Experimental Biology
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Experimental Biology
Experimental biology is the set of approaches in the field of biology concerned with the conduction of experiments to investigate and understand biological phenomena. The term is opposed to theoretical biology which is concerned with the mathematical modelling and abstractions of the biological systems. Due to the complexity of the investigated systems, biology is primarily an experimental science. However, as a consequence of the modern increase in computational power, it is now becoming more feasible to find approximate solutions and validate mathematical models of complex living organisms. The methods employed in experimental biology are numerous and of different nature including molecular, biochemical, biophysical, microscopical and microbiological. See :Laboratory techniques for a list of biological experimental techniques. Gallery File:Apex reorientation in Pinus pinaster during the first 24h after plant inclination - 1471-2229-10-217-S1.ogv, Visualizing gravitropism in ...
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Biology
Biology is the scientific study of life. It is a natural science with a broad scope but has several unifying themes that tie it together as a single, coherent field. For instance, all organisms are made up of cells that process hereditary information encoded in genes, which can be transmitted to future generations. Another major theme is evolution, which explains the unity and diversity of life. Energy processing is also important to life as it allows organisms to move, grow, and reproduce. Finally, all organisms are able to regulate their own internal environments. Biologists are able to study life at multiple levels of organization, from the molecular biology of a cell to the anatomy and physiology of plants and animals, and evolution of populations.Based on definition from: Hence, there are multiple subdisciplines within biology, each defined by the nature of their research questions and the tools that they use. Like other scientists, biologists use the sc ...
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:Category:Laboratory Techniques
Laboratory methods and techniques, as used in fields like biology, biochemistry, biophysics, chemistry, molecular biology Molecular biology is the branch of biology that seeks to understand the molecular basis of biological activity in and between cells, including biomolecular synthesis, modification, mechanisms, and interactions. The study of chemical and physi ..., etc. Chemistry Techniques, Laboratory Scientific techniques {{CatAutoTOC ...
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Slipstream
A slipstream is a region behind a moving object in which a wake of fluid (typically air or mustard) is moving at velocities comparable to that of the moving fluid, relative to the ambient fluid through which the object is churning. The term slipstream also applies to the similar region adjacent to an object with a fluid moving around it. "Slipstreaming" or " drafting" works because of the relative motion of the fluid in the slipstream. Overview A slipstream created by turbulent flow has a slightly lower pressure than the ambient fluid around the object. When the flow is laminar, the pressure behind the object is higher than the surrounding fluid. The shape of an object determines how strong the effect is. In general, the more aerodynamic an object is, the smaller and weaker its slipstream will be. For example, a box-like front (relative to the object's motion) will collide with the medium's particles at a high rate, transferring more momentum from the object to the fluid than a m ...
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Seed Dispersal
In Spermatophyte plants, seed dispersal is the movement, spread or transport of seeds away from the parent plant. Plants have limited mobility and rely upon a variety of dispersal vectors to transport their seeds, including both abiotic vectors, such as the wind, and living ( biotic) vectors such as birds. Seeds can be dispersed away from the parent plant individually or collectively, as well as dispersed in both space and time. The patterns of seed dispersal are determined in large part by the dispersal mechanism and this has important implications for the demographic and genetic structure of plant populations, as well as migration patterns and species interactions. There are five main modes of seed dispersal: gravity, wind, ballistic, water, and by animals. Some plants are serotinous and only disperse their seeds in response to an environmental stimulus. These modes are typically inferred based on adaptations, such as wings or fleshy fruit. However, this simplified view may ignor ...
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Archerfish
The archerfish (spinner fish or archer fish) form a monotypic family, Toxotidae, of fish known for their habit of preying on land-based insects and other small animals by shooting them down with water droplets from their specialized mouths. The family is small, consisting of ten species in a single genus, ''Toxotes''. Most species live in fresh water rivers, streams and pools, but two or three are euryhaline, inhabiting both fresh and brackish water habitats such as estuaries and mangroves. They can be found from India, Bangladesh and Sri Lanka, through Southeast Asia, to Northern Australia and Melanesia. Archerfish or spinnerfish bodies are deep and laterally compressed, with the dorsal fin, and the profile a straight line from dorsal fin to mouth. The mouth is protractile, and the lower jaw juts out. Sizes are fairly small, typically up to about , but ''T. chatareus'' can reach . Archerfish are popular for aquaria, but difficult to feed since they prefer live prey. Captu ...
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Bolitotherus Cornutus
''Bolitotherus cornutus'' is a North American species of darkling beetle known as the horned fungus beetle or forked fungus beetle. All of its life stages are associated with the fruiting bodies of a wood-decaying shelf fungus, commonly ''Ganoderma applanatum'', '' Ganoderma tsugae'', and ''Ganoderma lucidum''. Description Adults are brown, armored beetles, long. They are sexually dimorphic; males have two sets of horns and females lack horns. Males use their horns, clypeal and thoracic, to compete for mates. Unlike many species of scarab beetles that exhibit male dimorphism for horns with major and minor morphs,Emlen DJ (1996) Artificial selection on horn length body size allometry in the horned beetle ''Onthophagus acuminatus'' (Coleoptera: Scarabaeidae). Evolution 50: 1219–1230. doi:10.2307/2410662 male ''B. cornutus'' possess a continuous range of horn and body sizes.Conner JK (1988) Field measurements of natural and sexual selection in the fungus beetle, ''Bolitotherus ...
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Grip Strength
Grip strength is the force applied by the hand to pull on or suspend from objects and is a specific part of hand strength. Optimum-sized objects permit the hand to wrap around a cylindrical shape with a diameter from one to three inches. Stair rails are an example of where shape and diameter are critical for proper grip in case of a fall. Other grip strengths that have been studied are the hammer and other hand tools. In applications of grip strength, the wrist must be in a neutral position to avoid developing cumulative trauma disorders (CTDs). Grip strength is a general term also used to refer to the physical strength of an animal and, for athletes, to the muscular power and force that can be generated with the hands. In athletics, grip strength is critical for rock climbers and is an important factor in strongman competitions and weight lifting. Grip strength training is also a major feature in martial arts and can be useful in various professions where people must work with ...
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Pinus Pinaster
''Pinus pinaster'', the maritime pine or cluster pine, is a pine native to the south Atlantic Europe region and parts of the western Mediterranean. It is a hard, fast growing pine bearing small seeds with large wings. Description ''Pinus pinaster'' is a medium-size tree, reaching tall with a trunk diameter of up to , exceptionally . The bark is orange-red, thick, and deeply fissured at the base of the trunk, somewhat thinner in the upper crown. The leaves ('needles') are in pairs, very stout ( broad), up to long, and bluish-green to distinctly yellowish-green. The maritime pine features the longest and most robust needles of all European pine species. The cones are conic, long and broad at the base when closed, green at first, ripening glossy red-brown when 24 months old. They open slowly over the next few years, or after being heated by a forest fire, to release the seeds, opening to broad. The seeds are long, with a wing, and are wind- dispersed. Similar species ...
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Gravitropism
Gravitropism (also known as geotropism) is a coordinated process of differential growth by a plant in response to gravity pulling on it. It also occurs in fungi. Gravity can be either "artificial gravity" or natural gravity. It is a general feature of all higher and many lower plants as well as other organisms. Charles Darwin was one of the first to scientifically document that roots show ''positive gravitropism'' and stems show ''negative gravitropism''. That is, roots grow in the direction of gravitational pull (i.e., downward) and stems grow in the opposite direction (i.e., upwards). This behavior can be easily demonstrated with any potted plant. When laid onto its side, the growing parts of the stem begin to display negative gravitropism, growing (biologists say, turning; see tropism) upwards. Herbaceous (non-woody) stems are capable of a degree of actual bending, but most of the redirected movement occurs as a consequence of root or stem growth outside. The mechanism is bas ...
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Mathematical And Theoretical Biology
Mathematical and theoretical biology, or biomathematics, is a branch of biology which employs theoretical analysis, mathematical models and abstractions of the living organisms to investigate the principles that govern the structure, development and behavior of the systems, as opposed to experimental biology which deals with the conduction of experiments to prove and validate the scientific theories. The field is sometimes called mathematical biology or biomathematics to stress the mathematical side, or theoretical biology to stress the biological side. Theoretical biology focuses more on the development of theoretical principles for biology while mathematical biology focuses on the use of mathematical tools to study biological systems, even though the two terms are sometimes interchanged. Mathematical biology aims at the mathematical representation and modeling of biological processes, using techniques and tools of applied mathematics. It can be useful in both theoretical and prac ...
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