BIOLOGY

CONCEPTS & CONNECTIONS

Fourth Edition
Neil A. Campbell Jane B. Reece Lawrence G. Mitchell Martha R. Taylor

CHAPTER 1
Introduction:
The Scientific Study of Life
Modules 1.1 1.3
From PowerPoint Lectures for Biology: Concepts & Connections
Copyright 2003 Pearson Education, Inc. publishing as Benjamin Cummings

Life in the Trees

The lives of gray-headed flying foxes are closely
entwined with the lives of the eucalyptus trees
that form their habitat
Eucalyptus trees
provide food and
roosting sites for
the flying foxes
Flying foxes aid in
eucalyptus pollination
and help disperse
the resulting seeds
Copyright 2003 Pearson Education, Inc. publishing as Benjamin Cummings

 Flying foxes are becoming an endangered

species, partly because of habitat destruction

Copyright 2003 Pearson Education, Inc. publishing as Benjamin Cummings

THE SCOPE OF BIOLOGY

Biology is the scientific study of life
Interactions between different kinds of
organisms affect the lives of all
Recall the example of flying foxes and eucalyptus
trees

Copyright 2003 Pearson Education, Inc. publishing as Benjamin Cummings

1.1 Lifes levels of organization define the scope of

biology
A structural hierarchy of life, from molecules to
ecosystems, defines the scope of biology
An ecosystem consists of:
all organisms living in a particular area
all nonliving physical components of the
environment that affect the organisms
(soil, water)

Copyright 2003 Pearson Education, Inc. publishing as Benjamin Cummings

 At the top of lifes

hierarchy is the
ecosystem

ECOSYSTEM LEVEL
Eucalyptus forest

Ecosystems include:
all the organisms
in an area, which
make up a
community
interbreeding
organisms of the
same species, a
population
Copyright 2003 Pearson Education, Inc. publishing as Benjamin Cummings

COMMUNITY LEVEL
All organisms in
eucalyptus forest
POPULATION LEVEL
Group of flying foxes
ORGANISM LEVEL
Flying fox
ORGAN SYSTEM LEVEL
Nervous system
ORGAN LEVEL
Brain

Brain

Spinal cord

Nerve

TISSUE LEVEL
Nervous
tissue
CELLULAR LEVEL
Nerve cell

MOLECULAR LEVEL
Molecule of DNA

Figure 1.1

 Organisms are
made up of:
organ systems

ECOSYSTEM LEVEL
Eucalyptus forest

organs
tissues
cells
molecules

COMMUNITY LEVEL
All organisms in
eucalyptus forest
POPULATION LEVEL
Group of flying foxes
ORGANISM LEVEL
Flying fox
ORGAN SYSTEM LEVEL
Nervous system
ORGAN LEVEL
Brain

Brain

Spinal cord

Nerve

TISSUE LEVEL
Nervous
tissue
CELLULAR LEVEL
Nerve cell

MOLECULAR LEVEL
Molecule of DNA
Copyright 2003 Pearson Education, Inc. publishing as Benjamin Cummings

Figure 1.1

THE PROCESS OF SCIENCE

1.2 Scientists use two main approaches to learn
about nature
In discovery science, scientists describe some
aspect of the world and use inductive reasoning
to draw general conclusions
Example: scientists have
described how newborn
flying foxes cling to their
mothers chest for the
first weeks of life
Figure 1.2
Copyright 2003 Pearson Education, Inc. publishing as Benjamin Cummings

 In hypothesis-driven science, scientists use the

scientific method
They propose a hypothesis
They make deductions leading to predictions
They then test the hypothesis by seeing if the
predictions come true

Copyright 2003 Pearson Education, Inc. publishing as Benjamin Cummings

1.3 With the scientific method, we pose and test

hypotheses
Observation

The main
steps of the
scientific
method

Question

Hypothesis

Prediction

Test does not

support hypothesis;
revise hypothesis or
pose new one

Figure 1.3A
Copyright 2003 Pearson Education, Inc. publishing as Benjamin Cummings

Test:
Experiment or
additional
observation

Test supports
hypothesis; make
additional predictions
and test them

 Deductive reasoning is used in testing

hypotheses
If a hypothesis is
correct, and we test it,
then we can expect a
particular outcome

Case study: flashlight

failure

Figure 1.3B
Copyright 2003 Pearson Education, Inc. publishing as Benjamin Cummings

 Experiments designed to test hypotheses must

be controlled experiments
Control groups must be tested along with
experimental groups for the meaning of the
results to be clear

Copyright 2003 Pearson Education, Inc. publishing as Benjamin Cummings

 Case study: spider mimicry

Pounce rate (% of trials in

which spider jumped on fly)

Figure 1.3C

Control group
(untreated flies)

Figure 1.3D
Copyright 2003 Pearson Education, Inc. publishing as Benjamin Cummings

Experimental group
(wing markings masked)

Number of stalk and

attack responses
by spiders

Another test of the spider mimic hypothesis:

wing transplants

Wing
markings
Wing
waving
Normal
spider
mimic

Figure 1.3E

Mimic with
mimic wing
transplant

Controls

Copyright 2003 Pearson Education, Inc. publishing as Benjamin Cummings

Mimic with
housefly
wing
transplant

Housefly
with
mimic wing
transplant
Experimentals

Normal
housefly