12. Which two organisms are more closely related? a. bacteria and fungl b. profists and animals c. fungi and animals d. bacteria and plants

## Step 1<br />This problem is about understanding the evolutionary relationships between different organisms. The closer the organisms are in terms of their evolutionary history, the more closely related they are.<br /><br />## Step 2<br />Bacteria and fungi are both single-celled organisms, but they belong to different domains of life. Bacteria belong to the domain Bacteria, while fungi belong to the domain Eukarya. This means that they are not as closely related as they could be.<br /><br />## Step 3<br />Protists and animals are both eukaryotic, meaning they have complex cells with a nucleus. However, protists are a diverse group of organisms that can be unicellular or multicellular, and they can be autotrophic or heterotrophic. Animals, on the other hand, are multicellular and heterotrophic. This means that they are not as closely related as they could be.<br /><br />## Step 4<br />Fungi and animals are both eukaryotic and share a common ancestor. This means that they are more closely related than bacteria and fungi or protists and animals.<br /><br />## Step 5<br />Bacteria and plants are both eukaryotic, but bacteria are prokaryotic. This means that they are not as closely related as they could be.