The Science of Living Things

The term life sciences means essentially the same as biology, which can be defined as the study o f liv in g things. L iv in g things have many c h a ra cte ristics which d istin gu ish them from non-living things. Living things can, for example, reproduce their own kind. They can also take in food and elim i n a te w a ste products. Moreover, they react to heat, c o ld , lig h t, d ark n ess, and other stim uli. Biology includes both botany (the study of plants) and zoology (the study of animals). Z o o lo g y is p robably more c o m p le x than botany. However, many life scientists study both plants and anim als, since they are connected. The field o f biology can be divided into many related areas; this passage will treat six of them. One is taxonomy, the sy stem a tic c la s s if ic a t io n and nam ing of living things. Another is pathology, which is the study o f disease, especially in animals. A third is anatomy, which is the study of the. structure of living things. Some other su b d iv ision s o f life science combine biology with another field o f study. Ecology, for example, is the study of the rela tionships between living things and their en v iron m en t. Another combination is bio logical earth science, which includes such fields as paleontology, the study of fossils. Still another combination is biological p sy chology. Biological psychology includes the study of b e h a v io r. Scientists distinguish between in n a t e beh a vior and beh avior w hich is learned. Innate behavior includes reflexes', such as pulling your hand away from a hot object. Innate behavior also includes in s tin c t iv e behavior, such as the organized activities o f ants and bees. Some innate behavior is influenced by cycles or biolog ical clocks. We can observe cyclical behav ior in the m ig ra tio n of birds. We can also see it in behavior differences between d iu r n a l and n o ctu rn a l animals. Learned beh a vior is behavior that has been m o d ifie d by experience. The con d i tioned reflex is a special type o f learned behavior. One famous experimenter in the area o f conditioned reflexes was Ivan P a v lov. In 1936, Pavlov presented results of his experiments with dogs. He knew that dogs produced s a liv a when stim ulated by meat. Pavlov conditioned dogs to produce saliva when they heard a bell, after he had condi tioned them to a sso cia te meat with bells. His work in d ic a te d that behavior is very much influenced by learning.

characteristics: qualities distinguish: to tell one thing from another eliminate: get rid of waste: used or unwanted material stimuli: things or actions which cause reactions complex: complicated, difficult systematic: organized classification: division into groups of related things subdivisions: divisions of divisions environm ent: things surrounding some thing (including soil, air, climate, water, light, temperature) fossils: remains of ancient plants or animals found in stone behavior: actions innate: natural, something existing from birth reflex: natural reaction instinctive: innate, not learned m igration: movement from one place to another diurnal: of the day nocturnal: of the night modified: changed saliva: liquid in the mouth stimulate: cause to react associate: to. classify one thing with another indicate: point out, show

L A N G U A G E ANALYSIS: Definitions
E X E R C IS E 1. M atch the terms on the left with the appropriate definitions on the right. 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. ___e____ botany _______ _______ _____ _______ _ _ _ _____ zoology taxonomy pathology anatomy ecology paleontology a. the study of the structure of living things b. the study of fossils c. the classification and naming of living things d. the study of animals e. the study of plants f. the study of living things and their g. the study of disease environment

L A N G U A G E ANALYSIS: Formal Definitions

A formal definition gives three types of information: a term, a class (or category) to which the term belongs, and distinguishing information. EXAM PLE: Botany is the subdivision o f biology that deals with plants.
term class distinguishing inform ation

A formal definition must not be circular. That is, it must not define a term by repeating that term. EXAM PLE: A botanist is a person that studies botany. E X E R C IS E 2. Read the definitions below. Some of them are circular. Draw a line through the circular definitions. 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. - A pathologist is a person w h o studies pathology A pathologist is a person who studies diseases. Paleontology is a science that deals with fossils. Migration is the movement o f animals when they migrate. Migration is the periodic movement o f animals from one location or climate to another. Behavior is how a person, or animal behaves. Instinctive behavior is activity not based on learning. Ecology is the science that deals with ecological relationships.

L A N G U A G E A N A LYSIS: Formal Definitions

E X E R C IS E 3. Read the definitions below. I f a sentence is a formal definition, circle the class and underline the distinguishing information. If a sentence is not a formal definition, draw a line through it. 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. distinction: A distinction is a characteristic that shows that one thing is different from another. reflex: A reflex is a movement that is unconscious or automatic. psychology: Psychology is about the mind. climate: Climate is the weather. soil: Soil is the top layer of the earth. taxonomy: Taxonom y is the science that deals with naming and classifying living things.

R E A D IN G C O M P R E H E N S IO N : Focus on Facts
E X E R C IS E 4. Check the words or phrases thatbestcomplete each o f the statements below. At least two words or phrases are appropriate for each statement. 1. Am ong the characteristics that distinguish living things from non-living things a r e _______ ---- ^ ---- ^ ----2. a. ability to reproduce b. ability to take in food c. response to light

Included among parts o f the environment are a. soil ---------_______ b. ecology c. water

3.

Innate behavior in clu d es_______ _______ ------------------a. reflexes b. modified behavior c. cyclical behavior

4.

Am ong the subdivisions o f biology are ---------------------------a. stimuli b. anatomy c. pathology

5.

Learned behavior ---------- a. is a kind of innate behavior --------------- b. has been modified by experience c. is influenced by learning

6.

Ivan Pavlovs experiments . . ____ ------------------a. pointed out that behavior is influenced by learning b. were with spcial areas o f instinctive behavior bemodified by experience

------- ---- c. concerned the way behavior can

C O N T R O L L E D W R IT IN G : Formal Definitions
E X E R C IS E 5. Refer to Exercise 1. Using the information from each column in that exercise, write formal definitions for the terms on the left. 1 Botany is the life science that deals with the study o f plants._____________________ Zoology

Taxonom y

Pathology

Anatomy

Ecology

7.

Paleontology

G U ID E D W R IT IN G : Paragraph Com pletion

E X E R C IS E 6. Refer to Exercise 5 and the chart below. Use them to complete the paragraph which follows the chart.

TAXONOMY: The Classification of H u m an s

k in g d o m .................... animal phylum ...................... chordata s u b p h y lu m ................ vertebrate c la s s ............................ mammal o r d e r ......................... primate fa m ily ......................... hom inidae

g e n u s .......................... homo species ...................... hom o sapiens

We can classify humans by using taxonomy. Taxonom y is ___________________________________

(formal definition o f taxonomy)

--------

....................................................... The chart above is an illustration o f how taxonomy

is used to ------------------------humans. Because humans are not plants, they are assigned to the ---------------------------- -------------------------------- Since humans have a spinal chord and a backbone composed o f vertebrae, they are further classified into the p h ylu m ________________ and the vertebrate....................... ...... Humans belong to th e __________________of mammals because they feed their young with milk and have body hair. Together with apes, monkeys, and other related anim als,------------------------ are assigned to the _ _______________order. Only humans and their direct ancestors belong to t h e ________________ of hominids and t h e _________________ homo. Only humans belong to the homo s a p ie n s ________________

FREE W R ITING : Definitions

1. Below are some subdivisions o f life science not mentioned in the reading. Write a defini tion for each. Use a dictionary if .necessary, but do not copy from it. biochemistry biophysics biomathematics 2. microbiology genetics pharmacology

Choose at least three of the definitions from the list above. Write a paragraph similar to Paragraph 3 in the reading.