Mrs. Wetzel Biology
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Main Idea:
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Earth is home to an incredible diversity of life
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The Biosphere refers to all living things and the
places they are found on earth
All living things are connected
Even the bacteria that live inside of your nose
are part of the biosphere
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Biodiversity refers to the variety of life that is
found in the biosphere.
Biodiversity is measured by adding together
the number of different species living in an
area
Biodiversity increases as you get closer to the
equator
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A species is a particular type of living organism
that can breed and produce viable offspring
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About 2 million species have been identified
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One million of these are insects
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10,000new species are identified every year
50,000 die out or become extinct every year
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Main Idea:
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All Organisms share certain Characteristics
 These are referred to as UNIFYING THEMES in
Biology
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1. Cells- all organisms are made up of cells
There are many Unicellular Organisms. (made of one
cell)
Some organisms are
Multi-cellular.
They are made of more
than one cell
Each type of cell has a
specialized job
This is called cell
specialization
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2. Need for Energy:
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All organisms need a source of energy for their life
processes.
Energy is the ability to cause change or do work
In all organisms energy is important for metabolism,
the chemical process that builds up or breaks down
materials.
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3. Response to Environment:
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All organisms react to their environment to survive.
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Organisms respond to a variety of Stimuli
 What are some examples of stimuli?
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4. Reproduction and Development
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When organisms reproduce, they pass their genetic
information onto their offspring.
In ALL organisms the Genetic Code is called DNA
Two types of reproduction are Sexual, and Asexual
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1. Cells
2. Need for Energy
3. Respond to Environment
4. Reproduce
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Main Idea
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All levels of life have systems of related parts
A system is an organized group of related parts that
interact to form a whole
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Examples of Systems-
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Main Idea
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Structure and Function are related in Biology
Different types of cells also have different functions
that depend of their specialized structures.
Structure is the way something is made
Function is how it’s structure helps it do it’s
specialized job.
STRUCTURE
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Red Blood Cell
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FUNCTION
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Small, disk-shaped,
Compound Eye of a Fly
Lots of lenses
Opposable Thumbs
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Needs to fit through
small places, to deliver
oxygen
Allows the fly to see
360degrees
Allow people to pick up
items
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Main Idea
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Organisms must maintain homeostasis to survive in
diverse environments.
Temperature and other environmental conditions
are always changing, but the conditions inside
organisms is usually quite stable. How does this
work?
 Homeostasis is the maintenance of constant internal
conditions in an organism
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Temperature, blood sugar, acidity, and other
conditions must be controlled.
For example if your temperature drops below
normal, your systems in your body react to
raise the temperature. Your muscles cause you
to shiver, blood vessels near the surface of your
skin constrict.
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Main Idea
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Evolution Explains the unity and diversity of life
Evolution is the change in living things over time.
More specifically evolution is the change in the
genetic make-up of a population of a species.
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AdaptationAn inherited trait that gives an advantage to
individual organisms and is passed on to
future generations.
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Evolution is a unifying theme in Biology
because it accounts for both the diversity and
similarities of life.
For instance, Humans and bacteria both have
DNA, similarities in the cell structures, and
rely on the same sources for energy.
Billions of years of evolution has resulted in
vast diversity of life on earth
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Main Idea
Like all science, Biology is a process of inquiry
 Science is a process of trying to understand the
world around us.
 To understand the world around us; scientists make
observations and collect data.
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Qualitative: Descriptions of what is being
observed
 Dolphin colors range from gray to white
 Dolphins in a pod engage in play behavior
 Dolphins have smooth skin
 Quantitative: involves NUMERIC measurements
 There are nine dolphins here
 Dolphins eat 4-5% of their body mass each day
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Main Idea
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Biologists use experiments to test hypothesis
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Scientists evaluate each others work constantly to
make sure experiments are valid.
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Many tests of experiments support the experiments
results. It only takes one experiment to refute the
results of a scientist.