IB Bio terms: A1.1 Water

Goldilocks Zone

The region around a star where conditions are just right for liquid water to exist on a planet's surface, making it potentially habitable for life.

Hydrogen Bonds

Weak attractions between molecules due to partial positive and negative charges.

Polar Covalent Bonds

Type of bond that occurs when atoms with different electronegativities share electrons unequally, resulting in a molecule with a partial positive charge on one end and a partial negative charge on the other.

Cohesion

The tendency of similar molecules to stick together due to intermolecular forces, such as hydrogen bonding.

Adhesion

The tendency of different kinds of molecules to stick together, often due to hydrogen bonding.

Solvent

A substance that dissolves a solute, forming a solution, and is often a liquid, such as water.

Universal Solvent

A solvent that can dissolve a wide variety of substances, most notably water.

Metabolism

Xylem

The vascular tissue in plants responsible for the transport of water and nutrients from the roots to the leaves.

Surface Tension

The property of a liquid that allows it to resist external force due to cohesive nature of its molecules, notably observed in water.

Capillary Action

The ability of a liquid to flow in narrow spaces without the assistance of external forces, often observed in plants as water moves through xylem vessels.

Hydrophobic

Describes a substance that does not mix well with water and tends to repel it due to lack of affinity for water molecules.

Hydrophilic

Describes a substance that has an affinity for water and can mix or dissolve in it, often interacting favorably with water molecules.

Buoyancy

The ability of an object to float in a fluid, which is determined by the object's density relative to the fluid's density.

Viscosity

A measure of a fluid's resistance to flow, influenced by internal friction between molecules.

Thermal conductivity

The property of a material to conduct heat, indicating how well heat is transmitted through the material.

Apoplast pathway

The pathway for water and solutes to move through the cell wall spaces and intercellular voids, bypassing the membrane transport systems.

Extraplanetary

relating to any materials or processes that occur outside of the Earth's atmosphere.

Extraterrestrial

referring to life, materials, or phenomena originating from beyond Earth.

Exoplanet

a planet located outside our solar system that orbits a star.

Asteroid

a small rocky body orbiting the Sun, primarily found in the asteroid belt between Mars and Jupiter.

Comet

a celestial object consisting of a nucleus of ice and dust that, when close to the Sun, develops a tail of gas and dust particles.

LUCA

the last universal common ancestor of all living organisms, from which all life on Earth is descended.