The characteristics of life

Question	Answer
Metabolism	The sum of all the chemical reactions in an organism.
What chemicals control metabolic reactions?	Enzymes
High metabolism	Fast-acting e.g. mice and rabbits
Low metabolic rate	Slow-acting e.g. koalas
Living things can arise from non-living matter - Aristotle	Spontaneous generation e.g. maggots on rotting meat and frogs from dried mud
Continuity of life	Living things arise from other living things of the same type. This is also called biogenisis.
Life	The possession of all five of the characteristics of life - Sensitivity, nutrition, organisation, reproduction, excretion SNORE
Organisation	Living things are composed of cells, tissues, organs, and organ systems.
Levels of organisation	Cell, tissue, organ, organ system, organism, population e.g. cheek cell, lining of cheek, stomach, digestive system, individual human, all the people in an area
Nutrition	The way in which an organism obtains and uses food
Excretion	The removal of waste products of metabolism from the body
Response/sensitivity	The way in which organisms react to stimuli in their environment e.g. light
Reproduction	The production of new individuals to prevent the extinction of the species.

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	Created by eimearkelly3 over 11 years ago