Clarissa V.

Calpito AB-Political Science

November 24,2011 Natural Science 2

State that the most frequently occurring chemical elements in living things are carbon, hydrogen, oxygen and nitrogen. State means to give a specific name, value or other brief answer without explanation or calculation.

Carbon............ Symbol C Oxygen ...........Symbol O Hydrogen ........Symbol H Nitrogen...........Symbol N

Difference between Organic and Inorganic Compounds

1. Organic compounds are the result of activities of living beings while inorganic compounds are created either due to natural processes unrelated to any life form or the result of human experimentation in the laboratory. 2. Inorganic compounds can make salt, while organic cannot. 3. Organic compounds contain carbon, while inorganic do not. 4. Organic compounds have carbon-hydrogen bonds, while inorganic do not. 5. Inorganic compounds contain metal atoms, whereas organic compounds do not. 6. Organic compounds are biological and inorganic are mineral in nature. 7. Organic compounds are part of a class of chemical compounds the molecules of which contain carbon and hydrogen, while inorganic compounds mostly comprise of metal containing compounds even if they happen to exist in living organisms.
What is the most important inorganic compound of a living thing? Water, or H2O, is the most important inorganic compound of a living thing, making up between 55 and 65% of our weight

Structure of Water
Water is the most plentiful chemical on the planet earth. It is in the sea, lakes, rivers, air, and even makes up a significant portion of the biological structure of every organic organism that exists, and has ever existed here. Life on earth began in the water. On average, water makes up an average of 75% of the human body, and covers 75% of the planet. This does not include the water vapor in the atmosphere, referred to as 'humidity'. On average, water makes up 2% to 3% of the air you breathe. Water is so critical that if the amount in your body drops just 15%, death will result. Even a loss of just 6% can totally incapacitate you. This is due, in part, to the properties and molecular structure of water. All matter has three states: solid, liquid and gas. Water is no exception. At temperatures between 32 and 212 it is a liquid, and is called water. At temperatures lower than F, F, 32F, it is a solid, and referred to as ice. At temperatures over 212F, it is a gas, and known as steam. In its liquid state, pure water is colorless, odorless, and tasteless. However, water is seldom, if ever, completely pure. This is because of the molecular structure of water. Water is made up of one oxygen atom, which has a negative electronic charge, and two hydrogen atoms, which have a positive electronic charge. Its chemical symbol is HO. Electrons flow from positive to negative, so since the hydrogen atom is negative, it will attract any other molecule with a negative charge. The entire molecule has many places for other atoms to bond with it, and is very attractive magnetically. Therefore, without getting too technical, a water molecule is like a very strong atomic magnet, and can bond with almost anything that is able to bond. It looks something like this:

Properties of water
Water (H2O) is the most abundant compound on Earth's surface, covering about 70%. In nature, it exists in liquid, solid, and gaseous states. It is in dynamic equilibrium between the liquid andgas states at standard temperature and pressure. At room temperature, it is a tasteless and odorless liquid, nearly colorless with a hint of blue. Many substances dissolve in water and it is commonly referred to as the universal solvent. Because of this, water in nature and in use is rarely pure and some of its properties may vary slightly from those of the pure substance. However, there are also many compounds that are essentially, if not completely, insoluble in water. Water is the only common substance found naturally in all three common states of matter and it is essential for all life on Earth. Water usually makes up 55% to 78% of the human body.

Organic compound An organic compound is any member of a large class of gaseous, liquid, or solid chemical compounds whose molecules contain carbon. For historical reasons discussed below, a few

types of carbon-containing compounds such as carbides, carbonates, simple oxides of carbon, and cyanides, as well as the allotropes of carbon such as diamond and graphite, are considered inorganic. The distinction between "organic" and "inorganic" carbon compounds, while "useful in organizing the vast subject of chemistry... is somewhat arbitrary".
Organic chemistry is the science concerned with all aspects of organic compounds. Organic synthesis is the methodology of their preparation.