Recognizing life’s characteristics and the methods used to study life provide a basis for understanding the living world

1. Recognizing life’s characteristics and the methods used to study life provide a basis for understanding the living world. Why is that important?

2. Reminder • Bio = • Logy =

3. What does the Text have to say? • Read together, pages 3 -10

4. The Characteristics of life

5. Notes • Biologists study • Interactions between living things • Interaction between living things and their environment • Problems or questions about living things and/or their environment

6. The Characteristics of Life • An Organism: Anything that has ALL the characteristics of life. • Must have one or more cells that contain DNA

7. The Characteristics of Life 2) Living things carry out reproduction • Reproduction: Production of offspring • Species: Group of organisms that can interbreed and produce fertile offspring

8. The Characteristics of Life 3) Living things grow and develop • Growth: an increase in the amount of living material and the formation of new structures

9. Characteristics of Living Things 4) Living things adjust to their environment • Environment: the air, water, weather, temperature, other organisms in the area • Stimulus: anything that causes an organism to react • Response: the reaction of an organism to a stimulus • Homeostasis: the control of an organisms internal system to maintain the conditions for survival

10. Together… • List the ways the human body maintains homeostasis… • Sweating • Shivering • Heavy breathing when excited, or exercising • Increased Heart rate

11. Characteristics of Living Things 5) Living things need energy • Energy: the ability to cause change or do “work”

12. Characteristics of Living Things 6) Living things adapt and evolve • Adaptation: A body structure, behavior, or internal process that allows an organism to respond to its environment and survive to produce the greatest number of offspring.

13. Homework • The Martian and the Car • In Marty’s defense… • What Marty missed…

14. What is Biology Worksheet • Worksheet • Questions 1-15

15. Wednesday Question of the Day…

16. The Methods of Biology • Describe a way that a baker might conduct a controlled experiment with a cookie recipe.

17. Scientific Inquiry (sometimes called the scientific method) Science is a process of thinking critically, using observations, inferring, comparing, contrasting and looking for cause and effect. There are several skills you must learn when you are setting out to study something in a scientific way.

18. Skills you will use during this class • Investigating • Observing • Analyzing Observations • Inferring • Predicting • Hypothesizing • Interpreting (Analyzing) Data/Observations • Making a Conclusion

19. Investigating • Investigating is finding out the cause of a situation or event. • Major events, such as weather changes, or ecosystems are normally too big to study, so we break it down into variables. • Usually when we investigate we start with a research question and a hypothesis.

20. Investigating Living Things Giant Fleas

21. Observing: Using your senses to pay close attention. You can observe in two ways. Qualitative: Looking for the “qualities” of an object or results. Usually made with your senses. “Anecdotal evidence” Not Exact Quantitative (Measuring): Finding the amount or specific size of something. Exact measurements OBSERVATIONS use your SENSES, you should NOT interpret them. We will get to interpret them later!

22. Observations of Fleas • List four observations. • Make two Qualitative observations, and two Quantitative observations of what is occurring in the flask • Share your observations • Add any that aren’t already on your list • List three questions that you have, based on your observations • The questions should be open-ended, not answerable by yes or no. • Share some questions • Are any of these testable?

23. Inferring: Explanation for observations • must be logical and make sense based on observations. • “A hunch” • Inferences are made without performing experiments or tests. . Remember, in an inference you are using your experiences to interpret your observations (your brain is involved here!)

24. Write down some inferences about our Fleas

25. Hypothesizing: A hypothesis makes a prediction about how one variable (the independent variable) will affect another variable (the dependent variable). • Can be tested*. • Usually presents a possible solution to a research question. Example Research Question: Do bouncy balls with greater densitybounce higher? Example Hypothesis: The density of a bouncy balldoes not affect*the height of it’s first bounce. *testable

26. DRY MIX • Dependent • Responding/Results • Y axis • Manipulated • Independent • X axis

27. Hypothesis Remember, a hypothesis is a testable prediction that suggests a change in the results (dependent variable), based on a change in the conditions (independent variable). • What is a hypothesis we might make? • You must be able to say if it is correct or incorrect Why?

28. Experiment • List the steps for a procedure we might do to test our hypothesis.

29. Analyze Results • What did we find out?

30. Conclusion • On the back, write a conclusion about what you “discovered”.

31. Experiments, Theories and Laws Laws are statements that are known to be true Experiments test one prediction and eventually document a trend or common theme

32. Experiments, Theories and Laws • Experiment: an investigation that tests a hypothesis Control group: a part of the experiment that receives no experimental treatment Experimental group: the part of the experiment that changes, the Independent variable or Manipulated variable.

33. Experiments Theories and Laws • Theories are explanations for an observed phenomenon. • A Theory is a hypothesis that is supported by a large body of evidence.

34. Experiments, Theories and Laws • Laws are facts of nature, also called principles • These are generally known to be true • Examples: • Law of Gravity • Law of Conservation of Energy