1: THE STUDY OF BIOLOGY AS A SCIENCE OF LIFE

Introduction:

Imagine the place where you live. It is what the poets have written about, or what the
artists have created paintings of? Or is it what the Book of Revelation says: “Then I sa a new
heaven and a new earth, for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away, and there was
no longer any sea.” (Rev.21:1)?
Modern scientists from different areas warn us of what could happen to our Earth if we
do not protect and preserve it.
As we go over this lesson, you will learn more about how the science of life can
provide you with the knowledge and tools you need to help preserve our planet.

Learning Objectives
1. Define biology and give its scope as a science of life.
2. Trace the progress and development of biological science through time.
3. Identify the many branches of biology and find out how these correlate with one another and it
contributes to the fields of study.
4. Describe some important biological processes and the tools utilized in their study.
5. Apply the study of biology and its principles to everyday life.

Lesson Presentation
1. BIOLOGY AND THE LIVING ORGANISMS

Biology is the science of life. It is the study of structures, functions and relationship of living things or
organisms. Biologists ask questions about organisms and answer these questions through scientific
investigation.

 If you were a biologist, how would you go about conducting your study?
 What things about organisms would you investigate?

One of the most important discoveries of a biologist is the unity exists among all forms of life. There is
unity in the sense that all forms of life share a number of basic similarities in units and structure as well as the
functions activities. Structure refers to the way the body is organized.
2. BRIEF HISTORY OF BIOLOGY

 Early Greeks were the first biologist. They began their biological investigations before 500 B.C.
 Natural philosophers. They were believed to be the first scientists.
 Aristotle, the Father of Biology, was one of the greatest natural philosophers who believed in the
Golden Age of Greece. He studied the hearts and brains of animals, he correlated the warming-
cooling functions of the heart and brain to human feelings and emotions.
 Galen, a Roman physician, became the greatest authority on human anatomy.
 Andres Vesalius, rebellious Belgian student. His methods of teaching and his anatomy book set
new and lasting standards for the science of anatomy.
 William Harvey, an English physician, was a physiologist ( a person who study the functions of
organism)
 Marie Francois Bichat (1800s), a physician from Paris, discovered that organs are composed of
tissues and that their functions could be determine only by studying their constituents.
 Rene Dutrochet, French physiologist and English scientist Robert Hooke followed with their
discovery of the cell as the basic unit of structure of tissues.
 Antoni van Leeuwenhoek, a Dutch naturalist and inventor. He made the first microscope,
consisted of lenses which were invented by the Jansens brothers
 Leonardo da Vinci, an Italian painter, sculptor, architect, and engineer,
 Had earlier suggested the use of magnifying lenses to observe tiny object before the compound
microscope was invented.
 J. Watson and F. Crick, together with another colleague, M. Wilkins (1953), discovered the
double helix ostructure of deoxyibonecleic acid (DNA).

3. FIELDS OF BIOLOGY
Biological science is the science of life. It is divided into the following
1. Botany – the study of plants
2. Zoology – the study of animals
The study of plant and animal life may be further subdivided into various fields, based on their areas of
specializations.
1. Morphology – the study of structure and forms of organisms
2. Anatomy – the study of the parts or structure of organisms
3. Physiology – the study of the functions of parts of an organism
4. Cytology – the study of structure and functions of cell
5. Histology – the study of tissues
6. Embryology – the study of the growth and development of new organisms
7. Ecology – the study of the environment and the inter-relationship of organisms in it.
8. Taxonomy – the study of classification and naming of organism
9. Genetics – the study of heredity
10. Evolution – the study of the origin and differentiation of different kinds of organism
11. Paleontology – the study of the fossils of living things
12. Microbiology – study of microorganism
13. Biochemistry – the study of the chemistry of organisms
14. Biogeography – the study of the distribution of plants and animals on earth
Biology may also be subdivided according to the specific kind of organisms being studied.
1. Entomology – the study of insects
2. Helminthology – the study of worms
3. Ichthyology – the study of fishes
 4. Ornithology - the study of birds
5. Mammalogy – the study of mammals
6. Conchology – the study of shells
7. Parasitology – the study of organisms that live and subsist or in other living organisms
8. Anthrolpology – the study of man

4.COMMON LABORATORY TECHNIQUES IN BIOLOGY

Many of these techniques are traditional, but with the application of new and better instruments, plus the
availability and development of new materials, many have been improved or are continually refined.

Here are some common biological techniques

1. Fixations – soaking of a specimen in a fixative like formaldehyde after cutting it to small pieces.
2. Mounting – placing of the specimen on a slide for investigation
3. Embedding – placing a fixed specimen in wax or plastic so that it can be easily slice
4. Sectioning – slicing of an embedded specimen into very thin cut
5. Staining – coloring of the specimen to bring out more details in a specific cell or in tissue structures.
6. Centrifugation – use of centrifuge to spin suspended materials in a liquid so as to collect these
materials by fractions or layers
7. Microdissection – use of tiny instrument to perform various operations on living cells; done under the
microscope
8. Chromatography – separation and analysis of complex chemical mixtures
9. Electrophoresis – separation of substances composed of particles with electric charges
10. Spectrophotometry – use of light to analyze samples to determine what a substance is and how much
of it is present in a sample
11. Cell and tissue culture – technique used to maintain living cells or tissues in a tissue culture outside
the body

Some Theories on the Origin of Life

1. Divine or special creation theory- this theory was taken from the bible where life was created by one
Supreme Being whom we all call GOD.
2. Spontaneous generation theory- this states that life could have originated spontaneously from non-
living matter. But this was discredited by Louis Pasteur in the 17 th century, by performing experiments
showing that living organisms can only come from its own.
3. Cosmozoic theory- life could have been brought here by aliens from another planet or has originated as
spores brought by meteors.
4. Darwinian theory- this states that life came about through a series of chemical reactions and gradually
evolved into the present living organisms.
5. Pre-organic evolution theory- this theory was authored by two scientists, Oparin and Haldane in the
late 1920’s. This states that life could have originated and then evolved from inorganic elements to
organic elements.
REFERENCES:
 Life Science, 1994. Lucy Daniel/Edward Paul Ortleb, Alton Biggs
 Biology-4th Edition. Peter H. Raven/George B. Johnson.1996
 The Living World, George B. Johnson, 1997
 Biology, Concepts and Connection, Neil A. Campbell, Laurence G. Mitchell, Jane B. Reece,
2000
 Biology, Carmelita M. Capco, 2011