This course surveys foundational principles that unify modern biology, from the characteristics of life and levels of biological organization to how biological knowledge is generated through the scientific method, experimental design, and data interpretation. Core chemical concepts are introduced through water chemistry, macromolecules, and enzyme function, followed by cell theory, cell structure, membrane transport, and energy transformations in cellular respiration and photosynthesis. The course then builds through genetics (DNA/RNA, gene expression, inheritance patterns), evolution and natural selection, biodiversity and phylogenetics, ecology and human impacts, and an overview of homeostasis and major physiological systems.