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https://www.biologyonline.com/dictionary/organism
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Biology Articles, Tutorials & Dictionary Online

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Organism
n., plural: organisms
[ˈɔɹ.ɡən.ɪ.zəm]
Biology definition of organism: a living thing that has an organized structure, can react to stimuli, reproduce, grow, adapt, and maintain homeostasis

An organism refers to a living thing that has an organized structure, can react to stimuli, reproduce, grow, adapt, and maintain homeostasis. An organism would, therefore, be any animal, plant, fungus, protist, bacterium, or archaeon on earth. These organisms may be classified in various ways. One of the ways is by basing upon the number of cells that make it up. The two major groups are the single-celled (e.g. bacteria, archaea, and protists) and the multicellular (animals and plants). Organisms can also be classified according to their subcellular structures. Those with a well-defined nucleus are referred to as eukaryotes whereas those without are called prokaryotes. Both of them possess a genetic material but the location differs. In eukaryotes, the genetic material is found inside the nucleus whereas, in prokaryotes, it is located in a special region called a nucleoid. A modern system of classification groups living things into three distinct domains: (1) Archaea (archaebacteria), (2) bacteria (eubacteria), and (3) Eucarya (eukaryotes). Both archaea and bacteria are prokaryotic organisms while Eucarya, as the name suggests, it includes all the eukaryotes. The scientific study of all organisms is called . Biology is a field in science that aims to study the structure, function, distribution, and evolution of living things.

Organism Definition

An organism is defined as an entity with life. Both living things and non-living things are basically made up of molecules. However, a living thing can be identified from an inanimate object by its distinctive characteristics. For example, an organism is made up of one or more cells. This structure is made up of molecules that are biologically produced and naturally occurring. Such molecules are termed biomolecules. Examples are proteins, nucleic acids, lipids, and carbohydrates. These biomolecules can organize into complex particles, which in turn, can form subcellular structures. These subcellular structures are contained within a cell. The cell is regarded as the fundamental biological unit as every living thing is made up of at least one cell.

Organism (biology definition): a living thing that has an organized structure, can react to stimuli, reproduce, grow, adapt, and maintain homeostasis. Etymology: the term organism comes from the Greek organon, meaning "instrument". Synonyms: life form; living being;

One of the most important subcellular components of a cell is the chromosome. The chromosome bears the genetic material. In bacteria and archaea, the chromosome is a circular strand of DNA. In humans and other higher forms of organisms, it is a threadlike, linear strand of DNA.

The part of the DNA that is responsible for the physical and heritable characteristics of an organism is called a gene. The genes code for amino acids, proteins, and RNA molecules. Proteins are one of the most ubiquitous groups of biomolecules. Many of them are enzymes that catalyze many biological processes.

Changes involving a gene may lead to mutations. As a result, novel features could arise. While some mutations can be lethal or can cause detrimental effects, there are also certain mutations that can lead to beneficial outcomes. Mutations can drive evolution and natural selection. The acquisition of new traits from these mutations may be beneficial to the survival of a species. For example, a strain of bacteria that initially were susceptible to antibiotics could transform and become resistant to antibiotics when they acquire new genes. In this regard, an organism is, therefore, capable of change (by mutation) and adaptation.

Aside from enzymes, many biological reactions require energy. The most common form of energy utilized by a living thing is ATP, i.e. chemical energy used to fuel various biological reactions. In plants and other photosynthetic organisms, light energy is converted into chemical energy via the process of photosynthesis. Another way of producing energy is by cellular respiration. Cellular respiration is a cellular process wherein carbohydrates are processed to produce chemical energy.

Organisms metabolize. This means that they carry out processes that keep them alive. Metabolic processes include growth, response to stimuli, reproduction, waste elimination, and biosynthesis. Two forms of metabolism are anabolism and catabolism. Anabolism includes the energy-requiring reactions that lead to the building up of biomolecules. Conversely, catabolism includes processes of breaking down particles into simpler molecules. Living things carry out these metabolic processes in an orchestrated, systematized manner. They have diverse regulatory mechanisms to ensure that homeostatic conditions are kept and sustained.
Organisms are capable of detecting and responding to stimuli. They can detect changes in their environment. Humans and other animals have senses to detect stimuli. The five fundamental senses are sight, smell, touch, taste, and hearing. The response is crucial to survival. For instance, an individual organism might move away from the source of the stimuli. Others might move towards it.

Organisms can reproduce. They can give rise to another of the same kind (species). There are essentially two ways to do this: (1) by sexual reproduction, i.e. involving gametes, or (2) by asexual reproduction, i.e. a reproduction that does not involve gametes. In asexual reproduction, the offspring is a clone of the parent. In sexual reproduction, the offspring is a new individual formed by the union of the sex cells.

Organisms go through life stages. The offspring will grow to adulthood, meaning the phase at which it is also capable of reproducing. At the cellular level, growth entails an increase in size or an increase in number. An increase in cell size is one in which the cell increases in girth as it synthesizes and stores biomolecules. An increase in the number entails an increase in the cell number through cellular division.

Recommended: Biochemi Macromolecule Playing Cards, from Digitalworldbiology.com. A great activity for learning about the four major groups of biomolecules: fats, carbohydrates, nucleic acids, and proteins.

Types of Organisms

There are many ways to classify organisms. Find out below.

Prokaryotes vs. eukaryotes

The nucleus is an organelle that has a membrane (called the nuclear envelope) perforated with holes (called nuclear pores). Inside the nucleus are genetic material and nuclear bodies suspended in the nucleoplasm. Nucleoplasm is the protoplast material inside the nucleus. These nuclear structures are absent in a prokaryotic cell.

The nucleus of a eukaryotic cell is where DNA replication (the process in which a DNA segment is duplicated) and transcription (a process where mRNA transcript is produced) occurs. Conversely, these processes occur in the cytoplasm of a prokaryotic cell. The presence of a nucleus compartmentalizes the genetic material and these processes. The nuclear envelope prevents the easy entry of molecules and thereby regulates the passage of molecules into and out of the nucleus. There is an instance though when the nucleus apparently disappears. During cellular division, the nuclear envelope disintegrates to allow the chromosomes to separate and move to opposite poles, and then reforms to compartmentalize the genetic material in each of the two new cells.

Apart from the nucleus, other membrane-bound organelles found in a eukaryotic cell that are not present in a prokaryotic cell are mitochondria, plastids, endoplasmic reticulum, Golgi apparatus, lysosomes, and endosomes. Because of the presence of larger cytoplasmic structures, a eukaryotic cell is notably larger than a prokaryotic cell.

What is common between a prokaryotic cell and a eukaryotic cell is the presence of genes that store genetic information. Ribosomes (cytoplasmic structures that serve as the site of protein synthesis) are also present in both cell types. Nevertheless, the prokaryotic ribosomes are 70S (made up of 50S and 30S) whereas the eukaryotic ribosomes are 80S (made up of 60S and 40S). And while the ribosomes of the prokaryotes are made in the cytoplasm the process of ribosome synthesis involves both the cytoplasm and the nucleolus of the nucleus in eukaryotes.

Examples of prokaryotes are bacteria and archaea whereas eukaryotes include protists, fungi, plants, and animals.

Single-celled vs. multicellular

Organisms may be described as single-celled (unicellular) or multicellular. Unicellular organisms are those that are made up of only one cell. Conversely, multicellular organisms are comprised of many cells that act as a unit performing a particular function. Examples of unicellular prokaryotes are bacteria and archaea and unicellular eukaryotes are protists and certain fungi. Multicellular organisms include plants and animals.

In multicellular organisms, a group of cells makes up a tissue. The cells in a tissue have a similar structure and function. Examples of animal tissues are nervous tissue, muscle tissue, vascular tissue, and connective tissue. As for plants, the examples of tissues are the meristematic tissues, the permanent tissues, and the reproductive tissues. A group of tissues that are organized into an anatomical unit is called a biological . Examples of animal organs are as follows: heart, lungs, brain, stomach, skin, pancreas, liver, intestines, kidneys, and sex organs. In plants, the organs are roots, stems, leaves, flowers, fruits, and seeds.

In animals, the organs may further organize into an organ system. In humans and other vertebrates, the systems are as follows: integumentary system, lymphatic system, muscular system, nervous system, reproductive system, respiratory system, skeletal system, endocrine system, immune system, and urinary system. Each of these systems carries out a particular function. For instance, the digestive system is responsible for the digestion of food. The cardiovascular system is for the transport of biomolecules and substances throughout the body. While a multicellular living thing has distinct systems to perform specific tasks, a unicellular organism would perform these processes of life as a single independent unit.

Taxonomic Classification

Living things are classified into three major domains as proposed by Carl Woese. These domains are the Archaea, the Eubacteria (true bacteria), and the Eucarya. Below the domain are other major taxonomic levels: kingdom, phyla, class, order, family, genus, and species.

Domain Archaea and Domain Eubacteria

The Archaea and the Eubacteria are both prokaryotes whereas Eucarya includes the eukaryotes. Thus, both Archaea and Eubacteria lack distinct membrane-bound organelles. However, there are subtle differences between the two that led to their separation into distinct domains. Archaea have genes and certain metabolic pathways that are more closely related to eukaryotes than eubacteria. For example, the enzymes in transcription and translation are more similar to those of eukaryotes than those of eubacteria. As such, they are given a domain of their own since they have features that are different from the true bacteria.

Domain Eucarya

The list of living organisms that belong to Domain Eucarya are as follows:

Protists

Protists are living things characterized by having a relatively simple organization. Some of them are single-celled and others are multicellular. Another group of protists is colonial, meaning they form a colony of independent cells. They live in aquatic habitats and lack specialized tissue organization. Examples are the animal-like protozoans, the plant-like algae, the fungus-like protists, the slime molds, and the water molds.

Fungi

Fungi are eukaryotes that are known for their heterotrophic mode of nutrition since they lack chlorophyll (a pigment essential in photosynthesis). Many of them are filamentous. The filaments, called hyphae, are multicellular structures that form a mycelium. They use their hyphae for absorbing food. They are similar to plants in having a cell wall. Their mode of reproduction is by spore formation. The kind of spores they produce (i.e. asexual or sexual) is used as a basis to further classify them into perfect fungi (produce both asexual and sexual spores) or imperfect fungi (produce asexual spores only). Examples of fungi are yeasts, rusts, stinkhorns, molds, puffballs, mildews, and mushrooms.

Plants

Plants are multicellular photosynthetic life forms. One of the major distinctive features of plants is the presence of chloroplasts containing chlorophyll systems that collect light energy from a light source to be converted into chemical energy through photosynthesis. They are autotrophic eukaryotes. They are capable of manufacturing sugars (as their food) from carbon dioxide, water, and light energy. In photosynthesis, oxygen is a by-product. The plant releases oxygen into the environment through its stomates. Apart from the chloroplasts, other plastids present are chromoplasts (plastids that store pigments) and leucoplasts (non-pigmented plastids used mainly for storing food). Typically, the largest cytoplasmic structure in a plant cell is the vacuole, which is used for osmoregulation and regulation of turgor pressure. Plants reproduce by asexual and sexual means. Asexual reproduction is by budding, spore formation, fragmentation, and budding. Sexual reproduction involves male and female gametes. Tracheophytes, in particular, have a life cycle of alternating phases of sporophyte and gametophyte.

Animals

Animals are multicellular eukaryotes. The cells in a tissue are joined through cell junctions (e.g. tight junctions, gap junctions, and desmosomes). Their lack of chloroplasts (and the green pigment, chlorophyll) makes them incapable of photosynthesis. Thus, they rely on other organisms for sustenance. Thus, similar to fungi, the animals, too, are heterotrophic. They may lack cell walls but they have a skeletal system that provides structural support. They also possess sensory organs, such as eyes, nose, skin, ears, and tongue to detect stimuli. The sensory information is relayed to the brain for processing. The response may be relayed to the target cell, e.g. another nerve or a muscle to exert an action. Most animals reproduce through sexual reproduction. A haploid male gamete unites with a haploid female gamete to form a diploid zygote. Animals respire by taking in oxygen by inspiration and then releasing carbon dioxide by expiration.

Viruses and Viroids

Whether viruses are organisms or not is a matter of debate. Similar to living things, viruses have genetic material. However, they are apparently alive only when they are inside the host. Otherwise, they are biologically inactive. When they are active, they use the biological machinery of the host, especially for replication. Aside from viruses, viroids are another example of an acellular entity. They seem to be alive since they are pathogenic. They also contain genetic material (e.g. a short strand of RNA).

Structure of an Organism

A unicellular or multicellular organism is made up of the fundamental unit of life, the cell. As mentioned earlier, the cell is the fundamental unit of all living things. It is a membrane-bound structure containing various cytoplasmic structures. The prokaryotes and the single-celled eukaryotes can occur as a functional independent units of life. Conversely, multicellular eukaryotes have several cells that act as a unit, performing a particular function.

A living cell contains a protoplast encased by a plasma membrane. The protoplast contains the cytosol and the cytoplasmic structures, such as organelles and inclusions. In eukaryotes, the major organelles include the nucleus, the endoplasmic reticulum, the Golgi apparatus, the mitochondria, and the chloroplasts. Each of these organelles specializes in a particular task. For example, the nucleus is the control center of the cell. The genes inside the nucleus carry the codes that specify the sequence of amino acids and proteins.

When a cell needs a specific protein, the gene coding for it opens to allow the creation of a transcript (mRNA). The transcript is later translated at the ribosome attached to the endoplasmic reticulum so that the newly produced protein would undergo maturation inside the endoplasmic reticulum. When done, the protein is shuttled to the Golgi apparatus for labeling. The label determines where the protein would next go, i.e. for transport outside or within the cell.

The mitochondrion (plural: mitochondria) is a semi-autonomous organelle that is responsible for generating ATP (by citric acid cycle and oxidative phosphorylation pathways). It is a semi-autonomous organelle because it has its own genetic material. Similarly, the chloroplast, which is largely for photosynthesis, is also semi-autonomous because it has its own DNA. These extranuclear DNAs are different from nuclear DNA. In fact, it is used as a basis in the Endosymbiotic theory. According to this theory, these semi-autonomous organelles are probably the early prokaryotes that were engulfed by a bigger cell. Eventually, the prokaryote inside the large cell adapted and lived in symbiosis with its host.

Evolution of Organisms

Till now, how life began is still unclear. There are several theories suggesting how life on earth came about. For instance, in Abiogenesis, it suggests that life originated from non-living matter and the process that made it happen likely took several billion years.

The primitive earth is depicted as primordial soup. It was likened to the soup because the earth could have been an aqueous habitat containing various compounds, especially RNA.

In the RNA world hypothesis, it presumes that the primordial life was RNA-based. This is because RNA is a molecule that can act as genetic material and at the same time as a catalyst. Recently, NASA speculated that the meteorites that fell on earth from outer space could have been the source of the building blocks of RNA (as well as DNA). This presumption is due to the nucleobases that they found in meteorites. (Ref. 1) This could mean that the earliest organisms were lacking organelles and therefore were prokaryotes.

Organelles probably came about from a symbiosis between a smaller cell and a bigger cell. The smaller cell might have transformed into semi-autonomous organelles, such as a mitochondrion or a chloroplast. One of the tell-tale signs that this might be true is the resemblance of the 70S ribosomes of mitochondria to those of the prokaryotes.

The hypothetical primordial organism from where all life on earth descended is referred to as the Last Universal Common Ancestor (LUCA). This common ancestor might have existed some 3.5 to 3.8 billion years ago (Paleoarchean era). (Ref. 2, 3)

A diagram called an evolutionary tree (also known as the tree of life) can be a useful tool in studying phylogenetic relationships. How organisms diverged from one form to another is represented by the tree's branches. And with it, the common ancestry between organisms can be tracked down and identified as well. Tracking down the evolutionary course of all living things would lead to LUCA. However, not all scientists support this theory. For instance, Jean-Baptiste Lamarck refuted this theory. He believed in life emerging not just from one but many. (Ref. 4)

Multicellular organisms might have emerged some 600 million years ago. In geologic history, cyclic bursts of life and mass extinctions occurred. One of the notable explosions of life occurred during the Ediacaran period. The Ediacaran biota is presumed to be comprised of unicellular and multicellular living things. Another burst of life occurred during the Cambrian period (around 541 million years ago). In 2016, the number of species inhabiting the earth is estimated to be about 1 trillion. (Ref. 5)
Try to answer the quiz below and find out what you have learned so far about organisms.
References

1. NASA - NASA Researchers: DNA Building Blocks Can Be Made in Space. (2011, January 1). Retrieved from Link

2. Doolittle, W. F. (February 2000). "Uprooting the tree of life". Scientific American 282 (2): 90-5.

3. Glansdorff, N., Xu, Y., & Labedan, B. (2008). "The last universal common ancestor: emergence, constitution and genetic legacy of an elusive forerunner". Biology Direct 3: 29.

4. Bowler, P. J. (2003). 'Evolution. The History of an Idea', third edition, p.90-91.

5. The History of Animal Evolution. (2000, January 1). Retrieved from Link

6. Researchers find that Earth may be home to 1 trillion species NSF - National Science Foundation. (2016, January 1). Retrieved from: https://www.nsf.gov/news/news_summ.jsp?cntn_id=138446

Further Reading

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Organism n., plural: organisms [ˈɔɹ.ɡən.ɪ.zəm] Biology definition of organism: a living thing that has an organized structure, can react to stimuli, reproduce, grow, adapt, and maintain homeostasis An organism refers to a living thing that has an organized structure, can react to stimuli, reproduce, grow, adapt, and maintain homeostasis.

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https://usnvc.org/about/plant-communities-and-vegetation-classification/natural-vegetation-classification/
the photo shows the classification of the national vegetation in the united states

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Natural (and semi-natural) vegetation is defined as "vegetation where ecological processes primarily determine species and site characteristics". Human activities may influence vegetation interaction, but do not dominate or remove ecological processes.

The top three levels (class, subclass, formation) are coarse and describe major ecological categories on a global scale. These levels emphasize physiognomy, a combination of the external appearance of vegetation, its vertical structure, and the growth forms of the dominant taxa. The middle levels (division, macrogroup, group) reflect distinctive combinations of species in the context of regional and continental environmental variables and processes such as water cycles and fire patterns. Biogeography and florists are increasingly integrated at the three middle levels. The lowest levels (alliance and association) are the most fine-grained, based on diagnostic and/or dominant species and compositional similarity reflecting local to regional environmental factors.

The relationship between the new hierarchy levels and classification criteria is depicted in the diagram below.

The following table shows criteria and examples of the levels of the revised National Vegetation Classification hierarchy for natural vegetation.

Criteria and examples of the levels of the revised NVC hierarchy for natural vegetation

HIERARCHY FOR NATURAL VEGETATION

VEGETATION CLASSIFICATION CRITERIA

ECOLOGICAL CONTEXT

COLLOQUIAL NAME

Broad combinations of general dominant growth forms.

Basic temperature (energy budget), moisture, and substrate/aquatic conditions.

Mesomorphic Tree Vegetation Class

Forest & Woodland

Combinations of general dominant and diagnostic growth forms.

Global macroclimatic factors driven primarily by latitude and continental position, or overriding substrate/aquatic conditions.

Temperate & Boreal Forest & Woodland Subclass

Temperate & Boreal Forest & Woodland

3
Formation

Combinations of dominant and diagnostic growth forms.

Global macroclimatic factors as modified by altitude, seasonality of precipitation, substrates, and hydrologic conditions.

Cool Temperate Forest & Woodland Formation

Cool Temperate Forest & Woodland

Middle Levels

Physiognomy, biogeography, and floristics

A description of each classification concept is available for those levels that have been reviewed.

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The U.S. National Vegetation Classification

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Natural (and semi-natural) vegetation is defined as "vegetation where ecological processes primarily determine species and site characteristics". Human activities may influence vegetation interaction, but do not dominate or remove ecological processes. The top three levels (class, subclass, formation) are coarse and describe major ecological categories on a global scale.

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https://www.littlerockfamily.com/post/128276/3-easy-ways-for-parents-to-stay-active
the photo shows people doing some sports activities to being active

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Our exercise habits change as we do. As we grow and age, we slow down. The CDC reports that only 39 percent of Arkansans between the ages of 45 and 54 achieve 150 minutes of moderate physical activity per week, the recommended standard. By the time we've hit our senior years, we've gotten used to a mostly sedentary lifestyle, so it's easy to write off exercise as something we once did in our youth but no longer need.

However, studies show that the opposite is true. As we age, we lose muscle mass and bone density. Staying active and strong can help mitigate those health issues that slow us down and prevent problems like diabetes and heart disease. Studies even show a link between exercise and mental sharpness.

So, let go of the excuses. Physical activity is important, and possible, no matter how old you are or how long it's been since you last picked up a weight. Here are three basic tips to help you jump back into an active lifestyle, regardless of your life stage and ability.

1. Find what works for you.

Don't get caught up in the hype around gym memberships and CrossFit if that's not your thing. Instead, try to incorporate movement into your favorite hobbies - like walks outside, gardening, dancing, sports or yoga. If you're like many other moms and older women who have a hard time balancing social and work life, combine them. Call your friends and start a walking or running group. Having friends committed to getting active with you will hold you accountable, and you know you'll be entertained.

2. Try low-intensity strength training.

The CDC reports that
only 39% of Arkansans
between the ages of 45 and 54
achieve 150 minutes of moderate physical activity per week, the recommended standard.

As we get older, we lose muscle mass, which can make normal daily activities more difficult. Lifting weights is an easy and simple way to prevent muscle loss, but you can also use elastic bands, body weight and even canned food to keep your muscles strong. Focus on your main muscle areas: arms, back, chest and legs. According to WebMD, it's great to choose multiple different exercises and aim for at least one set of each with eight to 12 reps.

3. Stretch regularly.

Strength is important, but so is flexibility. Exercises that stretch your joints and muscles like yoga, Pilates and tai chi are simple and easy to do anywhere with no equipment. Stretching can help build balance and relieve joint pain. Plus, stretching-based exercises like yoga allow you to modify poses to account for arthritis pain, limited mobility or injuries. Of course, don't push it! Straining or twisting muscles could have an adverse effect and cause injuries. Always consult your doctor before trying new workouts.

Lubna Maruf, M.D., medical director at QualChoice Health Insurance, is a graduate of Aga Khan Medical University in Pakistan and completed her residency at Michael Reese Hospital and Medical Center, affiliated with the University of Illinois at Chicago.

She has over 20 years of experience in internal medicine and health care administration.

* Making Movement Matter* Metro Little Rock Workout Classes for Kids
* Healthy & Delicious: Fresh Recipes from Stephanie Newcomb

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Our exercise habits change as we do. As we grow and age, we slow down. The CDC reports that only 39 percent of Arkansans between the ages of 45 and 54 achieve 150 minutes of moderate physical activity per week, the recommended standard.

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https://www.bbc.com/future/article/20211126-why-insects-are-more-sensitive-than-they-seem
the photo shows type of insects

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One balmy autumn day in 2014, David Reynolds stood up to speak at an important meeting. It was taking place in Chicago City Hall - a venue so grand, it's embellished with marble stairways, 75ft (23m) classical columns, and vaulted ceilings.

As the person in charge of pest management in the city's public buildings, among other things, Reynolds was there to discuss his annual budget. But soon after he began, an imposter appeared on one of the walls - a plump cockroach, with her glistening black body contrasting impressively with the white paint. As she brazenly sauntered along, it was as if she was mocking him.

"Commissioner, what is your annual budget for cockroach abatement?" one councillor interrupted, according to a report in The Chicago Tribune. Cue raucous laughter and a mad scramble to eradicate the six-legged prankster.

No one would question the cockroach's impeccable, though accidental, comic timing. But the incident is partly funny because we think of insects as robotic, with barely more emotional depth than lumps of rock. A cockroach that's capable of being amused or playful - well, that's just plain absurd. Or is it?

In fact, there's mounting evidence that insects can experience a remarkable range of feelings. They can be literally buzzing with delight at pleasant surprises, or sink into depression when bad things happen that are out of their control. They can be optimistic, cynical, or frightened, and respond to pain just like any mammal would. And though no one has yet identified a nostalgic mosquito, mortified ant, or sardonic cockroach, the apparent complexity of their feelings is growing every year.

When Scott Waddell, professor of neurobiology at the University of Oxford, first started working on emotions in fruit flies, he had a favourite running joke - "...that, you know, I wasn't intending on studying ambition", he says.

Fast-forward to today, and the concept of go-getting insects is not so outrageous as it once was. Waddell points out that some research has found that fruit flies do pay attention to what their peers are doing, and are able to learn from them. Meanwhile, the UK government recently recognised that their close evolutionary cousins - crabs and lobsters - as sentient, and proposed legislation that would ban people from boiling them alive.

So, how does one detect emotions in an insect? How can we tell they're not just responding automatically? And if they really are sensitive creatures, should we treat them differently?

An evolutionary imperative
Insects are a jumbled group of six-legged invertebrate creatures with segmented bodies. There are more than a million different types, encompassing dragonflies, moths, weevils, bees, crickets, silverfish, praying mantis, mayflies, butterflies, and even head lice.

The earliest insects emerged at least 400 million years ago, long before dinosaurs took their first tentative plods. It's thought our last common ancestor with them was a slug-like creature which lived around 200 million years before that, and they've been diversifying ever since. Initially they ruled over the land as giants - some dragonflies were sparrowhawk-sized, with 2.3ft (70cm) wingspans - before evolving into the extraordinary array of arthropods around today, from flies with fake scorpion tails to fuzzy moths that resemble winged poodles.

As a result, they're strikingly similar to other animals, and yet vividly different. Insects have many of the same organs as humans - with hearts, brains, intestines and ovaries or testicles - but lack lungs and stomachs. And instead of being hooked up to a network of blood vessels, the contents of their bodies float in a kind of soup, which delivers food and carries away waste. The whole lot is then encased in a hard shell, the exoskeleton, which is made of chitin, the same material fungi use to build their bodies.

The architecture of their brains follows a similar pattern. Insects don't have the exact same brain regions as vertebrates, but they do have areas that perform similar functions. For example, most learning and memory in insects relies on "mushroom bodies" - domed brain regions which have been compared to the cortex, the folded outer layer that's largely responsible for human intelligence, including thought and consciousness.

(Tantalisingly, even insect larvae have mushroom bodies, and some of the neurons within them remain for their whole lives - so it's been suggested that adult insects that went through this stage might be able to remember some things that happened before they metamorphosed.)

There's mounting evidence that our parallel neural setups power a number of shared cognitive abilities, too. Bees can count up to four. Cockroaches have rich social lives, and form tribes that stick together and communicate. Ants can even pioneer new tools - they can select suitable objects from their environment and apply them to a task they're trying to complete, like using sponges to carry honey back to their nest.

However, though insect brains have evolved down an uncannily familiar path to our own, there is one crucial difference: while human ones are so engorged they sap 20% of our energy and drove women to evolve wider hips, insects have compacted their wits into packages several million times smaller - fruit flies have brains the size of a poppy seed. How they've managed this is an enduring scientific mystery to this day.

So, even at first glance, it seems like insects would have the intellectual capacity for emotions. But does it make sense that they would have evolved them?

Emotions are mental sensations that are usually linked to an animal's circumstances - they're a kind of mental programme that, when it's set off, can change the way we act. It's thought that different emotions have emerged at different points in evolutionary history, but broadly they turned up to encourage us to behave in ways that will improve our ability to survive or reproduce, and ultimately, maximise our genetic legacy.

Geraldine Wright, a professor of entomology at the University of Oxford, gives the example of hunger, which is a state of mind that helps you to alter your decision-making in a way that's appropriate, such as prioritising food-seeking behaviours. Other emotions can be equally motivating - rumblings of anger can focus our efforts on rectifying injustices, and constantly chasing happiness and contentment nudges us towards achievements that keep us alive.

All these things could also apply to insects. An earwig that's thrilled when it finds a nice damp crevice filled with delectable rotting vegetation will be less likely to starve or dry out, just as one that panics and plays dead when it's disturbed has a better chance of escaping the jaws of a predator.

"Let's say you're a bee that ends up in a spider web, and a spider is swiftly coming towards your across the web," says Lars Chittka, who leads a research group that studies bee cognition at Queen Mary, University of London. "It's not impossible that the escape responses are all triggered without any kind of emotions. But on the other hand, I find it hard to believe that this would happen without some form of fear," he says.
A heretical idea
When Waddell first started his own research group in 2001, he had a fairly simple goal in mind. He wanted to find out if flies are better at recalling where to find food when they haven't eaten for a while - i.e. when they might, if they could experience subjective moods, be feeling "hungry". (It turns out they are, and they can.)

To begin with, Waddell cautiously chose the word "motivation", rather than "hunger", to describe the flies' state of mind - he suggested that they were more motivated to find food if it had been withheld. "And people found it a little problematic," says Waddell. Some other scientists felt that this was too anthropomorphic and preferred the term "internal states". "So I often had arguments that I thought were essentially meaningless, because they were just playing with that word," he says.

Then in a matter of years, studying insect intelligence became significantly more fashionable - and all of a sudden the term "motivation" was abandoned, with researchers making the case for insects having "emotional primitives", says Waddell. In other words, they experienced what looked suspiciously like emotions.

"I had always thought of these physiological changes that occur when animals are in deprivation states - deprived of sex, deprived of food - as subjective feelings of 'hunger' and 'sex drive'," says Waddell. "I've never really bothered labelling them as 'emotions', pretty much because I thought it was going to get me into trouble. But before I knew it, everyone seemed to be more comfortable using that [word]."

Now that the suggestion insects have feelings is slightly less scandalous, the field has exploded in popularity - and this strange group of animals is becoming more relatable by the day. But proving that an insect can experience an emotion remains tricky.

Take the humble bumblebee.

In humans, those who have experienced trauma are especially wired to expect the worst - and this has also been demonstrated in a number of other vertebrate animals, including rats, sheep, dogs, cows, cod and starlings. But no one had ever thought to check if insects did this too.

Back in 2011, together with colleagues from Newcastle University (where she worked at the time), Wright decided to take a look. "When psychologists are studying this in humans... they can verify affect [a person's emotional state] because they can ask," says Wright. But discerning emotions in bees requires a bit more ingenuity.

First, the researchers trained a troupe of bees to associate one kind of smell with a sugary reward, and another with an unpleasant liquid spiked with quinine, the chemical that gives tonic water its bitter taste. Then the scientists divided their bee participants into two groups. One was vigorously shaken - a sensation bees hate, though it's not actually harmful - to simulate an attack by a predator. The other bee crowd was just left to enjoy their sugary drink.

To find out if these experiences had affected the bees' mood, next Wright exposed them to brand new, ambiguous smells. Those who had had a lovely day usually extended their mouthparts in expectation of receiving another snack, suggesting that they were expecting more of the same. But the bees who had been annoyed were less likely to react this way - they had become cynical.

Intriguingly, the experiment also hinted that the bees weren't experiencing some alien, unrelatable form of pessimism, but a feeling that might not be too dissimilar to our own. Just like humans who are feeling exasperated, their brains had lower levels of dopamine and serotonin. (They also had lower levels of the insect hormone octopamine, which is thought to be involved in reward pathways.)

Wright says many of the chemicals in our brains are highly conserved - they were invented hundreds of millions of years ago. So an insect's emotional experiences could be more familiar than you would think. "So from that perspective, yes, they [the brain chemicals] may have diverged a little bit in terms of what they signal in which animal lineage, but it's quite interesting," she says.

For example, Waddell's research on fruit flies has found that their brains use dopamine just like ours do, to elicit feelings of reward and punishment. "So it's very, very interesting that those things have, you know, convergently evolved and are sort of similar," says Wright. "It means that that's the best way of doing it."

Wright explains that her bee experiment doesn't necessarily mean that all insects can experience pessimism or optimism, because bees are unusually social - community life at the hive is particularly cognitively demanding, so they're considered intelligent for insects. "...But other insects probably do [have pessimism] too," she says.
A clear message
However, it would be surprising if insects could feel emotions but not express them at all. And tantalisingly, there are some hints that insects might be more relatable than you'd think here too.

The problem is something Charles Darwin first considered in the late 19th Century. When he wasn't pondering evolution or eating the "strange flesh" of the exotic fauna he discovered, he spent much of his time thinking about how animals communicate their feelings, and wrote up his findings in a little-known book.

In The Expression of the Emotions in Man and Animals, Darwin argues that - just like every other characteristic - the ways humans express their feelings would hardly have appeared out of nowhere in our own species. Instead, our facial expressions, actions and noises are likely to have evolved via a gradual process over millennia. Crucially, this means that there's probably some continuity among animals, in terms of the ways that we display our emotional state to others.

For example, Darwin noted that animals often make loud noises when they're excited. Among the loud chattering of storks and the threatening rattling of some snakes, he cites the "stridulations", or loud vibrations, of many insects, which they make when they're sexually aroused. Darwin also observed that bees change their hums when they're cross. This all suggests that you don't need to have a voice box to express how you're feeling.

Take the golden tortoise beetle, which looks like a miniature tortoise that's been dipped in molten gold. It's not actually covered in the element, but instead achieves its glamorous look by reflecting light off fluid-filled grooves embedded in its shell. However, pick one of these living jewels up - or stress it out in any way - and it will transform before your eyes, flushing ruby-red until it resembles a large iridescent ladybird.

Most research on the beetle has focused on the physics of how it achieves the colour switch, but intriguingly, it's thought that the response is controlled by the insect, which may choose to change depending on what's going on around it - rather than something that just happens passively.

Then there's the Asian honey bee. Around October each year - during what's ominously referred to as the "slaughter phase" - they run the gauntlet of gangs of bee-decapitating giant hornets, also aptly known as "murder hornets". The wasps have a wide native range in Asia, from India to Japan, but scientists suspect they're slowly invading other areas, with occasional sightings in North America. Their raids on bee hives can last for hours, and wipe out entire colonies - first, they cut up their worker bee victims into pieces, then they go for their offspring.

But the bees don't go quietly. In work released earlier this year, scientists revealed that they scream - using an amplified, frantic version of their usual buzz. And though no one has conclusively tied the shrieks to an emotional response in the bees, the study's authors noted in their paper that these "antipredator pipes" share similar acoustic features to the alarm calls of many other animals, from primates to birds to meercats, and might suggest that they're fearful.
A n uncomfortable truth
However, the most contentious aspect of the inner lives of insects has to be pain.

"There's lots of evidence in fruit fly larvae that they feel mechanical pain - if we pinch them, they try to escape - and the same is the case for adult flies as well," says Greg Neely, a professor of functional genomics at the University of Sydney. As always, proving that these unpleasant experiences are interpreted as emotional pain is another matter. "The issue is really the higher order aspect," says Neely.

However, there's emerging evidence that they can indeed feel pain as we know it - and not only that, they can experience it chronically, just like humans.

One basic clue to the former is that, if you train fruit flies to associate a certain smell with something unpleasant, they will simply run away whenever you present them with it. "They link together the sensory context with the negative stimulus, and they don't want that - and so they go away from it," says Neely. When fruit flies are prevented from escaping, they eventually give up and exhibit helpless behaviour that looks a lot like depression.

But perhaps the most surprising results have emerged from Neely's own research, which has found that injured fruit flies can experience lingering pain, long after their physical wounds have healed. "It's almost like an anxiety-like state, where once they've been injured, they want to make sure nothing else bad happens," says Neely. The fruit flies' responses are thought to mirror what can happen in humans, when an injury leads to chronic "neuropathic" pain.

And though pain hasn't yet been studied in a wide variety of insects, Neely thinks its likely that it would be similar across the board.

"If we look at the overall architecture of how the brain is set up - the receptors, the ion channels and the neurotransmitters are all pretty similar," says Neely, who points out that you can find examples of insects that are blind to these sensory signals, such as larvae that are in the middle of their transition to adulthood, but this is unusual.
A question of numbers
All this research has some unsettling implications. At the moment, insects are among the most persecuted animals on the planet, routinely killed in almost-incomprehensibly large numbers. This includes 3.5 quadrillion - 3,500,000,000,000,000 - poisoned by insecticides on US farmland each year, two trillion squashed or slammed by cars on Dutch roads, and many more that have gone uncounted.

But though there isn't much data on the full extent of our insecticide, one thing is widely accepted - the numbers we're despatching are so vast, we're living through an "insect Armageddon", an era where insects are vanishing from the wild at an alarming rate. Three-quarters of the flying insects in German nature reserves have disappeared in the last 25 years, and one report found that 400,000 species may be facing extinction.

The discovery of insect emotions also poses a slightly awkward dilemma for researchers - especially those who have devoted their careers to uncovering them.

Fruit flies are the archetypal research animal, studied so intensively that researchers know more about them than almost any other. At the time of writing, there are around 762,000 scientific papers that mention its Latin name, " Drosophila melanogaster", on Google scholar. Equally, studies into bees are growing in popularity, for the insights they can provide into everything from epigenetics - the study of how the environment can influence the way our genes are expressed - to learning and memory. Both have endured more than their fair share of experimentation.

"I like to watch bees and I've studied behaviour for a lot of my career, so I empathise quite a lot with them already," says Wright, who has been a vegetarian for decades. However, the numbers used in research are tiny compared to those sacrificed elsewhere, so she feels that it's easier to justify. "It's this sort of disregard of life in general that we have [that Wright finds more problematic] - you know, people just wantonly take life and destroy it and manipulate it ... from humans to mammals, insects to plants."

But while using insects for research is still largely uncontroversial, the discovery that they may think and feel raises a number of sticky conundrums for other fields.

There's already a historical precedent for banning pesticides to protect certain insects - such as the EU-wide embargo on nicotinoids for the sake of bees. Could there be scope for moving away from others? And though insects are increasingly promoted as a noble and environmentally friendly alternative to meat from vertebrates, is this actually an ethical win? After all, you'd have to kill 975,225 grasshoppers to get the same volume of meat as you would from a single cow.

Perhaps one reason we don't tend to think of insects as emotional is that it would be overwhelming.
Zaria Gorvett is a senior journalist for BBC Future and tweets @ZariaGorvett
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Why insects are more sensitive than they seem

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One balmy autumn day in 2014, David Reynolds stood up to speak at an important meeting. It was taking place in Chicago City Hall - a venue so grand, it's embellished with marble stairways, 75ft (23m) classical columns, and vaulted ceilings.

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https://www.sunlife.ca/en/tools-and-resources/health-and-wellness/fitness-and-family-health/5-ways-to-socialize-safely-this-summer/
the photo shows some friends set together with advices to how to be socialize safely

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As vaccine rollouts are ramping up, we're seeing how getting vaccinated will bring us all back together, faster. If you're able, get the COVID-19 vaccine as soon as it's available to you. You can check the Government of Canada's COVID-19 page for more information. Rest assured that vaccines approved in Canada go through a thorough vetting process by health experts and are safe.

The more people who get the vaccine and we see a decrease in new COVID cases, the sooner we'll return to the summer traditions we know and love. In the meantime, many of your favourite summer activities may still be cut back because of COVID-19 pandemic restrictions. However, the good news is you can still enjoy some of the traditional trappings of summer. It may require some creativity for staying safe at the same time.

Are outdoor gatherings permitted where you live? If they are, here are some ideas for safe, fun summer gatherings.

1. Host an outdoor "BYOE" celebration

You can still throw a small gathering, but make it "BYOE," as in, "bring your own everything."

While group gatherings are safer outdoors than in, that doesn't mean you should let down your guard. And your guests may prefer to eat food they have prepared themselves, too. You can ask them to pack their own meals, drinks and utensils as well.

What if you still yearn to host? Consider having the meal catered, since restaurants and commercial kitchens are likely to have high sanitation standards. If you order in, consider individually packaged meals, rather than serving buffet-style.

Set up tables or picnic blankets two metres apart on your lawn or patio. That way, each family or group knows where to sit safely. You may even have guests bring their own chairs or blankets to make things even easier.

Is the government still prohibiting private gatherings where you live? Maybe you can meet at the park instead. Be creative while respecting all public health guidelines and local bylaws.

2. Set up a DIY backyard movie theater

Some movie theaters may be making plans to re-open. But many Canadians are still hesitant to mingle with the masses. Fortunately, avoiding crowds doesn't mean missing out on the fun of a night at the movies. Instead, create your own at-home theater. All you need is a projector and a wall, fence, or white sheet. Don't forget the bug spray for maximum enjoyment.

Have your guests bring their own snacks, drinks, and chairs, and you can arrange them two metres apart. Consider making it a weekly event everyone can look forward to. You might also invite movie buffs to vote on the film to accommodate a variety of genres and tastes.

If the weather doesn't cooperate on your planned movie night, that's ok. There's a number of sources online that will let you host a virtual watch party instead.

3. Take a virtual trip or tour

It's looking like the borders are likely to remain closed for some time. But that doesn't mean you have to completely "miss out" on an international jaunt. Many high-profile destinations, landmarks and museums are offering virtual tours. You can plan a visit from the comfort of your home.

You can also make themed snacks to get in the spirit of travel. You might discover you don't miss the crowds, heat or hassle of travel.

If museums and monuments aren't your thing, you could plan a virtual games night. There are many options available to experience virtual escape rooms or play a trivia game with friends. A simple internet search will give you free ideas to connect with your friends and family virtually.

4. Include group-hesitant friends and relatives in your celebrations

Even when groups begin to gather, many individuals will remain wary of socializing in groups. This may be for health or other reasons. For their comfort and safety, you can offer ways they can join in the fun from a distance.

For example, you could ask a guest to record and stream the event. That way, some guests can participate from their own home. Or, give them advance notice of a party. Then, they can send a gift for the honoree to open on-camera. To help make them feel included, send a sweet treat so they can join cake time, for example.

5. Always opt for the safest choice

It's easy to get carried away when we want to get back to our usual social lives. But the current moment demands an attitude of "better safe than sorry."

While some restaurants may open for indoor dining, outside venues are still a safer choice. Just make sure to follow the rules recommended by the federal government and your provincial or territorial government. In most places, it's still recommended to wear a mask for everyone's health and safety.

The government urges people to wear facial coverings when you can't maintain a two-metre distance from others - even if you've been vaccinated. This can happen in crowded public settings, such as:

This summer, it's wise to err on the side of safety as you make choices for you and your family. But that doesn't mean the fun times can't go on-it just requires a little creative planning.

And let's hope and plan for a better summer, next year.

For more information about the COVID-19 vaccines available in Canada, visit the Government of Canada's COVID-19 page.
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As vaccine rollouts are ramping up, we're seeing how getting vaccinated will bring us all back together, faster. If you're able, get the COVID-19 vaccine as soon as it's available to you. You can check the Government of Canada's COVID-19 page for more information.