DNG Essential Life Science Vocabulary
Complete Bank of Essential Life Science Vocabulary for Friday Quiz
Terms
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- Mitochondria
- Part of a cell that breaks down glucose molecules to release energy.
- Variation
- When organisms of the same kind become slightly different from one another. Differences between things.
- Heredity
- The passing of traits from parent to offspring.
- Sexual Reproduction
- When two sex cells join to form a zygote with combined genes from both parents.
- Average
- To find the sum of a set of data, then divide it by the amount of numbers in the set; mean.
- Mutualism
- A symbiotic relationship in which both organisms benefit.
- Consumer
- An organism that eats producers or other organisms for energy.
- Generation
- The offspring of a certain parent or parents. One step in a lineage or family tree (parent generation, grandparent generation).
- Commensalism
- A symbiotic relationship where one organism benefits and the other is not affected.
- Respiration
- An exchange of gases between living things so their cells can "burn" oxygen to make energy.
- Organ
- A combination of two or more tissues that work together to perform a specific function in the body.
- Bacteria Cell
- Microscopic, single-celled organisms without a nucleus. A prokaryote."
- Density
- The amount of matter packed into a certain space. Mass divided by Volume
- Ecosystem
- A community of different organisms and their nonliving environment.
- Independent Variable
- The factor being changed in an experiment. The factor that affects the outcome of an experiment.
- Heterozygous
- A combination of gene pairs in a genotype which includes different traits; Tt.
- Vacuole
- A large, membrane-covered, bubble-like structure that stores water or other liquids.
- Food Web
- A diagram that shows the energy pathways in an ecosystem.
- Unicellular
- Any microscopic, one-celled organism that grows by getting slightly bigger before it divides.
- Fungi
- Organisms that get food by breaking down living or dead materials in their surroundings and absorbing the nutrients.
- Investigation
- To examine, research, study, or experiment about something.
- Stimulus
- Anything that affects the activity of an organism, organ, or tissue.
- Flagella
- Whiplike structure attached to certain cells that move like a paddle to provide locomotion in liquids (found on paramecium and sperm cells).
- Carrying Capacity
- The largest population that an environment can support, over a long period of time."
- Conservation of Matter
- Matter (anything that has mass and takes up space) cannot be created, but instead changes form.
- Organ System
- A group of organs that work together to perform a job in the body; circulatory, respiratory, digestive, immune, nervous, reproductive, etc.
- Punnett Square
- A tool used to visualize all the possible combinations of gene pairs from parents.
- Abiotic
- Nonliving factors in the environment. Things that have never been alive.
- Abundant
- A lot is available. A plentiful suppy of something.
- Sediment
- Particles of rocks and minerals that erode from one place and build up in another place, eventually forming new rock.
- Nutrients
- Substances that must be taken in by an organism to do normal growth and repair.
- Prey
- An organism that is hunted and eaten by another organism.
- Osmosis
- The movement of water across a cell membrane from areas of high concentration to areas of low concentration; diffusion in cells.
- Parasite
- A symbiotic relationship in which one organism benefits while the other is harmed.
- Dependent Variable
- The factor that is measured in the outcome of an experiment.
- Conservation of Energy
- Energy (the ability to do work or action) cannot be created or destroyed, but instead changes form.
- Decomposer
- An organism that gets energy by breaking down the remains of dead organisms or animal wastes.
- Nucleus
- The membrane-covered structure that contains DNA and serves as a control center for the cell. The center of an atom, which holds the protons and neutrons.
- Classify
- To arrange things into groups based on similarities.
- Meiosis
- Cell division that produces sperm or egg cells.
- Competition
- Two or more species or individuals fighting to use the same limited resource.
- Reproducible
- When procedures can be done over again in the exact same way.
- Adaptation
- A characteristic that helps an organism survive in its environment.
- Dominant Trait
- This trait physically shows when one dominant gene for a characteristic is inherited (Tt or TT).
- Experimental Group
- A trial in an experiment where only one factor is changed.
- Bias
- A known or unknown prejudice that makes it impossible to have honest and correct results.
- Cell Membrane
- A fatty layer that covers a cell's surface and acts as a barrier between the inside of a cell and the environment.
- Multicellular
- Organisms that grow by making more cells to add onto their bodies. Eukarote.
- Oxygen
- A molecule produced during photosynthesis and used to make energy during respiration.
- Chloroplast
- A structure, found in plant and algae cells, that does photosynthesis."
- Constant
- A factor that is kept from changing in an experiment.
- Chemical Energy
- Energy stored in chemical bonds and released during reactions, like burning.
- Data
- Information gathered from observation or research that describes events, characteristics, or quanities.
- Biotic
- Describes living and dead factors in the environment.
- Predator
- An organism that hunts down eats other organisms.
- Animal Cell
- A small living part of a multicellular organism that eats to gain energy and reproduces sexually.
- Mutation
- A change in an organisms DNA which causes a change in its genetics (When one of the base pairs is deleted, added, or switched).
- Original Source
- The very first place something comes from.
- Mitosis
- Nuclear division in eukaryotic cells in which each cell receives a copy of the original chromosomes.
- Species
- The most specific classification of living things, characterized by organisms that can mate and produce offspring.
- Evolution
- Describes the slow genetic change in populations of organisms over many generations.
- DNA
- Hereditary material that controls all the activities of a cell and contains the information to make new cells. It provides instructions for making proteins.
- Metabolism
- The combination of all the chemical processes that occur in a cell or living organism.
- Structure
- Parts that are arranged with a specific organization for a specific purpose.
- Asexual Reproduction
- Reproduction where a single parent produces offspring that are identical to the parent.
- Homozygous
- A combination of gene pairs in a genotype which includes traits that are the same; TT or tt.
- Chemical Reaction
- When two or more chemicals rearrange themselves to form new products. They release or absorb energy (heat, light, sound, etc)."
- Observation
- Information gathered with the five senses.
- Theory
- An explanation for many hypotheses and observations that have been supported by experiments.
- Chromosome
- A coiled structure of DNA and protein that forms in the cell nucleus during cell division.
- Inference
- An explanation or guess based on an observation or fact.
- Limiting Factor
- A resource that is needed for survival and can run out.
- Cytoplasm
- Fluids surrounding a cell's parts.
- Producer
- Organisms that make their own food, usually by using the energy from sunlight to make sugar.
- Tissue
- A group of similar cells that work together to perform a specific job in the body.
- Succession
- The gradual development or regrowth of an ecosystem over time.
- Host
- An organism on which a parasite lives and feeds.
- Protist Cell
- A microscopic, one-celled organism that is either plant-like or is animal-like, such as a paramecium, algae, or amoeba.
- Organism
- Anything that can independently carry out all life processes. A living thing.
- Interdependence
- When organisms in an ecosystem are dependent on each other.
- Experimental Control
- A trial in an experiment where all factors are kept from changing. The act of keeping factors from changing.
- Hypothesis
- A guess that is based on prior knowledge and can be tested.
- Carbon Dioxide
- A molecule consisting of one carbon and two oxygen atoms. It is created during respiration and used during photosynthesis.
- Renewable Resource
- A thing we get from the environment that can be used and replaced, such as water and sunlight.
- Fertilization
- The union of an egg cell and sperm cell to form a zygote during sexual reproduction.
- Recessive Trait
- A trait that physically shows only when a pair of two are inherited (tt).
- Common Ancestry
- Organisms that have a close genetic relationship with the same extinct species.
- Fossil Fuel
- Stored chemical energy created over millions of years by trapping the energy of ancient plant matter (coal, oil, natural gas).
- Cell Wall
- A structure that surrounds the cell membrane of SOME cells and provides strength, support, and shape to the membrane."
- Symbiosis
- A close, long-term relationship between two or more species.
- Fossil Record
- A historical sequence of life indicated by fossils. They are found in layers of the Earth's crust.
- Photosynthesis
- The process by which plants capture light energy from the sun and convert it into sugar and oxygen.
- Relationship
- A close connection, association, or interaction between two or more things.
- Glucose
- A sugar molecule made by producers during photosynthesis and "burned" by all organisms during respiration to make energy.
- Reproduction
- When organisms mate or divide to make babies.
- Cilia
- Hairlike structures that line the surfaces of certain cells and beat in rhythmic waves, providing locomotion in liquids (found on protists, like paramecium).
- Plant Cell
- A small living part of a multicellular organism that makes its own food in chloroplast and reproduces sexually or asexually.
- Natural Selection
- The process by which organisms with a helpful trait survive and reproduce at higher rates than organisms without the helpful trait.
- Conclusion
- An explanation that uses data to support or disprove a hypothesis.
- Function
- An action, duty, or role of something.