--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: As I write, we now consider nature to…" description: "\"“As I write, we now consider nature to have given rise to three or four foundational types of living things, or domains of life. I’m going with four. W..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ce5/bill-nye-1613_bacteria_as-i-write-we-now-consider-nature-to-hav_1609238.png" --- # As I write, we now consider nature to have given rise to… ![“As I write, we now consider nature to have given rise to three or four foundational types of living things, or domains of life. I’m going with four. We have Bacteria, Archaea (microbes that are fundamentally different from bacteria), Eukarya (that’s us, animals and plants together), and Vira. You…” quote by Bill Nye](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ce5/bill-nye-1613_bacteria_as-i-write-we-now-consider-nature-to-hav_1609238.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ce5/bill-nye-1613_bacteria_as-i-write-we-now-consider-nature-to-hav_1609238.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ce5/bill-nye-1613_bacteria_as-i-write-we-now-consider-nature-to-hav_1609238.png) > ““As I write, we now consider nature to have given rise to three or four foundational types of living things, or domains of life. I’m going with four. We have Bacteria, Archaea (microbes that are fundamentally different from bacteria), Eukarya (that’s us, animals and plants together), and Vira. You could also call that last one Viruses.”” [Bill Nye](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-nye/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Life is divided into four major domains: Bacteria, Archaea, Eukarya, and Viruses, each representing distinct evolutionary lineages. **In simple terms:** There are four main groups of living things. Key Takeaway Recognize the diversity of life. Themes biology evolution classification Mood curious educational Type scientific informative When to use this quote - science education - research - public outreach Key Concepts taxonomy genomics microbiology Questions to Reflect On - How do viruses fit into the tree of life? - What implications does this classification have for medicine? A Different Perspective Viruses blur the line between living and non‑living. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Bacteria](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/bacteria/) [Life](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/life/) [Living things](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/living-things/) [Nature](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/nature/) ## Related quotes > [“Biologists discovered the microbiome just over the past couple of decades. They are still puzzling out how the microbes in your body help keep…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-nye/biologists-discovered-the-microbiome-just-over-the-past-couple-of/) [Bill Nye](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-nye/) > [“Even the majority of the cells in your body are microorganisms. They outnumber the cells of your body by 10 to 1. Those microbes…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-nye/even-the-majority-of-the-cells-in-your-body-are-microorganisms-they/) [Bill Nye](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-nye/) > [If the age of the Earth were a calendar year and today were a breath before midnight on New Year's Eve, we showed up…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/janine-benyus/if-the-age-of-the-earth-were-a-calendar-year-and-today-were-a-breath/) [Janine Benyus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/janine-benyus/) > [Microbes are doing things we didn't even know they could do 10 years ago.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-jackson/microbes-are-doing-things-we-didn-t-even-know-they-could-do-10-years/) [Robert Jackson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-jackson/) > [The vast majority of terrestrial species are in fact microbes, and scientists have only begun scratching the surface of the microbial realm. It is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-davies/the-vast-majority-of-terrestrial-species-are-in-fact-microbes-and/) [Paul Davies](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-davies/) > [Most life on Earth is microbes. we've only just scratched the surface of the microbial realm. Probably less than .1% of microbes have been…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-davies/most-life-on-earth-is-microbes-we-ve-only-just-scratched-the-surface/) [Paul Davies](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-davies/) > [If you don't like bacteria, you're on the wrong planet.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stewart-brand/if-you-don-t-like-bacteria-you-re-on-the-wrong-planet/) [Stewart Brand](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stewart-brand/) > [It is sometimes as dangerous to be run into by a microbe as by a trolley car.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-walsh/it-is-sometimes-as-dangerous-to-be-run-into-by-a-microbe-as-by-a/) [James Walsh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-walsh/) > [“The world around us is a gigantic reservoir of potential microbial partners. Every mouthful could bring in new microbes that digest a previously unbreakable…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ed-yong/the-world-around-us-is-a-gigantic-reservoir-of-potential-microbial/) [Ed Yong](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ed-yong/) > [“If you on't like bacteria, you're on the wrong planet.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stewart-brand/if-you-on-t-like-bacteria-you-re-on-the-wrong-planet/) [Stewart Brand](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stewart-brand/) > [I play with microbes. There are, of course, many rules to this play...but when you have acquired knowledge and experience it is very pleasant…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexander-fleming/i-play-with-microbes-there-are-of-course-many-rules-to-this-play-but/) [Alexander Fleming](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexander-fleming/) > [“If certain bacteria, fungi, or algae inch across something made of copper, they absorb copper atoms, which disrupt their metabolism (human cells are unaffected).…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sam-kean/if-certain-bacteria-fungi-or-algae-inch-across-something-made-of/) [Sam Kean](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sam-kean/) > [“Most animals can't tap into these open-source adaptations deliberately. The flies didn't seek out Spiroplasma to solve their worm problem. Woodrats didn't go looking…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ed-yong/most-animals-can-t-tap-into-these-open-source-adaptations/) [Ed Yong](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ed-yong/) > [There are more microbes per person than the entire population of the world. Imagine that. Per person. This means that if the time scale…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-bennett/there-are-more-microbes-per-person-than-the-entire-population-of-the/) [Alan Bennett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-bennett/) > [...The large majority of those infectious microbes that cause us so much illness and pain are ANAEROBIC...a big word that means they live and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ed-mccabe/the-large-majority-of-those-infectious-microbes-that-cause-us-so-much/) [Ed McCabe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ed-mccabe/) ## More by Bill Nye > [That's what makes a human a human, if we store information outside our bodies.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-nye/that-s-what-makes-a-human-a-human-if-we-store-information-outside-our/) [Bill Nye](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-nye/) > [To try to really land a spacecraft really on another world is really difficult, and if we lose that ability, it's going to be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-nye/to-try-to-really-land-a-spacecraft-really-on-another-world-is-really/) [Bill Nye](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-nye/) > [Humor is everywhere in that there's irony in just about anything a human does.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-nye/humor-is-everywhere-in-that-there-s-irony-in-just-about-anything-a/) [Bill Nye](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-nye/) > [There's nothing I believe in more strongly than getting young people interested in science and engineering, for a better tomorrow, for all humankind.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-nye/there-s-nothing-i-believe-in-more-strongly-than-getting-young-people/) [Bill Nye](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-nye/) > [Tax dollars intended for science education must not be used to teach creationism as any sort of real explanation of nature, because any observation…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-nye/tax-dollars-intended-for-science-education-must-not-be-used-to-teach/) [Bill Nye](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-nye/) > [The most serious problem facing humankind is climate change. All of these people breathing and burning our atmosphere has led to an extraordinarily dangerous…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-nye/the-most-serious-problem-facing-humankind-is-climate-change-all-of/) [Bill Nye](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-nye/) > [If you just take a single human and put him or her in the forest he or she might not do very well without…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-nye/if-you-just-take-a-single-human-and-put-him-or-her-in-the-forest-he/) [Bill Nye](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-nye/) > [“Over billions of years, the planets exchange quite a bit of material. This is not speculation; this is fact. Planetary scientists have found pieces…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-nye/over-billions-of-years-the-planets-exchange-quite-a-bit-of-material/) [Bill Nye](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-nye/) > [From an evolutionary standpoint you can't just wipe everything out and start over, and I don't think you can do it in the school…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-nye/from-an-evolutionary-standpoint-you-can-t-just-wipe-everything-out/) [Bill Nye](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-nye/) > [“People who should (or do) know better keep confusing weather with climate. Weather is what happens day to day in one place. Climate is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-nye/people-who-should-or-do-know-better-keep-confusing-weather-with/) [Bill Nye](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-nye/) > [The more you find out about the world, the more opportunities there are to laugh at it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-nye/the-more-you-find-out-about-the-world-the-more-opportunities-there/) [Bill Nye](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-nye/) > [Millennial voters are very concerned about climate change and will vote for candidates who are planning to address it. But the systems that are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-nye/millennial-voters-are-very-concerned-about-climate-change-and-will/) [Bill Nye](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-nye/) > [By the way, most of the light that comes from the sun is green.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-nye/by-the-way-most-of-the-light-that-comes-from-the-sun-is-green/) [Bill Nye](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-nye/) > [“As of this writing, the Opportunity rover is still roving. It was designed to run ninety Martian days—just over three months—but it is still…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-nye/as-of-this-writing-the-opportunity-rover-is-still-roving-it-was/) [Bill Nye](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-nye/) > [“radioactive Rubidium-87, containing 37 protons (and 50 neutrons), can change or decay to strontium, which has 38 protons. These two elements can be thought…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-nye/radioactive-rubidium-87-containing-37-protons-and-50-neutrons-can/) [Bill Nye](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-nye/) [Explore all 220 Bill Nye quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-nye/) ## More Bacteria quotes > [“Bacteria and viruses were the most effective allies.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eduardo-hughes-galeano/bacteria-and-viruses-were-the-most-effective-allies/) [Eduardo Hughes Galeano](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eduardo-hughes-galeano/) > [...The large majority of those infectious microbes that cause us so much illness and pain are ANAEROBIC...a big word that means they live and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ed-mccabe/the-large-majority-of-those-infectious-microbes-that-cause-us-so-much/) [Ed McCabe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ed-mccabe/) > [You can't just boss bacteria around like that," said the younger Mrs. Hempstock. "They don't like it." "Stuff and silliness," said the old lady.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-gaiman/you-can-t-just-boss-bacteria-around-like-that-said-the-younger-mrs/) [Neil Gaiman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neil-gaiman/) > [There are more microbes per person than the entire population of the world. Imagine that. Per person. This means that if the time scale…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-bennett/there-are-more-microbes-per-person-than-the-entire-population-of-the/) [Alan Bennett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-bennett/) > [“Drinking lots of alcohol makes the gut leakier, allowing microbes to more readily influence the brain. Could that help to explain why alcoholics often…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ed-yong/drinking-lots-of-alcohol-makes-the-gut-leakier-allowing-microbes-to/) [Ed Yong](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ed-yong/) > [“According to pioneering microbiologist Lynn Margulis, "fully 10 percent of our own dry body weight consists of bacteria, some of which, although they are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marcia-bjornerud/according-to-pioneering-microbiologist-lynn-margulis-fully-10-percent/) Marcia Bjornerud > [Plants with leaves no more efficient than today's solar cells could out-compete real plants, crowding the biosphere with an inedible foliage. Tough omnivorous bacteria…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/k-eric-drexler/plants-with-leaves-no-more-efficient-than-today-s-solar-cells-could/) [K. Eric Drexler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/k-eric-drexler/) > [Nineteen hundred and three will bring great advances in surgery, in the study of bacteria, in the knowledge of the cause and prevention of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-a-edison/nineteen-hundred-and-three-will-bring-great-advances-in-surgery-in/) [Thomas A. Edison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-a-edison/) > [Most people are surprised when they hear my somber figures: we know of 2 million species of plants, animals and microorganisms, and we can…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/e-o-wilson/most-people-are-surprised-when-they-hear-my-somber-figures-we-know-of/) [E. O. Wilson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/e-o-wilson/) > [Harmful bacteria, viruses, calcium-forming micro-organisms, and candida are part of our world. Unfortunately, so are toxic chemicals, including everything from pesticides to car pollution…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-wolfe/harmful-bacteria-viruses-calcium-forming-micro-organisms-and-candida/) [David Wolfe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-wolfe/) > [With one linear centimeter of your lower colon there lives and works more bacteria (about 100 billion) that all humans who have ever been…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-degrasse-tyson/with-one-linear-centimeter-of-your-lower-colon-there-lives-and-works/) [Neil deGrasse Tyson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neil-degrasse-tyson/) > [“Eighty-five percent of recorded species live in the terrestrial realm, and the majority of these, some 850,000, are arthropods (that is, insects, spiders, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-e-leakey/eighty-five-percent-of-recorded-species-live-in-the-terrestrial-realm/) Richard E. Leakey > [As far as I am concerned, LGBT can only stand for leprosy, gonorrhea, bacteria, and tuberculosis, all of which are detrimental to human existence.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yahya-jammeh/as-far-as-i-am-concerned-lgbt-can-only-stand-for-leprosy-gonorrhea/) [Yahya Jammeh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/yahya-jammeh/) > [There are about 250,000 different species of fossil plants and animals known . . In spite of this large quantity of information, it is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-m-raup/there-are-about-250-000-different-species-of-fossil-plants-and/) [David M. Raup](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-m-raup/) > [Human health should now be thought of as a collective property of the human-associate d microbiota, as one group of researchers recently concluded in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-pollan/human-health-should-now-be-thought-of-as-a-collective-property-of-the/) [Michael Pollan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-pollan/) [Browse all 285 Bacteria quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/bacteria/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“As I write, we now consider nature to have given rise to three or four foundational types of living things, or domains of life. I’m going with four. We have Bacteria, Archaea (microbes that are fundamentally different from bacteria), Eukarya (that’s us, animals and plants together), and Vira. 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