Characteristics of Living Things

 All organisms use energy (metabolism).

 All organisms maintain a stable internal environment (homeostasis).
 All organisms detect and respond to select external stimuli.
 All organisms can engage in movement (which may occur internally, or even at the cellular level).
 All organisms show growth and development; that is, specialization of cells or structures. (Even unicellular organisms show a tiny amount of growth, and single cells repair and use materials
from the environment to replace internal structures as needed.)
 All organisms reproduce. (Even if an individual can’t reproduce, its species can.) In addition, an individual’s cells are constantly reproducing themselves.
 All organisms have nucleic acid as the hereditary molecule.
 All organisms show adaptation, which occurs at the individual level and is tightly related to homeostasis.
 All organisms are made of one or more cells.
 All organisms exhibit complex organization, grouping molecules together to form cells; at a higher level, cells are organized into tissues, organs, and organ systems.
 All organisms exhibit evolution over time due to mutation and natural selection (which operates at the species level).

Life process Explanation Earthworms

Movement All living things move in some way. This may be Earthworms use circular and longitudinal muscles to move
obvious, such as animals that are able to walk, or less through soil or along surfaces.
obvious, such as plants that have parts that move to
track the movement of the sun.
To classify an organism as living, it must exhibit
some form of movement. Though humans and
animals obviously move, other items such as plants
also move though it is hard to see without a time-
lapse camera. Plants move their buds or leaves
toward sunlight or away from shaded areas to
promote growth.
Respiration Respiration is a chemical reaction that happens within The food that earthworms eat supplies their body with
cells to release energy from food. energy-rich molecules such as glucose. On entering the
cells of their body, these molecules are broken down in
a series of steps to release energy to be used by the body,
producing carbon dioxide and water as waste products.
Sensitivity The ability to detect changes in the surrounding Earthworms have light-sensitive cells scattered in their
environment. outer skin. Their skin cells are also sensitive to touch
and chemicals.
Growth All living things grow. Earthworms hatch from eggs and can grow up to a metreor
more in length! Some earthworms are also able to regrow
small parts of their body that have been lost or injured.
Reproduction The ability to reproduce and pass genetic information Earthworms have both sperm and eggs within their bodies
onto their offspring. (they are hermaphrodites) but they cannot self-fertilise and
need to mate with another individual. After mating, a
cocoon containing the fertilised eggs is deposited in the
soil.
Excretion Getting rid of waste. Earthworms excrete waste from their anus – the last
segment of their body.
Nutrition The intake and use of nutrients. This occurs in very Earthworm nutrition comes from a variety of sources,
different ways in different kinds of living things. depending on their species. Food types include manure,
compost, plant material, fungi, microorganisms and
decaying animals. They take in food through their mouths.

Order

Organisms are highly organized, coordinated structures that consist of one or more cells. Even very simple, single-celled organisms are remarkably complex: inside each cell, atoms make up
molecules; these in turn make up cell organelles and other cellular inclusions. Ex. Toads

Sensitivity or Response to Stimuli

Organisms respond to diverse stimuli. For example, plants can bend toward a source of light, climb on fences and walls, or respond to touch. Even tiny bacteria can move toward or away from
chemicals (a process called chemotaxis) or light (phototaxis). Movement toward a stimulus is considered a positive response, while movement away from a stimulus is considered a negative
response. Ex. Makahiya (mimosa pudica) will instantly droop and fold when touched.

All living things are able to respond to stimuli in the external environment. For example, living things respond to changes in light, heat, sound, and chemical and mechanical contact. To detect
stimuli, organisms have means for receiving information, such as eyes, ears, and taste buds.

To respond effectively to changes in the environment, an organism must coordinate its responses. A system of nerves and a number of chemical regulators called hormones coordinate activities
within an organism. The organism responds to the stimuli by means of a number of effectors, such as muscles and glands. Energy is generally used in the process.

Organisms change their behavior in response to changes in the surrounding environment. For example, an organism may move in response to its environment. Responses such as this occur in
definite patterns and make up the behavior of an organism. The behavior is active, not passive; an animal responding to a stimulus is different from a stone rolling down a hill. Living things
display responsiveness;nonliving things do not.

Reproduction

If something is alive it must be capable of reproducing. Multicellular life forms such as humans reproduce sexually, while unicellular life forms like bacteria reproduce asexually. The
important thing to remember is that, in either case, living things reproduce.
Single-celled organisms reproduce by first duplicating their DNA, and then dividing it equally as the cell prepares to divide to form two new cells. Multicellular organisms often produce
specialized reproductive germline cells that will form new individuals. When reproduction occurs, genes containing DNA are passed along to an organism’s offspring. These genes ensure that the
offspring will belong to the same species and will have similar characteristics, such as size and shape.

A living thing has the ability to produce copies of itself by the process known as reproduction. These copies are made while the organism is still living. Among plants and simple animals,
reproduction is often an extension of the growth process. More complex organisms engage in a type of reproduction called sexual reproduction, in which two parents contribute to the formation
of a new individual. During this process, a new combination of traits can be produced. Asexual reproduction involves only one parent, and the resulting cells are generally identical to the parent
cell. For example, bacteria grow and quickly reach maturity, after which they split into two organisms by a process of asexual reproduction called binary fission.

Growth and Development

Organisms grow and develop following specific instructions coded for by their genes. These genes provide instructions that will direct cellular growth and development, ensuring that a species’
young will grow up to exhibit many of the same characteristics as its parents.

Growth requires an organism to take in material from the environment and organize the material into its own structures. To accomplish growth, an organism expends some of the energy it
acquires during metabolism. An organism has a pattern for accomplishing the building of growth structures.

During growth, a living organism transforms material that is unlike itself into materials that are like it. A person, for example, digests a meal of meat and vegetables and transforms the chemical
material into more of himself or herself. A nonliving organism does not display this characteristic.

To grow, a living organism must have cells that divide in an orderly way to create new cells. As cells grow, expand and divid e, the creature becomes larger over time. Scientists use growth
and development as a measure of life.

Regulation

Even the smallest organisms are complex and require multiple regulatory mechanisms to coordinate internal functions, respond to stimuli, and cope with environmental stresses. Two examples of
internal functions regulated in an organism are nutrient transport and blood flow. Organs (groups of tissues working together) perform specific functions, such as carrying oxygen throughout the
body, removing wastes, delivering nutrients to every cell, and cooling the body.

Homeostasis

In order to function properly, cells need to have appropriate conditions such as proper temperature, pH, and appropriate concentration of diverse chemicals. These conditions may, however,
change from one moment to the next. Organisms are able to maintain internal conditions within a narrow range almost constantly, despite environmental changes, through homeostasis (literally,
“steady state”)—the ability of an organism to maintain constant internal conditions. For example, an organism needs to regulate body temperature through a process known as thermoregulation.
Organisms that live in cold climates, such as the polar bear, have body structures that help them withstand low temperatures and conserve body heat. Structures that aid in this type of insulation
include fur, feathers, blubber, and fat. In hot climates, organisms have methods (such as perspiration in humans or panting in dogs) that help them to shed excess body heat.
Polar bears (Ursus maritimus) and other mammals living in ice-covered regions maintain their body temperature by generating heat and reducing heat loss through thick fur and a dense layer of
fat under their skin.

Organisms that are alive make changes to their internal environment. Called homeostasis, this represents the actions a body t akes to protect itself. For instance, when the body gets cold, it
shivers to generate heat. All living organisms share this feature.

Metabolism (Metabolic Action)/ Energy Processing

All organisms use a source of energy for their metabolic activities. Some organisms capture energy from the sun and convert it into chemical energy in food (photosynthesis); others use chemical
energy in molecules they take in as food (cellular respiration).

Living things exhibit a rapid turnover of chemical materials, which is referred to as metabolism. Metabolism involves exchanges of chemical matter with the external environment and extensive
transformations of organic matter within the cells of a living organism. Metabolism generally involves the release or use of chemical energy. Nonliving things do not display
metabolism.Metabolism is essentially a collection of chemical reactions occurring within the body (or cell). These reactions vary in form and function but promote processes such as protein
synthesis, chemical digestion, cell division, or energy transformation.

Adaptation through Evolution

Living organisms have the ability to adapt to their environment through the process of evolution. During evolution, changes occur in populations, and the organisms in the population become
better able to metabolize, respond, and reproduce. They develop abilities to cope with their environment that their ancestors did not have. Evolution also results in a greater variety of organisms
than existed in previous eras. This proliferation of populations of organisms is unique to living things.

Cellular Organization

This simply means that living things are made of cells. Cells are the most basic unit of life. It doesn't matter if those cells are plants, animals, fungi, or bacteria. If something is going to be alive, it
must be made of cells.

All living creatures consist of cells. Organized into groups such as organelles, molecules and other multi -cellular classifications, cells can also reproduce themselves, showcase movement
and display a response to certain stimuli for a scientist to consider the organism as living. Each cell carries deoxyribonucleic acid or DNA, t he material made up of chromosomes that passes
down genetic information which includes inherited traits of its lineages.

Living things have a level of complexity and organization not found in lifeless objects. At its most fundamental level, a living thing is composed of one or more cells. These units, generally too
small to be seen with the naked eye, are organized into tissues. A tissue is a series of cells that accomplish a shared function. Tissues, in turn, form organs, such as the stomach and kidney. A
number of organs working together compose an organ system. An organism is a complex series of various organ systems.
Ability to Interact

A living organism will interact with another living organism -- whether it is the same type of organism, a threat or a neutral organism, there is some form of interaction between the two. F or
example, flowers interact with bees by releasing pollen for it to be picked up and dispersed among female plants during reproduction. Plants like the Venus flytrap interact with nature by
enclosing itself over flies, lizards and other edible insects that land within its grasp.

The Process of Respiration - Respiration is more than just breathing. It represents the ability of a living organism to convert energy to feed the cells, using oxygen to break down sugars and
produce carbon dioxide as a by-product expelled during exhalation. All living organisms have some form of respiration, though the process may differ between them.

Ecology

The environment influences the living things that it surrounds. Ecology is the study of relationships between organisms and their relationships with their environment. Both biotic factors (living
things) and abiotic factors (nonliving things) can alter the environment. Rain and sunlight are non-living components, for example, that greatly influence the environment. Living things may
migrate or hibernate if the environment becomes difficult to live in.