Measuring Photosynthetic Activity In Plants

Measuring Photosynthetic Activity In Plants Photosynthesis is a process in which plants obtain food by converting light energy into glucose. Photosynthesis occurs in all plants and is essential to humans because it creates an Oxygen rich atmosphere. As Frank James states, in his book Photosynthesis in Plants that even the modern developments are still heavily dependant on plants that undergo photosynthesis. Things such as medicine, clothes, Furniture etc all come from plants so thats why I believe, plants are key players in transforming us from the stone age to the modern 20th century and the reason why they still are used for Modern development( Frank 1) Photosynthesis doesnt only occur in day light but, it also happens at night. As Anne Helmenstine states that in Photosynthesis there are two types of reaction: the reactions that require light are called light dependant reactions. In this reaction light is captured from the suns rays to make a molecules called ATP. On the other hand there are those reactions which dont require light to function these reactions are called the dark reactions(Calvin cycle). They occur at night- time and their role is to use the used ATP which was made during the light reaction and convert into glucose. (Helmenstine 4) One way to measure Photosynthetic activity in plants is that you can measure the starch production. Darrell Vodopich states in his book Biology Lab Manuel that the Sugars(Glucose) which is the end product created by the photosynthesis reaction are often stored as starch. Therefore we can clearly see that the starch production found in the leaves indirectly measures photosynthetic activity in plants.(Vodopich 143) My hypothesis based on my lab experiment on Photosynthesis : Out of the geranium leaf, variegated or purple coleus leaf; the plants kept in dark will exhibit a lesser amount of starch production then the plants which were exposed to light as a result of photosynthesis. I used the Lugols test for my hypothesis and test its validity the iodine test basically uses iodine to indicate the presence of starches by producing a bluish black color (Vodopich 58). Materials and Methods Procedure 13.6 In this Procedure the main objective was to qualitatively observe the starch production of the Geranium leaf. We first took the Geranium leaf and dipped it in the boiling water for a minute. Then we took the same leaf and again boiled it but this time it was with methanol and we let the leaf sit for about 3-5 minutes. After that we placed the leaf onto the Petri dish and stained the leaf with iodine to reveal the indication of the starch production (Vodopich 144). The Color of the leaf was green when it was boiled with the water alone, then after the leaf changed to a pale white color stripped of its green pigment. After we stained the leaf with Iodine we saw a yellowish/white color along with purple where the veins were located. Procedure 13.7 In this Procedure the main objective was to find the condition of light for the photosynthesis process. In this procedure  ½ of the geranium leaf was covered completely with a foil or paper for 3-4 days before being operated upon in the lab. Then we placed the leaf into the boiling water and let it sit there for a minute before putting it into another boiler containing methanol for about 3-5 minutes. After that we placed the leaf onto the Petri dish and stained the leaf to show the starch production (Vodopich 146). Just like 13.6 the color of the leaf was green when it came out of the boiling water and after wards when the leaf from removed from the boiling methanol its green pigmentation was stripped leaving a pale white color behind. Then after we stained the leaf with the iodine we saw more purple spots on the side which was exposed to light then the other darker  ½ of the leaf which contained little to no spots of purple which indicated the starches production. Procedure 13.8 In this procedure the main objective was the find the requirements necessary for chlorophyll for the photosynthesis process. First we had to obtain a variegated coleus leaf and a purple coleus leaf; both were kept in areas exposed to light prior to the start of the experiment, unlike procedure 13.7. Then we extract the pigments in the leaves by first putting both the leaf in the boiling water for a minute. Then we placed the two leaves in another boiler containing methanol for about 3-5 minutes. After that we place both the leaves onto a Petri dish and we stain them with iodine.(Vodopich 146). We saw both the leaves exhibited different properties after undergoing the methanol boiling phase. The variegated leaf had a green color with white spots and the purple leaf had green color and areas of brown. After that when the 2 leaves were stained with iodine we saw that the variegated leaf had white edges and a purple sections in the middle of the leaf whereas in the purple leaf there were several dark purple big spots on the leaf instead of a distinctive isolated area where the starch production takes place. One of the trends found in this table is that during the beginning phase when the leaves are boiled in water alone they retain their color pigmentation but during the second phase when the same leaves are boiled in methanol their green pigment is almost entirely stripped leaving behind a fine pale white/ greenish color. Another trend which is also found from the table is that the geranium leaf kept in conditions with light has more Staining Intensity( Starch Production) in contrast to the Geranium leaf kept in the dark. Discussions The trend that the Starches production is higher in leaves that were already had pre existing condition of being exposed to light where as compared to leaf being half exposed to light environment and the other half covered or in dark environment. Plants who are exposed to light are more likely to produce starch as a result of photosynthesis rather than plants which are kept in the dark. As Vodopich mentions in his Biology Manuel that the end product (glucose) of the photosynthesis process is stored as substances called starches. So there fore the starch production is an indirect measure of photosynthesis and vice versa. Also in photosynthesis we need some kind of a light source so therefore we can predict that if an environment has no light it will halt the photosynthesis production and if that happens then we wont be able to makes sugars in the form of starch and get a lack of starch production (Vodopich 143). Some of the things I expected was for the leaf to keep its green color throughout the experiment and I expected the  ½ exposed/ unexposed leaf to show a distinct pattern in starch production but instead the results showed no such clear distinction in the leaf and also the green color also didnt last after the leaves went under the process of being boiled in methanol. For future investigation I would suggest doing an experiment with more types of leaves for a better accuracy in results. I would also suggest finding the wave length spectrum of t he leaves and how much their absorbances are to see if whether the absorbance spectrums of the leaves correlate with the amount of photo synthesis thus indirectly measuring starch production. Also I would try going outside in the morning and at night and do the procedure mentioned in 13.6 13.8 to see is there is any difference in starch production. Also I would try experimenting the leaves under different light rather than the standard sun light and compare the amount of starch production between the two different wavelengths of light. Source Citations Brooker, Robert, Eric Widmaier, Linda Graham, and Peter Stiling. Biology. Eighth Edition. New York, NY: McGraw-Hills Companies Inc, 2008. 0-1299. Print Franck, James and Loomis,W. Earl. (1949). Photosynthesis in plants. Ames: Iowa State College Press. Helmenstine, Anne Marie, and Ph.D.. Photosynthesis Study Guide. Chemistry Periodic Table, Chemistry Projects, and Chemistry Homework Help. The New York Times Company, n.d. Web. 23 Mar. 2010. Vodopich, Darrell, Randy Moore, and. Biology Laboratory Manuel. Eighth Edition. New York, NY: McGraw Hills Companies Inc, 2008. 0-567. Print.

Five Wishes Essay

What would you do if an emergency broke out and you were unable to make health care choices for yourself? Does your family know exactly what you want to happen? Do you really know? Although no one wants to think about such scenarios a crisis can emerge at any given time therefore it is best to be prepared. A known program that has had a lot of success is called `Five Wishes’. Five wishes is the first living will discusses personal, emotional, and spiritual needs as well as your medical wishes. It lets you to choose the person you would like make health care decision in a case where you can’t. Five wishes insures that however you choose to be treated is what will happen exactly. Five wishes is set up to be beneficial for you and your family. It puts the end to the guessing game. This document is a way for the patient to talk to their family and doctors even if they are in a severely ill state. The thought of five wishes initially came from Jim Towey. After 12 years of wo rking closely to Mother Teresa and then living a year in hospice he was inspired to find way for patients and their families to plan ahead and cope with serious illness. The ending result was five wishes. The result of five wishes was a success. It has been featured on CNN and NBC’s Today Show and in pages of Time and Money magazines. Five Wishes is often referred to as the first living will with a heart and soul’. Five wishes is now available in 23 languages and is available in 42 states and also the District of Columbia. The only requirement of being eligible for Five Wishes is to be 18 or older. According to agingwithdignity.org over 13 million Americans have already used this program. And because of its success the document is continuously distributed and suggested by hospitals, hospices, retiree groups, and lawyers. The application is broken down in 5 wishes. Wish 1 addresses who you would like to make the decisions for you. This person is referred to as the patient’s agent. The agent can be anyone that the patient chooses as long as they are at least 18 years or older. Within this portion of the document it gives you key points to think about when choosing an agent to represent you. Also it lets you choose to what extent your agent can represent you. After wish 1 comes Wish 2. Wish 2 states what kind of medical treatment that you want or do not want. This part of the document is one of the most important since it on your treatment wishes. For instance you have to state if you would like life support or not, if you  want comfort medications or not, if you want to be resuscitate in any way. This portion also has you choose your treatment if you are close to death, if you have permanent and severe brain damage without expectations of recovery, If you are in a coma and not expected to awake or recover, and lastly in any another cond ition under which you do not wish to be kept alive. The next wish, wish 3, is on how comfortable you would like to be. They give options such as: no pain at all, medication only if signs of mental, stomach, and/or breathing altercations, cold rags for fevors, lips and mouth kept moist, to be kept clean, to be massaged with oils, music being played until time of dealth, have hair/nails/ teeth kept up, religious readings and poems read close to death, and emotional and spiritual care options for the family. Once that is completed you move on to wish 4 where it discusses how the patient will want to be treated. The options are : to have people around as much as possible, to have hand held and someone talking to them as much as possible, to have people bedside praying, for the faith community that the patient attends to be aware of the scenario, to be cared for with a positive attitude, pictures of loved ones surrounding the bed, to be kept clean at all times, and the option to die at home. The last wish after wish 4 is wish 5. Wish 5 is what the patient wants their loved ones to know. The options for this category are as followed: letting them know that the patient loves them,to be forgiven for the times they hurt them, to let them know that they are forgiven for the times they hurt the patient, to let them know the patient doesn’t fear realty, for the families to make peace before the patients death, for them to remember the healthy patient, for them to respect all the wishes, for them to stay positive, for them to get counseling so the memory of the patient be joy not sorrow, for the patient to be cremated or buried, the location for the body to go, for the person they chose knows their funeral wishes. That completes the 5 wishes of the patient. The very last step is for the patient to signature the document, for there to be two witnesses and their signature and in Missouri, North Carolina, South Carolina, and West Virginia this document must be notarized. In conclusion yes signing and filling out wills are initially difficult but having this document in place before a crisis emerges ensures the actions taken place are what the patient wants. On the Five Wish document it states, ‘ Each patient’s decisions to accept or refuse  medical treatment is respected. This policy is to honor a patient’s advance directive.

Negative Effects Of Rape - 1166 Words

On May 10, 1998 a 13 year old named Lindsie was drugged and raped in her best friends store (Tracy). Imagine being a young 13 year old naive and unaware of real life situations, and being taken advantage of like Lindsie. Feeling abused, alone and vulnerable. It’s sad to say that incidents like this happen all the time around the world. Sexual violence is one of the most emotionally and physically damaging crimes committed specifically rape. About 86,000 cases of rape are reported annually in the U.S alone (Seth)! On of the most frequently committed acts of sexual violence is rape. Damaging effects of rape can be life long. Whether or not these effects are visible to the physical eye, they can alter and deeply impact a person s†¦show more content†¦Many people think that eating disorders are only associated with anorexia but eating can also affect those who have gone through traumatic events such as being raped. Most eating disorders do not have a cure but can only be maintained. This means that you can suffer with eating disorders for the rest of your life. One eating disorder that has been shown to be linked to sexual assault is Bulimia. Bulimia is an â€Å"emotional disorder involving distortion of body image and an obsessive desire to lose weight, in which bouts of extreme overeating are followed by depression and self-induced vomiting purging, or fasting† (â€Å"Bulimia†). In the article â€Å"How is Bulimia Related to Sexual Trauma† it says that 60% of bulimics have experienced some form of sexual abuse. This shows that sexual abuse can affect you both mentally and physically. Alongside psychological effects there are also physical effects of rape. According to Samantha Gluck, forced sexual assault frequently causes visible bruising or bleeding in and around the vaginal or anal area and bruises on other parts of the body. These injuries are short term. Another physical effect of rape is painful intercourse with a significant other. 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