting, along with a synopsis of his own ideas. To be correct, we need to mention that both Darwin
and Wallace developed the theory, although Darwin's major work was not published until 1859 (the
book On the Origin of Species by Means of Natural Selection, considered by many as one of the most
influential books written [follow the hyperlink to view an online version]). While there have been some
changes to the theory since 1859, most notably the incorporation of genetics and DNA into what is
termed the "Modern Synthesis" during the 1940's, most scientists today acknowledge evolution as the
guiding theory for modern biology.

Recent revisions of biology curricula stressed the need for underlying themes. Evolution serves as such a
universal theme. An excellent site devoted to Darwin's thoughts and work is available by clicking here. At
that same site is a timeline showing many of the events mentioned above in their historical contexts.

The Diversity of Life | Back to Top

Evolutionary theory and the cell theory provide us with a basis for the interrelation of all living things.
We also utilize Linneus' hierarchical classification system, adopting (generally) five kingdoms of living
organisms. Viruses, as discussed later, are not considered living. Click here for a table summarizing the
five kingdoms. Recent studies suggest that there might be a sixth Kingdom, the Archaea.

Figure 5. A simple phylogenetic representation of three domains of life" Archaea, Bacteria (Eubacteria),
and Eukaryota (all eukaryotic groups: Protista, Plantae, Fungi, and Animalia). Image from Purves et al.,
Life: The Science of Biology, 4th Edition, by Sinauer Associates (www.sinauer.com) and WH Freeman
(www.whfreeman.com), used with permission.
Table 1. The Five Kingdoms.

Kingdom

Methods of Nutrition

Organization

Environmental Significance

Examples

Monera

(in the broadest sense, including organisms usually placed in the Domain Archaea).

Photosynthesis, chemosynthesis, decomposer, parasitic.

Single-celled, filament, or colony of cells; all prokaryotic.

Monerans play various roles in almost all food chains, including producer,consumer, and decomposer.

Cyanobacteria are important oxygen producers.

Many Monerans also produce nitrogen, vitamins, antibiotics, and are important compoents in human
and animal intestines.

Bacteria (E. coli), cyanobacteria (Oscillatoria), methanogens, and thermacidophiles.

Protista

Photosynthesis, absorb food from environment, or trap/engulf smaller organisms.

Single-celled, filamentous, colonial, and multicelled; all eukaryotic.

Important producers in ocean/pond food chain.

Source of food in some human cultures.

Phytoplankton component that is one of the major producers of oxygen

Plankton (both phytoplankton and zooplankton), algae (kelp, diatoms, dinoflagellates),and Protozoa
(Amoeba, Paramecium).

Fungi

Absorb food from a host or from their environment.

All heterotrophic.

Single-celled, filamentous, to multicelled; all eukaryotic.

Decomposer, parasite, and consumer.

Produce antibiotics,help make bread and alcohol.

Crop parasites (Dutch Elm Disease, Karnal Bunt, Corn Smut, etc.).

Mushrooms (Agaricus campestris, the commercial mushroom), molds, mildews, rusts and smuts (plant
parasites), yeasts (Saccharomyces cerevisae, the brewer's yeast).
Plantae

Almost all photosynthetic, although a few parasitic plants are known.

All multicelled, photosynthetic, autotrophs..

Food source, medicines and drugs, dyes, building material, fuel.

Producer in most food chains.

Angiosperms (oaks, tulips, cacti),gymnosperms (pines, spuce, fir), mosses, ferns,liverworts, horsetails
(Equisetum, the scouring rush)

Animalia

All heterotrophic.

Multicelled heterotrophs capable of movement at some stage during their life history (even couch
potatoes).

Consumer level in most food chains (herbivores,carnivores,omnivores).

Food source, beasts of burden and transportation, recreation, and companionship.

Sponges, worms,molluscs, insects, starfish,mammals, amphibians,fish, birds, reptiles, and dinosaurs, and
people.
Monera, the most primitive kingdom, contain living organisms remarkably similar to ancient fossils.
Organisms in this group lack membrane-bound organelles associated with higher forms of life. Such
organisms are known as prokaryotes. Bacteria (technically the Eubacteria) and blue-green bacteria
(sometimes called blue-green algae, or cyanobacteria) are the major forms of life in this kingdom. The
most primitive group, the archaebacteria, are today restricted to marginal habitats such as hot springs or
areas of low oxygen concentration.

Figure 6. Representative photosynthetic cyanobacteria: Oscillatoria (left) and Nostoc (right). The left
image is cropped from
gopher://wiscinfo.wisc.edu:2070/I9/.image/.bot/.130/Cyanobacteria/Oscillatoria_130. The right image
is cropped from gopher://wiscinfo.wisc.edu:2070/I9/.image/.bot/.130/Cyanobacteria/Nostoc_130.

Protista were the first of the eukaryotic kingdoms, these organisms and all others have membrane-
bound organelles, which allow for compartmentalization and dedication of specific areas for specific
functions. The chief importance of Protista is their role as a stem group for the remaining Kingdoms:
Plants, Animals, and Fungi. Major groups within the Protista include the algae, euglenoids, ciliates,
protozoa, and flagellates.

Figure 7. Scanning electron micrographs of diatoms (Protista).There are two basic types of diatoms:
bilaterally symmetrical (left) and radially symmetrical (right). Images are from
http://WWW.bgsu.edu/departments/biology/algae/index.html.

Figure 8. Light micrographs of some protistans. The images are Copyright 1994 by Charles J. O'Kelly and
Tim Littlejohn, used by permission from: http://megasun.bch.umontreal.ca/protists/gallery.html.
Fungi are almost entirely multicellular (with yeast, Saccharomyces cerviseae, being a prominent
unicellular fungus), heterotrophic (deriving their energy from another organism, whether alive or dead),
and usually having some cells with two nuclei (multinucleate, as opposed to the more common one, or
uninucleate) per cell. Ecologically this kingdom is important (along with certain bacteria) as decomposers
and recyclers of nutrients. Economically, the Fungi provide us with food (mushrooms; Bleu
cheese/Roquefort cheese; baking and brewing), antibiotics (the first of the wonder drugs, penicillin, was
isolated from a fungus Penicillium), and crop parasites (doing several billion dollars per year of damage).

Figure 9. Examples of fungi. The images are from http://www.cinenet.net/users/velosa/thumbnails.html.

Plantae (click here for more information about the Plantae) include multicelled organisms that are all
autotrophic (capable of making their own food by the process of photosynthesis, the conversion of
sunlight energy into chemical energy). Ecologically, this kingdom is generally (along with photosynthetic
organisms in Monera and Protista) termed the producers, and rest at the base of all food webs. A food
web is an ecological concept to trace energy flow through an ecosystem. Economically, this kingdom is
unparalleled, with agriculture providing billions of dollars to the economy (as well as the foundation of
"civilization"). Food, building materials, paper, drugs (both legal and illegal), and roses, are plants or
plant-derived products.

Figure 10. Examples of plants. The left image of species of Equisetum is cropped and reduced from
gopher://wiscinfo.wisc.edu:2070/I9/.image/.bot/.130/Fern_Allies/Sphenophyta/Equisetum/E._arvense_
and_E._laevigatum_KS. The center image of Iris, is reduced and cropped from
gopher://wiscinfo.wisc.edu:2070/I9/.image/.bot/.401/Flowering_Plants/Monocots/Iridaceae/Iris/Iris_pu
mula_habit. The right image of Pereskia (Cactaceae) is reduced from
gopher://wiscinfo.wisc.edu:2070/I9/.image/.bot/.401/Flowering_Plants/Dicots/Cactaceae/Pereskia/Pere
skia_leafy_stem_RK.
Animalia consists entirely of multicelluar heterotrophs that are all capable (at some point during their life
history) of mobility. Ecologically, this kingdom occupies the level of consumers, which can be subdivided
into herbivore (eaters of plants) and carnivores (eaters of other animals). Humans, along with some
other organisms, are omnivores (capable of functioning as herbivores or carnivores). Economically,
animals provide meat, hides, beasts of burden, pleasure (pets), transportation, and scents (as used in
some perfumes).

Figure 11. Examples of animals. The left image of a jellyfish is from

http://www.smoky.org/~mtyler/bio/coelenterata.html. The center image of a tree frog is from
http://frog.simplenet.com/froggy/images/wild28.gif. The right image of the chimpanzee is from
http://www.selu.com/~bio/PrimateGallery/art/Copyright_Free02.html.

Characteristics of living things | Back to Top

Living things have a variety of common characteristics.

Organization. Living things exhibit a high level of organization, with multicellular organisms being
subdivided into cells, and cells into organelles, and organelles into molecules, etc.

Homeostasis. Homeostasis is the maintenance of a constant (yet also dynamic) internal environment in
terms of temperature, pH, water concentrations, etc. Much of our own metabolic energy goes toward
keeping within our own homeostatic limits. If you run a high fever for long enough, the increased
temperature will damage certain organs and impair your proper functioning. Swallowing of common
household chemicals, many of which are outside the pH (acid/base) levels we can tolerate, will likewise
negatively impact the human body's homeostatic regime. Muscular activity generates heat as a waste
product. This heat is removed from our bodies by sweating. Some of this heat is used by warm-blooded
animals, mammals and birds, to maintain their internal temperatures.

Adaptation. Living things are suited to their mode of existence. Charles Darwin began the recognition of
the marvellous adaptations all life has that allow those organisms to exist in their environment.

Reproduction and heredity. Since all cells come from existing cells, they must have some way of
reproducing, whether that involves asexual (no recombination of genetic material) or sexual
(recombination of genetic material). Most living things use the chemical DNA (deoxyribonucleic acid) as
the physical carrier of inheritance and the genetic information. Some organisms, such as retroviruses (of
which HIV is a member), use RNA (ribonucleic acid) as the carrier. The variation that Darwin and Wallace
recognized as the wellspring of evolution and adaptation, is greatly increased by sexual reproduction.
Growth and development. Even single-celled organisms grow. When first formed by cell division, they
are small, and must grow and develop into mature cells. Multicellular organisms pass through a more
complicated process of differentiation and organogenesis (because they have so many more cells to
develop).

Energy acquisition and release. One view of life is that it is a struggle to acquire energy (from sunlight,
inorganic chemicals, or another organism), and release it in the process of forming ATP (adenosine
triphosphate).

Detection and response to stimuli (both internal and external).

Interactions. Living things interact with their environment as well as each other. Organisms obtain raw
materials and energy from the environment or another organism. The various types of symbioses
(organismal interactions with each other) are examples of this.

Levels of Organization | Back to Top

Biosphere: The sum of all living things taken in conjunction with their environment. In essence, where
life occurs, from the upper reaches of the atmosphere to the top few meters of soil, to the bottoms of
the oceans. We divide the earth into atmosphere (air), lithosphere (earth), hydrosphere (water), and
biosphere (life).

Ecosystem: The relationships of a smaller groups of organisms with each other and their environment.
Scientists often speak of the interrelatedness of living things. Since, according to Darwin's theory,
organisms adapt to their environment, they must also adapt to other organisms in that environment. We
can discuss the flow of energy through an ecosystem from photosynthetic autotrophs to herbivores to
carnivores.

Community: The relationships between groups of different species. For example, the desert communities
consist of rabbits, coyotes, snakes, birds, mice and such plants as sahuaro cactus (Carnegia gigantea),
Ocotillo, creosote bush, etc. Community structure can be disturbed by such things as fire, human activity,
and over-population.

Species: Groups of similar individuals who tend to mate and produce viable, fertile offspring. We often
find species described not by their reproduction (a biological species) but rather by their form
(anatomical or form species).

Populations: Groups of similar individuals who tend to mate with each other in a limited geographic
area. This can be as simple as a field of flowers, which is separated from another field by a hill or other
area where none of these flowers occur.
Individuals: One or more cells characterized by a unique arrangement of DNA "information". These can
be unicellular or multicellular. The multicellular individual exhibits specialization of cell types and division
of labor into tissues, organs, and organ systems.

Organ System: (in multicellular organisms). A group of cells, tissues, and organs that perform a specific
major function. For example: the cardiovascular system functions in circulation of blood.

Organ: (in multicellular organisms). A group of cells or tissues performing an overall function. For
example: the heart is an organ that pumps blood within the cardiovascular system.

Tissue: (in multicellular organisms). A group of cells performing a specific function. For example heart
muscle tissue is found in the heart and its unique contraction properties aid the heart's functioning as a
pump. .

Cell: The fundamental unit of living things. Each cell has some sort of hereditary material (either DNA or
more rarely RNA), energy acquiring chemicals, structures, etc. Living things, by definition, must have the
metabolic chemicals plus a nucleic acid hereditary information molecule.

Organelle: A subunit of a cell, an organelle is involved in a specific subcellular function, for example the
ribosome (the site of protein synthesis) or mitochondrion (the site of ATP generation in eukaryotes).

Molecules, atoms, and subatomic particles: The fundamental functional levels of biochemistry.

Figure 12. Organization levels of life, in a graphic format. Images from Purves et al., Life: The Science of
Biology, 4th Edition, by Sinauer Associates (www.sinauer.com) and WH Freeman (www.whfreeman.com),
used with permission.
It is thus possible to study biology at many levels, from collections of organisms (communities), to the
inner workings of a cell (organelle).

Learning Objectives | Back to Top

Name the special molecule that sets living things apart from the nonliving world and be able to explain
why this molecule is important.

The cell is considered to be the basic living unit. Be able to distinguish between single-celled organisms
and multicelled organisms.

Be able to arrange in order, from smallest to largest, the levels of organization that occur in nature and to
write a brief description of each.

What does the term metabolism mean to the cell and the organism.

Organisms use a molecule known as ATP to transfer chemical energy from one molecule to another. Why
is this essential for living things to exist.

Homeostasis is defined as a state in which the conditions of an organism's internal environment are
maintained within tolerable limits. What mechanisms in your body are involved with homeostasis?

Reproduction is the means by which each new organism arises. Why is this an essential characteristic of
life?

How are DNA and cellular reporoduction linked in the process of inheritance?

A trait that assists an organism in survival and reproduction in a certain environment is said to be
adaptive. What sorts of adaptive traits do you have? How do they aid your survival?

List the five kingdoms of life that are currently recognized by most scientists; tell generally what kinds of
organisms are classified in each kingdom, and discuss the new ideas about Domains and how they may
alter the five kingdom approach.

Arrange in order, from the fewer to the greater numbers of organisms included, the following categories
of classification: class, family, genus, kingdom, order, phylum, and species.

Explain what the term biological diversity means to you, and speculate about what caused the great
diversity of life on Earth.

Define natural selection and briefly describe what is occurring when a population is said to evolve.

Outline a set of steps that might be used in the scientific method of investigating a problem.

Explain why a control group is used in an experiment.

Define what is meant by a theory; cite an actual example that is significant to biology.

Terms | Back to Top

Animalia

Adaptation

ATP (adenosine triphosphate)

antibiotics

asexual and sexual reproduction

atmosphere

binomial nomenclature

biochemistry

biosphere

cells

cell theory

class

cardiovascular system

catastrophism
community

conservation of matter and energy

consumers

cyanobacteria

DNA

ecosystem

energy

entropy

Eubacteria

euglenoids

eukaryotic

family

food webs

fossils
Fungi

genus

heart

heart muscle tissue

heterotrophic

HIV

homeostasis

hydrosphere

hypothesis

inheritance of acquired characteristics

kingdom

lithosphere

mitochondrion

Monera
multicellular

multinucleate

natural selection

order

organ

organelles

organ system

parasites

photosynthesis

phylum

Plantae

populations

producers

prokaryotes
proteins

Protista

protozoa

retroviruses

RNA

ribosome

scientific method

species

symbioses

taxonomy

theory

tissue

unicellular

uniformitarianism
uninucleate

viruses

Review Questions | Back to Top

Which of these scientific terms has the greatest degree of certainty? a) hypothesis; b) theory; c) law; d)
guess.

The purpose of a control in a scientific experiment is to ___. a) provide a basis of comparison between
experimental and nonexperimental; b) indicate the dependent variable; c) indicate the independent
variable; d) provide a baseline from which to graph the data.

Which of these theories is not a basis for modern biology? a) evolution; b) creationism; c) cell theory; d)
gene theory.

The molecule that is the phsical carrier of inheritance is known as ___. a) ATP; b) RNA; c) DNA; d) NADH

Bacteria belong to the taxonomic kingdom ____. a) Plantae; b) Protista; c) Animalia; d) Fungi; e) Monera

Mushrooms belong to which of these taxonomic kingdoms? a) Plantae; b) Protista; c) Animalia; d) Fungi;
e) Monera

Papaver somniferum, the opium poppy, belongs to which of these taxonomic kingdoms? a) Plantae; b)
Protista; c) Animalia; d) Fungi; e) Monera

The sum of all energy transfers within a cell is known as _____. a) photosynthesis; b) cellular respiration;
c) metabolism; d) replication; e) conjugation.

The molecule that is the energy coin of the cell is ___. a) ATP; b) RNA; c) DNA; d) NADH

Which of these is NOT a living organism? a) cactus; b) cat; c) algae; d) virus; e) yeast

Which of the following is the least inclusive (smallest) unit of classification? a) kingdom; b) species; c)
genus; d) class; e) phylum

The scientist(s) credited with developing the theory of evolution by natural selection were ____. a)
James Watson and Francis Crick; b) Aristotle and Lucretius; c) Charles Darwin and Alfred Wallace; d)
Robert Hooke and Rudolph Virchow; e) James Watson and Charles Darwin

When an organism consists of a single cell, the organism is referred to as ___. a) uninucleate; b) uniport;
c) unisexual; d) unicellular

According to science, the Earth is ___ years old. a) 4.5 billion; b) 4.5 million; c) 10 billion; d) 10,000; e)
450 million
Which of these is not an economic use of bacteria? a) food; b) biotechnology; c) mushrooms; d) food
spoilage

Links | Back to Top

History of the Light Microscope

Discovery, Chance and the Scientific Method Read an case study, in a way, of how to apply the scientific
method. This page was developed for the Access Excellence site.

Darwin's Origin of Species Available to cure all insomniacs! Although written in the dry style of the
1850s, this book has caused a revolution in biological thought. It has also been misapplied to social
darwinism and used to justify slavery, racial purity, and the Final Solution. Read what Darwin actually
said, not what pundits say he saud.

Enter Evolution UCMP Berkeley

The Five Kingdoms A table summarizing the kingdoms of living things.

The Bad Bug Book US FDA information on bacterially caused diseases.

Bacteria: Life History and Ecology UCMP Berkeley

Introduction to the Bacteria UCMP Berkeley

Introduction to the Cyanobacteria UCMP Berkeley

Cyanobacteria Morphology and Introduction to the Archaea Life's extremists. . . These University of
California Berkeley sites offer some pertinent information about a group of living organisms that
resemble some of the earliest known fossils.

Bowling Green State University Center for Algal Microscopy...Images and more, concentrating on
diatoms.

Introduction to the Dinoflagellata (from UCMP in Berkeley)

Dinoflagellates Palynologist Andrew MacRae at the University of Calgary has built a site with loads of
SEMs (scanning electron microscope pictures) and info on dinoflagellates, their anatomy, and
connections between fossil and living forms.

People's Use of Algae Botany Dept., UBC.

Nathan's Fungi Thumbnails Plenty of pictures of fungi.

Fungi Perfecti Online A commercial site with a great many images and info about the fun in fungi.

Fungi: Life History and Ecology UCMP Berkeley

Introduction to the Fungi UCMP Berkeley

Tom Volk's Fungi Want a well illustrated site for fungi? This is the place. Loads of images and even some
lecture materials.

Introduction to the Plantae UCMP Berkeley

Plant Divisions (from UCMP in Berkeley) An excellent introduction to the plants.

Land Plants Online You can learn more about the various plant groups from this well organized site.
Follow links to look up the structure and geologic history of any major plant group of your choice.

Non-Flowering Plant Family Access Page Sorted by family on the non-flowering plants. Thumbnail photos
are linked to larger versions. This site is a great educational resource maintained by Gerald D. Carr.

Introduction to the Bryophyta: The Mosses This University of California Museum of Paleontology site
offers a systematic perspective to the mosses by providing succinct information as well as links to a
number of pertinent sites.

Introduction to the Anthocerotophyta: The hornworts This University of California Museum of

Paleontology site offers a systematic perspective to the hornworts by providing succinct information as
well as links to a number of pertinent sites.

Encyclopedia of Plants Scientific and common names for garden plants.

Introduction to the Lycophyta: Club mosses and Scale trees This University of California Museum of
Paleontology site offers a systematic perspective to the lycophytes, their ecology, systematics, and fossil
record.

Introduction to the Sphenophyta: Yesterday's trees, today's horsetails This University of California
Museum of Paleontology site offers a systematic perspective to the sphenophytes (Equisetum and its
extinct relatives), their ecology, systematics, and fossil record.

Comparisons of Systems in the Animalia Tables comparing organ systems of major animal phyla.

Taxonomy of Life - Kingdom Animalia