Unit ___: Nature of Biology Name: ______________________________

Conceptual learning focuses on organizing ideas

and their interconnections.
● Outline the major themes in the study of
biology.
● State that the themes of biology are
applicable to all levels of biological
organization.
● Compare molecular, cellular, organismal
and ecological studies of biology.
● Outline the levels of biological
organization in order from least to most
complex.
● State an example structure for each level
of biological organization.
● Define biotic and abiotic.

Processes of life in unicellular organisms (A2.2.7).

● List the common processes carried out by all life.
● Define metabolism, homeostasis, excretion, growth, nutrition, movement, reproduction and response to stimuli.
● Describe characteristics of Paramecium or Chlamydomonas that enable it to perform the functions of life.

Species as groups of organisms with shared traits (A3.1.2).

● Define species according to the morphological species concept.

Need for classification of organisms (A3.2.1*).

● Define “taxonomy”
● List the levels of classification in the traditional hierarchy of taxa.
● Outline the benefits of having a system of classification of organisms.

Binomial system for naming organisms (A3.1.3).

● Define binomial nomenclature.
● State four rules of binomial nomenclature formatting.
● Outline why the binomial naming system is used in science rather than local names.

Engagement with local plant or animal species to develop a dichotomous key (A3.1.14*).
● Explain the use of a dichotomous key in the identification of a specimen.
● Demonstrate use of a dichotomous key given an unknown specimen.
● Develop a dichotomous key for a local plant or animal species.

Variation between organisms as a defining feature of life (A3.1.1).

● Define organism.
● Define variation.
● List sources of genetic variation within a species.
● Compare discrete and continuous variation.
● Compare variation within and between species.

Box-and-whisker plots to represent data for a continuous variable (D3.2.15).

● Compare quantitative and qualitative data.
● Compare discrete and continuous data.
● Determine if a data set contains an outlier.
● Quantify variation using descriptive statistics.
● Create visualizations of biological variation using graphs.
Themes of IB Biology

A: _________________________________ and _________________________________

Common ancestry has given living organisms many shared features

while evolution has resulted in the rich biodiversity of life on Earth.

B: _________________________________ and _________________________________

Adaptations are forms that correspond to function.

These adaptations persist from generation to generation because they increase the chances of survival.

C: _________________________________ and _________________________________

Systems are based on interactions, interdependence and integration of components.

Systems result in emergence of new properties at each level of biological organization.

D: _________________________________ and _________________________________

Living things have mechanisms for maintaining equilibrium and for bringing about transformation.

Environmental change is a driver of evolution by natural selection.

NOS: ______________________________________________________________________
Levels of Biological Organization

MOLECULAR

CELLULAR
ORGANISMAL
ECOLOGICAL
Processes of Life in Unicellular Organisms (A2.2.7)
Process and Description Sketch

Homeostasis
Definition:

Examples:

Metabolism
Metabolism is…

Viruses lack metabolism, a reason why...

Nutrition
All life….

Autotrophs:

Heterotrophs:

Movement
Sessile:

Motile:

Excretion
Definition:

Examples:
Grow and/or Develop
Growth:

Development:

Response to Stimuli
Definition:

Reproduction
Sexual reproduction:

Asexual reproduction:

Unicellular organisms carry out all the processes of life:

Characteristic Paramecium Chlamydomonas

Homeostasis

Metabolism

Nutrition

Movement

Excretion

Growth

Response to
Stimuli

Reproduction

Adapt and Evolve All of the structures and behaviors of the organism are the result of
evolutionary processes, resulting in organisms that are adapted to
the environment in which they live.
Species are groups of organisms with shared traits (A3.1.2)
According to the morphological species concept, a species is…

Classification of Organisms (A3.2.1)

To classify means…
Benefits of this system:

Binomial Nomenclature (A3.1.3)

Definition:

Rules:
●

Benefits of this system:

Dichotomous Keys (A3.1.14)

WHAT? WHY?

Variation between Organisms (A3.1.1)

Variation refers to…

Discrete Variation Continuous Variation

Define: Define:

Cause: Cause:

Examples: Examples:
Intraspecies Variation:
Definition:

Sources of Intraspecies Variation

Mutation Gene Flow Meiosis Sexual Reproduction

Interspecies Variation:
Definition:

Depends on…
Descriptive Statistics Name: ______________________________

What are descriptive statistics?

Why are descriptive statistics used?

OUTLIERS
Definition:

SKEW
What does skew measure?

The result of the SKEW test is a number between _____ and _____.
● If the skew value is negative, then your data is ____________________________
● If the skew value is positive, then your data is ____________________________
The absolute value of the number indicates just how skewed the data is.
● If skewness = 0, the data are ____________________________. A skewness of exactly zero is quite
unlikely for real-world data
● If skewness is between −.5 and +.5, the distribution is ____________________________.
● If skewness is between −1 and −.5 or between +.5 and +1, the distribution is
____________________________.
● If skewness is less than −1 or greater than +1, the distribution is ____________________________.
CENTRAL TENDENCY
What are measures of central tendency?
MEAN
● Mean is used with
_________________ data
with skew values of
_______________________.
● The mean has one main
disadvantage: it is particularly
susceptible to the influence
of ________________
● The mean is equal to the sum
of all the values in the data
set divided by the number of
values in the data set.
MEASURES OF SPREAD
What are measures of spread?
STANDARD DEVIATION
● Used in conjunction with the
______________ when there
are at least 5 trials of data.
● In a dataset that is not skewed,
about ______% of the values are
within one standard deviation
either side of the mean and
about _____% of the values are
within two standard deviations
of the mean.
● If all the data from all the trials is
pretty similar, the standard
deviation will be ___________.
If there is a lot of variation in the
data from all the trials, the
standard deviation will be
___________
MEDIAN
● Median is used with
_________________ data or
with _________________
data with skew values of
_______________________.
● The median is the
___________ number for a
set of data that has been
arranged in order of
magnitude.
RANGE
● Range is the difference between
the ______________ value and
the ______________ value in a
dataset.
● Range is used if there are less
than ______________ that are
being used to calculate a
measure of central tendency.
MODE
● Mode is used with
_________________ data.
● The mode is the most
_______________________
in a qualitative data set.
● Calculate the mode by
tallying the result that is
repeated more often than
any other.
QUARTILE
● Quartiles divide an ordered
dataset into________ equal
parts.
● Quartiles are a useful measure
of spread because they are
much less affected by
____________ or a
_____________ _____________
● Quartiles are often reported
along with the _____________
REPRESENTING QUANTITATIVE DATA SETS
Quantitative data sets can be represented and compared graphically.

Sketch example Histogram

A histogram represents the:

The X axis is the:

The Y axis is the:

Sketch example Bar Chart

A bar chart is used to compare:

The X axis is the:

The Y axis is the:

Error bars can be added to display:

Sketch example Line/Curve Plot

A line plot is used to compare:

The X axis is the:

The Y axis is the:

Error bars can be added to display:

Sketch example Box and Whisker

A box-and-whisker used to compare:

The X axis is the:

The Y axis is the:

Error bars can be added to display: