Question

‘Growth is not a defining property of life’. Give reason.

Answer 1

Growth is defined as a constant increase in size, mass, volume and number. All living organisms grow during certain periods of their life.

Complete answer:

Growth can be regarded as a fundamental property of life but it is not the defining property. This is because growth can be also seen in non living organisms.
Non living organisms show growth by accumulation of external materials. For example a sand dune or a soil mould can constantly grow and increase in size by piling up of sand and soil respectively. This means non living things show an extrinsic growth.
Living organisms grow constantly by increasing their size mass and number by cell division i.e they show an intrinsic growth. For example: Plants, animals and human beings.
Hence, growth is not the criteria to define life.

Additional information :

Living organisms grow in a regulated manner while non living organisms grow in an unregulated manner.
Living organisms grow with time while non living organisms do not grow with time.
Growth in case of living organisms is irreversible whereas its reversible in case of non living organisms.
Consciousness which is the ability to respond to a stimulus and the state of being aware of our surroundings is considered as a defining property of life. It is only seen in living organisms.

Note: Cell division is a process by which a parent cell divides and produces daughter cells. It contributes to growth and reproduction in living beings. It is of two types: Meiosis and Mitosis.
Meiosis is a reductional division where a single cell divides twice to produce four gamete cells.
Mitosis is an equational division where a single cell divides only once to form two identical daughter cells.