Agenda

• Plexers• What is Biology

– Characteristics of life.– Handout: What is Biology?

By the end of this lesson…

• Students should be able to:– Identify the definition of Biology and list

several topics/concepts studied in Biology.– Recognize that all living things share seven

characteristics of life.– Describe the seven characteristics of life.– Say: “Sally sells sea shells down by the

sea shore” three times very quickly.

Why should I be excited about Biology?

What is Biology?What is Life?

Biology

• Biology is defined as the study of life.• The term biology is composed of two

roots:– bio = life– logos = study of

Topics in Biology• There are many topics which biology covers. In

this class we will mainly be concerned with the following:– Basic Biochemistry – Chemistry of life– Cells – The building blocks of life– Genetics – How life functions & reproduces– Evolution – Life changing over time– Taxonomy – Classification of living things– Ecology – Interactions of living things– Microbiology – Life too small for the unaided

eye to observe

Who Studies Biologic Concepts?

The Science Name & What they Study• Botany

– Plants• Cytology

– Cells• Ecology

– Relations between living things and their surroundings

• Zoology– Animals

All this creates a Question:

What is

Life?

Am I Alive?

Characteristics of Life• All life has seven characteristics in

common:– Living things are made of cells.– Living things maintain their internal

environment.– Living things pass on their traits.– Living things perform chemical activities.

This is known as metabolism.– Living things grow and develop.– Living things respond to a stimulus.– Living things reproduce.

Cells

– All living things are made of one or more cells.

– A cell is the smallest unit capable of all life processes

Homeostasis

– All living organisms must maintain a stable internal environment in order to function properly.

– The maintenance of a stable internal environment in spite of changes in the external environment is called homeostasis.

Metabolism

– Living organisms carry out different chemical reactions in order to obtain energy.

– The sum of all the chemical reactions carried out in an organism is called metabolism.

– Almost all of the energy used by living things originally comes from the sun.

Response to Stimuli

– In addition to maintaining a stable internal environment, living organisms respond to their external environment.

– Can you think of a way that you have responded to your environment

today?

Reproduction

• Most living things can reproduce. Reproduction is the process by which organisms make more of their own kind from one generation to the next.

Heredity & Evolution– When an organism reproduces, it passes

on its own traits to its offspring in a process called heredity.

– Inherited characteristics change over generations. This process is called evolution

Growth and Development

– All living organisms grow.

– As organisms grow, many change. This process is called development.

– Development differs from evolution because development refers to change in a single individual during that individual’s life.