A Plant Cell is Like a Fishing Ship Justin Chenevert Image credit http://www.wellesley.edu/Biology/Courses/Plant/plant.html Start the Comparison!
Endoplasmic Reticulum Cytoskeleton Cell Wall Cytoplasm Cell Membrane Golgi Body Nucleus Nucleolus Nucleus Golgi Body Nucleolus Vacuole Chloroplast Cytoplasm Ribosomes Vacuole Mitochondria Ribosome Chloroplast Endoplasmic Reticulum Cytoskeleton Mitochondria Cell Wall Endoplasmic Reticulum Cell Membrane Cytoskeleton
Chloroplast/Trawler Net The Chloroplasts are like the fishing ship’s net because both capture energy from the environment and bring it inside to be used by the mitochondria/cook. BACK
Nucleus/Captain’s Quarters The nucleus of a cell is like the captains quarters of a ship because both contain instruments that drive and coordinate the functions of the cell/ship. BACK
Nucleolus/Captain The nucleolus is like the captain himself because they are the centers of the centers, where the orders are given to the mates/where the ribosomes are synthesized. BACK
Vacuole/Pantry A vacuole is like the storage room in the ship because they are both general storage areas, with anything from paint/enzymes, to extra water for the crew/cell. BACK
Ribosomes/Crew Ribosome ER The ribosomes are like the crew because the ribosomes receive RNA/orders from the nucleus/ captain. They both work to synthesize proteins/catch fish. They are both numerous in the cell/ship. BACK
Mitochondria/Ship’s Cook We make energy The ship’s cook is like the mitochondria because they take the stored energy (ATP/fish) and turn it into energy for the ship/cell. BACK
Endoplasmic Reticulum/Ship’s Corridors The corridors under the ships decks and the ER both are like passageways that connect different parts of the structure together things in the ship/cell travel along them to go places. BACK
Cell Wall/Ship Walls The wooden walls of a ship and the cell wall are similar structures because they give form to the cell/ship and provide a solid layer against the surroundings. BACK
Cell Membrane/Ship’s Waterproofing Pine resin Image credit http://www.treedictionary.com/DICT2003/HTMLFILES/woodtypes.html The cell membrane is like the pine resin the crew used to waterproof their ship because both keep the inside separate from the outside and keep water from leaking in. BACK
Cytoplasm/Air The cytoplasm of a cell is like the air because everything in the cell/ship must move through it, and it fills up every corner. BACK
Golgi Body The Golgi Bodies are like the unfortunate deckboy who gets the job of cleaning and packing the caught fish in ice. The Golgi bodies ready protiens for going outside the cell, like the boy gets the fish ready for market. BACK
Cytoskeleton/Ship’s Supportive Beams The Cytoskeleton is like the supportive beams all across the ship because they both help to hold the object in place and give it strength and support. BACK