Understanding Scales in Biology

What is the average height of a person in meters?

What is the diameter of a cell in micrometers?

What is the primary function of a cell during interphase?

What is the exception to cells spending most of their time in interphase?

How does the cell cycle resemble the seasons?

What is the term for the life span of a cell?

What is the main difference between interphase and the other stages of the cell cycle?

What happens to cells during cell division?

What is the main reason behind cancer cells' desire to divide more rapidly?

What is the longest phase of the cell cycle?

What occurs during the S phase of the cell cycle?

What is the purpose of the G2 phase?

What happens to the cells that enter the G0 phase?

What is the result of DNA replication during the S phase?

What are microtubules used for during mitosis?

What happens to cells after they complete mitosis?

What is the main difference between the G1 and G2 phases?

How do cells in the G0 phase typically behave?

The average person is about 2 meters tall, while a cell has a diameter of about 100 micrometers, which is approximately one one-millionth of the size of a human being.

Cells grow and divide, a process similar to human growth and reproduction.
The life span of a cell can be described by the cell cycle, which has different stages or "seasons" similar to the seasons in a year.

The cell cycle has two main overarching stages: interphase and mitosis.
Interphase is the longest phase of the cell cycle, where cells spend most of their time, and is characterized by cell growth but not cell division.
Mitosis is the stage of active cell division.

Interphase consists of three sub-stages: G1, S, and G2.
G1 (Gap 1) is the first sub-stage of interphase, where cells produce extra organelles, such as ribosomes and proteins, that will be useful for cell division.
S (Synthesis) is the second sub-stage, where DNA replication occurs, resulting in 46 pairs of chromosomes.
G2 (Gap 2) is the third sub-stage, where cells prepare for mitosis by making microtubules and other preparations.

Cancer cells are an exception to the normal cell cycle, as they have a defect that causes them to divide more and grow less.
Some cells, such as neurons, enter a phase called G0, where they do not divide and instead focus on growth.

Mitosis is the final stage of the cell cycle, where the cell divides into two daughter cells.
After mitosis, each new cell enters the G1 phase, where it grows and prepares for another round of cell division.