Some plant cells produce their own energy through photosynthesis which is the process by which sunlight, carbon dioxide, and water react to make sugar and oxygen. Animal cells cannot produce their own energy and, instead, generate energy when mitochondria consume outside sugar and oxygen through aerobic respiration.

The nervous system consists of the brain and spinal cord (central nervous system) and the peripheral nervous system which is the network of nerve cells (neurons) that collect and distribute signals from the central nervous system throughout the body.

Heat is always transferred from warmer to cooler environments and conduction is the simplest way this transfer can occur. It is accomplished through direct contact between materials and materials like metals that transfer heat efficiently are called conductors while those that conduct heat poorly, such as plastic, are called insulators.

In the mesosphere, temperature again drops as altitude increases until the coldest point in the Earth's atmosphere, the mesopause, is reached where temperatures fall to −225 °F (−143 °C).

Radiation occurs when electromagnetic waves transmit heat. An example is the heat from the Sun as it travels to Earth.