Most animals consume other organisms to survive. Consumers (heterotrophs) are divided into three types, primary, secondary, and tertiary, based on their place in the food chain.

Work is performed on an object when an applied force causes displacement along the same vector. Measured in joules (J) or newton-meter (Nm), work is calculated by multiplying force times displacement:  \(W = \vec{F}\vec{d}\)

Like decomposers, scavengers also break down the dead bodies of plants and animals into simple nutrients. The difference is that scavengers operate on much larger refuse and dead animals (carrion). Decomposers then consume the much smaller particles left over by the scavengers.

Newton's second law of motion states that The acceleration of an object as produced by a net force is directly proportional to the magnitude of the net force, in the same direction as the net force, and inversely proportional to the mass of the object. This law basically means that the greater the mass of an object, the more force is needed to overcome its inertia.

The spinal cord connects the brain to the body's network of nerves. It carries impulses between all organs and the brain and controls simple reflexes.