Biology Trivia & Facts

Biology

-Often referred to as the science of life.

-a natural science concerned with the
study of life and living organisms,
including their structure, function,
growth, evolution, distribution,
and taxonomy.
 Theories
formulated about
the beginning of
life
1. Divine Command Theory
- It proposes that an action's status as morally good is
equivalent to whether it is commanded by God.
 The theory asserts that what is moral is determined by
what God commands, and that for a person to be
moral is to follow his commands.

 Followers of both monotheistic and polytheistic

religions in ancient and modern times have often
accepted the importance of God's commands in
establishing morality.
 And God said, “Let the land produce living creatures according to
their kinds: the livestock, the creatures that move along the
ground, and the wild animals, each according to its kind.” And it
was so.

 25 God made the wild animals according to their kinds, the

livestock according to their kinds, and all the creatures that move
along the ground according to their kinds. And God saw that it
was good.

 26 Then God said, “Let us make mankind in our image, in our

likeness, so that they may rule over the fish in the sea and the
birds in the sky, over the livestock and all the wild animals,[a] and
over all the creatures that move along the ground.”

 27 SoGod created mankind in his own image,

in the image of God he created them;
male and female he created them.
 28 God blessed them and said to them, “Be fruitful and
increase in number; fill the earth and subdue it. Rule
over the fish in the sea and the birds in the sky and
over every living creature that moves on the ground.”
2. Interplanetary Theory/ Cosmozoic Theory

- It is proposed by Richter in 1865.

- The theory presents life was "brought“ to
the primitive earth from cosmic bodies
(in meteorites or in spaceships).
 The primitive bacteria arid other microorganisms
"arrived" here as spores transported by meteorites.
Finding fertile soil here, they grew and then evolved
into the various existing forms.
The theory is also called theory of panspermia or
spore theory.
3. Spontaneous Generation Theory or
Abiogenesis
-From ancient times until a century ago,
most people believed that certain living
things could arise directly from a non-living
matter.
4. Marine Theory
-the first forms of life originated from
the sea and mostly dependent on sulfur-
based food chain.
5. Physio-Chemical Theory of Life/
Naturalistic Theory
 Essentially, life arose from the water vapor carried
by the volcanic activity (vapor constituted about
10% of the released materials) in the early life of
our planet.
 Once the planet was cool enough for water to condense, a
rain cycle appeared a existed through millions of years.
This way, the first oceans appeared.

 The rain carried many particles from gases present in the

atmosphere but those particles weren't carried back to the
air when the water condensed. Thus, these particles
started accumulating over Earth's surface and, with the
help of water, they started combining into ever-more-
complex molecules. In matter of time, the first proteins
appeared.

 Through millions of years, these primitive organisms

evolved into the species that we know today.
 Filipino
and
Foreign Biologist
Foreign Biologists

384-322 BC
1. Aristotle
-a famous Greek philosopher, first
to classify living things.
-He divided plants into herbs,
shrubs, and trees and animals into
land dwellers, water dwellers
and air dwellers.
2.Adam

20The man gave names to all the cattle, and to the

birds of the sky, and to every beast of the
field, but for Adam there was not found a
helper suitable for him. (Genesis 2:20)
2. Galen
- A greek physician, described
the anatomy of human based on
dissections of apes and pigs.

3. Andreas Vesalius
-made the first serious studies
on human anatomy by
dissecting corpses. He
discovered that the body is
composed of numerous complex
subsystems, each with its own
function.
1809-1882
4. Charles Darwin
-In 1859, published the Origin of the
Species which marked the rebirth of
Modern Biology.
-He related the preexisting data and his own
thoughts into a whole new concepts of how
populations of living things evolved in to
their environment.
Feb 28, 1953
5. James Watson and Francis Crick
-made an inspired guess about the
DNA structured that revolutionized
many aspects of modern biology.
Filipino Biologists

1. Angel C. Alcala
- He worked for the conservation of tropical marine
resources and invented artificial coral reefs that are to
be used for fisheries in Southeast Asia.

- He is known for his research of Philippine amphibians

and reptiles which led to the addition of 50 new
species.
2. Benjamin D. Cabrera
-He has developed innovative drug treatments for
mosquito-borne diseases.

- He earned the Philippine Legion of Honor for his

work with filariasis, a parasitic disease. He also worked
on controlling Ascariasis, a human disease caused by a
parasitic roundworm.
3. Edgardo Gomez
-He researches marine ecosystems and is a well-
know marine biologist. His work on coral reefs led
to saving the true giant clam from extinction.
4. Eduardo Quisumbing is

-He is an authority of Philippine plants. He has

published numerous papers, many concerning
medicinal plants, like orchids.

-He has received many awards, like the Distinguished

Service Star (botany) and the Diploma of Merit
(Orchidology).
5. Claire R. Baltazar
-Her several publications on Philippine Insects
particularly on Philippine Hymenoptera are very
noteworthy to Science for they lay the Groundwork for
future biological management in the Philippines.

-Dr. Baltazar book Philippine Insects is the first

reliable book on Philippine insects.
BRANCHES OF BIOLOGY
1. Taxonomy
-systematized the grouping and naming of
living things.
2. Morphology
-formalized the study of forms and structures
of organisms into lower forms and higher
forms.
3. Anatomy
-made possible the study of the internal parts
of living organisms.
-it is divided into cytology, the study of cells;
histology, the study of tissues.
4. Embryology
-organized the study of how organisms develop
from a microscopic egg to an adult individual.
5. Physiology
-focused on the functions and chemical activities
that made possible the existence of homeostatic
organisms though how simple they may be.
6. Genetics
-made possible the study of the transmission of
traits and characters.
-this study reveals how a dominant character can
be physically expressed from a parent to an
offspring.
7. Ecology
-modernized the approach in the study of the
interrelationships between living organisms and
their environment.
-this constitutes the larger portion of our present
environmental problems such as pollution, flood,
forest fires, climate change, acid rain and
desertification.
8. Biogeography
-simplified the study of the distribution of
organisms on the Earth’s surface.
-this field aims to answer why different species
of living organism occupy a particular niche or
habitat.
Biology and other disciplines
1. Chemistry
-the science which deals with the study of the
atoms, elements and compounds of which living
organisms are made of.

2. Physics
-the science of matter and energy, plays very
important role in cellular and organismic
functions like photosynthesis and respiration
3. Geology
- the science of rocks and rock formation and the
origin and structure of the earth that relate to the
growth habit and distribution of organisms.

4. Astronomy
-the science of celestial bodies that somehow
affect the moods and mating or reproductive
habits of organisms.

5. Math
-also a language in biology, without which
genetics can never be understood
The Scientific Method
-Scientists work based on their special interests but
there is not a single standardized technique that they
follow rigorously in their investigation.

Steps in scientific method

1. Identify the problem
2. Significant questions
3. Formulate Hypothesis – intuition
4. Conduct an Experiment
5. Analyze the Result
Biological researches

Two types of Research

1. Basic research
-includes investigations that are not directed at
immediate or practical applications.

2. Applied research
-directed toward the solution of the problem or
for practical uses.
-to find solutions that may cure diseases, solve
scientific problems or develop technology.
Biological Researches
1. Yacon
-it looks like sweet potato and it has therapuetic
effect for diabetic though it is sweet.
2. Neem Tree
-pest control
3.Mushroom
-ingredient to staying young.
4. Sambong
-effective cure for urinary stones.
5. Seaweeds
-are for long life for it is rich sources of
Phosphorus (P).