# cell (biological)

a bounded piece of matter in which life persist and interact

- Computed level: L16 (depth in the emergence graph, not abstraction)
- Status: review  ·  Domain: biological  ·  Arena: cell

## Emergence
**Emerges from:** [matter](https://emergencemachine.com/tools/lexicon/what-is-the-meaning-of-matter.substance), [life](https://emergencemachine.com/tools/lexicon/what-is-the-meaning-of-life.biological), [boundary](https://emergencemachine.com/tools/lexicon/what-is-the-meaning-of-boundary.limit)

**Through:** the bounded piece of matter include life that persist and the parts interact to form a distinct structure

**Novel properties:**
- bounded interior
- growth

## Examples
- The amoeba *Amoeba proteus* engulfs food and divides every 24 hours in freshwater ponds. *(biology)*
- The lithium-ion cell in a Tesla Model S packs 3.7 volts and degrades after 1,500 charge cycles. *(engineering)*
- A single E. coli cell in a petri dish splits every 20 minutes at 37°C. *(laboratory)*

## Used by
- [cancer](https://emergencemachine.com/tools/lexicon/what-is-the-meaning-of-cancer.disease) (L17)

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*Canonical: https://emergencemachine.com/tools/lexicon/what-is-the-meaning-of-cell.biological*  
*Structured data: https://emergencemachine.com/tools/lexicon/what-is-the-meaning-of-cell.biological.json*  
*Every definition provably resolves to space, time, energy and pattern.*