EVERYDAY SCIENCE

Detailed explanation-1: -Viruses are considered as something between living and non-living because they do not grow or reproduce by themselves. This makes them non-living. However, when a virus enters a living cell of an organism, it obtains energy from the host cell and starts reproducing.

Detailed explanation-2: -Viruses are not made out of cells, they can’t keep themselves in a stable state, they don’t grow, and they can’t make their own energy. Even though they definitely replicate and adapt to their environment, viruses are more like androids than real living organisms.

Detailed explanation-3: -Specifically, they are pieces of genetic material (RNA or DNA) contained in a special coating of proteins called capsids. Viruses cannot replicate unless absorbed by cells in our body. Once a virus is outside the body, its capsid starts to degrade, and the more degraded its capsid is, the less likely it is to survive.

Detailed explanation-4: -Viruses are considered at the borderline of living and non-living because they show characteristics of both living and non-living. They behave as non-living objects when they are independent. When they enter living cells, they start to reproduce as living beings by cell multiplication.

Detailed explanation-5: -A virus is a tiny, infectious particle that can reproduce only by infecting a host cell. Viruses “commandeer” the host cell and use its resources to make more viruses, basically reprogramming it to become a virus factory. Because they can’t reproduce by themselves (without a host), viruses are not considered living.