taxonomy
22 Classification of Living Things 22.0.1 Classification of Living Things & Naming With so many flora and fauna on planet Earth, there must be a method to classify each organism to distinguish it from others so it can be correctly identified. Classification does not only apply to biology. For example, supermarkets and grocery stores organise their products by classifying them. Beverages may occupy one aisle, while cleaning supplies may occupy another. In science, the practice of classifying organisms is called taxonomy Taxis means arrangement and nomos means law . The modern taxonomic system was developed by the Swedish botanist Carolus Carl Linneaeus 1707-1788 . He used simple physical characteristics of organisms to identify and differentiate between different species. Linneaeus developed a hierarchy of groups for taxonomy. To distinguish different levels of similarity, each classifying group, called taxon pl. taxa is subdivided into other groups. To remember the order, it is helpful to use a mnemonic device. The taxa in hierarchical order: .