Science Buddies: "Ask an Expert"

I need to conduct an experiment to see if the following objects are living, nonliving, or once living: a rock, a grain of rice, styrofoam, and a seed. I'm not sure how to start.

jen wrote:I need to conduct an experiment to see if the following objects are living, nonliving, or once living: a rock, a grain of rice, styrofoam, and a seed. I'm not sure how to start.

I'm not sure how you can do this either. Obviously, common sense provides the answer, but to do a scientific test is different. What you need to do is define the properties something alive has, and test for them. For example, wikipedia defines these properties as:

Properties common to these organisms—plants, animals, fungi, protists, archaea and bacteria—are a carbon- and water-based cellular form with complex organization and heritable genetic information. They undergo metabolism, possess a capacity to grow, respond to stimuli, reproduce and, through natural selection, adapt to their environment in successive generations.

Obviously, these characteristics are difficult to test without a very complicated lab. Did your teacher give you some definitions you can use?


Louise