Water and Life Lecture Flashcards

These flashcards cover key terms and concepts related to water and its significance to life, chemical properties, and interactions.

Atom

The fundamental unit of matter; the smallest unit of an element that retains all properties of that element.

Subatomic Particles

Particles that make up atoms; includes protons, neutrons, and electrons.

Isotope

Variants of an element that differ in their number of neutrons.

Ion

An electrically charged atom that has lost or gained one or more electrons.

Chemical Bond

An attraction between atoms that enables the formation of chemical compounds.

Ionic Bond

A chemical bond involving the transfer of one or more electrons from one atom to another.

Covalent Bond

A chemical bond involving the sharing of one or more electrons between atoms.

Hydrogen Bond

A weak bond between molecules due to the attraction between a hydrogen atom and an electronegative atom.

Cohesion

The attraction between molecules of the same substance.

Adhesion

The attraction between different substances.

Specific Heat

The amount of heat that must be absorbed or lost for 1 g of a substance to change its temperature by 1°C.

Evaporation

The transformation of a substance from liquid to gas.

Hydrophilic Substance

A substance that has an affinity for water.

Hydrophobic Substance

A substance that does not have an affinity for water.

Acid

Any substance that increases the H+ concentration of a solution.

Base

Any substance that reduces the H+ concentration of a solution.

pH Scale

A scale that describes whether a solution is acidic or basic.

Buffer

Substances that minimize changes in concentrations of H+ and OH− in a solution.

Ocean Acidification

The process by which CO2 emissions lead to lower pH levels in oceans, adversely affecting marine life.