Use of 'present' in 'at least one element must be present'

[Tamara]

Hi

How 'must be present' (not must be presented!) sounds to you when used with 'inanimate' things – elements, items, etc?
_________________
It’s impossible to learn swimming without entering the water…

[Alan]

Hi Tamara,

Sounds all right to me. I presume you mean in this sort of sentence: There must be millions of germs present all around us and we are not affected by any of them.

A
_________________
English as a Second Language
You can read my ESL story Present Simple

[Tamara]

Hi Alan

I don’t know why 'at least one person from each department must be present at (in? on?) the meeting'
whereas 'both of these components must be present for the system to work correctly' sounds less natural.

Perhaps, be present just sounds to me 'active', for some reasons (in contrast to 'be presented')

Thanks!
_________________
It’s impossible to learn swimming without entering the water…

[Conchita]

Also, keep in mind the difference in meaning between the two words: the adjective 'present' means 'being at the place/at the time' or 'being here now', whereas 'presented' means 'introduced' or 'given', for example.