Explain the compound water, Biology

Assignment Help:

Explain the compound water?

Water :  Water is the most important compound in living cells, making up most of the bulk of living organisms. Our own bodies contain 40% - 60% water. We can survive without food longer than we can without water. Water has several unique properties that make it important to living organisms:

(1) Water is a good solvent. More substances dissolve in water than in any other liquid. Because of its polar nature, water is able to break up ionic compounds into their component ions, freeing them to react with other substances.

(2) Because it is a polar molecule, water is both cohesive and adhesive, which results in capillarity, the ability to move through small orifices or fine pores against the force of gravity and other forces.

(3) The heat of vaporization of water is high; that is, water takes up large quantities of heat when it evaporates, making it a good evaporative coolant. Both plants and animals use water evaporation from surface cells for cooling.

(4) Water has a high specific heat, meaning that it requires a large amount of heat to change its temperature. Since living organisms are made up mostly of water, they gain and lose heat slowly. Water is able to absorb heat from chemical reactions in the organisms.

(5) Water has a high thermal conductivity, or heat conduction, which helps to keep parts of the organism from overheating.

(6) Because of its cohesion, water has a high boiling point. The significance of this is that water does not readily change from a liquid to a gas. In fact, a relatively large quantity of heat is required to change water from a liquid state into gaseous steam.

 


Related Discussions:- Explain the compound water

Nutrition, pictures for hetrotrophic and autotrophic mode of nutrition

pictures for hetrotrophic and autotrophic mode of nutrition

What is mucic acid test and its principle, What is Mucic Acid Test and its ...

What is Mucic Acid Test and its principle? This is a specific test for galactose and is given by galactose as well as lactose, which is made up of galactose and glucose. Pr

Agro industrial-complication during gestation, Complication during gestatio...

Complication during gestation Many complications like uterine torsion, vaginal prolapse, mummification, foetal maceration, hydra allantois, hydro amnios and teratological abno

Define the food sources of thiamin, Define the Food Sources of Thiamin? ...

Define the Food Sources of Thiamin? Thiamin is present in many food products and depending on the amount of vitamin present, we have categorized the foods as rich, good or fair

Diverse proteins made by the same total number of amino acid, Q. Are there ...

Q. Are there diverse proteins made by the same total number of amino acids? Diverse proteins with the same total number of amino acids may exist. In such cases the discriminati

What is primary structure of a protein, Q. What is primary structure of a p...

Q. What is primary structure of a protein? What is the significance of the primary structure? The primary protein structure is the linear sequence of amino acids that outline t

Transport with the help of membrane protein, Transport with the Help of Mem...

Transport with the Help of Membrane Protein Even though, the lipid bilayers do not permit the entry of polar molecules such as ions, sugars, amino acids, nucleotides and cell

Plant might be adapted to a hot dry environment, Give three ways in which a...

Give three ways in which a plant might be adapted to a hot dry environment. A plant might be adapted to a hot dry environment by having a decreased leaf area, waxy cuticle to

Modalities available for sterilization, Modalities Available for Sterilizat...

Modalities Available for Sterilization The most accepted methods of sterilization can be classified as follows: Physical Agents: These comprise of: Sunlight Drying

Dissolved gases and alkalinity, Dissolved Gases and Alkalinity Disso...

Dissolved Gases and Alkalinity Dissolved Gases The marine environment serves as a gigantic reservoir of dissolved oxygen and carbon dioxide, which respectively help reg

Write Your Message!

Captcha
Free Assignment Quote

Assured A++ Grade

Get guaranteed satisfaction & time on delivery in every assignment order you paid with us! We ensure premium quality solution document along with free turntin report!

All rights reserved! Copyrights ©2019-2020 ExpertsMind IT Educational Pvt Ltd