Properties of Life (Figure 8.1.3):

Order: highly ordered structure that classifies life (Domain, Kingdom, Phylum, etc.)
Evolutionary Adaptation: adaptations that evolve over many generations by the reproductive success of those individuals with heritable traits that are best suited to their environments (ex. ability camouflage)
Response to the Environment: response to environmental stimulus (Venus fly trap closing its trap rapidly by the landing of a fly)
Regulation: regulation of the body (ex regulation of blood flow, regulation of body temperature, etc.)
Energy Processing: the ability to convert food into fuel, using chemical energy stored in the food in order for the organism to function
Growth and Development: inherited information carried by gene controls the patter of growth and development of organisms.
Reproduction: the ability to reproduce their own kind/offspring.

Concept 1.1 Theme Connect the Concepts of Biology

Evolution is the overarching theme of biology; the scientific explanation for unity in diversity
Evolution: the idea that the organisms living on Earth today are the modified descendants of common ancestors
Descendants from a common ancestor -> heritable changes have occurred along the way
Theme 2: New properties emerge at each level in the biological hierarchy
Emergent Properties: novel properties that emerge at each step, properties that are not present at the preceding level; these properties are due to the arrangement and interactions of parts as complexity increases.
Reductionism: the reduction of complex systems to simpler components that are more manageable to study
Systems Biology: to construct models for the dynamic behavior of whole biological systems; used to predict change in one or more variables and how it will affect other components; relevant to the study of life at all levels
Goal for biologist when studying biology is to maintain a balance btwn reductionism and systems biology to figure out stuff.
All of this can be applied when looking at levels of biological organization (Figure 8.1.4)
1. Biosphere: Earth
2. Ecosystems: consists of all the living things in a particular area, with their nonliving components as well (ex. air, water, soil, etc.)
3. Communities: the entire array of organisms inhabiting a particular ecosystem
4. Populations: consists of all individuals of a species living within the bounds of a specified area
5. Organisms: individuals living things
6. Organ and Organ Systems: groups of similar tissue and organs
7. Tissues: groups of similar cells
8. Cells: life's fundamental unit of structure and function
9. Organelles: parts of a cell
10. Molecules: chemical structure which consist of 2 or more atoms
Theme 3: Organisms interact with their environments, exchanging matter and energy
Each organism interacts with their environment in one of 2 ways: ecosystem dynamics and energy conversion
Ecosystem Dynamics involves 2 major processes: cycling of nutrients and the one-way flow of energy from sunlight to producers to consumers (Figure 8.1.5)

	Created by Rita Kumar about 10 years ago

Notes from textbook readings, both 8th and 10th edition

Chapter 1: Introduction: Themes in the Study of Life