the characteristics of life Flashcards
what is life?
Life is the possession of all of the following characteristics:
Organisation
Nutrition
Excretion
Response
Reproduction
what are the five characteristics of life
Organisation
Nutrition
Excretion
Response
Reproduction
Define organisation
Living things are composed of cells, tissues, organs, and organ systems.
Living things can be unicellular (bacteria) or multicellular (plants).
For unicellular organisms, organisation stops at the cell, so we say that the cell is the basic unit of structure and function of life.
define nutrition?
The way in which an organism obtains and uses its food.
what are the two forms of nutrition?
There are two ways nutrition can be achieved:
Autotrophic nutrition
Heterotrophic nutrition
what is autotrophic nutrition?
Autotropic nutrition is when an organism can make its own food.
what is heterotrophic nutrition?
Heterotrophic nutrition is when an organism gets its food from another organism, in a different trophic level of a food chain.
what is excretion?
This is the removal of waste products of metabolism from the body.
stomata in plants
lungs, kidneys and skin in humans
define resposne/
Response relates to the ability of an organism to react and adapt to changes in their environment.
define reproduction
An organism’s ability to make new individuals of its own kind and pass on genetic information to the next generation.
why is reproduction important for life
Reproduction is necessary for the survival of a species as it prevents extinction.
what are the two forms of reproduction
Sexual reproduction involves the production and fusion of gametes (sex cells like sperm and eggs), one from the male and one from the female.
Asexual reproduction only involves one parent and is more commonly seen in less complex and more primitive organisms like bacteria
