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

Discuss in short about soil, Discuss in short about soil " The collecti...

Discuss in short about soil " The collection of  natural bodies in the Earth's surface, in places modified or even made by man of Earthy materials, containing living matter  an

Long-term follow-up results , Long-term Follow-up Results :  To evaluate t...

Long-term Follow-up Results :  To evaluate the long-term results of surgery, one has to take into consideration the natural history, results of medical treatment and that of PTCA.

Platelet, What happens if platelets aren''t present in blood?

What happens if platelets aren''t present in blood?

Explain national nutritional anaemia prophylaxis programme, Explain Nationa...

Explain National Nutritional Anaemia Prophylaxis Programme (NNAPP)? In past, both access to and intake of iron-folate tablets have been poor in children and therefore had a lit

Stress testing in women, Q.Explain about Stress Testing in Women? Data ...

Q.Explain about Stress Testing in Women? Data on mortality in men is about 2.5 times that of women. At younger ages, however, CAD in men exceeds that found in women by 5 to 1.

What are the main cellular functions of potassium, What are the main cellul...

What are the main cellular functions of potassium? Besides being significant for the osmotic regulation and for the acid-base equilibrium (pH) potassium is basic for the excita

Endocrine glands - liver, LIVE R - The liver produces a protein angiot...

LIVE R - The liver produces a protein angiotensinogen which is changed to angiotensin II by an enzyme renin secreted by the juxtaglomemlar apparatus of the nephrons in the kid

What is the excitation threshold of a neuron, Q. What is the excitation thr...

Q. What is the excitation threshold of a neuron? How does this threshold relate to the "all-or-nothing" rule of the neural transmission? The excitation threshold of a neuron is

What are the three cell types that form the osseous tissue, What are the th...

What are the three main cell types that form the osseous tissue? What are their functions? The three major cell types of the osseous tissue are the osteoblasts, the osteocytes

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