"What are the defining characteristics of living systems? ... Focusing on bacteria as the simplest living system, we characterized a living cell as a membrane-bounded, self-generating, organizationally closed metabolic network. ... We also learned that the cellular network is materially and energetically open, using a constant flow of matter and energy to produce, repair and perpetuate itself; and it operates far from equilibrium, where new structures and new forms of order may spontaneously emerge, thus leading to development and evolution.

Slots and Values
ref	31