Name:_________________ Per:___

Characteristics o
f L
ife A
ssessment
You are intelligent, capable, and Ms. Masters and Ms. Carla believe in you! If
you have any questions, raise your hand and we will help you. It is our job to help
YOU be successful. Good luck! :)

1.) Biology is the study of

a. Chemicals
b. Cells
c. Life
d. molecules


2.) A role/the roles Biologists play within science are
a. Medical researchers
b. Helping protect endangered species
c. Researching animals and their habitats
d. All of the above


3.) Another name of a living thing is a(n)
a. Cell
b. Organism
c. Homosapien
d. Virus



4.) What is a characteristic of living things that sets them apart from the
nonliving?
A) respond to a stimulus/their environment
B) grow and reproduce
C) pass DNA to their offspring
D) All of these are characteristics of living things.

5.) The most basic (smallest) unit of life is a

a. Atom
b. Pixel
c. Cell
d. Grain

6.) Which of the following is NOT a characteristic that all living things share?
a. Cellular organization
b. using energy
c. movement
d. Reproduction

7.) What i s meant by "maintaining homeostasis"?

A) to keep a living area neat and clean
B) to keep the population size within certain limits
C) to maintain balanced internal environment
D) to keep predators at bay, protecting the family unit

8.) Choose the h

ighest level of organization.
A) tissues
B) organs
C) cells
D) organ systems

9.) The breakdown of nutrients into energy is called

Evolution
Metabolism
Waste
Adaptation

10.) Humans sweat when the temperature gets hot so that they can cool
themselves. This is an example of which characteristic of life?
a) Growth
b) Reproduction
c) Homeostasis
d) Evolution
 11.) A bacterium divides into two bacteria which are identical to, but smaller than,
the original bacterium. This is an example of which characteristic of life?
a) Growth
b) Reproduction
c) Homeostasis
d) Evolution

12.) A
t the beginning of the week a plant is 3 inches tall, and at the end of the
week it is 4 inches. This is an example of which characteristic of life?
a) Growth
b) Reproduction
c) Homeostasis
d) Response to stimuli

13.) Which of these is the process by which changes occur in the characteristics of
species of organisms over time?
a) growth
b) metabolism
c) adaptation
d) homeostasis

14.) The characteristic of an individual that is necessary to the survival of the

species but NOT to the survival of that individual is
a) adaptation
b) reproduction
c) metabolism
d) organization

15.) Which of the following is an organism?

a.) Rock
b.) Tree
c.) Soil
d.) Dog


 16.)All of the following are organisms except
a.) The sun
b.) Human
c.) Potatoes
d.) Algae

Match the characteristic of life with the appropriate description

17. Organization a. Break down nutrients/food into usable energy

18. Growth b. Living things have a life cycle where they mature

19. Evolution/adaptation c. respond to changes in environment

20. Metabolism d. All living things show structure including cells

21. Reproduction e. Maintain internal balance

22.. DNA f. Pass genetic information to offspring

23. Homeostasis g. Able to produce offspring

Free response questions

24. List three examples of characteristics of life and examples of each.

26. Quartz crystals have the ability to "grow" new crystal faces over time in the
presence of solutions, "reproducing" new crystals off the parent pattern. Quartz also
"responds" to light by generating a current. Since growth, reproduction and response
are properties of life, why do we not consider quartz to be "alive"?