Characteristics of Life
EQ: How can you tell if something is alive?
What is Biology?
The study of living things (organisms)
The study of interactions of living things
“bio”-life
“ology”-study of
8 Characteristics
of LIFE1. Living Things are
made up of Cells. a.) CELL: Collection of
living material enclosed within a barrier
b.) cells are basic unit of life
c.) Unicellular: made up of one cell
d.) Multicellular: made up of many cells
Unicellular
Multicellular
2. Living Things Reproduce: a.) produce offspring which resemble parents
b.) asexual reproduction: has only one parent
c.) sexual reproduction: requires two parents
Asexual
Sexual
3. Living Things are based on a genetic code.
a.) inheritance of traits is carried on DNA
4. Living things Grow and Develop
a.) GROWTH: increase in size & shape
b.) DEVELOPMENT: mature over time
c.) living things have a lifespanGrowth
Development
5. Living Things Use & Need Energy a.) energy comes from food, used to maintain body b.) AUTOTROPH: produce own food c.) HETEROTROPH: must consume food d.) DECOMPOSER: breaks down dead material for food
6. Living things respond to their surroundings a.) they react to a stimulus
b.) an action causes a reaction
c. ) reaction is called a response
d.) this involves one individual
7. Living things maintain a stable internal environment
a.) HOMEOSTASIS: internal balance
b.) examples: sweating, panting, shivering, etc.
8. Living things Evolve a.) adapt to long-range changes in environment
b.) change to better survive in environment
c.) these changes take place over a long period of time & involve the entire species