Carl von Linnaeus, the Swedish botanist who developed the system still in use for classifying living things. For thousands of years people have known how living things differ from lifeless things.For one thing, all the edible stuff is from Life.Of course, people had names for the different organisms, whether edible, inedible, poisonous, or otherwise dangerous.or thousands of years people have known how living things differ from lifeless things. For one thing, all the edible stuff is from Life. Of course, people had names for the different organisms, whether edible, inedible, poisonous, or otherwise dangerous.