Biology is the scientific study of all life forms. Its basic goal is to understand how life forms work, including the fundamental processes and ingredients of all life forms (i.e., 10,000,000 species in fragile ecosystems).

The questions biology is concerned with are: What is life? How do living systems work? What are the structural and functional components of life forms? What are the similarities and differences among life forms at different levels (molecule, organelle, cell, tissue, organ, organism, population, ecological community, biosphere)? How can we understand the biological unity of living matter?

The kinds of information biologists seek are: information about the basic units out of which life is constructed, about the processes by which living systems sustain themselves, about the variety of living systems, and about their structural and functional components.

Biochemists seek to make judgments about the complex processes of maintenance and growth of which life basically consists.

There are a number of essential concepts to understand to understand the logic of biology: the concept of levels of organization of life processes (at the molecular level, at the sub-cellular particle level, at the cellular level, at the organ level, and at the level of the total organism), the concept of life structures and life processes, the concept of the dynamics of life, the concept of the unity of life processes amid a diversity of life forms, etc...

Some of the key assumptions behind biological thinking are: that there are foundations to life, that these foundations can be identified, studied,
described, and explained; that it is possible to use biological concepts to explain life; that it is possible to analyze and discover the structure and dynamics of living systems and their components; that all forms of life reproduce, grow, and respond to changes in the environment; that there is an intricate and often fragile relationship between all living things; that all life forms, no matter how diverse, have common characteristics:

1) they are made up of cells, enclosed by a membrane that maintains internal conditions different from their surroundings,

2) they contain DNA or RNA as the material that carries their master plan, and

3) they carry out a process, called metabolism, which involves the conversion of different forms of energy by means of which they sustain themselves.

There are specific and general implications of the present logic of biology. The specific implications have to do with the kind of questioning, the kind of information-gathering and information-interpreting processes being used by biologists today. For example, the state of the field implies the importance of focusing questions and analysis on the concepts above, of seeking key answers at all levels of life systems. The general implications are that we have the knowledge, if not always the will, to understand, maintain, and protect forms of life.

The biological viewpoint is focused on all levels and forms of life. It sees all life forms as consisting in structures and understood through describable functions. It sees life processes at the molecular level to be highly unified and consistent. It sees life process at the whole-animal level to be highly diversified.