biology: The study of living things. The scientists who study them are known as biologists.
circuit: A network that transmits electrical signals. In the body, nerve cells create circuits that relay electrical signals to the brain. In electronics, wires typically route those signals to activate some mechanical, computational or other function.
computer model: A program that runs on a computer that creates a model, or simulation, of a real-world feature, phenomenon or event.
develop: To emerge or to make come into being, either naturally or through human intervention, such as by manufacturing. (in biology) To grow as an organism from conception through adulthood, often undergoing changes in chemistry, size, mental maturity or sometimes even shape.
development: (in biology) The growth of an organism from conception through adulthood, often undergoing changes in chemistry, size and sometimes even shape.
engineer: A person who uses science and math to solve problems. As a verb, to engineer means to design a device, material or process that will solve some problem or unmet need.
evaporate: To turn from liquid into vapor.
high school: A designation for grades nine through 12 in the U.S. system of compulsory public education. High-school graduates may apply to colleges for further, advanced education.
hormone: (in botany) A chemical that serves as a signaling compound that tells cells of a plant when and how to develop, or when to grow old and die.
hydathodes: A type of microscopic, permanently open pores found on some plants (usually vascular plants). They are part of a system that moves water through the plant. They also allow some plants to exude excess water, almost like a water safety valve.
insight: The ability to gain an accurate and deep understanding of a situation just by thinking about it, instead of working out a solution through experimentation.
model: A simulation of a real-world event (usually using a computer) that has been developed to predict one or more likely outcomes. Or an individual that is meant to display how something would work in or look on others.
mosaic: Something made from an assembly of different types of objects.
network: A group of interconnected people or things. (v.) The act of connecting with other people who work in a given area or do similar thing (such as artists, business leaders or medical-support groups), often by going to gatherings where such people would be expected, and then chatting them up. (n. networking)
pore: A tiny hole in a surface. On the skin, substances such as oil, water and sweat pass through these openings.
solar: Having to do with the sun or the radiation it emits. It comes from sol, Latin for sun.
system: A network of parts that together work to achieve some function. For instance, the blood, vessels and heart are primary components of the human body’s circulatory system. Similarly, trains, platforms, tracks, roadway signals and overpasses are among the potential components of a nation’s railway system. System can even be applied to the processes or ideas that are part of some method or ordered set of procedures for getting a task done.
urban: Of or related to cities, especially densely populated ones or regions where lots of traffic and industrial activity occurs. The development or buildup of urban areas is a phenomenon known as urbanization.
vein: (in botany) The tubular system made up of xylem and phloem cells that a plant uses to transport materials (water and sugars, for instance) throughout its structures above- and below-ground.
vent: (n.) An opening through which gases or liquids can escape. (v.) To free gases or liquids that had been under pressure. The term can also be used to release strong, pent-up emotions, such as anger.
wave: A disturbance or variation that travels through space and matter in a regular, oscillating fashion.