living things vs non-living things

Difference Between Living and Non-Living Things

How far do you know about Living and Non-Living Things, Living and Non-Living Things are a part of our everyday life, we go through many things which may have or may not have a life. Living things can move from one place to another, on their own, except plants. Whereas, non-living things are mobile, but they require someone to make them move. In living organisms, one can see differentiation in different stages of development, while no such thing takes place in non-living things.

Definition of Living Things:

Living things are the organisms that are alive. They are made up of cells, which are considered as a basic unit of life. Different cells form tissues, and tissues, in turn, combine to form organs, and when all these organs function together as an integrated unit, called an organ system, which functions in something that has a life. They are human beings, plants, insects, birds, animals, fungi, bacteria, algae, protozoa, etc. Whereas, living organisms are:

  • They  can move on their own.
  • They Grow and develop, within time.
  • Undergo respiration.
  • Require nutrition
  • Undergo excretion i.e., releasing waste from body.
  • Reproduce to give birth to the new organism.
  • Respond to the external environment. i.e., having stimuli
  • Adapt themselves to the changing conditions.

Definition of Non-Living Things:

Non-living things are those things, which do not live or life-less, i.e. the characteristic of life is absent, in them. They do not have any traits of life, such as Reproduction, growth and development, respiration, metabolism, adaptation, responsiveness, movement, etc. They are created or produced from non-living materials, such as wood, plastic, iron, metals, leather, cotton, etc.

Difference Between Living and Non-Living Things are:

Living organisms Non-living organisms
Made up of cells No cells exists
Require air, food and water for survival They do not need anything
They can move on their own They cannot move
Respiration and reproduction are present Respiration and reproduction are absent
Stimuli is present and they respond to their surroundings No stimuli is present
They excrete wastes out of their body They do not excrete
They have certain life period They do not have any life cycle

Conclusion:

We can easily conclude about the difference between Living and Non-Living Things in our everyday life, we go through many things which may have or may not have a life. Living things can move from one place to another, on their own, except plants. Whereas, non-living things are mobile, but they require someone to make them move. In living organisms, one can see differentiation in different stages of development, while no such thing takes place in non-living things.

Also, Read Difference Between Vertebrates and Invertebrates.

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