1. BOTANY 101 Chapter 1: An Introduction to Botany
History:
Botany: the scientific study of plants and their relationships
Plants affect virtually everything we do in the world
Humans have relied on plants for survival and pleasure for centuries
Plants are the basis for many national and world economies

2. Here are some common uses for plants today:
Clothes and fabrics
String, rope and paper products
Lumber
Furniture
Medicines and explosives
Musical instruments and sports equipment
Resins, synthetics, paints, rubber, soaps, oils, waxes, dyes, adhesives and plastics
Food and most of our drinks

3. Plants can also be problems:
clog rivers, crop pests, allergies and poisons
The Unifying Theme of Botany
Plants share several important features:
Plants consist of organized parts
Plants exchange energy with their environment
Plants respond and adapt to environment
Plants reproduce
All plants share a common ancestry

4. The Scientific Method
Botanists, like any scientists, use the Scientific Method to answer various questions in their field; such as:
How are plants constructed?
How do plants work?
How did plants get here?
Why are plants important to the world?
What exactly is a plant?

5. The Scientific Method
The scientific method is an investigative process used to study the natural world and collect facts.
Steps:
Make Observations
Ask Questions
Form Hypotheses
Make predictions
Perform Experimentation (tests)
Analyze and Interpret results
Form a conclusion / revise if necessary

6. Qualities and traits of the scientific method!
- involves critical thinking at every step
- deductive reasoning (if then logic)
- open mindedness
- comparisons
- objective vs. subjective
- quantitative vs. qualitative
- it is not foolproof
- must be testable
- must be falsifiable
- always adds new information

7. Also, some discoveries involve luck and creativity
Also, some discoveries involve luck and creativity. Everyone uses the scientific method!
Observations
Questions Abduction
Hypotheses
Experiments Deduction
Observed result Expected result
Conclusion

8. Major Plant Structural Divisions
Roots = grows towards ground (positive gravitropism)
Shoots = grow towards the sky (negative gravitropism)
Reproductive
Major Plant Organs (vascular plants)
Roots
Stems
Leaves
Flowers (in flowering plants only)
Plant Taxonomy (identification)
Mainly vascular plants dominate our ecology
>than 300,000 species
Represent a closely related line of descent
Evolved from algae ~ 450 million years ago (mya)