The branches of biology represent different aspects of a single great discipline. A science that deals with investigating and studying living beings in a broad sense. Physics, chemistry, genetics, are just some of the specializations in biology, let’s discover them together in detail.
The areas of biology: elements in common
The science that studies the physical processes and phenomena that characterize living systems is called biology. But this is also a generic term, which connotes a great frame. It is certainly a complex discipline, but the branches of biology have elements in common. What do anatomy , physiology , biochemistry have in common ? The concepts underlying the study and research in this area are the same: the cell as a basic unit , genes as a structure, evolution as theorized by Darwin. From these elements from which the areas of biology start and are based and basic theories unravel, such as the one for which unicellular or multicellular organismsthey are open systems that transform energy for survival and decrease the entropy of the system to manage the internal environment and maintain a stability, which is called homeostasis .
With these explanations we are already getting to the heart of the discourse which involves the use of terms and technical notions that are not immediately understandable for everyone. Biology research uses the scientific method, simple to understand but not reducible to plain English when it comes to returning results. Through hypothesis and experimentation , together with the rigorous analysis of the data, the validity of a theory is established.
Branches of biology: what are they?
Let’s go into the differences. We know that biology, which we quickly and generically illustrated in the previous paragraph, has a common vision and method but many and different directions. We will go briefly and one by one to describe the branches of the biological sciences .
Cell biology
The branch of biology that deals with the study of cells and their structure is called cell biology. This science has the task of understanding how cells work, and in particular these three very important aspects: properties , structure , functions . But not only that, also the interaction with the outside, with the outside environment is the subject of study. Cell biology had to wait decades, if not centuries, to develop. The appearance of the optical microscope has sparked: since then it has been possible to visualize cellular components, paving the way for a branch of life science of great interest.
Molecular biology
There are branches of biology that are particularly similar, and perhaps it is appropriate to say this also for molecular biology, which is partly aligned in the wake of cell biology. This branch shares assumptions from two different sciences: chemistry and biology . Alongside biology there is a knowledge that takes genetics and biochemistry into consideration . The ultimate goal, the ultimate goal is to study how the different parts, or rather, the various systems of the cell interact .
Developmental biology
An interesting definition, for one of the branches of biology less known to the general public. It is a distinct area of study which has as its objective the study of the evolution of living beings in their passage from life to death . Going more specifically, we can say that developmental biology studies the growth processes of organisms, growth , morphogenesis and cell differentiation .
Marine biology
Ours is a peninsula, therefore the sea is a constant. This address is perfect and recommended for those who want to study living things within the marine environment . But it’s not that simple, actually. Even the marine and oceanic world is vast, and if you want you can study some parts in more detail, for which there are other sub-categories: algology , cetology , ichthyology , and even malacology, the study of molluscs.
Physiology
The functions of living beings, related to the systems (i.e. a set of organs) are a further field of study for the science of physiology , which deals with understanding how the various systems work: nervous system , respiratory functions, reproductive system and others. If the living being subjected to study or research does not belong to the class of human beings, it draws on the various physiologies depending on the species: animal or plant physiology.
Genetics
Another field, another branch of biology that fascinates scholars is genetics. On this science we want to understand more deeply how biological inheritance is transmitted . Among the specializations of biology it is one of the most complex, the object of study are the genes and the segments of DNA and RNA that compose them.
Zoology
We talked about animal physiology before, because when said about the areas of biology it refers to a study that also unfolds on animals. The study of animal life takes the name of zoology, but we can also mention those that specifically address some species, such as aquarology, or arachnology.
