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Characteristics of Living Thing
Characteristics of Living Thing
Characteristics of Living Thing
of Living Things
The Characteristics of
Living Things
• Great Complexity & Organization
• Composed of Cells
• Reproduction & Development
• Mechanism for Inheritance
• Metabolism & Homeostasis
• Interaction with the Environment
• Evolution (Adaptation)
Great Complexity and Organization
–Living things are made of the same
materials as everything else in the
universe
• are assembled into
molecules
• Living things are more organized ,
more complex
–Living things require energy to carry
out life processes
• Atoms
• Molecules
• Organelles
• Cells
• Tissues
• Organs
• Organ Systems
• Organisms
• Populations
• Communities
• Ecosystems
• Biosphere
Atoms
proton
neutron
electron
hydrogen helium
atom carbon
atom atom
1p, 0n, 1e- 2p, 2n, 2e- 6p, 6n, 6e-
Some Elements
Simple Inorganic Molecules
• Water (H2O)
• Carbon Dioxide (CO2)
• Molecular Oxygen (O2)
• Ammonium (NH3)
• Sodium Chloride (NaCl)
Biological Compounds
Categories:
Carbohydrates Lipids
mitochondria
rough ER
golgi
Cells
biosphere
ecosystem
organ
organ
system
community organism
population
Prokaryotic Cell
Eukaryotic
Animal Cell
Eukaryotic
Plant Cell
Classification: Six kingdom system
:
Eubacteria Archaebacteria
E. coli Cyanobacteria
Protista
Paramecium Diatom Slime mold
Plantae
Fungi
Animalia
Asexual Reproduction
Photosynthesis Chemosynthesis
Heterotrophs
• Organisms that take
in food to meet their
energy needs
• Animals must
consume autotrophs
(plants), and other
heterotrophs to meet
their energy needs
Is a Coral a Heterotroph or
Autotroph?
Homeostasis
1. Maintenance of constant
internal conditions in varying
environments
2. Adaptation of organisms to
specific environments
Homeostasis
Three big problems
1. Obtaining energy and nutrients
2. Maintaining temperature
3. Obtaining and holding onto
water
Body Temperature Regulation
Temperature Control
Ectotherms (Poikilotherms)
• Generate body heat metabolically, but
cannot maintain constant internal body
temperature
• Body temperature mimics the
surrounding environment
Ectotherms
Most ectotherms regulate their body
temperature by
• basking
• moving between shade/sun
• being active at certain times of day
Temperature Control
Endotherms (homeothermic)
• Generate body heat metabolically and
body temperature does not match the
temperature of the surrounding
environment
• These organisms retain metabolic heat
and can control metabolism to maintain
a constant internal temperature
Interaction with the environment
–Living things interact with each
other and with the environment
–Ecology – the study of these
interactions
• Hawaiian Monk seals eat fish
• Humans eat fish
• What if something happened to the
fish?
Interaction with the Environment
Evolution
Change in the genetic
composition of a population
through time
Evolution
• Inherited change in the
characteristics of organisms over
time
• Living things are slowly changing
• Process of natural selection results
in change over time
• Organisms with favorable genes are
more likely to survive, reproduce,
and pass on those favorable genes
Mechanisms Contributing to
Evolutionary Change
• Production of heritable
variations
• Natural Selection
• Chance
Heredity
• Transmission of
characteristics from parent to
offspring
• Instructions from parent to
offspring are passed on in
the form of genes
Heritable variations
Eye color
Beak Depth
Blood type
Adaptations
The structural, functional, and
behavioral features that contribute
to the success of a species.
Natural Selection
Peppered Moths: study in England 1800’s
More light than dark moths
• Industrial pollution turned trees dark
• Population shifted to mostly dark moths