Municipal Government of Pangil

BALIAN COMMUNITY COLLEGE

Brgy. Isla Pangil, Laguna
Tel. No.: (049) 557 – 1457
E-mail: bcc_1972@yahoo.com

BRIDGING PROGRAM
Second Semester A.Y. 2022-2023

Course Subject: BIOLOGY

Module Number: 1
Module Title: INTRODUCTION TO BIOLOGY

DESCRIPTION

This module discuss about the nature of biology, diversity among

organisms and their classification and also about the nature of life.

TARGET/OBJECTIVES

At the end of this module, the students should be able to:

1. Discuss the nature of biology

2. Explain the importance of studying biology
3. Name the different branches of biology
4. Analyze the role and importance of the scientific method in
studying living things
5. Give the different characteristics of living things that
differentiate them from non-living things
6. Discuss the different theories about the origin of life
7. Describe the different level of biological organization
8. Explain how organisms are classified
9. Identify the six kingdoms to which organisms belong
10. Describe the characteristics of each kingdom of organism.

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LEARNING STRATEGIES

Guide Questions
1. What is biology
2. What are the levels of biological organization
3. What is the importance of biology
4. Why biological diversity important
5. What are the different factors that affect biological diversity?

LECTURE GUIDE

Nature of Biology

Biology is a subject which by its nature is generally of great interest to students whether
they are science or non-science majors. This is because the study of Biology gives you an
opportunity to know more about yourself and your relationship with other living
organisms and the non-living environment as well. Biology is the scientific study of life.
It is the science that seeks to understand the living world. Biology is taken from the words
bios meaning "life and logos meaning "study or discourse." This includes microscopic
organisms as well as those visible to unaided eyes.

A Biologist is someone who uses the scientific method to study living things. The
scientific method is a way of gaining information (facts) about the world by forming
possible solutions to questions followed by rigorous testing to determine if the proposed
solutions are valid or meaningful. The scientific method involves making a hypothesis
about observations and testing the validity of that hypothesis through experimentation.
When hypotheses are disproved, they can be revised and tested in their new form.
Repeatability is an extremely important part of the scientific methodology because it is a
major basis for accepting or rejecting any hypothesis. Throughout the scientific process,
scientists communicate and share their ideas, these results in the development of the
scientific theories and laws which then help people to formulate their approaches to
scientific questions. Scientific research may be expensive and time-consuming, but there
is no more efficient and better way to solve scientific problems and obtain knowledge
about nature except its use. Below are some common research practices to get a sense of
how science works.

1. Observe some feature of nature

2. Structure a question about your observation
3. Read what others have discovered about the subject, then formulate a hypothesis, a
testable answer to your question 2
4. Using the hypothesis as guide, make a prediction - a statement of some condition that
should exist if the hypothesis is not wrong

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5. Develop ways to test the accuracy of the prediction by conducting experiments or
gathering information
6. Evaluate the results of or data on the tests or observations. Data that confirm the
prediction are evidence in support of the hypothesis. Data that disprove the prediction are
evidence that the hypothesis may be unsound
7. Report to the scientific community all the steps of your work, along with any
considerations you have drawn.

The development of Biology as a science had its earliest roots in our primitive
ancestors' interaction with the environment. It is in this field that man learned more about
himself because the human body is almost always the subject matter of Biology. Through
Biology, man learned how to improve the quality of his life and his interaction with the
environment.

No Biologist can study all the many and diverse forms of living organisms.
Biology, therefore, is organized into branches or divisions which continue to change and
evolve as more and more information or studies are added to the science of Biology.
Today there are organisms that are found not to belong to either plants and animals
because they differ in structure and in many aspects of their life. More branches or
divisions are needed as more researches are made, and new and better instruments are
used. Biology then is always understood in relation to other disciplines.

Importance of Biology

There are probably numerous answers to the question, "Why study Biology?" It
depends on the interests, abilities, ambitions, past training, and future plans of each
individual. Biology can be interesting if you make a conscientious effort to observe and
study the many wonderful phenomena that occur in living organisms from the lowest
single-celled forms to the highest complex types. Below are some interesting aspects of
the importance of studying Biology:

1. To know more about ourselves as man- such that we are composed of the same basic
units of structure found in other organisms.
2. To be familiar with many marvelous properties, abilities and characteristics of living
organisms.
3. To explain and understand the various living processes of organisms and their
interdependence with each other.
4. To determine the similarities and differences existing among living organisms.
5. To be familiar with the wonderful phenomena and laws of nature.
6. To help one appreciate nature and natural laws by making studies of typical
representatives of each group of organisms.
7. To acquire scientific training and techniques through experimentation and research.
8. To make wise decisions about many things that affect the individual, family and
community.
9. To understand the concept of stewardship, the proper maintenance, protection, and
conservation of our environment.

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10. To learn the economic and ecological importance of living things and to respect life in
whatever form it is.
11. To improve food production, health and disease control.
12. To serve as foundation for other professions such as medicine, nursing, dentistry,
education, etc.

Branches of Biology

Since the study of living things is so vast and complex, specialized branches
evolved and developed through the years and probably more will develop in the future.
The following are some branches of Biology and the focus of study in each area:

1. Zoology - study of structure and functions of animals

2. Botany - study of structure and functions of plants
3. Taxonomy - classification and naming of organisms
4. Morphology - forms and structure of organisms
5. Physiology - functions of organs and organ systems
6. Anatomy - physical structure of human and other organisms
7. Genetics - heredity and transmission of traits from parents to offspring Biology
relationships environment
8. Ecology - relationship among organisms and their environment
9. Cytology – study of cell structure
10. Histology – microscopic study of tissue
11. Embryology - development of an organism study of cell structure
12. Pathology - study of abnormal structure and functions (diseases) among organisms
13. Microbiology- study of microorganisms such as bacteria, algae, protozoa, fungi, and
viruses
14. Evolution - study of the origin of life and living forms
15. Phylogeny - explores the evolutionary seeks to reconstruct evolutionary history 16.
Paleontology - study of life in the past
17. Molecular Biology - study of molecules and chemical reactions within the organisms
18. Biogeography - deals with distribution of organism on the earth’s surface
19. Immunology - deals with the body's defenses against diseases and infection
20. Biotechnology- any technological application that uses biological systems, living
organisms, or derivatives thereof, to make or modify products or processes for specific
use
21. Biochemistry - study of chemical processes and transformation in living organisms
22. Marine Biology - study of plants, animals, and other organisms that live in the ocean
or any other body of water
23. Mycology - study of fungi
24. Parasitology - study of parasites, their hosts, and the relationship between them
25. Phycology - study of algae
26. Virology - study of organic virus
27. Ethology - study of animal behavior in their natural environment

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28. Biophysics - the application of theories and methods of physics to questions of
Biology
29. Biomechanics - study of the mechanics of living organisms or the application and
derivation of engineering principles to and from biological systems
30. Cryobiology - study of the effects of low temperatures on living organisms
31. Astrobiology- study of the effects of outer space on living organisms and the search
for extraterrestrial life

Characteristics of Life

The word life can be defined in several ways. It is the state of being alive or the
time between birth and present time and the state or quality that distinguishes living
beings or organisms from dead ones and from inorganic matter, characterized chiefly by
metabolism, growth, and the ability to reproduce and respond to stimuli. To better
understand life, it is important to know its attributes or characteristics. Living things
whether simple or complex share several characteristics. They have special attributes not
typically found in things that were never living. It is important, however, to recognize that
while these characteristics are typical of all living things, they may not necessarily all be
present in each organism at every point in time. By studying these characteristics, we gain
understanding into +h complex nature of life. The following are characteristics that
differentiate living organisms from non-living things:

1. All living things are made up of complex, structural units called cells the smallest and
most basic unit of life. Some are made up of only one cell (unicellular). Majority of the
organisms on Earth are single- celled, others are made up of many cells (multicellular).
Plants, some fungi and animals are multicellular and are composed of many types of cells.

2. Living things are highly organized. Their unique structural organization can be seen at
both the organism and cellular levels. In multicellular organisms, similar cells combine to
form tissues, tissues make up organs and organs work together in organ systems.

3. All living things respond to their environment. Every organism is equipped with some
senses for detecting changes in their internal and external environment. The ability to
respond often results in movement. Suitable responses help ensure survival of the
organism and allow it to carry on its daily activities.

4. All living things obtain and use energy for growth and maintenance. They cannot
sustain their organization or carry on life's activities without an outside source of
materials and energy. Food provides nutrient molecules, which are used as building
blocks or energy sources. Through nutrition, matter and energy that are locked up in the
structures of nutrients become available to the organisms. The ultimate source of energy
for nearly all life on Earth is the sun.

5. All living things reproduce or make another organism like itself. Bacteria and other
types of unicellular organism simply split into two, a process called binary fission. In

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multicellular organisms, the reproductive process is either through sexual or asexual
method. Through reproduction life is maintained indefinitely over many generations.

6. All living things grow and develop. Growth involves increase in size, while
development involves change in shape and form. Fertilization which is the union of
gametes or sex cells is followed by many cell divisions that result in an immature
individual, which grows and develops through various stages to become an adult.

7. All living things are capable of adapting themselves to their environment.

Adaptations are modifications that make organisms matched to their way of life.
Because of this they are able to maintain their specific identity for thousands and
millions of years, despite notable changes in their environment.

Theories on the Origin of Life

Ever since, man has been asking about the origin of life, these questions have led
to the development and formulation of several theories about the beginning of
life, which include:

1. The Divine Creation (Biblical) Theory. This theory states that life was created
by some supreme supernatural being-God. It has its foundation on the Bible
believed to be the written word of God. (See Genesis chapters 1-2).

2. Interplanetary Theory. This theory presents that protoplasm (the living

portion of a cell) in the form of resistant spores of lower forms might have
accidentally reached planet Earth from some other source in the universe.

3. Spontaneous Generation or Abiogenesis. Theory. This theory states that

non-living matter give rise to living matter. In 1668, however, a French chemist by
the name of Loius Pasteur disproved this theory through a scientific experiment.

4. The Physico -Chemical Theory of Life. This theory estimates that the earth
was formed from a rapidly rotating ball of gas about 5 billion years ago. In the
course of time (millions of years), there was gradual cooling of the earth that gave
rise to the bonding of free atoms into molecules then to compounds. As the Earth
continued to cool, these compounds interacted with each other and formed
simple organic compounds. The compounds formed were nonliving but they
furnished the building blocks or materials from which living matter could be
constructed.

5. Marine Theory. According to this theory, the first forms of life were formed
under the sea and mostly dependent on a sulfur-based food chain.

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 Levels of Biological Organization

One important concept in biology is that all living things shared structural and functional
characteristics. Another important organizing concept is that organisms are special kinds
of matter that interact with their surroundings at several different levels (Table 1).
Biologists, therefore are studying the molecules that make up living things, how the
molecules are incorporated into cells, how tissues, organs, or the organ system within an
organism functions, and how populations and ecosystems are affected by changes in
individual organisms (Figure 1). Finally, all the Earths ecosystems make up the
biosphere.

Table 1. Levels of Biological Organization

Levels of organization
Biosphere The part of the Earth that contains all
ecosystems
Ecosystem Community and its nonliving surrounding
Community Populations that live together in a defined
area
Population Group of organisms of one type that live in
the same area
Organism Individual living thing
Organ System Group of interacting organs that have a
common area
Organ Made up of tissues grouped together into a
structural and functional unit
Tissues Groups of cells that have similar structure
and function
Cell Smallest functional unit of life
Organelles Tiny organs making up the cell
Molecules Groups of atoms; smallest unit of most
chemical compounds
Atoms Fundamental units of matter

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Figure 1. levels of biological Organization

Classification and identification of Organisms

Worldwide, it is estimated that there are 5 to 30 million different species and

they are found in different habitats. Over 1.6 million of these have been named and
described, and thousands of new species are added to the list each year. Species diversity
is the extent to which an ecosystem possesses differences in species in terms of genetic
variation and distribution. Biodiversity is directly related to the stability of the ecosystem.
To study this diversity, biologists have devised a way o" dentifying, naming. classifying,
and grouping organisms. Systematics is the study of biological diversity and their
classification. It employs the branch of biology called taxonomy (Greek taxis which
means arrangement) which is the science of naming organisms and grouping them into
logical categories.

With such a great number of species of plants and animals and other living
organisms, it would be impossible for any individual to know all of them. One way to
make sense of the great diversity existing among organisms is to group them according to
similarities. Eighteenth century Swedish botanist Carl Von Linne who laid the
foundation for modern taxonomy established a classification system based on structural
similarity. Based on Linnaeus' principle, organisms that looked most alike were the most

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closely related. With some modification, this system is still being used today. Other bases
used by scientists in classifying organisms include similarity of behavior, food
requirements and the organism's chemical make-up.

Linnaeus proposed a system of scientific naming using two names for every
organism: the genus name and the species name. Identifying organisms by their genus and
species name is called binomial system or binomial nomenclature. This term simply
means "two-name naming. Together, the genus and species names of the organism make
up its scientific name. Since during the Middle Ages, Latin was widely used as the
scientific language; new species being identified were given Latin names.

When biologists adopted Linnaeus's binomial method, they eliminated the

confusion that was the result of using common local names. The binomial name cannot be
changed unless there is compelling evidence to justify doing so. The rules that govern the
world-wide classification and naming of species are expressed in the International Rules
for Botanical Nomenclature, the International Rules for Zoological Nomenclature, and the
International Bacteriological Code of Nomenclature.

Aside from assigning a specific name to each species, Linnaeus recognized a

need for placing organisms into groups. This system divides all forms of life into
kingdoms, the largest grouping used in the classification of organisms. Thus, nowadays,
each organism that has been classified has its own unique, binomial name. In turn, it is
assigned to larger groupings that are thought to have a common evolutionary relationship
or history.

Hierarchy of Living Things

The system of classification developed by Carolus ILinnaeus is a hierarchy or a

ranking system. Categories are ranked from the broadest and most general taxa to the
smallest and most specific taxa (individual Species). Each kingdom is further divided into
smaller groups called phyla, phyla are divided into classes, classes into order, order into
family, family into genera and genera into species.

1. Kingdom - a group of related phyla

2. Phylum/Division - a group of related classes
3. Class - a group of related orders
4. Order - a group of related families
5. Family - a group of related genera
6. Genus - a group of related species
7. Species a group of organisms possessing certain definite characteristics that can
interbreed and produce fertile offspring.

Diversity among Organisms

Living things are classified on the basis ofevolutionary relationships that exist
among them. The most recent classification recogni six kingdoms of organisms namely:

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1. Kingdom Eubacteria - known as the true bacteria. The prefix o. means true and
include both heterotrophs and autotrophs; some are aerobic, others are anaerobic. For
convenience, taxonomists divide eubacteria into various subgroups including gram
positive bacteria gram negative bacteria and cyanobacteria. Gram-positive and gram
negative are terms for the way bacteria respond to a procedure called staining.

2. Kingdom Archaebacteria - The prefix archae mean "ancient." Archaebacteria are

considered ancient because they probably resemble the first forms of life on earth. They
often live in unusually harsh conditions and frequently lived in oxygen-deficient
environments including hot springs, salt ponds and hydrothermal vents in the ocean
depths, probably ancestral to other bacteria, mostly anaerobic.

3. Kingdom Protista - eukaryotes; may be unicellular, colonial, or multicellular, can

reproduce sexually or asexually; occur in free-living parasitic forms. Protista comes from
a Greek word meaning "the very first." They are indeed the first eukaryotic organisms on
earth appearing about 1.5 billion years ago. They are classified according to the way they
obtain nutrition: animal-like are protists that are heterotrophs, also known as protozoans
like amoebas, paramecium and euglena; plant-like are photosynthetic protists known as
algae (algae include unicellular and multicellular types; and fungus-like protists (slime
molds) obtain their food by external digestion as decomposers or parasites.

4. Kingdom Fungi - eukaryotic, heterotrophic; sessile; mostly multi- cellular and

multinucleated; body composed of threadlike material called hyphae; can be free-living,
parasitic, or symbiotic; reproduce sexually by spores or asexually by budding or
fragmentation. Some have cell walls that contain a material called chitin. Fungi act either
as decomposers or as parasites in nature. They include molds, mildews, mushrooms and
yeast.

5. Kingdom Plantae - eukaryotic; multicellular; photosynthetic autotrophs with

chlorophyll a and b and other pigments contained within the chloroplast, with cell walls
that contain cellulose; non-motile tissues organized into distinct organs; reproduce
asexually by vegetative propagation or sexually by alteration of generations. The two
main groups of plants are the nonvascular and the vascular plants. Nonvascular plants
lack vascular tissues which are specialized structures for transporting water and organic
nutrients. They do not have true roots, true leaves and true stems. This includes the
bryophytes such as mosses, liverworts and hornworts. Vascular plants are those that
contain true roots, stems and leaves and have vascular tissues such as xylem and phloem.
They are divided into seedless and seed vascular plants. Seed vascular plants include
gymnosperms (cone- bearing) and angiosperms (flowering). Angiosperms are grouped
into two classes: monocot and dicot.

6. Kingdom Animalia - eukaryotic; multicellular; heterotrophic; have radial or bilateral

symmetry; motile at some stage in life cycle; reproduction is sexual although many
animals reproduce asexually. Generally animals can be grouped into two: vertebrates and
invertebrates. The invertebrates are those that do not have backbone or vertebral column

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and compose 95% of all animal species. The other 5% are called vertebrates because they
have backbones. Invertebrates and vertebrates are informal groupings which do not fall
under the formal categories of classification. Taxonomists have identified more than 30
animal phyla. Animals vary in size, color, body shape, habitat, and mode of eating.

ACTIVITY/ASSESSMENT

Activity 1 (essay)

1. Why is there a need to study Biology? Briefly discuss

2. Which of the following theories on the origin of life
mentioned above are you most convinced about? Support
your answer

Activity 2
Differentiate the following

1. Growth and development

2. Unicellular and multicellular
3. Fertilization and adaptation
4. Chitin and hyphae
5. Nonvascular and vascular

RUBRICS

5pts 10pts 15pts 20pts

Content & - Content is - Content is - Content is - Content is

Development incomplete. not accurate and comprehensive,
- Major points comprehensive persuasive. accurate, and
are not clear. and /or - Major points persuasive.
-Specific persuasive. are stated. - Major points
examples are - Major points - Responses are stated
not used. are addressed, are adequate clearly and are
but not well and address well supported.
supported. topic. - Responses
- Responses - Content is are excellent,
are inadequate clear. timely and
or do not -Specific address topic.
address topic. examples are - Content is
-Specific used. clear.
examples do -Specific
not support examples are

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 topic. used.

Organization - Organization - Structure of - Structure is -Structure of

and structure the paper is mostly clear the paper is
& Structure
detract from not easy to and easy to clear and easy
the message. follow. follow. to follow.
- Writing is - Transitions - Transitions - Transitions
disjointed and need are present. are logical and
lacks transition improvement. - Conclusion is maintain the
of thoughts. - Conclusion is logical. flow of thought
missing, or if throughout the
provided, does paper.
not flow from - Conclusion is
the body of the logical and
paper. flows from the
body of the
paper.

Grammar, - Answers - answers - Rules of - Rules of

Punctuation & contains contains few grammar, grammar,
Spelling numerous grammatical, usage, and usage, and
grammatical, punctuation punctuation punctuation are
punctuation, and spelling are followed followed;
and spelling errors with minor spelling is
errors errors. correct.
Spelling is
correct.

Learning References
Biological Science ( a modular approach ) revised edition by
Ramil M. Marquez Dr.P.H.

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