Organisation of Living Things
Lessons
16 totalCell Requirements and Specialisation
What every cell needs — and how multicellular life solves the supply problem
Tissues, Organs and Organisation
How cells organise into the functional architecture of a multicellular body
Water Transport in Plants — Xylem
How trees defy gravity and pull water 100 metres into the sky
Transpiration and Stomatal Control
How plants regulate water loss through guard cells and environmental responses
Phloem and Sugar Transport
How plants move photosynthate from source to sink via the mass flow hypothesis
Root Absorption of Water and Minerals
How root hair cells, osmosis and active transport supply the plant from soil
Gas Exchange in Plants
How CO2 and O2 move through stomata, lenticels and the leaf's internal structure
The Digestive System
Breaking food into nutrients — the alimentary canal and accessory organs
Chemical Digestion and Enzymes
How amylase, pepsin and lipase break macromolecules into absorbable monomers
Absorption in the Small Intestine
How villi and microvilli get glucose, amino acids and fats into the bloodstream
Gas Exchange in Animals
The respiratory system, alveolar structure and the maintenance of diffusion gradients
The Heart and Cardiovascular System
Double circulation, cardiac structure and the cycle that pumps blood 100,000 times a day
Blood and Blood Vessels
The composition of blood and how arteries, veins and capillaries serve different functions
The Lymphatic System
Fluid balance, fat absorption and immune surveillance — the body's hidden network
Comparing Transport in Plants and Animals
Xylem and phloem versus the cardiovascular system — similarities, differences and why each works
Multicellular Organisation — Integration
Tying together cells, tissues, organs and systems — why organisation is the secret to complex life