Biologiju

Biologiju (biology) is a field of natural science dedicated to the study of life. It encompasses the structure, function, growth, origin, evolution, and distribution of living organisms, as well as their interactions with each other and their environments. The study range extends from molecular and cellular mechanisms to whole organisms and ecosystems.

Core concepts include cells as the basic unit of life, genes and heredity, metabolism and energy flow, homeostasis, and evolution by natural selection. Biology uses observation, experiment, and modeling, and relies on techniques from chemistry, physics, and computation. Key methods include microscopy, spectroscopy, sequencing, imaging, and bioinformatics.

Biology is organized into many subfields, such as botany, zoology, microbiology, genetics, physiology, ecology, evolutionary biology, and molecular biology. Interdisciplinary areas such as biochemistry, systems biology, neuroscience, and biotechnology integrate biological knowledge with other disciplines.

Historically, biology emerged from natural philosophy and taxonomy, with milestones including Linnaeus's classification, Darwin's theory of evolution, Mendelian genetics, and the discovery of DNA's structure. Modern biology also faces ethical questions about genetic modification, conservation, and the application of biotechnologies.

Biology informs medicine, agriculture, environmental management, and biotechnology. It provides tools to diagnose diseases, improve crops, conserve biodiversity, and understand the living world. Students pursuing biology typically study chemistry, mathematics, and statistics along with laboratory work.