Welcome to Fun Fact Weekend: Saturday Day Two! This series, Fun Fact Weekend, will talk about fun facts I’ve learned so far this school year. Yesterday, we talked about American history. I shared ten fun facts about American history. Today, I’ll share fun facts about biology!
Biology is so interesting to me. Today, I’ll share some fun facts that I’ve learned at school. From cells to the entire biosphere, these fun facts cover a wide range of biology topics. I hope you learn something and enjoy! Let’s dive in!
Biology Fun Fact #1:
If you read Leviticus, you’ll find many laws on cleanliness. During Black Death, these biblical laws may have helped protect the Jewish people from getting sick! Back then, no one in medieval Europe was aware of germs as we are today. They didn’t connect the dots that the Jewish people didn’t get the plague because they had good hygiene. Instead, many blamed them for poisoning wells! This led to persecution. However, now we know that good hygiene prevents sickness. So, wash your hands!
Biology Fun Fact #2:
In animal cell diagrams, you’ll see the cell membrane as a thin layer surrounding the cell. However, the cell membrane does a lot more than contain the cell! It’s essential in maintaining homeostasis. The cell membrane has a phospholipid bilayer. This means that the outside loves water, but the inside doesn’t. This is important in keeping us from dissolving in swimming pools! The cell membrane also controls what goes in and out of the cell. By active or passive transport, materials are transported into the cell.
Biology Fun Fact #3:
Most of the Earth’s oxygen is produced by the ocean! You may know that plants give us oxygen through photosynthesis, but algae and even some bacteria can do photosynthesis too! These things live in the ocean and provide an estimated 50-80% of Earth’s oxygen.
Biology Fun Fact #4:
Hemoglobin in blood transports oxygen. Did you know that four tiny iron atoms in the hemoglobin protein are what make oxygen able to attach? So, that’s why you hear people say that iron is important for healthy blood.
Biology Fun Fact #5:
In Yellowstone Park, people once ended the wolf population, thinking it would help the ecosystem. Nope. It didn’t help. No wolves just made the deer population go out of control, causing damage to plants. Then, after reintroducing wolves to the park, the ecosystem began to recover.
Biology Fun Fact #6:
Viruses aren’t alive! They aren’t made of cells, barely respond to stimuli, and need a host cell in order to multiply. If something even misses even one of the requirements of life, it isn’t an organism. So, viruses are just packets of genetic material floating around.
Biology Fun Fact #7:
When you think of an animal, you probably think of something from Phylum Chordata. This means it has or had a notochord somewhere in its lifetime. So, dogs, fish, and you are in this phylum. Animals from this phylum with a backbone are also called vertebrates. Did you know that out of the many phyla in the Kingdom Animalia, only one has animals with backbones? There are so many animals that don’t have backbones.
Biology Fun Fact #8:
It’s September, almost October. Fall is here! The weather is finally cooling, and the leaves are turning red, orange, and yellow. Have you ever wondered why leaves change colors in autumn? During the spring and summer, leaves are green because of a pigment called chlorophyll. This pigment captures the sun’s energy, allowing the plant to go through photosynthesis. In fall and winter, there’s not as much sunlight. That means the plant can’t go through photosynthesis as much. The chlorophyll fades away, meaning the other colors can show. So, that’s how we get beautiful fall leaves.
Biology Fun Fact #9:
Carbon is super important to living things. It’s so important that there’s a whole branch of science, called organic chemistry, that studies carbon and other important atoms for life. Carbon is strong and forms four bonds with other atoms. Sugar and lipids are made of carbon. Living things need these things to survive. Plants also need carbon dioxide for photosynthesis. That’s how we get yummy apples. Hooray for carbon!
Biology Fun Fact #10:
You may know that DNA is stored in the nucleus of a cell, but did you know that mitochondria also have DNA? It doesn’t determine physical characteristics, but it’s still important for the cell. Also, mitochondrial DNA is only inherited from the mother. I’m so giving my mom a Mother’s Day card that says that.
That’s all for Fun Fact Weekend: Saturday Day Two! If you liked this blog post, comment and check out my living kingdoms personality quiz! See you tomorrow for the last day! Bye, girlies!
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