Modern Classification
Today, scientists look at all kinds of traits to classify organisms Today, scientists look at all kinds of traits to classify organisms. They now look at: The organism’s chemical makeup (it’s DNA) It’s genes and body structure Fossils The embryo as it develops (how offspring are carried)
Taxonomy “Taxonomy” refers to the science of naming or classifying organisms. Taxonomy was first developed 2000 years ago by Aristotle. He based his system on organism size, structure, and where it lived.
Today’s classification system separates organisms into 6 kingdoms: Through these studies, they can determine the organism’s phylogeny, or it’s evolutionary history. Today’s classification system separates organisms into 6 kingdoms: 1) Animals 5) Eubacteria 3) Fungi 6) Archeobacteria 2) Plants 4) Protists
Some of the things scientists consider when placing organisms in a kingdom are: presence of a nucleus Single or many-celled Ability to move, AND… Ability to make food
If an organism’s cells have a true nucleus and membrane-covered organelles, they are considered eukaryotic. Plants, animals, fungi, and protists are eukaryotic
Eubacteria and Archeobacteria are both considered prokaryotic I’m very simple! If an organism’s cells DO NOT have a true nucleus nor membrane-covered organelles, they are considered prokaryotic. Eubacteria and Archeobacteria are both considered prokaryotic
It gets more complicated than KINGDOMS however! Each category after kingdom gets more specific.
The different divisions are called (in order): KINGDOM PHYLUM (DIVISION IF IT’S A PLANT!) CLASS ORDER FAMILY GENUS SPECIES species
King Philip Comes Over For Good Spaghetti Can you make a catchy word or phrase to remember the ORDER of classifications? For instance: King Philip Comes Over For Good Spaghetti
Our Name The first word of the name (the genus name) is capitalized. (ie: Homo) The second word of the name (the species name) is NOT capitalized (ie: sapiens) So, together, you get Homo sapiens
What it looks like Also, both words in the names are italicized or underlined. Why did Linnaeus choose Latin for his naming system? Because meanings for Latin words are same all over the world.
Scientists use dichotomous keys to classify organisms. DICHOTOMOUS KEYS are detailed lists of traits that step by step become very specific—down to the species level. What does “DI” mean? Two
6 Kingdoms by Brainpop (Advanced)