Summary: Bio H

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• 1 study of life

• 1.1 intro to biology

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• How does development differ from growth?

  Growth adds mass to an organism. Many organisms form new cells and new structures as they grow. Development is the process of natural changes that take place during the life of an organism. For example, after baby birds hatch they cannot fly for a few weeks. As they grow, structures develop that give them the ability to fly.

• Why is reproduction important to a species?

  Reproduction is the production of offspring. If a species is to continue to exist, some members of the species must reproduce. A species is a group of organisms that can breed with one another and produce fertile offspring. Without reproduction, a species will become extinct.

• Why is the ability to respond to stimuli critical?

  An organism’s external environment includes all things that surround it, such as air, water, soil, rocks, and other organisms. An organism’s internal environment includes all things inside it. A stimulus (plural, stimuli) is anything that is part of either environment that causes some reaction by the organism. The reaction to a stimulus is a response. For example, a houseplant responds to the stimulus of sunlight coming through a window by growing toward it. The ability to respond to stimuli is important for survival.

• How do organisms continue to exist?

  Organisms reproduce and pass on traits to the next generation. Reproduction must occur for a species to continue to exist.

• What is the application of scientific knowledge?

  The application of scientific knowledge is to solve human needs and to extend human capabilities.

• What do some biologists study in terms of plants?

  Some biologists study genetic engineering of plants. They try to develop plants that can grow in poor soils and resist insects and disease.

• Why must an organism maintain homeostasis?

  Homeostasis (hoh mee ohn STAY sus) is the regulation of an organism’s internal conditions to maintain life. If anything upsets an organism’s normal state, processes to restore the normal state begin. If homeostasis is not restored, the organism might die.

• What do environmental biologists try to do?

  Environmental biologists try to protect animals and plants from extinction by developing reproductive strategies and ways to protect them.

• How do adaptations benefit a species?

  An adaptation is any inherited characteristic that results from changes to a species over time. Adaptations make the members of a species better able to survive and, therefore, better able to pass their genes to their offspring.

• How are cells related to their function?

  The structure of a cell is related to its function. For example, each cell in a tree’s roots has a structure that enables it to take in water from soil.