Daisy Dalzell-Piper November 13, 2013 7

PHOTOSYNTHISIS SUMMATIVE PROJECTS

PROBLEM: If you double the distance of light, will the rate of photosynthesis decrease by half? HYPOTHESIS: If the distance of light is doubled, then the rate of photosynthesis will be decreased by 55%. THEORY: Photosynthesis is the process in which food is produced. In order for this to happen, the plant needs energy (from the sun), water, and carbon dioxide. It gets the water from the plants roots and the carbon dioxide through the plants stomata. The process takes place in the chloroplasts in the leaves and it produces glucose and oxygen. The plant performs cellular respiration using that glucose and oxygen produced by the photosynthesis. In this experiment, we tested if the distance of light away from the plant had an affect on how much photosynthesis was produced. In my hypothesis, I stated that I think if the distance of light is doubled, then the rate of photosynthesis will decrease by 55%. I think this because 6 out of the 6 classes last year decreased when the light was further away. The class average for 5 cm away was about 225 bubbles all together. When the light was 10 cm away, all together the class got about 100 bubbles. This was about a 55% difference between 5 and 10 cm. PROCEDURE: For Light Intensity 1. Measure and cut at an angle elodea 7 to 9 cm. 2. Remove a few leaves from end of stem and slightly crush end of stem. 3. Measure mass in grams and record. 4. Put elodea stem side up in a test tube. 5. Fill test tube with water and baking soda solution (1 tsp to 100 mL of water). 6. Put tube in rack and adjust lamp 5 cm from top of test tube.

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7. Turn on lamp and wait 1 minute. 8. After 1 minute, begin counting small, medium and large bubbles for 3 minutes. Record data. 9. Repeat at 10 cm with same size and mass elodea 10. Repeat for Trial 2 DATA/OBSERVATIONS:
Trial 1: 0.9 grams
Small x 1 Distance 5 cm 13 x 1 = 13

Oxygen produced in 3 minutes at 5 and 10 cm

Medium x 2 5 x 2 = 10 Large x 3 2x3=6 Total 29

10 cm

9x1=9

3x2=6

4 x 3 = 12

27

Trial 2: 1.2 grams

Small x 1 Distance 5 cm 10 cm 60 x 1 = 60 50 x 1 = 50

Oxygen produced in 3 minutes at 5 and 10 cm

Medium x 2 16 x 2 = 32 15 x 2 = 30 Large x 3 9 x 3 = 27 6 x 3 = 18 Total 119 98

Averages for 2 trials Trials 5 cm 10cm 1 29 27 2 119 98 TOTAL/2 148/2 125/2 AVERAGE 74 62.5 Note: There was a 15.5% decrease when the light was farther away.

Daisy Dalzell-Piper November 13, 2013 7 2013 AVERAGE DATA IN 3 MINUTES FROM 6 DIFFERENT CLASSES Light Intensity
CLASS PERIOD AVERAGES 1 2 3 4 6 7 TOTAL/6 AVERAGE 5cm 35 29 16.3 17 52.3 40.8 190.4/6 31.7 10cm 51.5 10 12.3 7.5 29.5 45 155.8 26 % Oxygen Decrease/Increase 32% Increase 65.5% Decrease 24.5% Decrease 55.8 % Decrease 43.5% Decrease 9.3% Increase 17.98% Decrease

The Average Rate of Photosynthesis

# of Oxygen Bubbles in 3 minutes 100 90 80 70 60 50 40 30 20 10 0 Group 7th Period 7th Grade 40.8 45 31.7 26 5 cm 10 cm 74 62.5

CONCLUSION: In this lab, we tested if the distance of light had an affect on how much photosynthesis that plant produced. I hypothesized that if the distance of light is doubled, then the rate of photosynthesis will be decreased by 55%. In our group, the average percent of photosynthesis for 5 and 10cm was a 15.5% decrease. The 7th grade percent average for 5 and 10cm was about an 18% decrease. In conclusion, my hypothesis was incorrect.

Daisy Dalzell-Piper November 13, 2013 7

ANALYSIS: In this lab, there were a few discrepancies in the data. For example, our group and the 7th grade averages had a decrease when the average for period 7 had an increase. I think this was caused by the reliability of the experiment but its not concluded. Looking at the 7th grade data from this year, I noticed 33% of all the classes had an increase, and the total average for all the periods was 17.98%. I realized that if we took out that 33% of the classes that had an increase, we would get a higher average of photosynthesis of about 48%. The first thing I would do to make this experiment more reliable would be to make sure each test tube had the exact same amount of water. If there is more water in one test tube, the plants will not photosynthesis as much, which will cause a different in the outcome. BIBLIOGRAPHY:
Coolidge-Stolz M.D., Elizabeth, et al. Focus On Life Science. Boston, Mass: Prentice Hall, 2008. Washington State Department of Ecology. American Waterweed- A Common Native Plant. February 24, 2003. November 2013. <http://www.ecy.wa.gov/Programs/wq/plants/native/elodea.html> Young, Paul. The Botany Coloring Book. Cambridge, New York: Harper and Row, 1982. "Water Quality Program Home | WA Dept. of Ecology." Water Quality Program Home | WA Dept. of Ecology. N.p., 02 Dec. 2013. Web. 05 Dec. 2013.