Science Vocabulary
a characteristic of an organism that increases its chance of survival in its environment
adaption
a procedure that is carried out and repeated under controlled conditions in order to discover, demonstrate, or test a hypothesis; includes all components of the scientific method
experiment
a whole or part of a plant or animal that has been preserved in sedimentary rock
fossil
the process by which a liquid is converted to its vapor phase by heating the liquid
evaporation
an imaginary circle around Earth’s surface located between the poles and a plane perpendicular to its axis of rotation that divides it into the Northern and Southern Hemispheres
equator
the layers of gas that surround Earth, other planets, or stars
atmosphere
the wearing away of Earth’s surface by the breakdown and transportation of rock and soil
erosion
the smallest unit of a chemical element that can still retain the properties of that element
atom
a place in an ecosystem where an organism normally lives
habitat
the process of changing from a gas (i.e., water vapor) to a liquid (i.e., dew); the act of making more dense or compact
condensation
an integrated unit of a biological community, its physical environment, and interactions
ecosystem
a reaction or a change in a substance produced by chemical means that results in producing a different chemical
chemical change
a quantity that describes the capacity to do work; a source of usable power
energy
a physical change that occurs when matter changes to another state (i.e., liquid, gas, or solid)
change of state
a procedure that is carried out and repeated under controlled conditions in order to discover, demonstrate, or test a hypothesis; includes all components of the scientific method
food web
an organism that feeds on other organisms for food
consumer
concentration of matter of an object; number of individuals in the same species that live in a given area; the mass per unit volume of a substance in a given area
all the populations of organisms belonging to different species and sharing the same geographical area
community
a star pattern identified and named as a definite group; usually thought of as forming certain shapes or figures in a specific region of the sky
constellation
the imaginary line on which an object rotates (e.g., Earth’s axis runs through Earth between the North Pole and the South Pole); an imaginary straight line that runs through a body; a reference to the line in a coordinate system or graph
axis
a substance made up of a combination of two or more elements held together by chemical bonds that cannot be separated by physical means; has properties unlike those of the elements that make up the compound
compound
an animal or plant that consumes or obtains nutrients from animals
carnivore
the sum of conditions affecting an organism, including all living and nonliving things in an area, such as plants, animals, water, soil, weather, landforms, and air
environment
controlled use and/or maintenance of natural resources; various efforts to preserve or protect natural resources
conservation
the shaking of the ground caused by a sudden release of energy in Earth’s crust
earthquake