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Question 35 continues on page 36 (a) (i) Name a scientist from the 17th or 18th century who contributed to the development of ideas on plant growth - HSC - SSCE Biology - Question 35 - 2014 - Paper 1
Question 35
Question 35 continues on page 36 (a) (i) Name a scientist from the 17th or 18th century who contributed to the development of ideas on plant growth. (ii) Outline h... show full transcript
Worked Solution & Example Answer:Question 35 continues on page 36 (a) (i) Name a scientist from the 17th or 18th century who contributed to the development of ideas on plant growth - HSC - SSCE Biology - Question 35 - 2014 - Paper 1
Step 1
Name a scientist from the 17th or 18th century who contributed to the development of ideas on plant growth.
Answer
One notable scientist from the 17th century is Joseph Banks. He was instrumental in the study and classification of plants, and his work contributed significantly to the understanding of plant physiology and the development of botanical knowledge.
Step 2
Outline how the findings from a 17th or 18th century experiment informed a conclusion about plant growth.
Answer
Experiments, such as those conducted by Jan Ingenhousz, revealed that plants need sunlight to grow. Ingenhousz discovered that the green parts of plants are responsible for the production of oxygen in sunlight, which led to the conclusion that photosynthesis occurs in the presence of light. This pivotal finding demonstrated the vital role sunlight plays in plant growth.
Step 3
Construct a flow chart to summarise the procedure used to produce named photosynthetic plant cell fractions.
Answer
- Harvest Plant Material: Collect the plant tissue, e.g., spinach leaves.
- Homogenization: Blend the tissue in a buffer solution to break cell walls.
- Centrifugation: Spin the homogenate in a centrifuge to separate components based on density.
- Supernatant: Contains soluble proteins and metabolic compounds.
- Pellet: Contains cell walls and other solid material.
- Fraction Collection: Collect fractions of interest for further study.
Step 4
Explain how the design of Calvin’s experiments involving paper chromatography led to his development of an understanding of the light-independent reactions of photosynthesis.
Answer
Calvin used paper chromatography to separate different photosynthetic compounds produced by plants. By analyzing the products of the light reactions, he was able to identify the pathways through which carbon dioxide is converted into carbohydrates. His meticulous experimental design allowed him to establish that these reactions occur independently of light, confirming the existence of dark reactions in photosynthesis, which utilize the ATP and NADPH from the light-dependent stage to synthesize glucose.