Chapter 4 - Energy & Life Flashcards
every living thing metabolizes _______.
energy
define energy
the capacity to do work.
work
the movement of an object after the application of force, expenditure of energy
converting energy from one form to another drives _____________________
all of life’s processes
kinetic energy
the energy of motion (like a child moving down a slide)
potential energy
the energy an object has due to its location or structure, such as the energy contained by a child sitting atop of a slide
describe how potential energy and kinetic energy are converted to each other?
a child releases/lowers potential energy built up from sitting high on the slide as he slides down. the energy is converted into kinetic energy of motion. Potential energy from food converts into the kinetic energy required to climb the stairs of the slide.
chemical energy
potential energy that is stored in the bonds that hold atoms together. Breaking the bonds releases useful energy. When ATP chemically reacts and turns into ADP, chemical energy is released and turned into kinetic energy
the law of conservation of energy
energy cannot be created or destroyed, only converted.
about how much of the calories we consume are dissipated back into the environment as body heat?
60%
heat
a form of kinetic energy stored in the random motions of atoms and molecules.
T or F. Within living systems, energy conversion is perfectly efficient.
False. There is always some waste expelled as heat.
entropy
the amount of disorder in a system
what happens to entropy every time energy is converted within a system?
Entropy (randomness) increases.
it requires significant effort to decrease disorder in real life. How does this relate to entropy and heat?
Heat is chaotic and hard to recapture. It takes a lot of energy to do so, which in turn creates its own entropy.
what energy conversions are taking place by pressing a spring?
compressing the spring converts kinetic energy into potential energy. releasing the spring converts potential energy into kinetic energy.
Explain how life processes are powered by the sun’s energy.
sun energy enters the system as light. Sun energy is converted into chemical energy by producers via photosynthesis. Consumers use the chemical energy in food to power bodily functions. Heat is released from the system.
producers
organisms that absorb the sun’s energy and convert it into chemical energy. They can produce their own food.
consumers
These organisms can’t produce their own food (energy). They obtain food by eating plants or by eating animals that have eaten plants.
name organisms that are consumers.
animals, fungi, and some microscopic protists.
name organisms that are producers.
plants, aquatic protists (such as seaweed, a form of algae) and certain bacteria.
what is a mutual means of obtaining energy that producers and consumers use?
breaking down sugars through cellular respiration
