Biology is the study of living or deceased organisms (Biology Department, 2015). There are two overarching classes to these organisms: prokaryotes and eukaryotes (Reece et al., 2014). Prokaryotes (meaning before nucleus) are put in two domains: Bacteria and Archea (Biology Department, 2015). Eukaryotes on the other hand, (which have nuclei), are in the Eukarya domain and encompass all other organisms such as plants, animals, fungi and protists (Biology Department, 2015). The most effective way to distinguish between classes comes from observations made about their structure.
Prokaryotic cells are smaller than eukaryotic ones; the typical prokaryote ranging from 100 nm - 10 µm, while a eukaryote could be anywhere from 10 - 100 µm (Reece et al., 2014). Prokaryotes are also less complex than eukaryotes in that they do not have organelles (membrane-bound bodies) and are always unicellular (eukaryotes can be multicellular) (Biology Department, 2015). An obvious example of prokaryotes not containing organelles is that they lack a nucleus, in addition to vacuoles, Golgi apparatuses, etc. (Biology Department, 2015). Conversely, eukaryotes lack prokaryotic cell components such as a nucleoid and a capsule (Reece et al., 2014). …show more content…
There is a big difference between what is theoretically known to be inside cells, and what can actually be seen under a light microscope. In fact, a light microscope can only capture larger cell components like the nucleus, chloroplasts, nucleoli, and vacuoles (Biology Department, 2015). This means that differentiating between organism classes would come down to the size, shape and potentially visible organelles of the
Prokaryotic cells are smaller than eukaryotic ones; the typical prokaryote ranging from 100 nm - 10 µm, while a eukaryote could be anywhere from 10 - 100 µm (Reece et al., 2014). Prokaryotes are also less complex than eukaryotes in that they do not have organelles (membrane-bound bodies) and are always unicellular (eukaryotes can be multicellular) (Biology Department, 2015). An obvious example of prokaryotes not containing organelles is that they lack a nucleus, in addition to vacuoles, Golgi apparatuses, etc. (Biology Department, 2015). Conversely, eukaryotes lack prokaryotic cell components such as a nucleoid and a capsule (Reece et al., 2014). …show more content…
There is a big difference between what is theoretically known to be inside cells, and what can actually be seen under a light microscope. In fact, a light microscope can only capture larger cell components like the nucleus, chloroplasts, nucleoli, and vacuoles (Biology Department, 2015). This means that differentiating between organism classes would come down to the size, shape and potentially visible organelles of the