I remember learning basic biology in school. It was a long time ago, and yet, most of this stuff stuck. It’s everywhere, after all–in the news, in other books. And yet, after creating this list, I was struck by the fine delineations, especially regarding the differences between genes, genetic traits, chromosomes, alleles, and DNA.
ESSENTIAL KNOWLEDGE: BIOLOGY
Living thing: An organism that reproduces; grows; responds to stimuli; evolves over time; has metabolism; has homeostasis; and has a cell-based structure
Plant: A multicellular eukaryotic organism that gets its energy from the sun using chlorophyll and does not wholly move. Most reproduce asexually.
Animal: A multicellular eukaryotic organism that usually has a distinct orientation (i.e., a top and a bottom); symmetry; mobility; sexual reproduction; sense perception; and a reliance on living, biological organisms for energy
Common name: The name commonly used for a species of animal or plant
Scientific name: The official name of an animal or plant. This is usually in Latin and made up of the genus and species names, but sometimes also contains the name of the sub-species.
Habitat: The natural environment in which a species lives and thrives
Life cycle: The stages of growth and development of living things. This is different for different species; for example, frogs have a tadpole stage and caterpillars have a cocoon stage.
Generation: All members of a species bearing offspring around the same time
Food chain: A series of plants and animals that use each other for food
Food web: A series of interlinked food chains
Excretion: The elimination of metabolic waste
Homeostasis: Biological equilibrium, when a living thing’s internal conditions (such as temperature and mineral levels) remain mostly steady
Dormant: Still alive but not actively growing, such as a seed in a package
Decomposition: The breakdown of organic materials (such as dead plants and animals) by bacteria, fungi, and other microorganisms so the materials can be recycled in the environment for other uses
Metabolism: The set of life-sustaining chemical reactions in organisms
Parasite: A living thing that feeds on other living things and also uses them as their home
Host: A living thing that homes and feeds a parasite
Evolution: The long series of small but significant genetic changes that happen to living things
Extinction: The dying out of a species
Mass extinction: The large-scale dying out of many species on earth. This happens due to human activity, major weather changes brought on by major events, like an asteroid hitting the earth, and other occurrences.
Natural selection: The natural process by which some species adapt and survive and others die out
Artificial selection: The human-controlled process by which plants and animals with desirable traits are selectively bred in order to produce offspring with those same traits
Male: The sex with the parts needed to fertilize the egg
Female: The sex with the parts needed to produce the egg
Sexual reproduction: Reproduction involving two parents, one male and one female
Asexual reproduction: Reproduction involving only one parent. Algae, mosses and some ferns reproduce this way because they don’t have flowers.
Vegetative reproduction: Asexual reproduction that occurs using a fragment or cutting of a plant. Some examples are plants that grow from runners (like strawberries), from tubers (like potatoes), from cuttings and even from just a few cells (as in a lab).
Fertilization: The combining of genetic material from a sperm cell with the genetic material from an egg cell, which results in conception
Embryo: The newly conceived form of life between the fertilized egg (zygote) stage and the fetus stage
Fetus: An unborn baby who is past the embryonic stage (about nine weeks into the pregnancy)
Ovulation: The release of eggs from the ovaries
Cell: The smallest unit of living matter that can carry out all of the functions of life
Tissue: Cells of the same type combined together to do a particular job
Organ: Tissues of different types working together to do a particular job, such as the stomach
System: Organs of different types working together to do a particular job, such as the digestive system
The eight parts of a plant cell: Cell wall; cell membrane; cytoplasm usually containing chloroplasts, chromoplasts, other organelles and the nucleus; and a large vacuole containing water, sugar and other dissolved substances
The nine parts of an animal cell: Cell membrane; cytoplasm; nucleus; nuclear membrane; mitochondria; ribosomes; endoplasmic reticulum; Golgi complex; and lysosomes
Nucleus: The control center of the cell
Mitochondria: The part of the cell that converts substances into energy
Golgi complex: The cell warehouse that stores and distributes substances made in the cell
Ribosomes: The part of the cell that builds proteins
Lysosomes: The part of the cell that breaks down and recycles waste
Mitosis: The process of cell division that results in two genetically identical cells, each with a set of the same chromosomes. This happens when the nucleus of the cell divides. Most cells reproduce in this way.
Meiosis: The process of cell division that results in four cells, each with half of the original cell’s genetic material. Sex cells (gametes) reproduce in this way.
Cytokinesis: The final stage of cell division in which the cytoplasm and organelles are divided between the two daughter cells
External respiration: The movement of oxygen from the outside environment to the cells within tissues, and the movement of carbon dioxide in the opposite direction
Internal respiration/cellular respiration: The use of oxygen within the cells to convert nutrients (such as glucose) into energy in the form of ATP, which is then used for various cellular processes
Adenosine triphosphate (ATP): An organic chemical that provides the energy needed for various processes in cells, such as muscle contraction, nerve impulse propagation, and chemical synthesis
Aerobic respiration: Internal respiration that uses oxygen
Anaerobic respiration: Internal respiration that doesn’t use oxygen (and produces less ATP)
Enzymes: Proteins that act as catalysts, speeding up chemical reactions in living things
Thermogenesis: The process of heat production in organisms
Basal metabolic rate (BMR): The rate of energy expenditure per unit time by an animal at rest
Calorie: A unit of measurement denoting the amount of heat energy needed to raise the temperature of one gram of water by one degree Celsius, which shows how much energy food provides to animals
Kilocalorie: A unit of measurement denoting the amount of heat energy needed to raise the temperature of one kilogram of water by one degree Celsius, which shows how much energy food provides to animals
Classification/taxonomy: The organizing of things into groups according to their shared features
The eight levels of the taxonomy of living things: Domain, kingdom, phylum, class, order, family, genus, species. Also, many species are divided into subspecies called races, breeds or varieties.
The three domains of living things: Bacteria/monera, archaea and eukaryota. Both bacteria and archaea are prokaryota. Scientists disagree about how to divide the domains.
The four kingdoms of eukaryota: Fungi, protistas, plantae and animalia
Prokaryote: A living thing whose cells do not have nuclei
Eukaryote: A living thing whose cells have nuclei
Bacteria/monera: A single-celled prokaryotic organism that exists everywhere on Earth
Archaea: A single-celled prokaryotic organism that has genes, enzymes and other similarities to eukaryota that bacteria do not have
Fungus: A eukaryotic organism that lacks chlorophyll and feeds on living and dead things, including mold, yeast and mushrooms. Many grow in damp, dark places.
Protista: A eukaryotic organism other than animals, plants, or fungi. This is a catch-all group that includes mold, protozoas, algae and other eukaryotes, most of which live in moist environments.
Protozoa: A single-celled eukaryotic organism. Most feed on organic matter.
Amoeba: A type of protozoa that can change shape, usually by extending out pseudopods (fluid-filled sacs in the shape of arms or tentacles)
Species: The taxonomic level at which all the members can mate and reproduce offspring of their kind
Homo sapiens: The scientific name for the human species. This species belongs to the eukaryota domain; the animal kingdom; the chordata phylum (since they have a stiff rod that supports the body); the mammalia class; the primates order; the Hominidae family; and the Homo genus.
ESSENTIAL KNOWLEDGE: GENETICS
Genes: The sets of instructions inherited from parents and located in the body’s chromosomes that tell the body how to form particular characteristics. They are in every cell of the body (except red blood cells) and are made up of DNA. Most are either dominant or recessive. Each of these provides instructions for multiple traits, and some traits are determined by multiple genes.
Genome: The complete set of physical genetic material of an organism (DNA or RNA)
Genetic trait: A single characteristic that is expressed in a living thing in the way the related gene determines
Gene map: A visual arrangement showing the organization of the genes on a chromosome. It is used to learn about genetic influences in disease development and other genetic patterns.
Deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA): The chemical that makes up genes, has a double helix shape, and works with RNA to tell the body how to build the proteins that make up genetic traits
Ribonucleic acid (RNA): A chemical found alongside DNA that is similar to DNA in form but performs different functions (except in some viruses, which have RNA in place of DNA). It helps choose which genes are expressed in the organism and carries out the instructions provided by the DNA.
Chromosome: The bundles that hold all of the individual genes and are stored in the nucleus of most body cells. Humans have 23 pairs of these, each of which holds many, many genes.
X and Y chromosomes: The chromosomes that determine gender. Everyone has one X chromosome, but males have a Y and females have a second X.
Dominant gene: The gene in the gene pair that is expressed in the organism, whether paired with a recessive gene or another dominant gene
Recessive gene: The gene in the gene pair that is not expressed in the organism except when there are two associated recessives present, one from each parent
Co-dominance: The state that occurs when the contributions of both genes are displayed in a trait
Allele: One of the two associated genes in a gene pair that occupies the same position on a chromosome and determines the same trait as the other allele in the pair
Homozygote: An organism that has identical alleles for a specific gene
Heterozygote: An organism that has two different alleles for a specific gene, which enables their offspring’s corresponding gene to vary. An organism can be a homozygote for one trait and a heterozygote for a different trait.
Carrier: An organism that has a recessive allele for a genetic trait but does not display it. Carriers can pass the allele onto offspring, who will express it if they inherit the same one from both parents.
DNA profiling: Analyzing sections of an individual’s DNA in order to identify them. It is also known as genetic fingerprinting.
Genetic engineering: The direct manipulation of an organism’s genes using biotechnology
Genetically modified organism (GMO): An animal, plant, or microbe whose DNA has been altered using human-created genetic engineering techniques
Gene splicing: The process of cutting and recombining genes from different organisms or different parts of the same organism to produce specific characteristics
Cloning: Producing genetically identical offspring of an organism either naturally or artificially. In nature, many organisms produce these through asexual reproduction.
Hybrid: A type of offspring produced by the mating of two different species. These are usually unable to reproduce offspring of their own kind due to differences in the chromosomes of the parents.
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