1. WEEK ONE

2. SS ONE BIOLOGY TOPIC: INTRODUCTION TO BIOLOGY

3. BIOLOGY AS SCIENCE Science is the systematic and unbiased study of nat ural things around us. It is also the systematic study of natural phenomena in an environment i.e the study of how things work e.g the study of ho w plants and animals feed and what they feed on. Biology is derived from two Greek words "Bios" wh ich means life and "logos' which means study or kn owledge. This simply means that Biology is the stu dy of life. Biology can also be defined as the study of living things or organisms

4. BRANCHES OF BIOLOGY Biology basically has two main branches: 1. Botany- the study of plants 2. Zoology- the study of animals Other branches include Anatomy, phisiology, histology, taxonomy, cytology neurobiology, population biology, biophysics, genetics, embryology, evolution, ecology, microbiology e.t.c.

5. PROCESSES OR METHOD OF SCIENCE Scientific method is a systematic approach to investigate inquiries that arise from an observed natur al phenomenon. There are numerous ways of studying life scientifically which include one or more of the following key elements; 1. Observing 2. Questioning 3. Hypothesis 4. Predicting 5. Testing 6. Interpreting

6. FATE OF THE FORMULATED HYPOTHESIS 1. It becomes a theory when it has been tested and fou nd to repeatedly correc4 within the limits of available evidence. 2. A theory becomes a law or principle when it has been extensively tested and proven to be true.

7. AN EXPERIMENT An experiment is an orderly procedure carried out with the goal of verifying, refuting, or establishing the validity of a hypothesis. Experiment provides insight into cause-and-effect b y demonstrating what outcome occur when a pa rticular factor is manipulated.

8. CONTROLLED EXPERIMENT In control experiment all factors or variables affecting the results of the experiment are kept constant except the one that is being tested. For example, giving fertilizer to half of plants in a garden. The ones that receive no fertilizer are the c ontrol group. Without a control group, the experiment cannot determine whether the fertilizer-treated plants grow more than they would have if untreated.

9. HOW TO CONDUCT AN EXPEEIMENT The steps involved in conducting an experiment incl ude: 1. Aim 2. Apparatus/equipments 3. Procedure 4. Observation 5. Conclusion

10. IMPORTANCE OF BIOLOGY Knowledge of Biology is employed in the following areas: 1. Medicine 2. Agriculture 3. Technology 4. Industries

11. CHARACTERISTICS OF LIVING THINGS Anything that has life can perform the following activities or processes; 1. Movement 2. Excretion 3. Respiration 4. Reproduction 5. Irritability

12. Characteristics continue 6. Nutrition 7. Growth 8. Competition 9. Adaptation 10. Life span/death

13. ASSIGNMENT State the differences between plants and animals. NOTE: Submit Assignment upon resumption