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This chapter explores the characteristics of living things, including the importance of cells, the need for energy, growth and development, response to the environment, reproduction, and adaptations. It also delves into the distinction between living and non-living entities.
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Cells and Systems Chapter 1
Characteristics of Living Things • Living things share certain characteristics and have structures to perform functions. • Six characteristics of living things: • Are made of cells • Need energy • Grow and develop • Respond to the environment • Reproduce • Have adaptations for their environment.
Cells • Basic unit of life • A cell can perform all the process that life depends on • All organisms are made up of at least one cell. • Some are single-celled organisms (unicellular) like amoeba and bacteria. • Others are multicellular (many cells) like humans and plants.
Dead cells • Non-living things are not made of cells • EXCEPT: if the material was alive at one time. For example, a piece of wood.
Energy • Everything an organism does requires energy. • Energy is the ability to make things move or change. • What are some things we use energy for? • Where do we get our energy? • What are other sources of energy?
Energy • Nutrients are substances that provide the energy and materials that organisms need to grow, develop, and reproduce. • There must be a balance between the energy-using processes and the energy-creating processes. • Metabolism is the sum of all the different processes that happen in an organism.
Responding to the environment • You step out onto the street and suddenly you see a moving car speeding toward you. What do you do? • A stimulus is something that causes a response in an organism. (In this case, the sight of the moving car.) • Jumping out of the way is a reaction or response to a stimulus.
Growth and Development • Seeds grow roots and produce stems and leaves • Your skin keeps replacing itself as it gets worn away • Some organisms change drastically when they grow. For example, with frogs: egg –> tadpole (gills and tail) –> frog (lungs and limbs)
Reproduction • All living things come from other living things (reproduction) • Reproduction is not necessary for an organism to survive, but it is necessary for the survival of the species.
Adaptations • An adaptation is a characteristic that allows an organism to live in its environment. • For example: in the winter snowshoe hares grow a white coat to blend in with the snow and protect them from predators.
Adaptations • With a partner brainstorm some adaptations for each of the animals below.
Blood and Guts • Galen lived from AD 129 to 216 in Rome • He was a doctor to the gladiators and eventually became the emperor’s doctor • While he was trying to heal their open wounds, he observed their internal organs
Blood and Guts • Because they bled so much he observed how blood flowed in the body. • Some of his ideas were bizarre: he thought the liver was the most important structure in the body because it was so big and had lots of tubes.
Organs Activity • What do you know about the body’s internal and external parts and how they work together? • In groups of 2-3 make a list of all the body parts that you can think of, both internal and external. Write each one on a post-it. Try to figure out how they work together to keep you alive. • Once your group has decided the pattern, create a concept map showing how the body parts are linked.
