Term
| Characteristics of Organisms |
|
Definition
Take in and convert materials and energy from the environment; release wastes
Have a high degree of chemical organization compared to nonliving objects
Have complex structural organization that is responsible for their appearance and activities
Contain coded instructions (such as DNA) for maintaining their organization and activities
Sense and react to changes in their environment
Grow and develop during some part of their lives
Reproduce others like themselves
Communicate with similar organisms
Move under their own power. |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
| Energy stored in the structure of molecules |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
Energy that is available to do work.
Ex. the energy plants use for growing and producing food and the energy you use for exercise and thinking. |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
| a substance that supports the growth and maintenance of an organism |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
an organism that obtains carbon compounds from other organisms.
Ex: Animals, fungi (mushrooms and molds), and most bacteria are heterotrophs. |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
an organism that forms its own food molecules (carbon compounds) from abiotic materials.
Ex: plants, certain bacteria and other organisms that capture energy from the sun or from chemicals such as hydrogen sulfide (H(subscript)2S). |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
| the process by which cells use light energy to make organic compounds from inorganic materials |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
| an organism that derives energy from light and forms its own organic compounds (food) from abiotic carbon sources. |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
| a biochemical pathway that uses energy from the oxidation or inorganic substances to drive the formation of organic molecules. |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
| the series of chemical reactions by which a living cell breaks down carbohydrates and obtains energy from them. |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
| an autotroph; any organism that produces its own food. |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
| a heterotroph; an organism that feeds on other organisms or on their organic wastes. |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
| the overlapping food chains of an ecosystem |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
| an organism that lives on decaying organic material, from which it obtains energy and nutrients |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
| referring to a physical or nonliving component of an ecosystem |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
| a biological community and its abiotic environment |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
| type of place where an organism lives |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
| the outer portion of Earth - air, water, and soil - where life is found. |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
| relating to a living component of an ecosystem |
|
|
Term
| First law of thermodynamics |
|
Definition
| the law derived from the principle of the conservation of energy stating that energy can be neither created nor destroyed, but it can be transferred or transformed. |
|
|
Term
| Law of Conservation of Energy |
|
Definition
| the law stating that energy can be neither created nor destroyed, only changed from one form into another |
|
|
Term
| Second law of thermodynamics |
|
Definition
| the law stating that energy transfers and transformations increase the entropy of the universe. |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
| a measure of the degree of disorganization of a system, that is, how much energy in a system has become so dispersed that it is no longer available to do work. |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
| the gain of electrons by a substance in a chemical reaction |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
| the process of breaking substances down into smaller chemical units. |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
| the process of building chemical compounds from smaller components by means of chemical reactions. |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
| the loss of electrons from a substance in a chemical reaction. |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
the sum of all the chemical changes taking place in an organism
2 types: "building up" or "breaking down" |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
| a protein or part-protein molecule made by an organism and used as a catalyst in a specific biochemical reaction. |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
| a chemical that promotes a reaction between other chemicals by reducing the energy required to activate the reaction; may take part in the reaction but emerges in its original form |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
| the portion of an enzyme that attaches to the substrate through weak chemical bonds. |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
| a molecule on which enzymes act. |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
Adenosine triphosphate.
a compound that has three phosphate groups and is used by cells to store energy and to fuel many metabolic processes. |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
| The production of complex molecules within living organisms or cells. |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
|
|
Term
|
Definition
guanosine triphosphate
energy carriers in the cells |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
uridine triphosphate
energy carriers in the cells |
|
|
Term
|
Definition
A nitrogenous base (purine or pyrimidines) bound to a pentose sugar ribose or deoxyribose.
(no phosphate group) |
|
|
