What do biological sciences study: a list of applied subjects. Human biology

Biology (from the Greek bios - life and logos - word, doctrine), the totality of sciences about living nature - about the huge variety of extinct and now living creatures inhabiting the Earth, their structure and functions, origin, distribution and development, connections with each other and with inanimate nature. Biology establishes general and particular patterns, inherent in life in all its manifestations and properties (metabolism, reproduction, heredity, variability, adaptability, growth, mobility, etc.).

The first systematic attempts to understand living nature were made by ancient doctors and philosophers (Hippocrates, Aristotle, Theophrastus, Galen). Their works, continued during the Renaissance, laid the foundation for botany and zoology, as well as human anatomy and physiology (Vesalius and others). In the 17th - 18th centuries. Experimental methods are penetrating biology. Based on quantitative measurements and the application of the laws of hydraulics, the mechanism of blood circulation was discovered (W. Harvey, 1628). The invention of the microscope pushed the boundaries known world living beings, deepened the understanding of their structure. One of the main achievements of this era is the creation of a system for classifying plants and animals (C. Linnaeus, 1735). At the same time, speculative theories about the development and properties of living beings (spontaneous generation, preformation, etc.) prevailed. In the 19th century As a result of the sharply increased number of biological objects being studied (new methods, expeditions to tropical and inaccessible areas of the Earth, etc.), the accumulation and differentiation of knowledge, many special biological sciences were formed. Thus, botany and zoology are divided into sections that study individual systematic groups, embryology, histology, microbiology, paleontology, biogeography, etc. are developed. Among the achievements of biology are cell theory(T. Schwann, 1839), discovery of patterns of heredity (G. Mendel, 1865). The evolutionary teachings of Charles Darwin (1859) led to fundamental changes in biology. For biology of the 20th century. There are two interrelated trends. On the one hand, an idea was formed about qualitatively different levels of organization of living nature: molecular (molecular biology, biochemistry and other sciences, united by the concept of physicochemical biology), cellular (cytology), organismal (anatomy, physiology, embryology), population-species ( ecology, biogeography). On the other hand, the desire for a holistic, synthetic knowledge of living nature has led to the progress of sciences studying certain properties living nature at all structural levels of its organization (genetics, systematics, evolutionary teaching, etc.). Amazing successes since the 50s. achieved by molecular biology, which revealed the chemical basis of heredity (DNA structure, genetic code, matrix principle of biopolymer synthesis). The doctrine of the biosphere (V.I. Vernadsky) revealed the scale of the geochemical activity of living organisms and their inextricable connection with inanimate nature. The practical significance of biological research and methods (including genetic engineering, biotechnology) for medicine, agriculture, industry, wise use of natural resources and nature conservation, as well as the penetration of ideas and methods of the exact sciences into these studies, have advanced biology since the beginning. 20th century to the forefront of natural science.

Biological scientists and their contribution to the development of biology

• Aristotle - one of the founders of biology as a science; The first generalized the biological knowledge accumulated by humanity before him; He developed a taxonomy of animals, defining the place of man in it; He laid the foundations of descriptive and comparative anatomy, characterizing about 500 species of animals.
• Abu Ali Ibn Sina- was the first to write the encyclopedia of theoretical and clinical medicine “Canon of Medical Science”; One of the first to lay the foundations of pediatrics; Created several hundred new types of drugs related to both folk medicine, and those obtained using chemistry.
• Abu Reyhan Muhammad Ibn Ahmet al-Biruni- author of the work “Formacognosis in Medicine” - a book about honey. drugs.
• Brown- cell nucleus.
• Baer K.E.- mammalian egg, law of germinal similarity.
• Vavilov- centers of origin cultivated plants, the law of homological series of hereditary variability.
• Vesalius Andreas- author of the work “On the structure human body"; Created anatomical terminology in Latin.
• Vernadsky I.V.- the doctrine of the biosphere and noosphere.
• Virchow- cell theory, new cells are formed by dividing old ones.
• Galen Claudius- laid the foundations of human anatomy; created the first concept in the history of science about the movement of blood (he considered the liver to be the center of blood circulation), which existed until the 17th century. and refuted by W. Harvey.
• Harvey- pulmonary circulation. Did the greatest thing scientific achievement– discovery of blood circulation in the 17th century One of the first to characterize the initial stages of embryo development in birds and mammals (1651).
• Haeckel, Muller- biogenetic law.
• Hippocrates- The first to create a scientific medical school; Organisms develop according to the laws of nature, the world is constantly changing; Created an idea of ​​the integrity of the body; About the causes of diseases and their prognosis; About the physical (constitution) and mental (temperament) properties of a person.
• Hook- first observation of a cell.
• Darwin Ch.- theory of natural and artificial selection, the struggle for existence, the origin of man from the ape - evolutionary teaching. Author scientific work"The Origin of Species by natural selection, and the preservation of favorable races in the struggle for life."
• Ivanovsky- tobacco mosaic virus.
• Calvin- cycle of glucose formation in chloroplasts.
• Karpechenko- a prolific hybrid of radish and cabbage.
• Kovalevsky A.- development of lancelet and ascidian.
• Kovalevsky V.- paleontological series of the horse.
• Koch Robert- founder of modern microbiology.
• Krebs- splitting cycle organic matter in mitochondria.
• Cuvier J.- theory of catastrophes. Created the science of fossils - paleontology; In 1812 he formulated the doctrine of four “types” of animal organization: “vertebrates,” “articulated,” “soft-bodied,” and “radiate.”
• Leonardo da Vinci- wrote many plants; He studied the structure of the human body, the activity of the heart and visual function.
• Lamarck J.B.- the first who would try to create a harmonious and holistic theory of the evolution of the living world; He expressed the idea of ​​the development and origin of man from ape-like ancestors; For the first time he introduced the term “biology”.
• Leeuwenhoek- first observation of bacteria.
• Linnaeus- proposed a system of classification of wildlife; Introduced a binary (double) nomenclature for naming species.
• Mendel G.I.- laws of heredity. Founder of genetics.
• Mechnikov- phagocytosis, cellular immunity.
• Miller, Yuri- experience confirming the possibility of the formation of organic substances from inorganic ones.
• Morgan T.H.- chromosomal theory of heredity.
• Navashin- double fertilization in angiosperms.
• Oparin, Haldane- hypothesis of the origin of life from inorganic substances in an oxygen-free atmosphere.
• Pavlov I.P.- conditioned and unconditioned reflexes, study of the digestive glands.
• Pasteur L.- the principle of creating vaccines, proof of the impossibility of spontaneous generation of bacteria. Determined the emergence of immunology (together with I.I. Mechnikov).
• Priestley- an experiment with a mouse and a plant, proving the release of oxygen by plants in the light.
• Ready- proof of the impossibility of spontaneous generation of worms in rotting meat.
• Severtsov- main directions of evolution: idioadaptation, aromorphosis, general degeneration.
• Sechenov I.M.- reflex principle of the nervous system; For the first time he proved that red blood cells are carriers of oxygen to tissues from the lungs and carbon dioxide to the lungs from tissues; Together with Shaternikov; developed a portable breathing apparatus; Published "Psychological Studies".
• Sukachev- the doctrine of biogeocenoses.
• Wallace- theory of natural selection.
• Watson D, Crick F- establishing the structure of DNA.
• Fleming A.- closure of antibiotics; Discovered penicillin (September 3, 1928)
• Freeze G.- mutation theory; Introduced the concept of “isotonic solution” - water solution, isotonic to blood plasma.
• Hardy, Weinberg- population genetics.
• Chetverikov- synthetic theory of evolution.
• Schleiden, Schwann- cell theory.
• Schmalhausen I.I.- stabilizing selection. The doctrine of the factors of evolution.

Biology is the science that studies living organisms. It reveals the laws of life and its development as a special natural phenomenon.

Among other sciences, biology is fundamental discipline, refers to the leading branches of natural science.

The term “biology” consists of two Greek words: “bios” - life, “logos” - teaching, science, concept.

First used to refer to the science of life in early XIX. This was done independently by J.-B. Lamarck and G. Treviranus, F. Burdach. At this time, biology was separated from the natural sciences.

Biology studies life in all its manifestations. The subject of biology is the structure, physiology, behavior, individual and historical development of organisms, their relationship with each other and the environment. Therefore, biology is a system, or complex, of sciences that are largely interconnected. Various biological sciences arose throughout the history of the development of science as a result of the isolation of various areas of study of living nature.

The major branches of biology include zoology, botany, microbiology, virology, etc. as sciences that study various key points structure and life activity of a group of living organisms. On the other hand, studying general patterns living organisms led to the emergence of such sciences as genetics, cytology, molecular biology, embryology, etc. The study of the structure, functionality, behavior of living beings, their relationships and historical development gave birth to morphology, physiology, ethology, ecology, evolutionary teaching.

General biology studies the most universal properties, patterns of development and existence of living organisms and ecosystems.

Thus, biology is a system of sciences.

Rapid development in biology was observed in the second half of the 20th century. This was primarily due to discoveries in the field of molecular biology.

Despite its rich history, discoveries continue to be made in the biological sciences, discussions are ongoing, and many concepts are being revised.

In biology, special attention is paid to the cell (since it is the main structural and functional unit of living organisms), evolution (since life on Earth has undergone development), heredity and variability (underlying the continuity and adaptability of life).

There are a number of successive levels of life organization: molecular genetic, cellular, organismal, population-species, ecosystem. On each of them, life manifests itself in its own way, which is studied by the corresponding biological sciences.

The importance of biology for humans

For humans, biological knowledge primarily has the following meaning:

• Providing food for humanity.
• Ecological meaning - control of the environment so that it is suitable for normal life.
• Medical significance - increasing the duration and quality of life, fighting infections and hereditary diseases, developing drugs.
• Aesthetic, psychological significance.

Man can be considered as one of the results of the development of life on Earth. People's lives are still strongly dependent on general biological mechanisms of life. In addition, man influences nature and experiences its impact himself.

Human activity (development of industry and agriculture), population growth have become the cause environmental problems on the planet. Pollution occurs environment, destruction of natural communities.

To solve environmental problems, it is necessary to understand biological laws.

In addition, many branches of biology are important for human health ( medical significance). People's health depends on heredity, living environment and lifestyle. From this point of view, the most important branches of biology are heredity and variability, individual development, ecology, doctrines of the biosphere and noosphere.

Biology solves the problem of providing people with food and medicine. Biological knowledge underlies the development of agriculture.

Thus, high level development biology is a necessary condition well-being of humanity.

BIOLOGY, a set of sciences about living nature that study the properties and manifestations of life at all levels of its organization - from molecular to biosphere. Features of organization and specific manifestations of life at each level are studied by the corresponding branches of biology. At the same time, the solution to many problems of biology, for example. general laws of evolution or the origin of man requires the combination of approaches and methods of various sciences.

Man possessed primary knowledge about living nature already in ancient times. Their expansion and specialization are associated with various forms practical activities– hunting, cattle breeding, agriculture, as well as healing. Since the 6th century. BC e. ancient philosophers and doctors make the first attempts at systematic knowledge organic world. Thus, Aristotle (384–322 BC) is considered the founder of zoology, Theophrastus (372–287 BC) is the “father” of botany, Hippocrates (c. 460 – c. 370 BC) is the founder of a number of trends in medicine. During the Middle Ages and the Renaissance, no significant work was done in biology. The only exception is the book of the famous anatomist A. Vesalius, “On the Structure of the Human Body,” published in 1543, which gave impetus to the rapid development of anatomy in the 16th–17th centuries. In 1628 W. Harvey discovered blood circulation, thereby making a real revolution in the history of biology. Experimental methods and quantitative measurements are gradually penetrating biology. The invention and improvement of the microscope allowed the end. 17th century the first microscopists (R. Hook, A. Leeuwenhoek, M. Malpighi) discover the world of previously unknown tiny creatures, laying the foundation for microbiology, create the first ideas about the fine structure of organisms, and lay the foundations of embryology.

At the turn of the 17th and 18th centuries. The first significant work on the taxonomy of plants and animals was done. And in 1735 K. Linnaeus published the book “The System of Nature,” which constituted an era in the classification of flora and fauna and influenced all of biology. Linnaeus introduced double Latin names for all organisms into science and thereby gave biologists an international language that eliminated confusion and misunderstandings. Linnaeus considered all biological species unchanged from the moment of their creation. His contemporary, the French naturalist J. Buffon expressed the opposite point of view - species can change under the influence of the environment. The first complete theory of evolution was created by J.B. Lamarck (1809).

For biology, as for other sciences, 19th century. was a time of rapid development. Thanks to new methods, expeditions to previously inaccessible areas of the Earth, and closer interaction with other sciences, the range of biological objects and phenomena being studied has significantly expanded. On the other hand, as a result of the active accumulation of knowledge, major biological sciences (botany, zoology) are fragmented into more specialized ones dedicated to separate groups organisms. In the 19th century Almost all the basic biological sciences arise or develop - taxonomy, comparative anatomy, cytology, morphology, embryology, physiology of plants and animals, paleontology, evolutionary studies, biochemistry, ecology, etc. The most important theoretical generalizations were cell theory and Ch.'s theory of evolution. Darwin(1859). However, the largest discovery of the 19th century. - laws of heredity G. Mendel(1865) remained virtually unknown until the beginning. 20th century In the 19th century ideas that did not find experimental confirmation were finally rejected, for example. theory of spontaneous generation of organisms.

In the 20th century Various branches of biology developed intensively, but the greatest attention was paid to two main directions - molecular genetics and biosphere-ecological. Each of these areas has practical applications that can have a huge impact on the further history of mankind. Discoveries of the structure of DNA (D. Watson, F. Crick, 1953) and methods of storing and implementing genetic information led to the development of molecular biology. Achievements in genetic engineering, in medical genetics, deciphered genome person and others biological species, V cloning cells and whole organisms, in biotechnology may change a lot in the future production activities and human life.

Equally important in scientific and practical terms is the biosphere-ecological direction, in to a large extent Owing its development to the works of V.I. Vernadsky. Success in this direction is associated with the scientific development of conditions for preserving biological diversity and maintaining the biosphere in a regulated state suitable for human life and other creatures inhabiting the Earth.

Both of these directions have moral and ethical aspects, which have given rise to a new frontier branch of biology - bioethics.

A person is born and dies, reproduces offspring. His body has cellular structure, and every cell is made up of complex and simple molecules. Despite this, the human body has complex system, which consists of large quantity organs connected to each other into a single whole. Therefore, a change in the functioning of one organ causes a change in the functioning of the entire organism. In addition, the body reacts to existing stimuli from the external and internal environment as a single biological system. Higher control is provided by the brain - the crown of nature.

The Human Biology Project contains an expanded educational information, because within school curriculum It is not always possible to present it in sufficient detail. The proposed educational material has, on the one hand, basic foundation, and, on the other hand, motivates the student to self-study and immersion. This is noticeably manifested in diagrams, tables, drawings made in Paint program. Diagrams and tables will help you concentrate on the main thing, and drawings will help you visual perception a specific organ or part thereof. The teacher can use this material at any time both during the lesson or during its preparation, and when conducting individual work schoolchildren interested in anatomy.

Not all topics are reflected in the project. Why? We mainly based on the volume educational material textbook. The material is covered in more depth in the sections “Sciences studying the human body” and “The origin of man”. Historical material gives an idea of ​​the contribution of brilliant individuals different generations into science, for whom the words “The highest good of science is to serve man” are more than words. In some sections (“Musculoskeletal system”, “Breathing”, “Skin”, “Excretory system”, “ Nervous system") questions of an evolutionary nature are raised, which is important for a materialistic understanding in teaching. Collection of “Questions and answers and Interesting Facts"shows the perfection of the human body. Outwardly, people are very different from each other, however, the structure of the body of each person can be traced common features. Although the structure of organs and their functions are incredibly complex, human activity in work, everyday life, and sports is coordinated and coordinated. Thus, as the ancients said, much knowledge is not intelligence, but at the same time we must admit that knowledge of facts contributes to the development mental abilities schoolchildren of different levels.

Literature.

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