Living organisms reproduction

All living organisms have two primary objectives to maintain their vital functions and to relay their genetic information by reproduction. To exercise this task successfully a creature has to react flexibly upon its environment. It has to escape from enemies, it has to adapt to changes in temperatures like heat or... 

Figure 8-19 Comparison of reactions of molecules, single-celled organisms, and more complex organisms. We can regard reproduction as a reaction such as those listed in the figure for chemicals and for living organisms.

In order to describe reproduction and death rates of living organisms, we need to consider the rate constants to be functions of the age of the individual, as illustrated in Figure 8-22. 

Figure 8-22 Effective rate constants of reproduction 1, and death ki of living organisms.

A living organism can also exist without being capable of self-reproduction. 

---