energy of living organisms

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What is energy?

The ability to do work

What is work?

The transfer of energy from one body or place to another; defined as a force operating through a distance

What is metabolism?

The sum of all anabolic and catabolic processes in a cell or organism

What is potential energy?

Energy stored by virtue of an object’s position within an attractive or repulsive force field

Mechanical energy is…

Energy found in the motion of objects

Chemical energy is…

Energy contained within the bonds that hold atoms together to form molecules

Radiant energy is…

The source of energy for all living things derived from the sun

What two forms can energy be actualized in?

Kinetic energy or potential energy

What is the first law of thermodynamics?

The total amount of energy in the universe cannot be created nor destroyed, merely transferred or transformed

What is bond energy?

A measure of the stability of a chemical bond; minimum energy required to break a bond

Metabolism reactions use helper proteins, so metabolic reactions can be referred to as…

Enzyme mediated reactions

If a chemical reaction releases heat energy it is?

Exothermic

If a chemical reaction absorbs heat energy it is?

Endothermic

What is the change in heat of a chemical reaction called?

Enthalpy

What is the second law of thermodynamics?

The entropy of the universe increases with any change that occurs

What is entropy?

A measure of the tendency for systems to move to states of increasing disorder or randomness

What is the third law of thermodynamics?

The entropy of a system approaches zero as its temperature approaches absolute zero.

What is Gibbs free energy?

The portion of a system’s energy that can perform work when the temperature is uniform.

What is an exergonic reaction?

A reaction that releases Gibbs free/chemical potential energy spontaneously.

What is an endergonic reaction?

A reaction that absorbs/stores Gibbs free/chemical potential energy.

What are the specialized molecules involved in energy transfer called?

Energy carriers or coenzymes.

What happens to energy carriers/coenzymes/dinucleotides during energy transfer?

They become reduced and oxidized (redox) as electrons are passed from one enzyme to the next.