Which of the following distinguishes living things from nonliving things.
A. living things are made up of cells nonliving things are not
B. living things are made up of atoms nonliving things are not
C. living things are made up of elements nonliving things are not
D. living things are made up of molecules nonliving things are not
That would be A.
Explanation:
While living things are made up of atoms as well, so do nonliving things because everything around us is made up of atoms. Everything around us is either a solid, liquid, gas, or the rare plasma, so there's always gonna be molecules at everything you look at. The same thing with elements, don't need to say more. Does this make sense?
The correct answer is A. Living things are made up of cells, whereas nonliving things are not. Cells are the basic structural and functional units of living organisms. Nonliving things, on the other hand, do not possess cells.
The correct answer is A. Living things are made up of cells, whereas nonliving things are not.
To arrive at this answer, we can examine the characteristics of living things. Living organisms are composed of cells, which are the basic structural and functional units of life. Cells carry out various biological processes necessary for life, such as metabolism, growth, reproduction, and responding to stimuli. Nonliving things, on the other hand, do not possess cells.
Atoms (choice B), elements (choice C), and molecules (choice D) are all components of both living and nonliving things. While elements make up atoms, and atoms combine to form different molecules, these components are not exclusive to living organisms. Both living and nonliving things can contain atoms, elements, and molecules.
Therefore, the key distinguishing factor between living and nonliving things is the presence of cells, making choice A the correct answer.