Naming Living Things

The Binomial SystemUsing a common name does not work well because: the same organism may have a completely different common name in different parts of one country different common names are used in different countries translation of languages or dialects may give different names the same common name may be used for different species in other parts of the world Linnaeus used Latin as a universal language. Binomial means 'two names'. In this case the genus name and the species name. The binomial classification system uses the same Homo sapiens for humans. Homo refers to the genus which humans belong. The genus name is always given a capital first letter. The species name is sapiens. This can be abbreviated to H sapiens. In printed text is in italtics, in written text is underlined. Identifying Living OrganismsThe Importance of Identifying OrganismsBefore a large development takes place, an EIA (environmental impact assessment) needs to be carried out. When doing this scientists need to know which species are present in the area. If there is a rare species in that area, losing the habitat would have a major impact on the species and the environment. For example, great crested newts must not be harmed, illegal to catch or possess without a licence.Using a dichotomus keyA dichotomus key is a way of identifying and naming a specimen. The key provides a series of questions, with yes and no answers. Each answer leads to a new question, eventually rhe answers lead to the name of the specimen.

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