Natural Things

The objects we see around us that are naturally made or existing in nature are called natural things. They can be rocks, soil, plants, metals, etc. In fact, the air we breathe comprises naturally existing gases. Here, we will discuss the different types of natural things we encounter every day and their differences from manmade things.

The things that exist in nature and have not been developed or created by humans are considered natural things. In this category, almost everything we see around us such as soil, water, minerals, rocks, trees, birds, animals, air, etc are all naturally occurring things.

All these things are not manipulated by humans for their use and can be considered as naturally existing. 

Their sizes and shapes can change without the intervention of humans. The earth majorly contains natural things. Only a small percentage of things existing on earth is created by us. Natural things can be living or non-living. These things can be classified according to their features, origin, and existence. From the above example of natural things on earth, you can easily clarify the types mentioned below.

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Types of Natural Things

To simplify the definition, everything that is existing and naturally available on earth can be called natural things. These things can be segregated into the following divisions considering their features.

1.  Abiotic and Biotic Things

This is by far the most common segmentation of natural resources. Our earth is the only planet known to man with life on it. Hence, the things around us can either have life in them or not. Living things such as microbes, plants, and animals fall in the biotic things. Apart from the things that are living, the rest non-living things fall in the abiotic things. Both these things can be renewable, as well as, non-renewable in nature.

2. Non-Renewable and Renewable Things

If you consider the resources we use for powering our houses, growing plants, etc then there are two different types of these things. Renewable things or resources can be found abundant surrounding us. Wind, sunlight, water, and forests are the best examples of renewable things and resources around us.

The non-renewable things or resources are those things that cannot be renewed. It means once they are used or gone, we cannot create them anymore. The best example according to this description is a fossil fuel. Minerals and fossil fuels are the things that naturally exist but cannot be recreated. This is why the depletion of natural fuels and minerals is a huge threat to mankind.

Now that we know what are natural things, we can conclude that these things naturally exist and may or may not be recreated. In terms of renewable natural things, mankind is striving to find the ideal source of energy to continue the development of its civilization. For instance, huge attempts and researches are being conducted across the world to harness the fullest potential of wind and solar energy.

There are methods to harness these energies to gain clean power to run our cities, villages, and industries. They do not leave carbon footprints all over the world and can be availed of at any time. This is why they are called renewable sources of energy. Some of the other examples are geothermal energy, sea wave energy, hydroelectricity, etc.

Man-Made Things

Now that we know the list of natural things on earth, the rest of the things that are created by men in due course of the development of civilization are man made things. From homes to satellites, dams, to bridges, roads to vehicles, everything that nature does not exist is called a man made thing.

The advent of technology has led us to the era where we can manipulate natural things to solve our pain points. For instance, naturally existing plants have been genetically modified by cross-breeding and hybridization to create crops for yielding more food and other items. We have also created things from natural resources only using various developed techniques. We have used minerals to extract pure metals, developed alloys, and constructed industries.

With our skills, knowledge, and intelligence, we have also created artificial things that don’t even exist in nature. One of the best examples is plastic. Due to such exploration and creativity, we have also caused manmade pollution that is harming the natural ecosystem of all biomes resulting in the extinction of different species.

Difference Between Man Made Things and Natural Things

From the explanation of both these categories, it is now easy to find out the difference between man made things and natural things. Natural things exist without the intervention of mankind. Anything that exists naturally and will continue to do so even when we are not there is called natural things.

On the other hand, man-made things will cease to exist or will not be created if we are not present on this planet. You can now easily figure out and differentiate between the things that are natural and manmade. 

The explanation along with the list will help you can identify and distinguish between manmade and natural things. Study the categories with examples to properly understand the explanation in this article.