How are humans related to every other living thing on earth?

Answer 1

Humans evolved from primates. Primates evolved from an earlier mammal, and all other mammals around today evolved from the same mammal. This makes us evolutionary cousins to all other mammals.

This mammal evolved from a reptile. That reptile descended from the first reptile, which also gave rise to all other reptiles and to birds. Hence, we are cousins with all reptiles and birds.

Reptiles evolved from an amphibian, and that amphibian evolved from the first amphibian, which gave rise to all other amphibians.

Amphibians evolved from fish.

Fish evolved from more primitive, invertebrate animals.

The earliest animal evolved from a eukaryotic organism, and that eukaryotic organism shared a common ancestor with fungi.

That common ancestor evolved from earlier eukaryotes, and these shared a common ancestor with algae. Plants evolved from algae, so this makes us very distant cousins with plants.

Even before that, eukaryotes evolved from prokaryotes (either bacteria or archaea), and all prokaryotes trace back to one species that appeared more than 3.5 billion years ago.

Hence, every living thing descended from the first prokaryote. That is how humans are related to all living things.

Answer 2

Humans share a common ancestry with all other living things on Earth through evolution. All living organisms have a common genetic code and share many fundamental biological processes, suggesting a shared history of evolution and a connection through a universal tree of life.