Why do scientist categorize things?

Question

why do scientist categorize things?

can anyone please?

and how do you classify things?

Answer 1

well.. i know why they do it..

and i know theres a chart about how to do it..

scientist classify things to so that we can be organized..

they classify things that way we dont have to call them things.. we can say chimpanzee or elephant.. give them names.. and put them in a category with other things like them..

and i remember in science class there was a chart that you sould find relatively similar animals or bacteria .. and then put it under the same category but i forget what its called sorry.. =/

Answer 2

If you're able to fit organisms, for example, into well based categories, then that can give you information on the evolutionary history that led up to the present diversity of life on Earth.  To do this you have to find suites of anatomical features that came about due to descent from a common ancestor, and such characters should be findable all over the body and in the molecular structure of the genes.

As well as highlighting evolutionary relationships, such as the nearest living relation of whales and dolphins being the hippopotamus, it has the side benefit of being damnably interesting.  You find a forest of fascinating questions and challenges, with the most interesting ones being those you can't yet answer for sure.  There's always more to discover.

Answer 3

if you see the old names of metamorphic rocks you could understand why thy categorize things.

For years everyone use same names for different things.

Answer 4

First, it organizes facts in order to refer to them later.  If they were not organized, it would be much more difficult to refer back to them later if they could not be found again easily.

Second, when scientists communicate with each other, they need a way to refer to things by using the same system.  If not, it would be impossible to communicate accurately.

Items, in general, may be classified by their characteristics.  Motor vehicles can be classified by body type, engine size, etc.  18-wheelers, pick-up trucks, sedans, coupes, would all refer to specific characteristics of those vehicles and everyone uses or at least understands the designations.  If I tell you to look for a pick-up truck, you know you are not looking for an Acura.  If I tell you to look for a sedan, you know the Peterbilt truck is not it.