topic 1.3 Flashcards
(40 cards)
What are the most common chemical elements in living things?
Carbon (C), oxygen (O), and hydrogen (H)
How do carbon, oxygen, and hydrogen contribute to the formation of complex molecules?
Together, they make up the complex molecules that form sugar, starch, fat, oil, wax, and proteins.
Why are molecules like sugar, starch, fat, oil, and proteins called organic compounds?
Because these complex molecules contain carbon, and are made by living things they are called organic compounds.
What are some examples of fossil fuels that contain organic compounds?
Fossil fuels (petroleum, natural gas, and coal) are examples of substances that contain many different organic compounds.
What is the difference between organic and inorganic compounds?
Substances that do NOT contain carbon and are not made by living things are called inorganic compounds.
what are examples of inorganic coumpounds?
Baking soda and the mineral quartz are examples of inorganic compounds.
How do organic molecules compare to inorganic molecules in terms of size and complexity?
Organic molecules can be very large and complex. On Earth, these molecules far outnumber inorganic molecules.
Why do organic molecules far outnumber inorganic molecules on Earth?
The reason lies within the uniqueness of carbon’s structure and bonding capabilities.
What are nutrients, and what role do they play in living organisms?
Nutrients are elements and compounds that organisms need for living, growing, and reproducing.
How do plants obtain carbon, hydrogen, and oxygen?
Plants obtain the nutrients carbon, hydrogen, and oxygen from air and water.
From where do plants obtain nitrogen, phosphorus, potassium, magnesium, calcium, and sulfur?
from the soil
Why are these nine elements essential for plant growth?
These nine elements are all essential for the normal growth of plants.
Because they are needed in relatively large amounts, they are called macronutrients.
what are micronutrients
Macronutrients are elements and compounds required by organisms in relatively large amounts. They are essential for growth, development, and reproduction
what are micronutrients
Micronutrients, on the other hand, are needed in much smaller amounts but are still crucial for proper functioning. These nutrients are involved in various biochemical processes but are not required in large quantities.
What is the role of selenium in the human diet, and why is it important in trace amounts?
The micronutrient selenium is an element that is required in trace amounts in your diet. Too much of it can cause harmful health effects.
what are diseases that can be linked to a selenium deficiency in humans?
cancer and heart disease.
what does selenium help protect?
Selenium, along with vitamin E, helps to protect cell membranes from damage caused by hydrogen peroxide, a poison that is produced in some chemical reactions in cells.
Selenium, like most other substances, should be available in our diets in ____ ______
optinum amounts
what is the recommended daily intake of selenium for humans?
70 pg
what types of food are examples of carbohydrates?
When we eat food such as pasta, rice, potatoes, fruits, and bread, we are eating carbohydrates.
what are carbohydrates?
Carbohydrates are organic molecules made up of atoms of carbon, hydrogen, and oxygen, which provides our cells with energy.
What is glucose, and how is it produced by plants?
These atoms can form simple molecules, such as glucose made by green plants in photosynthesis. Glucose is used by plants as energy.
What are starch, cellulose, and glycogen, and how are they related to glucose?
Large, complex molecules, such as starch, cellulose, and glycogen are composed of many glucose molecules joined together.
Starch and cellulose is found in _____, while _____ is found in animals.
plants, glycogen
