Reference no: EM131848980

The Chemistry of Life

The polar covalent bond that holds 2 hydrogens and an oxygen together to make water, and the hydrogen bonds between water molecules give water some unique properties among all other molecules on Earth.

NOTE: This is asking about properties, i.e., specific ways that water functions because of it's chemical makeup that are beneficial for life on Earth. It is NOT asking about the three states that water can exist in on the planet (solid, liquid, or gas). This is due to some of these properties, but those states are not "properties" of water, but forms in which it exists.

1. What are three properties of water that make it so unusual?

2. How do the properties that you listed help living organisms?

3. Explain what a buffer is and how it works. Can you find any examples of buffers that you might use in your daily life? (Keep in mind that buffers do not make a substance "neutral" or pH 7. An acidic solution may contain a buffer--what would happen to that solution if you added a base to it? Similarly, an alkaline solution may contain a buffer. What would happen if you added an acid to it?)

4. How are the concepts of pH, acidity, and buffers related to homeostasis?