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It has been suggested that this article or section be merged with Carbon-based life. () |
Organic life
Organic life is life which is cellular, carbon-and-water-based with complex organization, having a metabolism, a capacity to grow, respond to stimuli, reproduce and—through natural selection—adapt. That is, all terrestrial organisms: plants, animals, fungi, protists, archaea and bacteria, but not viruses.
Organic life is organic in several senses: it has organs and organelles; is made up of organic carbon-containing molecules; and it has organic forms and organisation. Organic life does not include the broader definitions of "life", and so does not include viruses (which are acellular and do not metabolise), theoretical non-carbon-based life, nor any other alternative biology.
