Cells relate to your genes via genetic code. The genetic code is also what tells the cells what type of cell to become (brain cell, stomach cell, etc.)
Organisms are connected to the nonliving environment because one, organisms depend on nonliving things to help Organisms survive. Another reason would be because both need each other. Like, Organisms would rely on nonliving things for resources, food, and safety.
A vast network of nerves sends electrical signals to and from other cells, glands, and muscles all over your body. These nerves receive information from the world around you. Then the nerves interpret the information and control your response.
Fossils of the same species can be found on different continents that are separated by the ocean.
An elephant's trunk evolved in order to be able to stuff in and eat as much food as it can to become the big animal it is today.
The elephant's ancestors were small and had a short nose. As it turns out, the larger body size the elephant has, the more chance it gets to survive and pass on its genes to the next generation. In order to gain a larger size, it needed to eat more and be able to reach more food. Of course, its small nose wasn't capable of doing that at the time. So, through natural selection, eventually the elephants that were bigger, had longer trunks, and therefore ate more, were more likely to pass on their genes to the next generation than their smaller counterparts, and therefore with each generation elephants got longer trunks.
