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Classifying Life

  • By Rick Groleau
  • Posted 11.01.02
  • NOVA

Scientists organize all of Earth's life forms into a hierarchy that begins with kingdom and works down into phylum, class, order, family, genus, and species. (To remember these categories, think "King Philip Crossed Over For Gold and Silver—a mnemonic referring to 16th-century Spanish exploration.) In this feature, step into the shoes of a taxonomist and classify three forms of life: a plant, an animal, and a...well, you'll need to figure that one out for yourself.

Launch Interactive

Try your hand at classifying three life forms and learn about taxonomy.

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(Illustrations)
© WGBH/NOVA

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