Life & Classification Notes
In order to be considered a living thing, an object must either have or be able to do each of the
following 6 things…
Characteristics of Life
1. Have highly organized bodies with at least one cell
a. A cell is a collection of _______________ that are able to perform the functions of _________
i. Examples: Bacteria cell, muscle cell, nerve cell, fungus cell, root cell
2. Can reproduce
a. Reproduction is the process where organisms create new, ________________ similar,
organisms to themselves
i. Example: A boy giraffe and a girl giraffe making a baby giraffe
3. Have genetic material
a. Genetic material is a molecule that holds the information for making the ______ of an organism
i. Examples: DNA and RNA
4. Can grow & develop
a. Growth is the process where living things increase in _____________
i. Example: Mr. Laub was 20 inches tall when he was born, but is now much taller
b. Development is the process where living things get new __________ parts or _______________
i. Example: Mr. Laub developed facial hair and the ability to speak as he got older
5. Have a metabolism
a. Metabolism is the set of chemical reactions in a living thing that either use or release _________
i. Examples: Photosynthesis, cell respiration, digestion
6. Can adapt & evolve
a. Adapting is the process where organisms ____________ their bodies or behavior based on their
_____________________
i. Example: Dogs adapt to the warmer weather by shedding their fur in the summer
b. Evolution is the change in the _______________ & characteristics of a ____________ over time
i. Example: The DNA of the flu virus changes every year, so we need new flu shots
If an object has/can do all 6 characteristics, then it is considered an organism (biotic)

Organism – a _____________ thing (noun)

Biotic – term used to describe _____________ things (adjective)
If any 1 or more of the characteristics are missing, it is considered non-living (abiotic)

Abiotic – term used to describe __________________ things (adjective)
For Example:
Characteristics
Name of
Object
Living or
Non-living?
Rye Grass
Flu Virus
Bread Mold
Water
Has a cell
Can reproduce
Has a cell
Can reproduce
Has a cell
Can reproduce
Has a cell
Can reproduce
Has genetic material
Has genetic material
Has genetic material
Has genetic material
Grows & develops
Has a metabolism
Grows & develops
Has a metabolism
Grows & develops
Has a metabolism
Grows & develops
Has a metabolism
Can adapt & evolve
Can adapt & evolve
Can adapt & evolve
Can adapt & evolve
________________
________________
________________
________________
All organisms are grouped (classified) into categories (taxa) and given proper scientific names

Classification - the process ______________ living things based on their similarities and differences

Taxonomy – the branch of science that deals with _______________ and _______________ organisms

Taxon (taxa) – the _____________ term for any of the groups organisms are put into at any of the levels
Which categories (taxa) they are placed into depends on what adaptations they have for meeting the
6 characteristics of life
 Adaptation – a body part or behavior that helps an organism _____________ or ______________
There is a hierarchy (series of levels) of groups (taxa) from broadest to most specific. The levels of
taxa are listed below.
 The higher a taxon is on the list, the ____________ organisms are in it.

The lower a taxon is on the list, the _____________ organisms are in it.

The more taxa two organisms have in common, the more ___________________ they have in common.
Level of Classification
Definition
_________________
A group of kingdoms that have similar characteristics
_________________
A group of phyla that have similar characteristics
_________________
A group of classes that have similar characteristics
_________________
A group orders that have similar characteristics
_________________
A group of families that have similar characteristics
_________________
A group of genera that have similar characteristics
_________________
A group of species that have similar characteristics
Species
A group of __________________ have many characteristics in common and are able
to ________________ with each other and make fertile _________________
(They can make babies with each other & their babies can make babies)
Facts about our modern taxonomic system:
 There are ______ taxa at the domain level (name them below)
 ___________________

 ___________________
 ___________________
There are ______ taxa at the kingdom level (name them below)
 ___________________
 ___________________
 ___________________
 ___________________
 ___________________
 ___________________

There are around ______ taxa at the phylum level

There are ____________________ taxa at the class level

There are ____________________ taxa at the order level

There are ____________________ taxa at the family level

There are ____________________ taxa at the genus level

There are ____________________ taxa at the species level
All organisms get classified into a group (taxon) at each of the 8 levels of classification. Here is the
full classification for humans:
Level of
Classification
Taxon
Characteristics members of that
taxon share
Domain
_______________
Cells have a nucleus & other organized
parts
Kingdom
_______________
Bodies have more than one cell & ingest
food
Phylum
_______________
Have a spinal cord
Class
_______________
Have fur, feed milk to babies, control
their own body temperature
Order
_______________
5 fingers/toes per hand/foot, opposable
thumbs, large cerebellum (brain)
Family
_______________
32 teeth, limbs and hands/feet built for
terrestrial life
Genus
_______________
Throat and brain built for complex
language
Species
_______________
Complex logical and abstract thought
Other members of the Taxon
Problems with naming organisms
Problem
People in different countries speak different
_______________ so their names for organisms
are all different
Solution
Scientific names for organisms are all in
_____________
Issue #1
Example: Striped skunks are known as une
moffette, ein stinktier, un zorrillo, or cheche in
different languages
Different _____________ within the same
country give the same organism different names
Example: A striped skunk’s scientific name is
Mephitis mephitis no matter what language you
speak
Scientific names are _________ to the organism
(every organism gets one name and it’s the only
organism with that name)
Issue #2
Example: Cougars are called mountain lions,
pumas, Nittany lions, Florida panthers, and
catamounts all within the U.S.
Example: The cougar’s scientific name is Puma
concolor no matter where you live
Some common names don’t accurately
Scientific names are usually descriptions of the
______________ what the organism actually is
_________________ of the organism
Example: Starfish, jellyfish & silverfish aren’t
really fish
Example: Felis silvestris means cat of the
woodlands in Latin (scientific name for the
wildcat)
Issue #3
Rules for writing a scientific name

Binomial nomenclature is a system that gives every organism a standard, _____________, scientific name


How to write a scientific name according to the rules of binomial nomenclature:

The first word of the name is the organism’s _______________

The second word of the name is the organism’s ______________

The first letter of the genus name is always _______________________

The first letter of the species name is always ________________ ___________

Both words get ____________________ when they are typed

Both words get ____________________ when they are handwritten
Example: The scientific name of a human is __________________ _________________
(look back to the classification of humans on the previous page)
Tools that we can use to help us identify and classify organisms

Dichotomous Key (sometimes also called a taxonomic key)
o List of statements with characteristics presented in _____________
o Both characteristics are read and you either go to another set or ________________ the organism
o GOOD = ___________________ and can be used _______________ and __________________
o BAD = the wording of the characteristics can get pretty _________________ (you need to know
a lot about the organism’s _________________ in order to follow along)
o EXAMPLE:
Steps
1
2
3
4

Characteristics
a. Tentacles present
b. Tentacles absent
a. Has eight tentacles
b. Has more than eight tentacles
a. Tentacles hang downward
b. Tentacles point upward
a. Body is balloon-shaped
b. Body is not balloon-shaped
Directions
Go to step 2
Go to step 6
OCTOPUS
Go to step 3
Go to step 4
SEA ANEMONE
JELLYFISH
Go to step 5
Field Guide
o Book of ________________ of different organisms
o Match the _________________ of the organism you are trying to identify to the characteristics
of the organisms in the _______________
o GOOD = don’t have to know anything about the organism other than what it ____________ like
o BAD = can take a long ___________ to find a match and it can be easy to miss small
________________ in characteristics between one organism and another
o EXAMPLE:
How it all fits together…
*Note: This is not a complete list of all the phyla and classes that exist. This is merely the list of taxa that we will be working with in class this year.