6.3 The Laws of Thermodynamics

Question 1

all processes in a cell including a transfer or transformation in energy are subject to:

Answer 1

the laws of thermodynamics

Question 2

first law of thermodynamics

Answer 2

the law of conservation of energy: Energy can neither be created nor destroyed-it can only be transformed from one form into another

Question 3

when energy is transformed from one form to another, according to the first law of thermodynamics:

Answer 3

the total amount of energy remains the same

Question 4

when energy changes forms….

Answer 4

the total amount of energy remains constant

Question 5

in changing from one form of energy to another….

Answer 5

the energy available to do work decreases (some of the energy is available to do work and some is not available)

Question 6

energy transformations are never 100% efficient since:

Answer 6

the amount of energy available to do work decreases every time energy changes forms-energy, often in the form of heat is released and used to increase entropy

Question 7

the energy that is not available to do work takes the form of :

Answer 7

an increase in disorder

Question 8

second law of thermodynamics

Answer 8

the principle that the transformation of energy is associated with an increase in the degree of disorder in the universe

Question 9

entropy (S)

Answer 9

the degree of disorder in the system

Question 10

microstates (synonymous with entropy)

Answer 10

the number of possible motions and positions of a molecule in any given system

Question 11

in chemical reactions, most of the entropy increase occurs through:

Answer 11

the transformation of various forms of energy into thermal energy (heat)

Question 12

thermal energy is:

Answer 12

a type of kinetic energy; the random motion of molecules that results in increased temperature

Question 13

what is the correlation between temperature and disorder?

Answer 13

the higher the temperature, the more rapid the molecule movement and the higher the disorder

Question 14

the amount of chemical potential energy expended is equal to:

Answer 14

the amount of kinetic energy plus the amount of thermal energy

Question 15

catabolic reactions result in:

Answer 15

an increase in entropy as a single ordered biomolecule is broken down into several smaller ones with more freedom to move around

Question 16

anabolic reactions seem to decrease entropy, does this mean the second law of thermodynamics is false?

Answer 16

the second law of thermodynamics applies to the universe as a whole, not to a chemical reaction in isolation

Question 17

a local decrease in entropy is always accompanied by:

Answer 17

an even higher increase in the entropy of the surroundings - NET INCREASE IN ENTROPY

Question 18

the production of heat in a chemical reaction increases:

Answer 18

entropy because heat is associated with the motion of molecules

Question 19

the maintenance of the high degree of function and organization of a single cell or a multicellular organism requires:

Answer 19

a constant input of energy