helppp!! why is an automobile not a living thing?

Question

soo the question is why is an automobile not a living thing. i have a paper due tomorrow and i can't find much information.
like my science teacher said cars eat, they eat gas and that's thier food and they breathe out gas.. soo WHY IS AUTOMOBILE NOT A LIVING THING???

Answer 1

There are very specific requirements for something to be considered alive, as opposed to alive and with intelligence. Living creatures have certain features, such as a metabolism, homeostatic balance, cooperative behaviors, etc. etc. That is why a car is not a living thing.

Answer 2

Reproduction, growth and adaptation.

A life form can reproduce, but an automobile can't.

Look at this Wikipedia article: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Life#Definitions
for the accepted definition of life. You will find that the automobile doesn't grow and doesn't adapt. It does have an organization (the body), a metabolism (the engine), Homeostasis (the AC unit), and it can respond to stimuli (the driver). You could say that the tires adapt to the road, but adaptation refers to an evolutionary process and evolution requires reproduction.

The hard question is to say why fire is not a life form; it can reproduce, it has an organization (blue at the center, then cooler colors as you spread out plus the smoke), it grows, and adapts to the environment. It attempts to maintain Homeostasis and when you throw water or foam on it retreats thus you can say it responds to stimuli, the metabolism is the chemical process that produces smoke, but what fire lacks is organization. Fire takes the form of the fuel and the air in the space where it burns; it has no form itself and will not retain any single shape. There may be sections of a fire, but they don't hold their shape or structure.

Answer 3

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... Because it's made of metal?

How old are you? And why is your teacher telling you that cars eat and breathe gas?

Answer 4

because it cant survive on its own.

Answer 5

because they cannot reproduce

Answer 6

think about that one...

Answer 7

um... it has no heart no ****