Chapter 1: Characteristics of Life

Characteristics of Life:
1. Living Things Are Organized
1. atoms (oxygen)
2. molecules (DNA)
3. organelle (nucleus)
4. cell (heart muscle cell)
5. tissue (heart tissue)
6. organ (heart)
7. organ systems (circulatory system)
8. organism (human)
9. population (student population) = same species
10. community = different populations in the same area (Phoenix College)
11. ecosystem = community (living) + physical (non-living) environment
12. biosphere = regions of the Earth inhabited by living things
Emergent properties = New properties that result from interactions between
individual parts. The whole is GREATER THAN the sum of its parts.
EXAMPLE =

2. Living Things Utilize Energy

Ecosystems = living organisms + physical environment provide Energy
Sun provides energy via photosynthesis
Autotrophs = produce their own food (plants & photosynthetic algae & bacteria)
Heterotrophs = rely upon other sources for their nutrients
o Consumers
Herbivores: eat plants
Carnivores: eat other animals
Omnivores: eat plants & animals
o Decomposers = bacteria, fungi & worms that break down dead organic
matter

3.

Living Things Regulate

Metabolism = sum of all chemical reactions
Enzymes = special proteins that regulate chemical reactions
Homeostasis = maintain constant internal conditions (temperature, pH, moisture)
Negative feedback (inhibition) slows or stops process
Breakdown of sugar leads to formation of ATP = energy storage molecule
When large amounts of ATP accumulate, the body stops breaking down sugar

Positive feedback speeds a process up (blood clotting)

4. Living Things Respond

Interact with surrounding environment to find food (energy)
Respond to stimuli (movement)
Affects behavior and survival
Behavior = how organisms respond to environment
5. Living Things Reproduce
Reproduction = ability of organism to make another organism like itself
Bacteria, protozoans & other unicellular organisms: split into 2 = binary
fission
Multicellular organisms: union of sperm & egg = fertilization
Genes & DNA
Instructions (blueprints) encoded in genes (sequences of DNA)
Genes = transmit information from parents to offspring
DNA = double-stranded molecule that encodes genetic information
Nucleotides (4 kinds) = building blocks of DNA (A, T, C, G)
Genome = entire library of genetic instructions that an organism
inherits
4

6. Living Things Grow and Develop

Genes inherited from parents control the growth & development of offspring

7. Living Things Adapt to their Environment

1. Adaptation = changing in response to environment
2. Natural selection = Individuals with traits best suited to environment will survive
& reproduce
3. Evolution = change over time leads to development of new species =
descent with modification
a. All life forms have DNA & a common ancestor.
b. Adaptations give rise to different species.

11

Themes that Unify Biology:

1. Cells = organisms basic unit of structure and function
2. Information is inherited in the form of DNA
3. Each level of biological organization has emergent properties = new properties
gained from the interaction of individual parts
4. Structure determines function:
hollow bones of birds aid in flight
5. Organisms interact with their environments
6. Life requires the flow of energy
7. Regulatory mechanisms maintain balance in living systems
Hypothalamus = thermostat in brain that regulates body temperature
8. Diversity & unity (3 domains)
9. Evolution
10. Scientific method
11. Science & technology
6

Diversity & Unity (3 domains)

Taxonomy = naming & grouping organisms from general to specific
Father of Taxonomy = Carl Linneaus (18th century)
Levels of Classification (Drunk Kings Play Cards on Fat Green Stools)
Domain
Kingdom
Phylum
Class
Order
Family
Genus
Species
Scientific Name = Latin binomial name
Genus species or Genus species (italicized)
3 Domains:
Archaea = ancient bacteria
Prokaryotes = bacteria
Eukaryotes = animals, plants, fungi, protozoans
Kingdoms
Animal, Plant, Fungi, Protista

Eukaryotes vs Prokaryotes
Prokaryote: pro (before) = no nucleus
single-celled organism that lacks a nucleus (bacteria, rickettsia, cyano-bacteria)
Eukaryote: eu = true nucleus
organism whose cells contain a nucleus (plants, animals, fungi, algae, protozoans)
Virus: small, non-living, non-cellular, infectious agent

Protozoans (Amoebas, paramecium, Plasmodium, Trypanosoma)

Single-celled eukaryotes (nucleus)
Usually found in water
Capable of movement by:
Pseudopodia (amoeba) = cell extensions that flow in direction of travel
Cilia (paramecium) = short, hair-like protrusions that propel organisms
Flagella (giardia) longer, whip-like extensions of the cell
Examples:
Plasmodium: causes Malaria
Trypanosoma: causes African Sleeping Sickness
Amoeba: causes diarrhea

Fungi
Large: ~ 100 m up to 1 cm
Eukaryotic (nucleus)
Decomposers
64,000 species
Examples: mushrooms, puffballs, mold, yeast, Athletes foot, Jock
itch
3.5 miles long & covers 2200 acres (Oregon)
1500 acres & weighs 100 tons (Washington)

The Process of Science

Science is the pursuit of knowledge
Scientific Method:
1. Observations & Questions
2. Hypothesis
3. Experiments (Prediction)
*If I do this, then this will occur
4. Results
5. Conclusions

Hypothesis = a prediction that can be tested

Deductive reasoning = Ifthen Logic
Inductive reasoning = generalizing based on many observations
Experiments = used to study cause & effect relationships
Independent variable (cause) = causes a change in other factors
Dependent variable (effect) = changed by the independent variable
Control = does NOT receive treatment; held constant for comparison
Data = the results of an experiment
Quantitative data = numerical measurements
Qualitative data = recorded descriptions
Conclusion
If results = prediction, then hypothesis is SUPPORTED
If results DO NOT = prediction, then hypothesis is REJECTED

KEY TERMS & CONCEPTS:

Adaptation
biology
cell
control
data
deductive reasoning
dependent variable
energy

experimental design
evolution
homeostasis
hypothesis
inductive reasoning
natural selection
observation
photosynthesis

STUDY QUESTIONS:
List and describe the properties of life:
Properties of Life
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
Place the following levels of organization in the correct numeric order from simplest (1) to
most complex (12):
___population (student population)
___organism (human)
___organelle (nucleus)
___atoms (oxygen)
___tissue (heart tissue)
___organ (heart)

___ biosphere = parts of Earth inhabited by life

___community = different populations in same area
___ecosystem = living + non-living environment
___organ systems (circulatory system)
___cell (heart muscle cell)
___molecules (DNA)

What is the MAJOR DIFFERENCE between prokaryotic & eukaryotic cells?

Identify the Steps in the Scientific Method:

1.
2.
3.
4.
5.

10