Characteristics of Living Things

1. Characteristics of Living Things While outside one day, you notice something strange in the grass. It’s slimy, bright yellow, and about the size of a dime. You have no idea what it is. Is it a plant part that fell from a tree? Is it alive? How can you tell?

2. Living Things Have Cells • All living things are composed of one or more cells. A cell is the basic unit of structure and function of all organisms.

3. Living Things Sense and Respond to Change All organisms have the ability to sense change in their environment and to respond to that change. When your pupils are exposed to light, they respond by becoming smaller. A change that affects the activity of the organism is called a stimulus (plural, stimuli).

4. Living Things Sense and Respond to Change • Homeostasis • Even though an organism’s outside environment may change, conditions inside an organism’s body must stay the same. Many chemical reactions keep an organism alive. These reactions can take place only when conditions are exactly right, so an organism must maintain stable internal conditions to survive. The maintenance of a stable internal environment is called homeostasis (HOH mee OH STAY sis).

5. Living Things Reproduce • Organisms make other organisms similar to themselves. They do so in one of two ways: by sexual reproduction or by asexual reproduction. • In sexual reproduction, two parents produce offspring that will share characteristics of both parents. Most animals and plants reproduce in this way.

6. In asexual reproduction, a single parent produces offspring that are identical to the parent. Most single-celled organisms reproduce in this way. • Budding • Binary fission

7. Living Things Have DNA • The cells of all living things contain the molecule deoxyribonucleic (dee AHKS uh RIE bohnoo KLEE ik) acid, or DNA. DNA controls the structure and function of cells. When organisms reproduce, they pass copies of their DNA to their offspring. Passing DNA ensures that offspring resemble parents.

8. Living Things Use Energy • Organisms use energy to carry out the activities of life. These activities include such things as making food, breaking down food, moving materials into and out of cells, and building cells.

9. Living Things Grow and Develop Growth is the process of becoming larger. Development is the process of change that occurs during an organisms life.