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# Chapter 1: Part 1 - Basic Principles: How Traits Are Transmitted ## Genetics - The Science of Heredity Genetics is the study of heredity, connecting the fundamental units of biological information (genes) with the inheritance across generations. ## Genetics Explains the Mechanisms That Determin...

# Chapter 1: Part 1 - Basic Principles: How Traits Are Transmitted ## Genetics - The Science of Heredity Genetics is the study of heredity, connecting the fundamental units of biological information (genes) with the inheritance across generations. ## Genetics Explains the Mechanisms That Determine the Inheritance of Traits * **Genes are the basic units of heredity.** * A gene is... [missing information] * Heredity is... [missing information] * Genes carry the information for every heritable trait, for example: cleft chin, hair loss, eye color. * Some traits are caused by a single gene change, like sickle-cell anemia. * Other traits arise from complex interactions of multiple genes, such as facial features. ## Gregor Mendel Discovered the Basic Principles of Genetics * Mendel was a pioneering scientist who combined data collection, analysis, and theory to understand heredity. * He inferred genetic laws describing the appearance and disappearance of traits across generations. ## Four General Themes of Mendel's Work 1. **Variation is widespread in nature and leads to continuous evolution of diversity.** 2. **Observable variation is fundamentally important to following genes from one generation to another.** 3. **Variation is inherited according to genetic laws; this explains why "like begets like" and, importantly, "unlike".** 4. **Mendel's laws apply to all sexually reproducing organisms.**