. Principles of modern biology. Biology. \*Life and Protoplasm MORE THAN a million and a quarter dis- tinct species of plants and animals are recog- nized in the world at large, and quite a num- ber of newly discovered species are reported every year. Different organisms have evolved a special fitness to live in almost every part of the environment—in the ocean, on land, and in the air—under a wide variety of con- ditions. Certain species thrive on dry rocks and in stagnant swamps; in hot springs and in polar ices; where oxygen is abundant, and even where oxygen is lacking entirely. Some organ
. Principles of modern biology. Biology. \*Life and Protoplasm MORE THAN a million and a quarter dis- tinct species of plants and animals are recog- nized in the world at large, and quite a num- ber of newly discovered species are reported every year. Different organisms have evolved a special fitness to live in almost every part of the environment—in the ocean, on land, and in the air—under a wide variety of con- ditions. Certain species thrive on dry rocks and in stagnant swamps; in hot springs and in polar ices; where oxygen is abundant, and even where oxygen is lacking entirely. Some organisms appear to be very simple —like microscopic droplets of clear liquid. But other creatures, like man, possess an ob- viously complicated structure. Gigantic liv- ing things, like whales or redwood trees, stand in dramatic contrast to the puniest bacterium, which looks like the smallest speck, even under the best magnification of the microscope. In short, a very rich diversity of living creatures has been evolved upon our earth, and man is challenged to reach an un- derstanding of their nature (Fig. 1-1). DISTINCTIVE ACTIVITIES OF LIVING BODIES Since biology is the group of sciences that deals with life in all its forms and in all its activities, it is necessary to distinguish as clearly as possible between living and non- living bodies. Such a distinction is not usu- ally difficult, because living bodies are apt to. Fig. 1-1. The size of organisms varies greatly. This whale (a sulfur bottom whale) weighs over 300,000 pounds, and the elephant weighs 20,000 pounds. But it takes more than a trillon tuberculosis bacilli to make one pound. (Redrawn from Organic Evolution, by Lull. The Macmillan Company.). Please note that these images are extracted from scanned page images that may have been digitally enhanced for readability - coloration and appearance of these illustrations may not perfectly resemble the original Marsland, Douglas, 1899-. New York, Holt, Rinehart a
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