Science and Its Branches

Science is an organized body of knowledge supported by observation and experimentation, derived from the natural phenomena of the entire material universe. Biology had flourished a great deal in ancient India. Various systems of classifying animals and plants were developed, for example Jeevaj (Viviparous) animals that give birth to young one, Andaj (Oviparous) animals that lay eggs, etc. Cultivation of rice was first introduced in India. It is estimated that more than 1000 varieties of rice had been developed. With the invention of microscope a whole new world of minute animals and plants came to human knowledge. So there’s a need to divide biology into certain branches to due to its vastness of the syllabus it covers.
Biology is divided into several branches. This division can be made in at least three different ways.
A. Principal sub-divisions of Biology in terms of major kinds of organism.
- Botany – the study of plants.
- Zoology – the study of animals.
- Human Biology – The study of man as a living organism and his relationship with other living organisms the study of man and human society comes under Anthropology.
B. Principal sub-divisions of Biology in terms of special groups of organisms.
- Bacteriology – the study of bacteria.
- Virology – the study of viruses.
- Mycology – the study of fungi.
- Entomology – the study of insects.
- Ichthyology – the study of fishes.
- Herpetology – the study of lizards, snakes etc.
- Ornithology – the study of birds.
C. Principal sub-division of Biology in terms of approach on studying it.
- Anatomy – the study of gross structure of an organism as seen in dissection.
- Morphology – the study of form and structure of plants and animals. It includes essentially the understanding and interpretation of structure.
- Histology – the study of minute structure of time bits of the