BThe building blocks for proteins. There are twenty amino acids that living organisms need to make proteins. Nine of these acids are essential to life, but cannot be produced in the body. They are called IessentialI amino acids.
Ec[000000]f[16]LBangiosperm
BA flowering plant that produces seeds inside an ovary. Strawberries, roses, and dandelions are all angiosperms. The angiosperm is the opposite of a gymnosperm.
Ec[000000]f[16]LBannual
BA plant that completes its whole life cycle within one growing season. Corn is an annual plant.
Ec[000000]f[16]LBasexual reproduction
BReproduction that requires only one parent cell to produce offspring. Asexual reproduction can occur through binary fission, budding, regeneration, or parthenogenesis.
Ec[000000]f[16]LBauxin
BThe growth hormone of a plant.
Ec[000000]f[16]LBbilateral symmetry
BThe type of symmetry that involves two identical halves. If an object has bilateral symmetry, it can be divided in half lengthwise, and each side will be a mirror image of the other.
Ec[000000]f[16]LBbiodegradable
BAble to be decomposed by biological factors, especially bacteria.
Ec[000000]f[16]LBbiology
BThe study of living things. Specific branches of biology include zoology, the study of animals; botany, the study of plants; and marine biology, the study of sea life.
Ec[000000]f[16]LBbudding
BA type of asexual reproduction in which a new cell grows out of, or buds, from the side of a mature cell.
Ec[000000]f[16]LBcambium
BThe tissue of a plant that creates new xylem and phloem cells. The cambium is where growth occurs in the plant. In a tree, the cambium is found just under the bark.
Ec[000000]f[16]LBcartilage
BA tough, flexible material found in the joints. Cartilage is softer than bones because it does not contain all the minerals found in bones.
Ec[000000]f[16]LBcell membrane
BA thin layer of proteins and fats that surround a cell and hold it together; also called the plasma membrane.
Ec[000000]f[16]LBcell wall
BA structure made out of cellulose that surrounds plant cells and gives them their shape. Animal cells do not have cell walls.
Ec[000000]f[16]LBcellulose
BA natural polymer made of long strands of glucose. A polymer is made by linking together many molecules to form a more complex molecule. Cellulose is produced by the cell walls of plants, and is the most abundant organic compound on earth.BI
BI Ec[000000]f[16]LBcentromere
BThe point that connects the two strands of a chromosome during mitosis and meiosis.
Ec[000000]f[16]LBchlorophyll
BThe green pigment that gives plants their color. Chlorophyll is necessary for plants to carry out photosynthesis.
Ec[000000]f[16]LBchloroplast
BStructures within plant cells that contain chlorophyll.
Ec[000000]f[16]LBchromatid
BOne half of a chromosome. A chromatid forms when the chromosome splits in two.
Ec[000000]f[16]LBchromatin
BA substance found within the nucleus of a cell. It contains DNA and other proteins, and it comes together to form chromosomes during mitosis.
Ec[000000]f[16]LBchromosome
BA threadlike structure in the nucleus of a cell. The chromosome carries genetic material in the form of DNA, or deoxyribonucleic acid, which determines what characteristics the organism will inherit from its parents. Each human cell has twenty-three pairs of chromosomes.
Ec[000000]f[16]LBcold-blooded
BRefers to an animal whose body temperature changes with its surroundings. Fish and reptiles are cold-blooded animals. "Cold-blooded" is a misleading term, because cold-blooded animals may actually have higher body temperatures than warm-blooded ones.
Ec[000000]f[16]LBconifer
BA non-flowering plant that produces its seeds inside cones. Most conifers are evergreens, such as pine and spruce trees.
Ec[000000]f[16]LBcytoplasm
BThe jellylike fluid within a cell.
Ec[000000]f[16]LBdeciduous
BRefers to plants, especially trees, that lose their leaves in the fall.
Ec[000000]f[16]LBdecomposer
BAny organism that causes dead organisms to decay and obtains its nourishment from the dead organism. Decomposers are one of the three main kinds of organisms in a food chain.
Ec[000000]f[16]LBdeoxyribonucleic acid
BAlso known as DNA; a protein molecule in all living cells that carries genes, which determine the organism's inherited characteristics. DNA also controls all the functions of a cell.
Ec[000000]f[16]LBdicot
BA flowering, angiosperm plant with a network of veins in the leaves, and with petals arranged in groups of four or five.
Ec[000000]f[16]LBdiffusion
BThe process of moving particles from an area of high concentration to an area of lower concentration.
Ec[000000]f[16]LBdigestion
BThe metabolic process that changes food into a form that the body's cells can use. Digestion takes place primarily in the stomach and small intestine.
Ec[000000]f[16]LBdivine creationism
BThe theory stating that every species on earth was created directly by a divine being and will never change.
Ec[000000]f[16]LBDNA
BDeoxyribonucleic acid; one of two types of nucleic acids. It carries the genetic code that gives individuals their unique combination of characteristics.
Ec[000000]f[16]LBdominant trait
BThe dominant characteristic of an organism. The dominant gene from a gene pair determines what trait the organism will have.
Ec[000000]f[16]LBdormant
BResting. During the dormant stage of a plant's life cycle, it does not grow.
Ec[000000]f[16]LBendoskeleton
BAn internal skeleton that protects an organism's organs and gives the organism shape and support. Humans and other vertebrates have an endoskeleton.
Ec[000000]f[16]LBendosperm
BThe tissue that surrounds the developing embryo of a seed and provides food for its growth.
Ec[000000]f[16]LBepidermis
BThe outer layer of tissue surrounding an organism; also called the skin.
Ec[000000]f[16]LBexoskeleton
BAn external skeleton that protects and supports an organism. Starfish and lobsters have an exoskeleton.
Ec[000000]f[16]LBfission
BThe splitting of one cell into two equal cells.
Ec[000000]f[16]LBgamete
BA sex cell. A sperm is a male gamete and an egg is a female gamete. Gametes are formed by meiosis.
Ec[000000]f[16]LBgenes
BSegments of DNA in the chromosomes that control the inherited traits of an organism. Each gene has a specific place along the chromosome.
Ec[000000]f[16]LBgenetic code
BA pattern that determines the makeup of genes. The genetic code orders the arrangement of the nucleotide bases that make up DNA, or deoxyribonucleic acid.
Ec[000000]f[16]LBgermination
BThe beginning of the growth cycle of a plant, when the embryo starts to grow.
Ec[000000]f[16]LBglucose
BA simple sugar that is broken down in the cells and released as energy; also known as dextrose.
Ec[000000]f[16]LBglycogen
BA type of carbohydrate stored in the liver and muscle cells of the human body. It can be turned into glucose.
Ec[000000]f[16]LBgraft
BTo take a small shoot or bud from one plant and insert it into a second plant. The transplanted shoot becomes a permanent part of the second plant.
Ec[000000]f[16]LBgymnosperm
BWoody plants, such as redwoods and evergreens, whose seeds are exposed.
Ec[000000]f[16]LBheliotrope
BA plant whose flowers face the sun. A sunflower is a heliotrope.
Ec[000000]f[16]LBherbaceous stem
BSoft, green stems, such as the stems found on tomato plants.
Ec[000000]f[16]LBheterotroph
BAny organism that cannot manufacture its own food, and so obtains nutrients from a source outside itself. Carnivores, herbivores, insectivores, and parasites are all heterotrophs.
Ec[000000]f[16]LBhomo sapiens
BThe scientific term for human beings; literally tran
