Organisms Depend Upon Photosynthesis
A. Organisms Depend Upon Photosynthesis
1. Photosynthetic organisms (algae, plants and a few other organisms) serve as ultimate source of food for most life.
2. Photosynthesis transforms solar energy into chemical bond energy of carbohydrates.
3. Most food chains start with photosynthesizers.
Solar Radiation
Key Discoveries of Photosynthetic Process
Structure of Chloroplasts
Function of Chloroplasts
A. Solar Radiation
1. Solar radiation is described in terms of its energy content and its wavelength.
2. Photons are discrete packets of radiant energy that travel in waves.
3. The electromagnetic spectrum is the range of types of solar radiation based on wavelength.
a. Gamma rays have shortest wavelength.
b. Radio waves have longest wavelength.
c. Energy content of photons is inversely proportional to wavelength of particular type of radiation.
1. Short-wavelength ultraviolet radiation has photons of a higher energy content.
2. Long-wavelength infrared light has photons of lower energy content.
3. High-energy photons (e.g., those of ultraviolet radiation) are dangerous to cells because they can break down organic molecules by breaking chemical bonds.
4. Low-energy photons (e.g., those of infrared radiation) do not damage cells because they do not break chemical bonds but merely increase vibrational energy.
d. White light is made up of many different wavelengths; a prism separates them into a spectrum.
4. Only 42% of solar radiation that hits earth’s atmosphere reaches surface; most is visible light.
a. Higher energy wavelengths are screened out by ozone layer in upper atmosphere.
b. Lower energy wavelengths are screened out by water vapor and CO2.
c. Consequently, both the organic molecules within organisms are processes, such as vision and photosynthesis, are adapted to radiation that is most prevalent in the environment.
5. Earth’s Energy-Balance sheet
a. 42% of solar energy hitting atmosphere reaches earth surface; rest is reflected or heats atmosphere
b. Only 2% of 42% is eventually used by plants; rest becomes heat.
c. Of this plant-intercepted energy, only 0.1 to 1.6% is incorporated into plant tissue.
d. Of plant tissue, only 20% is eaten by herbivores; most of rest decays or is lost as heat.
e. Of herbivore tissues, only 30% is eaten by carnivores.
6. Photosynthetic pigments use primarily the visible light portion of the electromagnetic spectrum.
a. Two major photosynthetic pigments are chlorophyll a and chlorophyll b.
b. Both chlorophylls absorb violet, blue, and red wavelengths best.
c. Very little green light is absorbed; most is reflected back; this is why leaves appear green.
d. Carotenoids are yellow-orange pigments which absorb light in violet, blue, and green regions.
e. When chlorophyll in leaves breaks down in fall, the yellow-orange pigments show through.
The absorbance of these mixtures is measured at a suitable wavelength. If 'x' mole/litre are added to (1-x) mole/litre of M and if C1, C2
The Effect of Light on the Organic Plant Elodea Aim: To calculate the rate of photosynthesis from the number of oxygen bubbles produced by the plant. Photosynthesis: The process by which green plants use the sun's energy to build up carbohydrate reserves. Plants make their own organic food such as starch. Plants need Carbon dioxide, water, light and chlorophyll in order to make food; and starch and oxygen are produced. Carbon dioxide and water are the raw materials of photosynthesis.
...re absorbed by atmosphere. The remaining 40 % passes through the layers of the atmosphere and reaches the Earth’s surface. Fifteen percent of the rays are reflected by the Earth’s surface and the rest heat up the land and oceans. The Earth’s surface gives off heat radiation, where it is picked up and held by the greenhouse gases; such as, carbon dioxide, methane, nitrous oxide and fluorinated gases (Andrian09’s Blog). These “greenhouse gases make up only about 1 % of the Earth’s atmosphere; they regulate our climate by trapping heat and holding it in a kind of warm-air blanket that surrounds the planet” (West). Without an atmosphere, the Earth’s surface would be colder at night and become hotter during the day. The atmosphere’s main job is to regulate the temperature and secure the heat in Earth; so that the heat does not escape leaving the planet cold (King, 2008).
UV radiation causes significant damage to human skin, in the form of sunburns, aging, skin cancer, and nonmelanoma tumors. Human skin damage is primarily a result of tanning. The
Most of the light energy from the sun is emitted in wavelengths shorter than 4,000
a. This is due to the properties of all matter and energy was needed for life to arise , so we originated .
“Photosynthesis (literally, “synthesis from light”) is a metabolic process by which the energy of sunlight is captured and used to convert carbon dioxide (CO2) and water (H2O) into carbohydrates (which is represented as a six-carbon sugar, C6H12O6) and oxygen gas (O2)” (BioPortal, n.d., p. 190).
Photosynthetic pigments are essential for life because they allow photosynthesis to occur by capturing sunlight which is then used alongside carbon dioxide and water to form organic compounds such as glucose and oxygen. The pigments allow the conversion of light energy to chemical energy which other organisms can benefit from. Oxygen is utilised by other organisms in aerobic respiration. The different pigments present in the chloroplasts allow a wide variety of wavelengths of light to be absorbed for efficient photosynthesis and provide colours to the plant to attract pollinators.
A spectrum is an image or distribution of colour of any electromagnetic radiation arranged in a progressive series according to wavelength.
Photosynthesis will occur at a faster rate when the plant is exposed to the sun, than when it is not exposed to sunlight.
Photosynthesis and cellular respiration help sustain life on planet earth as both are metabolic processes in their own way. Photosynthesis is the process by which plants and other organisms use energy from the sun to form glucose from water and carbon dioxide. From there, glucose is then converted to ATP by way of cellular respiration. To convert nutrients that are biochemical energy into ATP, a process such as cellular respiration that has reactions needs to take shape in the cell of an organism, releasing waste products at the same time. For the continuous energy cycle that tolerates life on Earth as we know it Photosynthesis and Cellular respiration very essential. They have a few stages where energy and various connections occur within the eukaryotic cell. Cellular respiration takes place in the lysosome, an organelle that is found in the cytoplasm of eukaryotic cells. It uses enzymes to break down biomolecules including proteins, nucleic acids, carbohydrates, and lipids. Photosynthesis involves the chloroplasts, which contain pigments that absorb the sunlight and then transfigure them to sugars the plant can use. Those specific processes are crucial in how far and diversified evolution has
Photosynthesis is a key contributor to all living things; photosynthesis provides the oxygen, food, and nutrients that help all living things stay healthy and alive. Photosynthesis converts solar energy into the chemical energy of a carbohydrate. Photosynthetic organisms, including land plants, algae, and cyanobacteria, which are called autotroph...
Photosynthesis is the process in which living cells from plants and other organisms use sunlight to produce nutrients from carbon dioxide and water, the image below “Diagram of photosynthesis 1,” helps show this process. Photosynthesise generally creates oxygen as a by-product through the use of the green pigment, chlorophyll, found in the plant that helps this reaction occur. “Photosynthesis provides us with most of the oxygen we need in order to breathe. We, in turn, exhale the carbon dioxide needed by plants,” (factmonster,2017). This is able to show us why photosynthesis is so greatly needed to occur through plants in order to give one another essentials needed for continuity of life. “Plants perform photosynthesis because it generates the food and energy they need for growth and cellular respiration,” (photosynthesieeducation, 2016).
...e sun, this is of a longer wavelength and is absorbed by the atmosphere. The Earths atmosphere, thus acts like the glass of a green house, hence the 'greenhouse effect'.
effect. A lot of the rays from the sun are absorbed by water vapor that is naturally in our