bio-, bi-, -bia, -bial, -bian, -bion, -biont, -bius, -biosis, -bium, -biotic, -biotical

(Greek: life; living, live, alive)

Don’t confuse this element with another bi- which means "two".

The most important things in life are not things.

—Anonymous
biophor
A hypothetical unit (the ultimate component parts of protoplasm or the ultracellular units ranking between the molecule and the cell).
biophotogenesis
The production and emission of light by plants or by animals; bioluminescence.
biophotolysis
1. The hypothetical process of splitting water by solar energy to produce hydrogen.
2. The action of light on a biological system; such as, certain algae and bacteria, that results in the dissociation of water to produce hydrogen.
biophotometer
An obsolete instrument once used for measuring the rate and degree of dark adaptation, as in vitamin "A" deficiency.
biophotonics
1. The biological applications of photonics, a technology that utilizes light and other forms of radiant energy in which a quantum unit is the photon (the smallest unit used to measure a physical property).
2. A combination of biology and photonics, with photonics being the science and technology of generation, manipulation, and detection of photons, quantum units of light.

Photonics is related to electronics in that it is believed that photons will play a similar central role in future information technology as electrons do today.

It includes the study or application of electromagnetic energy whose basic unit is the photon, incorporating optics, laser technology, electrical engineering, materials science, and information storage and processing.

biophylactic
biophylaxis
Nonspecific defense reactions of the body, e.g., phagocytosis, vascular and other reactions of inflammatory processes.
biophysical
1. A reference to the science that deals with the application of physics to biological processes and phenomena.
2. Relating to the science dealing with the mechanical and electrical properties of the parts of living organisms.
biophysical economics
A school of economic thought involving analysts from diverse fields who use basic ecological and thermodynamic principles to analyze the economic process.
biophysical profile
A system of estimating current fetal status determined by analysis of five variables via ultrasonography and non-stress testing: "Fetal breathing movements, gross body movement, fetal tone, amniotic fluid volume, and fetal heart rate reactivity are compared to specific criteria."
biophysicist
A physicist who applies the methods of physics to biology.
biophysics
1. The science dealing with the mechanical and electrical properties of the parts of a living organism.
2. The study of biological processes and materials by means of the theories and tools of physics.
3. The study of physical processes (e.g., electricity, luminescence) occurring in organisms.
4. The science that applies the laws and methods of physics to the study of biological processes.
5. The science dealing with the mechanical and electrical properties of the parts of living organisms.

For example, the principles of electricity have proven instructive in understanding the functions of nervous systems, while the laws of mechanics help to elucidate the workings of the musculoskeletal system.

Various physical techniques have advanced our knowledge of biologically important molecules (that is, proteins and nucleic acids), notably X-ray crystallography, nuclear magnetic resonance imaging, and spectroscopy.

biophysics career
A career in the hybrid science involved with the methods and ideas of physics and chemistry to study and to explain the structures of living organisms and the mechanics of life processes.
biophysiograph (s) (noun), biophysiographies (pl)
The branch of biology that deals with the natural history of living organisms.
biophysiologist
One who investigates the physiology of living beings.
Quiz If you would like to take a series of self-scoring quizzes over some of the words in this bio- unit, then click this Life, Live, Living Quiz link so you can check your knowledge. You may also try several additional quizzes in this listing.

Related life, live-word units: anima-; -cole; vita-; viva-.