Part 1:
Specific heat is defined by how much energy (in this case, heat) a specific object can hold/lose. In chemistry, the specific heat for water is 4.184 Joules per gram Kelvin. That means it takes 4.184 Joules of energy (heat) per gram (1 g) of water to gain heat by 1 Kelvin.
Part 2:
We can take specific heat and apply it to living organisms. We know that organisms must maintain homeostasis. A part of homeostasis is to maintain internal temperatures. Let's take the human body as an example organism. We have water inside our bodies. The specific heat of water is considered very high compared to other materials; this means that it takes a lot of energy to heat up water. The specific heat of water allows our bodies to resist changing temperatures.