Name: __________________________
Biology-Harlacher
Chapter 1 Notes-What is Biology?
Biology is the study of…._______!
In order to study life, we must know what life is.
We also study:
The interactions of ______________
The interactions with the environment of living things
_________ facing these living things and their solutions
An organism’s environment is its’ surroundings:
Air, water, weather, temperature, other organisms, etc.
What Are the Characteristics of Life?
Let’s look at a few things and see if they are alive. We will then see what
________________ they share.
Characteristics of Life:
______________
______________
_________________
__________
______________
______________
______________
Organization
Organization is the _____________________of an organism. All organisms are made of one or more _______.
Some microorganisms are made up of one cell, while humans and other large organisms are comprised of billions of cells (or more!)
Reproduction
______________ is the production of offspring.
It can be:
___________-Can reproduce by itself
__________-Needs another organism to reproduce
A _______ is a group of organisms that can interbreed and produce fertile offspring in nature.

Growth
__________ is the ability of an organism to increase in size and the formation of new structures.
______________ is the series of changes that occur during the life of an organism.
Adaptation
______________ is the ability of an organism to make changes to
____________________in its’ environment and be able to __________
______________.
___________ is the ____________________in a species through adaptations over time.
Response
A ________ is something that causes an organism to react.
A _________ is a reaction to a stimulus.
Homeostasis
______________ is the regulation of an organism’s _________________________to optimal conditions.
This can be ______________ or _________________.
Require Energy
All living organisms require an intake of energy in order to survive.
Energy is the ______________________________.
This energy comes from food, which can be _________ or __________.
Create Waste
All living things create waste, or _____________and must dispose of it.
It can then be used by other living things.
The Scientific Method
In science we use a specific process, called the ___________________to gather information and answer scientific questions.
The Scientific Method
1.
__________
2.
__________
3.
__________
4.
__________
5.
____________________________________
6.
____________________

Observation
_______________ is when we use our __________to see and record things.
Observation only involves sensing and recording, _____ drawing conclusions.
We can use tools to help us to observe.
We can record with writing, drawings, photos, measurements, or sound recordings.
What are the most useful senses in science? Which are the least?
Predictions
A prediction is a _________________________of what will occur in a given situation.
After an experiment we ____________________________ __________, we just evaluate if it was correct.
Some great scientific discoveries have happened by accident or from predictions being wrong
Hypotheses
A _____________ is a testable explanation or prediction which uses the words “____” and “______”.
Example: If ______________ happens, then __________ will happen.
It is more than just a guess and is based on observations.
Experiments
An _____________ is a procedure used to test a hypothesis.
It includes several essential parts:
____________________
____________________
____________________
____________________
Dependent and Independent Variables
An _________________________is what we are testing.
The _________________________ is what we are measuring.
It is dependent on what we are testing.
Let’s try some examples:
Which grows faster, a plant in the sun or a plant in the dark?
Which is faster, a lion, a tiger, or a bear?
Who likes cookies more, Cookie Monster or Mr. Harlacher?
Experimental and Control Groups
We divide an experiment into two or more groups.
A _______________is when everything is run as normal. Nothing is changed.
An _________________________has only one thing changed.
Why do we change only one thing?
Let’s look at some examples:

Which grows faster, a plant in the sun or a plant in the dark?
Does an athlete perform better drinking Gatorade or water?
If students study more, will they get better grades?
Organizing and Analyzing Data
Next, data must be __________ from the experiment. Once again we draw no
conclusions here.
This means collecting data and organizing it in __________________ _______________.
We often use a graph or table for this. Some types are:
__________-Simply organizes the data.
_______________-Shows the results in columns
_______________-shows the data in a mathematical plane with axes.
_______________-Shows all the data at once in comparison to the whole.
_______________-Similar to a bar graph, but with pictures to represent data.
_______________- Shows the data points only on a graph,
Drawing Conclusions
An _____________ of the data is made to evaluate if the hypothesis was correct or not.
It does not matter if the hypothesis was “right” or “wrong”. The result is __________ either way.
Mathematical analysis such as an average/mean, standard deviation, or t-test can be used to see if any difference between the control and experimental group(s) was
_____________.
A ____________ is then drawn and stated as to whether the hypothesis was correct or not.
Next Steps…
Scientists can then:
__________ their research
__________ to examine if the results are consistent.
__________ or __________ their hypothesis and experiment again.
Look for ________________in their process.
What if an Experiment Can’t be Run?
Sometimes due to moral, ethical, practical, or financial constraints an experiment cannot be run.
We would then use the process of _____________- which should be a
______________________between two or more events.
However _________________________________________. Since we are not isolating one variable, we can’t be sure that one causes the other.

Scientific Habits
_______________
_______________
______________________________
______________________________
______________________________
What is a Scientific Theory or Law?
A ___________________is when a particular hypothesis has many experiments and observations supporting it over time
It is an explanation of natural phenomena that has a large body of scientific evidence to support it.
A ____________________is when a certain explanation has accrued enough scientific evidence that it is assumed to be true.
In science however, we can never absolutely prove something; all we can do is fail to disprove it and refine it.
Types of Information
In science we need to be able to classify observations, results, and other information into types of information.
There are two main types of information:
_______________
_______________
Science and Society
Science and the results of scientific research are never inherently good or bad. It is how they are used or applied that is judged by the ____________________or _________
_______of a society.
Think of nuclear power:
Nuclear bombs can cause much damage and devastation.
Nuclear power plants currently supply 48% of New Jersey’s electricity as an alternative to oil or coal power plants.
Think of morphine:
It can eliminate pain in those who have serious medical problems
It is highly addictive and can cause dependence easily
Technology and Society
_______________ is the application of scientific research to society’s needs and problems.
Technology itself is not good or bad; we judge it based on how it is used.