Cell Theory and
Organelles
What characteristics do living organisms
share?
• Think, Pair, Share
• Introduction to the Characteristics of Life
• Additional ideas about characteristics of living things
Date
Scientist
Discovery
1665
Robert Hooke
Cork (plant) is made up of tiny 1st person to use
compartments
“cell”
1833
Robert Brown
Plants are different, but all
1st person to use
are made up of cells with tiny, “nucleus”
dark “blobs” inside
*Contributed to ALL
LIVING THINGS ARE
MADE OF CELLS*
1839
Matthias Schleidan Material inside cells moves
Cells are basic
and Theodor
around slowly; Sometimes
building blocks of
Schwann
single cells exist on their own, life
but some are multicellular
1855
Rudoplh Virchow
(Robert Remak)
Rejected spontaneous
generation (like maggots
appearing in meat)
Significance
Cells come from
other cells
Characteristics of Life
Anything that possesses ALL the characteristics of life is
known as an organism.
Characteristics of Life:
1. Made of cells
2. Reproduce
3. Based on a universal genetic code
4. Grow and develop
5. Obtain materials and energy
6. Respond to the environment
7. Maintain a stable internal environment
8. Change over time
Cell Theory
INB page 69
Cell Theory is the foundation of Biology, the study of all
living things (“bio”-life, “logy”- study of)
1. All organisms are composed of cells.
a) Unicellular - made of only one cell (bacteria, protists)
b) Multicellular - composed of many cells (trees, humans)
2. Cells come only from existing cells.
3. Cells are the basic unit of life (another way to say this:
cells are the “basic unit of structure and function of
organisms”).
What do all living things have in common?
• All living things are made of cells
• Inside cells, there are parts that work together to make the cell
do its job.
• All of the jobs that living things do are actually being done by
cells; this is why we say that cells are the “building blocks of
life.”