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What is
Extreme
Biology?
Is this extreme biology?
Or this?
Well, actually extreme biology is the study of organisms
that live in extreme environments., or places that were
never thought to be able to support life.
These places might be in the deep ocean, in caves, or even
inside a volcano!
An extremophile is an organism that lives in an extreme
environment. Their name means they LOVE extremes.. In
they are so well adapted to life in their environment,
they couldn’t live anywhere else.
Most extremophiles are microbes. . Microbes are
organisms that are so small they can only be seen under
a microscope. For example, bacteria are microbes.,
and some of these are also extremophiles.
All extremophiles have made adaptations to their
environments..
Adaptations are characteristics that allow an organism
to survive.
For example, a bacteria that lives in a geyser has had
to adapt to temperatures that would normally kill a
living thing.
A lot can be learned from studying extremophiles.
They could be clues to early life on Earth or possible
life on other planets.
They are used by scientists to search for cures to
diseases.
They are even used in DNA profiling.
There are even some advantages to living in extreme
environments. Can you think of any?
The main advantage is that “normal” places are
crowded. For organisms that can withstand extreme
conditions, they have the place all to themselves!
Also, they are living in the place that is best suited
to their needs.
Let’s think about these quotes and try to figure out
how they relate to extremophiles:
“Scientists know more about the moon than the deep
ocean.”
“Everything is everywhere; the environment selects” Laurens G.M. Baas-Becking