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This glossary of biology terms is a list of definitions of fundamental terms and concepts used in biology, the study of life and of living organisms.It is intended as introductory material for novices; for more specific and technical definitions from sub-disciplines and related fields, see Glossary of cell biology, Glossary of genetics, Glossary of evolutionary biology, Glossary of ecology ...
The binomial name often reflects limited knowledge or hearsay about a species at the time it was named. For instance Pan troglodytes, the chimpanzee, and Troglodytes troglodytes, the wren, are not necessarily cave-dwellers. Sometimes a genus name or specific descriptor is simply the Latin or Greek name for the animal (e.g. Canis is Latin for ...
Genetic distance is useful for reconstructing the history of populations, such as the multiple human expansions out of Africa. [3] It is also used for understanding the origin of biodiversity. For example, the genetic distances between different breeds of domesticated animals are often investigated in order to determine which breeds should be ...
Unusual names have caused issues for scientists explaining genetic diseases to lay-people, such as when an individual is affected by a gene with an offensive or insensitive name. [14] This has particularly been noted in patients with a defect in the sonic hedgehog gene pathway and the disease formerly named CATCH22 for "cardiac anomaly, T-cell ...
homonym: names spelled identically, but, in some codes, names spelled similarly, as defined by the code senior homonym (zoology): the first legitimate use of the name which generally takes priority; junior homonym (zoology), later homonym (botany): a later and generally illegitimate use, though in some circumstances the later name is allowed to ...
Also gastrocoel. The central internal cavity of the gastrula in most animal embryos, fated to develop into the lumen of the digestive tube ; the primitive gut. The archenteron initially has only one open end, known as the blastopore. B birth blastocoel Also blastocoele, blastocele, cleavage cavity, and segmentation cavity. The fluid-filled or yolk -filled cavity that forms in the developing ...
Also called functionalism. The Darwinian view that many or most physiological and behavioral traits of organisms are adaptations that have evolved for specific functions or for specific reasons (as opposed to being byproducts of the evolution of other traits, consequences of biological constraints, or the result of random variation). adaptive radiation The simultaneous or near-simultaneous ...
Anatomical terms are not included here and appear in sub-categories of the main Anatomy category. Initially, some alignment between this category and the article Glossary of biology was considered, but the inclusion criteria for the Glossary is substantially broader and encompasses terminology, concepts, objects and processes.