|
|
|
Museum
visitors get a close-up look at plant hydroponics
in Phil Ross's art installation, called "Jarred
In."
|
|
|
The
Traits collection investigates the structure and nature
of life through four different sections: The Stuff of
Life, Life Needs Energy, Making More Life, and Change
Over Time. Each section is designed to help visitors
see past the diversity of living things to the underlying
unity connecting us all.
The
Stuff of Life
Whatever form life takes, it’s put together with
the same materials: We’re all made of cells, proteins—and
the molecule that tells them both what to do, DNA.
Life
Needs Energy
Plants (and some fungi and bacteria) get energy directly,
using sunlight to make the food they need. Animals (including
us) get energy indirectly, consuming both plants and
other animals to get the food they need.
Making
More Life
Only living things can create other living things. By
making more of themselves, organisms ensure that life
goes on, even though individuals die.
Change
Over Time
An organism’s appearance and behavior come from
information contained in its DNA. Found in the cells
of all living things, DNA passes this vital information
from generation to generation. Because even a small
change in DNA can create radical changes in an organism,
DNA has become the engine of evolution.
|
