1.

1: Life
An organism is a life form - organisms share a suite of five characteristics:
Energy: To stay alive and reproduce, organisms must acquire and use energy.
Cells: Organisms are made up of membrane-bound units called cells. The membrane regulates the
passage of materials.
Information: hereditary or genetic, encoded in genes, along with information acquired from the
environment.
Replication: almost everything an organism does contributes to replication.
Evolution: populations of organisms continue to evolve.
1.2: Cell Theory
A cell is a organized compartment bounded by a thin, flexible membrane and containing
concentrated chemicals in an aqueous solution. The complete cell theory is thus: all organisms are
made of cells, and all cells come from pre-existing cells.
A theory is defined as an explanation for a general class of phenomena; on the contrary, a
prediction is something that can be measured and must be correct, assuming its hypothesis is valid.
A hypothesis is a proposed explanation for a phenomena.
1.3: The Theory of Evolution
Evolution is a change in the characteristics of a population over time. Natural Selection is a
proposed process that describes how evolution occurs. Natural selection occurs when two
conditions are met: individuals in a population vary in characteristics that are heritable, and
certain versions of these heritable traits help individuals survive better and reproduce more than
other versions. If successful, these traits become more common in a population over time. Artificial
Selection refers to changes in populations that occur when humans select certain individuals to
produce the most offspring. Evolution occurs when heritable variation leads to differential success
in reproduction. Fitness refers to the ability of an individual to produce offspring, while an
adaptation is a trait that increases the fitness of an individual in a particular environment. Cell
theory and the theory of evolution provide two central ideas: the cell is the fundamental structural
unit, and all species are related by common ancestry and have changed over time due to natural
selection.
1.5: Hypothesis Testing
Hypothesis testing is a two-step process: first, state the hypothesis clearly and list its predictions,
then design an observational or experimental study to test these predictions. A good scientific
hypothesis makes testable predictions which are accepted/rejected by analyzing data. A null
hypothesis specifies what should be observed if the hypothesis being tested is incorrect.
Experiments are important because they allow us to test the effect of a singular factor on a particular
phenomenon. Good experimental design has several requirements: control groups must be
included, to check for factors other than the one being tested that might influence the outcome.
The experimental conditions must be constant, and it is essential to repeat the test. Biologists
practice what is referred to as evidence-based decision making.