Characteristics of Living Things (pg 6)

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