Question
A student claims that viruses are alive because they have genetic material and can reproduce. Is this student’s claim correct?
A. Yes, viruses are alive because they have genetic material.
B. No, viruses are not alive because they do not have genetic material nor can they reproduce.
C. No, viruses are not alive because they rely on a host organism to be able to reproduce.
D. Yes, viruses are alive because they can reproduce.
A. Yes, viruses are alive because they have genetic material.
B. No, viruses are not alive because they do not have genetic material nor can they reproduce.
C. No, viruses are not alive because they rely on a host organism to be able to reproduce.
D. Yes, viruses are alive because they can reproduce.
Answers
GPT-4o mini
C. No, viruses are not alive because they rely on a host organism to be able to reproduce.
While viruses do have genetic material and can replicate, they cannot reproduce independently; they require a host cell's machinery to do so, which is a key reason they are generally considered not to be "alive" in the traditional biological sense.
While viruses do have genetic material and can replicate, they cannot reproduce independently; they require a host cell's machinery to do so, which is a key reason they are generally considered not to be "alive" in the traditional biological sense.