Living Environment Translated English 2014 | Page 6

Unit 2: Living Things:
A. Vocabulary1. Organism- a complete living thing
2. Cell- the smallest unit of an organism that carries on the functions of
life.
3. Life processes- certain activities that all living things must carry on
4. Biotic- a living factor in an environment
5. Abiotic- a nonliving factor in an environment
6. Growth- an increase in size
7. Reproduction- producing offspring
8. Response- reacting to changes in the environment
9. Excretion- getting rid of waste products
10.Respiration-producing energy
11.Assimilation- making larger molecules from smaller molecules
12. Digestion- breaking down materials into smaller, soluble products
13.Nutrition- making or taking in of food
14.Homeostasis- maintain a balance
15.Spontaneous Generation-idea that living things come from nonliving
things
16.Biogenesis- theory that living things come only from other living
things
17.Stimulus- anything that causes change in an organism
B. General Notes:
1. A cell is the smallest unit of an organism that carries on the functions
of life.
2. Anything that causes some change in an organism is a stimulus.
3. Organisms use energy to stay organized and perform activities like
homeostasis.
4. All of the changes that take place during an organism’s life are called
development.
5. Living things need a place to live, water, and food.