Palm Trees, Ants, Elephants and Mold are living things right?  Despite their diversity, living things are really not that different from each other.  What common things do all living things have:

1. All living things maintain a high degree of order and complexity.  Any living thing is more complex then any object constructed by humans.  A jet air plane is less complex then a mold spore as an example.
2. All living things are part of a larger systems of matter and energy.  Living things and their surrounding form complex ecosystems.
3. All life depends on a chemical reactions that take place in cells.  Most living things share a basic set of molecular building blocks and chemical reactions.
4. All life requires liquid water.  Liquid water possesses several unusual properties, including its ability as a solvent and its high heat capacity, which make it an essential medium in the cells of all living things.
5. Organisms grow and develop.  All organisms change in from and function at different stages in their lifeforms.
6. Living things regulate their use of energy and respond to their environments.  During periods of extreme cold or dryness, for example, many plants will lie dormant and animals will become sluggish.
7. All living things share the same genetic code, which is passed from parent to offspring by reproduction.  The chemical reactions in a cell are governed by a code written in the language of the molecule DNA.
8. All living things are descended from a common ancestor.  Evolution BABY!