Something with life is typically defined in most textbooks as meeting 5 different criteria…
1. ability to adapt to its environment
2. ability to reproduce on its own
3. uses resources/source of nutrients
4. made of cells
5. grows and develops
I’ve always contemplated a 6th criteria, that being “using a genetic code ie. DNA, RNA” and never really considered #2 as a legitimate tenet…
Thus, according to the original 5 criteria, viruses would not be considered living because they cannot reproduce on its own. Additionally, mules cannot reproduce (because they have an odd number of chromosomes) and thus wouldn’t be considered “living” under this definition.
What do other people think?
Emily approved November 9, 2017
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