biology chapter 1
Terms
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- asexual reproduction
- process by which a single parent reproduces by itself
- biology
- science that seeks to understand the living world
- cell
- collection of living matter enclosed by a barrier that separates the cell from its surroundings; basic unit of all forms of life
- cell culture
- group of cells grown in a nutrient solution from a single original cell
- cell fractionation
- technique in which cells are broken into pieces and the different cell parts are separated
- compound light microscope
- microscope that allows light to pass through a specimen and uses two lenses to form an image
- controlled experiment
- a test to the effect of a single variable by changing it while keeping all other variables the same
- data
- evidence, information gathered from observations
- electron microscope
- microscope that forms an image by focusing beams of electrons onto a specimen
- homeostasis
- process by which organisms maintain a relatively stable internal environment
- hypothesis
- possible explanation for a set of observations or possible answer to a scientific question
- inference
- logical interpretation based on prior knowledge and experience
- manipulated variable
- factor in an experiment that a scientist purposely changes, also known as independent variable
- metabolism
- set of chemical relations through which an organism builds up or breaks down materials as it carries out its life processes
- metric system
- decimal system of measurement based on certain physical standards and scaled on multiples of 10
- microscope
- device that produces magnified images of structures that are too small to see with the unaided eye
- observation
- use of one or more of the senses - sign, hearing-touch smell and sometimes taste to gather information
- responding variable
- factor in an experiment that a scientist wants to observe, which may change, in response to the manipulated variable, also known as a dependent variable
- science
- organized way of using evidence to learn about the natural world; also, the body of knowledge that scientist have built up after years of using this process
- sexual reproduction
- process by which two cells from different parents unite to produce the first cell of a new organism
- spontaneous generation
- hypothesis stating that life could arise from nonliving matter
- theory
- well tested explanation that unifies a broad range of observations