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CHAPTER 1 The Science of Biology. 1.1 What is Science?. What Science Is and Is Not. Scientific ideas are open to testing, discussion, and revision. Science as a Way of Knowing. Science is different from human endeavors because It deals only with the natural world
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What Science Is and Is Not • Scientific ideas are open to testing, discussion, and revision.
Science as a Way of Knowing • Science is different from human endeavors because • It deals only with the natural world • Data is collected in an orderly way to look for patterns and connections • Explanations are based on evidence, not belief
The Goals of Science • To provide natural explanations for events in the natural world. • Use scientific explanations to understand patterns in nature and formulate predictions.
Science, Change, and Uncertainty • Nature is still a mystery because science is constantly changing. • Science rarely proves anything in absolute terms, so scientists aim for the best understanding of the natural world.
Scientific Methodology: The Heart of Science • There isn’t any single “scientific method,” but a general style of investigation called scientific methodology. • It involves observing, making inferences and forming hypotheses, conducting experiments, collecting and analyzing data, and drawing conclusions.
Observing and Asking Questions • Scientific investigations begin with observations. • A good scientist should be able to “Think something that nobody has thought yet, while looking at something that everybody sees.” – Arthur Schopenhauer
Inferring and Forming a Hypothesis • After posing questions, scientists use observations to make inferences. • Inference combined with creative imagination can help to form a hypothesis.
Designing Controlled Experiments • Hypotheses should be tested in controlled experiments. • You need controlling variables to determine what is responsible for any changes that occur. • Scientists use multiple control and experimental groups so they can replicate the experiment.
Collecting and Analyzing Data • Quantitative Data – numbers obtained by counting or measuring • Qualitative Data – descriptions that can not be counted • To avoid error use a larger sample size. The larger the sample size, the more reliable the data is.
Drawing Conclusions • Use experimental data to support, refute, or revise the hypothesis. • If the hypothesis is not fully supported, you can reevaluate and design a new experiment.
When Experiments Are Not Possible • Some hypotheses can be tested by observation. • Some experiments are not possible because of ethics. Weather Patterns
Exploration and Discovery: Where Ideas Come From • Observations may be inspired by scientific attitudes, practical problems, and new technology
Scientific Attitudes • Curiosity, skepticism, open-mindedness, and creativity help scientists generate new ideas • Skeptics question existing ideas and hypotheses
Practical Problems • Practical questions and issues inspire scientific questions, hypotheses, and experiments
The Role of Technology • Scientific discoveries may lead to new technologies, which enable scientists to ask new questions or to gather data in different ways
Communicating Results: Reviewing and Sharing Ideas • Communication and sharing of ideas are vital to modern science
Peer Review • Scientists publish articles, which contain details about experimental conditions, controls, data, analysis, and conclusions • These articles have been peer-reviewed by anonymous, independent experts, and allow researchers to share ideas and to test and evaluate each other’s work
Sharing Knowledge and New Ideas • New scientific finding spark new questions • Each new questions leads to new hypotheses and new experiments
Scientific Theories • The word theory applies to a well-tested explanation that unifies a broad range of observations and hypotheses and that enables scientists to make accurate predictions about new situations • No theory is considered absolute truth
Science and Society • Certain questions can’t be answered by science alone. • They involve the society in which we live, our economy, and our laws and moral principles. Testing Mussels for Toxins
Science, Ethics, ad Morality • Pure science doesn’t include ethical or moral viewpoints • Science can’t tell us why life exists or what ways technology should be applied.
Avoiding Bias • Bias can be personal taste, preference for someone or something, and social standards of beauty • Scientific data can be misinterpreted or misapplied by scientists who want to pave a particular point
Characteristics of Living Things • Living things are made up of basic unites called cells, are based on a universal genetic code, obtain and use material and energy, grow and develop, reproduce, respond to their environment, maintain a stable internal environment, and change over time
Big Ideas in Biology • All biological studies are tied together by themes and methods of study that cut across disciplines. • The study of biology revolves around several interlocking big ideas.
1. Cellular Basis of Life • There are unicellular and multicellular organisms • Cells in mulitcellular organisms have many different shapes, sizes, and functions
2. Information and Heredity • Living things are based on universal genetic code • The information coded in DNA can influence your future, like risks for developing illnesses, or hair color
3. Matter and Energy • Life requires matter that serves as nutrients to build body structures, and energy fuels life’s processes
4. Growth, Development, and Reproduction • All living things reproduce, and the young grow and develop as they mature • During growth and development, generalized cells typically become more and more different and specialized for particular functions.
5. Homeostasis • Living things maintain a relatively stable internal environment • The breakdown of homeostasis may have serious or even fatal consequences.
6. Evolution • Evolutionary change links all forms of life to a common origin • Evolutionary theory is the central organizing principle of all biological and biomedical sciences
7. Structure and Function • Each major group of organisms has evolved its own collection of structures that make particular functions possible
8. Unity and Diversity of Life • All living things are fundamentally similar at the molecular level. • All organisms are considered of a common set of carbon-based molecules, store information in a common genetic code, and use proteins to build their structures and carry out their functions
9. Interdependence in Nature • All forms of life are connected into a biosphere and are linked to one another and to the land, water, and air around them • The relationship depends on the cycling of matter and the flow of energy
10. Science as a Way of Knowing • The job of science is to use observations, questions, and experiments to explain the natural world in terms of natural forces and events • Scientific research reveals rules and patterns that can explain and predict at least some events in nature
Fields of Biology • Biology includes many overlapping fields that use different tools to study life from the level of molecules to the entire planet
Global Ecology • Global ecological studies are enabling us to learn about our global impact
Biotechnology • This field is based on our ability to “edit” and rewrite the genetic code • Biotechnology raises ethical, legal, and social questions
Building the Tree of Life • Biologists have discovered and identified roughly 1.8 million different kinds of living organisms • They want to combine the latest genetic information with computer technology to organize all living things into a single universal “Tree of All Life”
Ecology and Evolution of Infectious Diseases • Relationships between hosts and pathogens are constantly changing • Organisms that can cause human disease have their own ecology, which involve our bodies, medicines we take, and our interactions with each other and the environment
Genomics and Molecular Biology • These fields focus on studies of DNA and other molecules inside cells.
Performing Biological Investigations • Biologists like other scientists, rely on a common system of measurement and practice safety procedures when conducting studies
Scientific Measurements • Most scientists use the metric system when collecting data and performing experiments • The metric system is a decimal system of measurement whose units are based on certain physical standards and are scaled on multiples of 10
Safety • Careful preparation is the key to staying safe during scientific activities