Characteristics of life2012

Characteristics of Living Things (pg 8)

All living things:

1. Share a universal genetic code

• All organisms use DNA to store the information they need to live, grow, and reproduce

2. Grow and Develop

• Growth can involve adding more cells, or cells getting larger

• Development = changes during a lifetime

3. Respond to their environment

• Detect a condition in the environment (a stimulus) and respond

4. Reproduce

• Production of offspring (Sexual or Asexual)

5. Maintain a stable internal environment

• Keeping a constant internal environment, even when external conditions change dramatically, is called homeostasis

6. Obtain and use material and energy

• Chemical reactions that break down materials and then reassemble them to build the organism are called metabolism

7. Groups of organisms evolve over time

• All living things share a common origin more than 3.5 billion years ago and have evolved over time into the species present today

8. Made of cells

• All living things are composed of one or more cells

Output (pg 9)

• Foldable