Second Quarter Science Vocabulary - Sixth Grade - Mr. Benton
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46. photosynthesis - the process in chloroplasts which turns water and carbon dioxide into food (sugar) for an organism using light energy
47. carbon dioxide - a gas in our atmosphere that is a necessary ingredient for photosynthesis
48. oxygen - a gas making up 20% of our air, that helps "burn" food in our cells; oxygen is produced in plants during photosynthesis
49. kingdom - the largest divisions or classifications of all living things; the five kingdoms are: Monera, Protista, Fungi, Plantae, Animalia
50. species - the smallest group in the taxonomic system of classification of organisms
51. scientific name - two word Latin name for a species that includes the genus and species names: humans are Homo sapiens
52. germinate - to begin to grow; to sprout
53. embryo - the early form of a multicellular organism; a "baby" plant inside a seed, for example
54. cotyledon - the part of a seed containing starchy food for the new plant (the embryo)
55. monocot/dicot - seeds (or plants) which have one cotyledon (monocots), or two cotyledons (dicots)
56. seed - part of a plant containing the embryo of a new plant surrounded by starchy food
57. shoot - the first growth of the stem and leaf from a seed (appears after the root)
58. root - usually underground part of a plant which absorbs water, holds the plant in place, and sometimes stores food
59 chlorophyll - a green pigment in leaves, that is necessary for photosynthesis
60. xylem - tiny tubes in the stem of a plant that carry water from the roots to the rest of the plant
61. phloem - tubes that carry food (sugar) from the leaves to other parts of the plant.
62. stomate - an opening in the surface of a leaf through which gasses and evaporated water pass
63. guard cells - curved cells which surround the openings in leaves, (forming stomates)
64. transpiration: process in which water vapor escapes from a plant through the stomates of the plant's leaves causing more water to be drawn in through the roots
65.
66. pistil - the female part of a flower
67. ovary - the rounded base of the pistil inside of which are found the ovules which will become seeds when fertilized
68. pollen - small particles containing DNA, produced on the anther of a flower, which fertilize the ovules ("eggs") of another flower to form seeds
69. stamen - the male part of a flower, which produces pollen
70. fertilization - the joining of egg and sperm in sexual reproduction to form the first cell of a new organism
71. dispersal - spreading out from a central point, such as seeds spreading out and away from the parent plant
72. decomposer - organisms that obtain food by breaking down dead material into chemicals that can be recycled through the ecosystem
73. carbohydrate - a sugar or starch; the source of energy in many foods; chemical formula contains carbon, hydrogen and oxygen
74. agent - something that acts on behalf of an individual; for plants, wind is an agent for seed dispersal, bees are agents for pollen dispersal
75. strategy - a method that accomplishes a goal for an individual; having seeds that will be easily blown by the wind is a strategy of dandelions for seed dispersal
1 population- all of the members of one species in one place
2. ecosystem - organisms interacting in their environment with other organisms and with non-living factors
3. community - two or more organisms of different species
4. individual - one single organism
5. abiotic / biotic - non-living / living
6. consumer - any organism that is not able to make its own food and must consume food from another source
7. producer - an organism that converts light energy into chemical energy (food). Plants are producers, as are green algae and blue-green bacteria
8. decomposer - organisms that obtain food by breaking down dead material into chemicals that can be recycled through the ecosystem
9. food web - a diagram showing the feeding relationships among organisms in an ecosystem; arrows show the flow of energy in the food web
0. energy - the ability to do work; comes in many forms - chemical energy, heat energy, electrical energy, etc.
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1. 2. autotroph/ heterotroph - an autotroph is an organism which makes its own food (like a plant, a producer); a heterotroph is an organism that must eat other organisms for its energy needs ( like an animal, a consumer) 3. trophic level: the position of an organism in an ecosystem related to its feeding habits; e.g.: producer, primary consumer, secondary consumer, etc. 4. carbohydrate - a sugar or starch; the source of energy in many foods; the chemical formula contains carbon, hydrogen and oxygen 5. calorie - the amount of heat energy needed to raise the temperature of one milliliter of water one degree Celsius |
6. reproductive potential- the number of offspring that an individual might possibly give birth to
7. limiting factor - any influence which reduces the reproductive capacity of a population
8. carrying capacity - the ability of an ecosystem to sustain (keep alive) a certain number of individuals
9. "10% rule" - on average, only 10% of energy and matter consumed by an organism at a lower trophic level is passed on to the next higher consumer level because most energy is used by any given organism to perform life processes.
0. detritivore - an organism like a worm or beetle that eats dead material (detritus) but doesn't break the material down into its simplest form (and is therefore not referred to as a decomposer in our book)
POSSIBLE FUTURE VOCABULARY:
. reproduce - create a new organism of the same species
. stage - the flat platform of a microscope on which the slides and specimens are placed for viewing
. objective lens - the interchangeable lenses just above the stage on a microscope
diaphragm - a circular disc with round holes under the stage of a microscope that allows varied amounts of light to pass up through the specimen on the stage
. inverted - turned upside down
. power - the magnification of one lens on a microscope; for example: the eyepiece is usually 10 power, written 10X
. mitochondrion - an organelle that "burns" sugar in a cell to release energy for life processes
tap root - a thick central root of some plants (different from fibrous roots)
phloem: tiny tubes in a plant that carry food from the leaves to the other parts of the plant
leaf - usually green part of a plant in which most photosynthesis takes place, producing food for the whole plant
guard cells - curved cells which surround the openings in leaves, (forming stomates)
photosynthesis - the process in leaves, which use the sun's energy to turn water and carbon dioxide into food (sugar) for a plant.
chlorophyll - a green pigment in leaves, that is necessary for photosynthesis
pollen tube - a hollow tube which grows from pollen grain stuck on the stigma, down through the style to the ovary, allowing the sperm (male DNA) to travel to the eggs in the ovary of a flower
anther - the tip of the stamen where pollen is produced
stigma - the sticky top of the pistil, which captures and holds pollen
gastropod - any animal like a snail whose stomach ('gastro') serves as its foot ('pod')
tentacles - on a snail, the structures on the head which serve as eyes and nose
cold-blooded - type of animal whose body temperature is the same as its surroundings ("ectothermic")
estivation - a condition similar to dormancy: a deep resting state which snails go into when it is very dry; similar to hibernation in cold weather animals
hermaphroditic - having both male and female sex organs; snails are hermaphroditic
dispersal- spreading out from a central starting point, as seeds do from a parent plant
phylum - subgroup of a kingdom (plural is "phyla")
anthropomorphism - attributing human thoughts and behaviors to non-human organisms
genus - subgroup of a Family in taxonomic classification (plural is "genera") A genus is divided into species.
exoskeleton - tough, rigid, protective outer layer of an insect's body
thorax - the middle of three sections making up an insect's body (with head and abdomen)
. metamorphosis - life cycle of changes in insects; can be complete or incomplete