Investigation 3 Microscopic Life Vocabulary
Cell- The basic unit of life- all organisms are cells or are made up of cells.
Cilia- Short hairlike structures that propel protists through their fluid environment.
congo red- Red dye used to make objects or organisms stand out under the microscope.
Cytoplasm- The fluid portion of a cell’s interior. Organelles are suspended in the cytoplasm.
cytoplasmic streaming- the movement of the fluid substance (cytoplasm) within a plant or
animal cell.
Elodea- Aquatic plant with translucent leaves that grows in freshwater ponds.
Kingdom- A taxonomic category grouping together all forms of life that share fundamental
characteristics.
Membrane- A semipermeable “skin” surrounding the cell and separating it from its
environment.
Microorganism- A microscopic organism that may be unicellular or multicellular
multicellular organisms- A organism made up of many cells, each with a
specialized function.
oral groove- canal of the paramecium used to ingest nutrients.
Organelles- Structure inside of Eukaryotic cells that performs specialized
functions.
Paramecia- A ciliated protest that lives in fresh water and eats other tiny
organisms for food.
Protista- One of the five kingdoms of life. Made up of eukaryotic cells, most of
them being single celled.
single-celled organisms- “unicellular” organisms made up of only one cell.
Vacuoles- A fluid filled membrane in the cytoplasm of plant cells, fungus cells,
and protist cells.