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General Biology: Properties of Life, Viruses, and Evolution

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  • What are the seven properties of life?

    Order, Regulation, Growth and Development, Energy Processing, Response to Environment, Reproduction, and Evolutionary Adaptation.

  • Define biological order.

    Biological order refers to the highly organized structure of living organisms, from molecules to cells to organisms.

  • What is homeostasis in biology?

    Homeostasis is the regulation of internal conditions to maintain a stable, constant environment within an organism.

  • How do organisms grow and develop?

    Growth and development are controlled by inherited genetic information encoded in DNA.

  • What is energy processing in living organisms?

    Energy processing is the use of chemical energy to power an organism's activities and chemical reactions.

  • Explain response to environmental stimuli.

    Organisms respond to environmental changes to survive, such as moving toward light or reacting to temperature changes.

  • What is reproduction in biological terms?

    Reproduction is the process by which organisms produce new individuals, passing genetic information to offspring.

  • Define evolutionary adaptation.

    Evolutionary adaptation is the process by which populations become better suited to their environment through natural selection.

  • What are viruses?

    Viruses are infectious agents made of genetic material (DNA or RNA) enclosed in a protein coat; they require a host cell to reproduce.

  • Why are viruses considered non-living by some scientists?

    Because viruses lack cellular structure and cannot carry out metabolism or reproduce independently.

  • Describe the basic structure of a virus.

    A virus consists of genetic material (DNA or RNA) surrounded by a protein coat called a capsid; some have an outer lipid envelope.

  • How do viruses reproduce?

    Viruses reproduce by infecting a host cell and hijacking its machinery to produce new virus particles.

  • What is the role of evolution in biology?

    Evolution explains the diversity of life and how species change over time through genetic variation and natural selection.

  • Define natural selection.

    Natural selection is the process where individuals with advantageous traits survive and reproduce more successfully.

  • What is genetic variation?

    Genetic variation is the diversity in gene frequencies within a population, essential for evolution.

  • How does mutation contribute to evolution?

    Mutations introduce new genetic variations by altering DNA sequences, which can be beneficial, neutral, or harmful.

  • Explain the concept of adaptation.

    An adaptation is a heritable trait that increases an organism's fitness in its environment.

  • What is the significance of the fossil record in evolution?

    The fossil record provides evidence of past life forms and evolutionary changes over time.

  • How do homologous structures support evolution?

    Homologous structures indicate common ancestry by showing similar anatomy despite different functions.

  • What is the difference between prokaryotic and eukaryotic cells?

    Prokaryotic cells lack a nucleus and membrane-bound organelles; eukaryotic cells have both.