Chapter 2 Assignment:

The Chemistry of Life

1. Describe how the number of protons, neutrons, and electrons in an atom

affects its atomic number, mass number and charge.

The atomic number equals the number of protons. The mass number equals the number
of protons and neutrons added together. The charge is based on electrons: more electrons
than protons, negative charge; less electrons than protons, positive charge.

2. Distinguish between nonpolar covalent bonds, polar covalent bonds, and

ionic bonds.

Nonpolar covalent bonds have bonds in which atoms exert equal pull on their shared
electrons. Polar covalent bonds have the nucleus exerting a stronger pull on the shared
electrons than the other nucleus. Ionic bonds result from the electrical attraction between
two ions with opposite charges.

3. If oxygen is highly electronegative, why is a covalent bond between two

oxygen atoms considered nonpolar?

The nucleus of each oxygen exerts an equal pull on shared electrons.

4. Can nonpolar molecules such as methane participate in hydrogen bonds?

Why or why not?

They cannot because the atoms do not have partial charges.

5. Define solute, solvent and solution.

The solute in lesser amount gets dissolved by the solvent in greater amount. Together
make the solution.

6. Give an example from everyday life of each of the following properties of

water: cohesion, adhesion and resistance to temperature change.

Cohesion: A water droplet combining with another on a windshield.

Adhesion: Splash of water sticks to the wall. Ability to dissolve solutes: Mixing
powdered lemonade in water. Resistance to temperature change: Aquatic life are able to
survive in lakes during the winter.

7. How do hydrogen ions relate to the pH scale?

A lower concentration of hydrogen ions equals a high pH number; a higher concentration
of hydrogen ions equals a low pH number.

8. For each of the following, what is the associated monomer?

Protein: amino acid

Carbohydrate: monosaccharide

Nucleic acid: nucleotide

9. How do lipids differ from the other classes of organic molecules?

they are non-polar.

10. Explain the importance of buffers in living systems.

Prevent wild swings in pH. Buffers resist change in pH when small amounts of acid or
base are added by removing the excess H+ or OH+ from solution. Buffers are important
to living organisms because organisms resist strong, sudden changes in the pH of body
fluids by means of buffer systems consisting of a pair of interacting H+ donor and H+
acceptor compounds.