Semester 1 Exam Vocabulary
Terms
undefined, object
copy deck
- evaporation
- process by which water changes from a liquid into an atmospheric gas
- phytoplankton
- populatio of algae and other small, photosynthetic organisms found near the surface of the ocean and forming part of plankton
- primary succession
- succession that occurs on surfaces where no soil exists
- permafrost
- layer of permanently frozen subsoil in the tundra
- aphotic zone
- permanently dark layer of the oceans below the photic zone
- substrate
- reactant of an enyme-catalyzed reaction
- omnivore
- organism that obtains energy by eating both plants and animals
- zonation
- prominent horizontal banding of organisms that live in a particular habitat
- heterotroph
- organism that obtains energy from the foods it consumes
- compound
- substance formed by the chemical combination of two or more elements in definite proportions
- photosynthesis
- process by which plants and some other organisms use light energy to convert water and carbon dioxide into oxygen and high-energy carbohydrates, such as sugars and starches
- deoxyribonucleic acid
- nucleic acid that contains the sugar deoxyribose
- wetland
- ecosystem in which water either covers the soil or is present at or near the surface of the soil for at least part of the year
- hypothesis
- possibe explanation for a set of observations or possible answer to a scientific question
- climate
- average, year-after-year conditions of temperature and precipitation in a particular region
- cell
- basic unit of all forms of life
- controlled experiment
- a test of the effect of a single variable by changing it while keping all other variables the same
- solute
- The material dissolved in the solvent
- metric system
- decimal system of measurement based on certain physical standards and scaled on multiples of ten
- compound light microscope
- microscope that allows light to pass through a specimen and uses two lenses to form an image
- ecology
- the scientific study of interactions among organism and between organisms and their environment
- monosaccharide
- single sugar molecule
- observation
- the use of one or more senses to gather information
- biotic factor
- biological influence on organisms within an ecosystem
- data
- evidence
- lipid
- macromolecule made mainly from carbon and hydrogen atoms; includes fats, oils, and waxes
- acid
- compound that forms H+ Ions in solution
- parasitism
- symbiotic relationship in which one organism lives in or on another organism (the host) and consequently harms it
- catalyst
- substance that speeds up the rate of a chemical reaction
- deciduous
- term used to refer to a tree that sheds its leaves during a particular season each year
- limiting nurtient
- single nurtient that either is scarce or cycles very slowly, limiting the growth of organisms in an ecosystem
- coniferous
- term used to refer to trees that produce seed-bearing cones and have thin leaves shaped like needles
- trophic level
- step in a food chain or food web
- atom
- basic unit of matter
- solvent
- The substance in which a solute dissolves to form a solution.
- photic zone
- well-lit upper layer of the oceans
- mutualism
- symbiotic relationship in which both species benefit from the relationship
- stimulus
- a signal to which an organism responds
- manipulated variable
- factor in an experiment that a scientist purposely changes
- adhesion
- an attraction between molecules of different substances
- homeostasis
- process by which organisms maintain a relatively stable internal environment
- ammino acid
- compound with an amino group on one end and a carboxyl group on the other end
- nucleotide
- monomer of nucleic acids made up of a 5-carbon sugar, a phosphate, and a nitrogeneous base
- electron
- A negatively charged subatomic particle located outside the nucleus.
- cell culture
- group of cells grown in a nutrient solution from a single original cell
- coastal ocean
- marine zone that extends from the lowtide mark to the end of the continental shelf
- enzyme
- protein that acts as a biological catalyst
- spontaneos generation
- the disproven hypothesis that life could arise from nonliving matter
- benthos
- organisms that live attached to or near the ocean floor
- predation
- interaction in which one organism captures and feeds on another organism
- manipulated variable
- independent variable, syn.
- isotope
- atoms of the same elements that have different numbers neutrons on their nuclei
- metabolism
- set of chemical reactions through which an organism builds up or breaks down materials as it carries out its life processes
- weather
- conditions of Earth's atmosphere at a particular time and place
- cell
- collection of living matter enclosed by a barrier that separates the cell from its surroundings
- tropical zone
- warm climate zone that recieves direct or near direct sunlight year round
- asexual reproduction
- process by which a single parent reproduces by itself
- biogeochemical cycle
- process in which elements, chemical compounds, and other forms of matter are passed from one organism to another and from one part of the biosphere to another
- chemical reaction
- process that changes one set of chemicals into another set of chemicals
- sexual reproduction
- process by which cells of two different parents unite to produce the first cell of a new organism
- population
- group of individuals of the same species that live in the same area
- science
- the organized way of using evidence to learn about the natural world
- autotroph
- organism that can capture energy from sunlight or chemicals and use it to produce its own food from inorganic compounds
- nutrient
- chemical substance that an organism requires to live
- monomer
- small unit that can join together with other small units to form polymers
- ionic bond
- a bond that forms when one or more electrons are transferred from one atom to another (results in a positive ion and a negative ion)
- ribonucleic acid
- single-stranded nucleic acid that contains the suger ribose
- temperate zone
- moderate climate zone between the polar zones and the tropics
- niche
- full range of physical and biological conditions in which an organism lives and the way in which the organism uses those conditions
- greenhouse effect
- natural situation in which heat is retained in Earth's atmosphere by carbon dioxide, methane, water vapor, and other gases
- carnivore
- organism that obtains energy by eating animals
- ecological succession
- gradual change in living communities that follows a disturbance
- cell fractionation
- technique in which cells are broken into pieces and the different cell parts are separated
- microscope
- device that produces magnified images of structures that are too small to see with the unaided eye
- responding variable
- dependent variable, syn.
- electorn microscope
- microscope that forms an image by focusing beams of electrons onto a specimen
- Emigration
- movement of individuals out of an area
- zooplankton
- tiny animals that from part of the plankton
- activation energy
- energy needed to get a reaction started
- secondary succession
- succession following a disturbance that destorys a community without destroying the soil
- producer
- organism that can capture energy from sunlight or chemicals and use it to produce food from inorganic compounds
- food web
- network of complex interactions formed by the feeding relationships among the various organisms in an ecosystem
- covalent bond
- a chemical bond that involves sharing electrons between atoms in a molecule
- mangrove swamp
- coastal wetland dominates by mangroves, salt-tolerant woody plants
- chemosynthesis
- process by which some organisms, such as certain bacteria, use chemical energy to produce carbohydrates
- element
- pure substance consisting entirely of one type of atom
- Predator-prey relationship
- mechanism of population control in which a population is regulated by predation
- solution
- mixture of 2 or more substances that is homogeneous; consists of a solute and a solvent
- biomass
- total amount of living tissue within a given trophic level
- carboyhdrate
- compound made up of carbon, hydrogen, and oxygen atoms
- coral reef
- diverse and productive environment named for the coral animals that make up its primary structure
- polar zone
- cold climate zone where the sun's rays strike Earth at a very low angle
- consumer
- organism that relies on other organisms for its energy and food supplies
- ecosystem
- collection of all the organisms that live in a particular place, together with their nonliving environment
- food chain
- series of steps in an ecosystem in which organisms transfer enrgy by eating and being eaten
- tolerance
- organism's capacity to grow or thrive when subjected to an unfavorable environmental factor
- Demographic transition
- change in a population from high birth and death rates to low birth and death rates
- Density-dependent limiting factor
- limiting factor that depends on population size
- base
- compound that forms OH- ions in solution
- Density-independent limiting factor
- limiting factor that affects all populations in similar ways, regardless of population size
- nucleus
- the positively charged dense center of an atom; contains protons and neutrons
- biosphere
- the part of Earth where life exists including land, water, and air or atmosphere
- responding variable
- factor in an experiment that a scientist wants to observe, which may change in response to the manipulated variable
- biology
- science that seeks to understand the living world
- salt marsh
- temperate-zone estuary dominated by the salt-tolerant grasses above the low-tide zone and by seagrasses under water
- Logistic growth
- growth pattern in which a population's growth rate slows or stops following a period of exponential growth
- habitat
- the area where an organism lives, including the biotic and abiotic factors that affect it
- abiotic factor
- physical, or nonliving, factor that shapes an ecosystem
- Exponential growth
- growth pattern in which the individuals in a population reproduce at a constant rate
- biome
- group of ecosystems that have the same climate and dominant communities
- algal bloom
- an immediate increase in the ammount of algae and other producers that results from a large input of a limiting nutrient
- inference
- logical interpretation based on prior knowledge and experience
- symbiosis
- relationship in which two species live closely together
- denitrification
- conversion of nitrates into nitrogen gas
- Carrying capacity
- largest number of individuals of a population that a given environment can support
- detritus
- particals of organic material that provide food for organisms at the base of an estuary's food web
- taiga
- biome in which the winters are cold but summers are mild enough to allow the ground to thaw
- resource
- any necessity of life, such as water, nutrients, light, food, or space
- suspension
- a mixture in which fine particles are suspended in a fluid where they are supported by buoyancy
- primary productivity
- rate at which organic matter is created by producers in an ecosystem
- science
- the body of knowledge that scientists have built up
- biome
- group of ecosystems that have the same climate and dominant communities
- commensalism
- symbiotic relationship in which one member of the association benefits and the other is neither helped nor harmed
- humus
- material formed from decaying leaves and other organic matter
- mixture
- a material composed of two or more elements or compounds that are physically mixed together but not chemically combined
- Limiting factor
- factor that causes the growth of a population to decrease
- community
- assemblage of different populations that live togeter in a defined area
- molecule
- the smallest unit of most compounds
- reactant
- element or compound that enters into a chemical reaction
- estuary
- wetlands formed where rivers meet the ocean
- transpiration
- loss of water from a plant through its leaves
- Demography
- scientific study of human populations
- competitive exclusion principle
- ecological rule that states that no two species can occupy the same exact niche in the same habitat at the same time
- nucleic acid
- macromolecule containing hydrogen, oxygen, nitrogen, carbon, and phosphorous
- buffer
- weak acid or bas that can react with strong acids and bases to help prevent sharp, sudden changes in pH
- ecological pyramid
- diagram that shows the relative ammounts of energy or matter within each trophic level in a food change or food web
- protein
- macromolecule that contains carbon, hydrogen, oxygen, and nitrogen
- kelp forest
- coastal ocean commmunity named for its dominant organism-kelp, a giant brown alga
- product
- element or compound produced by chemical reaction
- polysaccharide
- large macromolecule formed from monosaccharides
- decomposer
- organism that breaks down and obtains energy from dead organic matter
- theory
- well-tested explanation that unifies a broad range of observations
- data
- information gathered from observations
- Age-structure diagram
- graph of the number of males and females within different age groups of a population
- pH scale
- scale that runs from 0 (strongly acidic) to 14 (strongly basic or alkaline); measurement system used to indicatee the concentration of Hydrogen Ions (H+) in solution
- cohesion
- an attraction between molecules of the same substance
- canopy
- dense covering formed by the leafy tops of tall rain forest trees
- polymer
- large compound formed from combinations of many monomers
- Population density
- number of individuals per unit of area
- detritivore
- organism that feeds of plant and animal remains and other dead matter
- microclimate
- climate within a small area that duffers significantly from the climate of the surrounding area
- nitrogen fixation
- process of converting nitrogen gas into ammonia
- understory
- layer in a rain forest formed by shorter trees and vines
- plankton
- tiny, free-floating organisms that occur in aquatic environmentss
- ion
- atom that has a positive or negative charge
- van der Waals forces
- a slight attarction that develops b/t the opposityly charged regions of nereby molecules
- species
- group of similar organisms that can breed and produce fertile offspring
- herbivore
- organism that obtains energy by eating only plants
- pioneer species
- first species to populate an area during primary succession
- Immigration
- movement of individuals into an area occupied by an existing population