High Science

What Makes Something "Alive"? The meat of our second episode begins with John, James, Kat, and special guest Robbie exploring the essence of life. They all struggle in determining the explicit qualities that makes something living and applying these qualities to examples such as trees and fire to determine if they fit the criteria for life. The traits listed are as follows: Organization - Living things are organized. All living things are made of tiny structures known as cells. In multi-cellular organisms, cells organize into tissues, tissues organize into organs and so on. Reproduction - Living things make other living things (of the same species). Growth - Living things grow. Response to Stimuli - Living things will adjust to a change in their environment. Metabolism - Living things carry out chemical processes to maintain a state of living. Evolution - Living things evolve (explained later in the episode). Homeostasis - Living things maintain equilibrium regarding properties such as temperat