Sparrow: And then he said “How exactly do you define life?” There’s not even a scientific consensus for that!
Patrick: More macaroni, Sparrow?
Sparrow: Yes, please! Anyway, I wanted to look online for research then and there, but we had another hundred envelopes to stuff.
Bianca: It wouldn’t help much. I checked earlier. There’s barely anything to see.
The only research in the US is funded by two companies: Walker International and Cohen Broadcasting. Or rather, by their CEOs.
I’m not even sure if it’s “research” so much as “eccentric rich folks who poke Beings in their free time.”
Sparrow: Hey, Patrick, have either of those ever experimented on–?
Patrick: I don’t want to talk about it and you can’t make me.
Bianca: . . . We won’t be looking into either of them, then. Patrick, put the macaroni down for a while and come over here, okay? You’re not just here to cook for us, I promise.
What life is isn’t even a scientific question. It’s a choice of definitions of terms.
She’s referring to the fact that there is no agreed definition of life within the scientific community, apparently. So yes, it’s a choice of definition of terms, as decided (or not, In this case) by scientists.