Levels of Biological OrganizationIn your journal start with the biosphere and list the levels of life down to an atom.

Play the game!• Levels of Life Card Game…• http://www.ldsd.org/Page/1436

Biosphere• All of the life on

earth and all of the places where life exists

Ecosystem (and Biomes)• Consists of all the living

things in a particular area, along with all the nonliving components of the environment with which life interacts, such as soil, water, atmospheric gases, and light• Biome – any of the

world’s major ecosystems

Community• All of the living

organisms inhabiting a particular area

Population• Consists of all the

individuals of a species living within the bounds of a specified area

Organism• An individual living

thing

Organ System• A group of organs

that cooperate in to carry out a particular function for the organism

Organ• A body part that

carries out a particular function in the body

Tissue• A group of cells that

work together to preform a specialized function

Cells• Life’s fundamental

unit of structure and function• unicellular• multicellular

Organelles• Functional

components within a cell

Molecules and Atoms • Molecule - A chemical structure consisting of

two or more small chemical units called atoms• Atom – the smallest unit of matter that retains

the chemical properties of an element

So what do all of these levels of life allow for....• Emergent Properties –

due to the arrangement and interactions of parts as complexity increases an organisms is capable of specialized functions (i.e. oxidative phosphorylation)

Does emergence only stop at the organism level?• No –populations can

work together to carryout complex activities – think of a colony of Ants; emergent properties are present at all levels of life

Reductionism vs. Systems• Reductionism -

Reducing complex systems to simpler components that are more manageable to study

• Systems Biology – attempts to model the dynamic behavior of whole biological systems based on a study of the interactions among the system’s parts

Reductionism could allow for the discovery of a drug that lowers blood pressure – Systems biology would make sure that the drug did not have an adverse affect on the rest of the body.