What sorts of things determine whether or not something is living? This was our first topic of discussion today in biology. Here I've listed some characteristics of life, in no particular order: 1) comprised of cells; 2) have DNA and RNA; 3) can reproduce (my high school students' favorite subject!); 4) grow and develop; 5) evolve; 6) respond to stimuli - i.e., we sweat to prevent overheating; 7) need water; 8) contain carbon (organic); 9) need a source of energy. There are others, but I will stop here. Tomorrow in class we will be learning about synthetic organic polymers (i.e., polyester, nylon, etc.) and inorganic substances.
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