Life Process Intext Question

Intext Question

Pg. 81

Q.1 Why is diffusion insufficient to meet the oxygen requirements of multi cellular organisms like
humans?

Ans. In multi-cellular organisms, all the cells may not be in direct contact with the surrounding
environment. Thus, simple diffusion will not meet the requirements of all the cells.

Q.2 What criteria do we use to decide whether something is alive?

Ans. The processes which together perform this maintenance job are life processes.

Q.3 What are outside raw materials used for by an organism?

Ans. If the body size of the organisms is to grow, additional raw material will also be needed from
outside.

Q4 What processes would you consider essential for maintaining life?

Ans. Processes that are considered as essential for maintaining life are :-

1. Digestion – Breaking Down Food Into Simpler Substances For Absorption.

2. Respiration – Releasing Energy From Food Molecules.
3. Transportation – Movement Of Nutrients, Gases, And Wastes Within The Body.
4. Excretion – Removal Of Metabolic Waste Products.
5. Homeostasis – Maintaining A Stable Internal Environment.

Pg. 87

Q1 What are the differences between autotrophic nutrition and heterotrophic nutrition?.

Ans.

Autotrophic Mode Heterotrophic Mode

Organisms make their own food using simple inorganic Organisms cannot make their own food and
substances via photosynthesis. depend on others.
Dependent – rely on autotrophs or other
Independent – do not rely on other organisms for food.
organisms for food.
Known as consumers – they consume food
Known as producers – they produce food.
made by producers.
All animals, fungi, many bacteria and
All green plants, some bacteria (e.g., cyanobacteria).
protozoa.
Q2 Where do plants get each of the raw materials required for photosynthesis?

Ans. Plants obtain carbon dioxide from the air, water from the soil, and sunlight from the sun to carry out
photosynthesis.

Q3 What is the role of the acid in our stomach?

Ans. Role of Hydrochloric Acid (HCl) in the Human Stomach

1. Kills germs present in the food.

2. Makes the food acidic, so that pepsin can digest protein.

Q4 What is the function of digestive enzymes?

Ans. Digestive enzymes such as amylase, lipase, pepsin, trypsin, etc. help in the breaking down of
complex food particles into simple ones. These simple particles can be easily absorbed by the blood and
thus transported to all the cells of the body.

Q5 How is the small intestine designed to absorb digested food?

Ans. The small intestine has millions of tiny finger-like projections called villi. These villi increase the
surface area for food absorption. Within these villi, many blood vessels are present that absorb the
digested food and carry it to the blood stream. From the blood stream, the absorbed food is delivered to
each and every cell of the body.

Pg. 91

Q1 What advantage over an aquatic organism does a terrestrial organism have with regard to obtaining
oxygen for respiration?

Ans. Since the amount of dissolved oxygen is fairly low compared to the amount of oxygen in the air, the
rate of breathing in aquatic organisms is much faster than that seen in terrestrial organisms. Therefore,

unlike aquatic animals, terrestrial animals do not have to show various adaptations for better gaseous
exchange.

Q2 What are the different ways in which glucose is oxidised to provide energy in various organisms?
Ans. At first glucose (6 carbon molecules) is broken in the cytoplasm of cells of all organisms. This
process yields a 3-carbon molecule compound called pyruvate. Further breakdownof pyruvate takes
place in different manners in different organisms.
Glucose is oxidised in two ways to provide energy.
a. Aerobic respiration: Glucose is completely oxidised to carbon dioxide and water in the presence of
oxygen, with the release of a considerable amount of energy. This type of oxidation occurs in most of the
living organisms, such as human beings, birds, snakes, frogs, fish, etc.
b. Anaerobic respiration: This type of respiration occurs in the absence of oxygen. In this type of
oxidation, glucose is partially oxidised to ethanol and carbon dioxide (yeast and other bacteria) or lactic
acid (muscles during physical exercise and some bacteria) with the release of a small amount of energy.

Q3 How is oxygen and carbon dioxide transported in human beings?

Ans. Transport of Oxygen: The respiratory pigments (haemoglobin) present in red blood cells take up the
oxygen from the air to the lungs. They carry the oxygen to tissues which are deficient in oxygen.
Transport of carbon dioxide: Carbon Dioxide is more soluble in water. Hence, it is mostly transported
from body tissues in the dissolved form in our blood plasma to lungs where it diffuses from blood to air
in the lungs and then expelled out through nostrils.

Q4 How are the lungs designed in human beings to maximise the area for exchange of gases?

Human lungs are highly specialized organs designed to maximize the efficiency of gas exchange. Their
structure includes millions of alveoli, extensive branching airways, thin walls, moist surfaces, and a
dense capillary network, all supported by breathing mechanics.

1. Branching Airways
 o Air enters through the trachea, which divides into two primary bronchi, each leading to a
lung.
o These bronchi further branch into secondary and tertiary bronchi, and finally into fine
bronchioles.
o This extensive branching ensures air reaches every region of the lungs, greatly increasing
the internal surface area available for oxygen delivery to the alveoli.

2. Alveoli – Gas Exchange Units

o At the ends of bronchioles are millions of tiny balloon-like sacs called alveoli.
o Each alveolus is surrounded by a dense network of capillaries, allowing oxygen to diffuse
into the blood and carbon dioxide to diffuse out.
o The combined surface area of alveoli is about 100 m² (roughly the size of a tennis court),
which is crucial for meeting the body’s oxygen demands.

3. Thin Walls and Moist Surfaces

o The walls of alveoli are only one cell thick, minimizing the diffusion distance for gases.
o Their moist lining helps dissolve gases, facilitating rapid diffusion of oxygen into blood
and carbon dioxide out of it.
o This structural adaptation ensures gas exchange occurs quickly and efficiently.

4. Capillary Network
o Each alveolus is enveloped by a rich capillary network that maintains continuous blood
flow.
o This ensures oxygen is constantly absorbed into the blood and carbon dioxide is
removed, maintaining a steep concentration gradient that drives diffusion.

5. Breathing Mechanics
o The lungs are supported by the diaphragm and intercostal muscles, which expand and
contract the chest cavity during inhalation and exhalation.
o This mechanical action fills alveoli with fresh oxygen-rich air and removes carbon
dioxide-rich air, further enhancing the efficiency of gas exchange.

Pg. 96

Q1 What are the components of the transport system in human beings ? What are the functions of these
components ?

Ans. The transport system (circulatory system) in human beings mainly consists of heart, blood and
blood vessels.

(i) Function of heart : The heart receives deoxygenated blood from the body parts and pumps it to lungs
for enriching with oxygen. It receives purified blood from lungs and pumps it around the body.
(ii) Function of blood : Blood transports oxygen, carbon dioxide, digested food, hormones and
nitrogeneous waste like urea. It also protects the body from diseases and regulates the body
temperature.
(iii) Function of blood vessels : The blood pushed by the heart flows through the blood vessels (arteries,
veins and capillaries) and also comes back to the heart through them..

Q2 Why is it necessary to separate oxygenated and deoxygenated blood in mammals and birds ?
Ans.
Separation of oxygenated and deoxygenated blood allows good supply of oxygen to the body. This
system is useful in animals that have high energy requirement. Mammals and birds constantly need
oxygen to get energy to maintain their body temperature constant.

Q3 What are the components of the transport system in highly organised plants?

Ans. In highly organised plants there are two conducting tissues xylem and phloem.
Xylem consists of vessels, tracheids and other xylem tissues. The interconnected vessels and tracheids
form a continuous system of water conducting channels reaching all parts of the plant. Xylem carries
water and minerals.
Phloem conducts soluble products of photosynthesis from leaves to different parts of the plant body.

Q4 How are water and minerals transported in plants?

Ans. The roots of a plant have hair called root hair.

The root hair are directly in contact with the film of water in between the soil particles. Water and
dissolved minerals get into the root hair by the process of diffusion. The water and minerals absorbed by
the root hair from the soil pass from cell to cell by osmosis through the epidermis, root cortex,
endodermis and reach the root xylem.
The xylem vessels of the root of the plant are connected to the xylem vessels of its stem.
Therefore the water containing dissolved minerals enters the root xylem vessels into stem xylem
vessels. The xylem vessels of the stem branch into the leaves of the plants. So, the water and minerals
carried by the xylem vessels in the stem reach the leaves through the branched xylem vessels which
enter from the petiole (stalk of the leaf) into each and every part of the leaf. Thus the water and
minerals from the soil reach through the root and stem to the leaves of the plants. Evaporation of water
molecules from the cells of a leaf creates a suction which pulls water from the xylem cells of roots. The
loss of water in the form of vapour from the aerial parts of the plant is known as transpiration.

Q5 How is food transported in plants?

Ans. The movement of food in phloem (or translocation) takes place by utilizing energy. The sugar (food)
made in leaves is loaded into the sieve tubes of phloem tissue by using energy from ATR Water now
enters the sieve tubes containing sugar by the process of osmosis due to which the pressure in the
phloem tissue rises. This high pressure produced in the phloem tissue moves the food to all parts of the
plant having less pressure in their tissues. This allows the phloem to transport food according to the
needs of the plant.

Pg. 98

Q1 Describe the structure and functioning of nephrons.

Ans. Structure of nephron : Each nephron is composed of two parts. First one is a cup-shaped bag at its
upper end which is called Bowman’s capsule.
The Bowman’s capsule contains a bundle of blood capillaries which is called glomerulus. One end of the
glomerulus is attached to the renal artery which brings the impure blood containing the urea waste into
it. These impurities are filtered. The other part of the nephron is coiled. In this part, the substances like
sugar (glucose), amino acid, ions and excess water which are required by the body, are reabsorbed. The
substance remained in the nephron is mainly urine containing dissolved urea in water which is expelled
from the body through urethra from time to time.

Functions of nephron : Filtration of blood takes place in Bowman’s capsule from the capillaries of
glomerulus. The filtrate passes into the tubular part of the nephron. This filtrate contains glucose, amino
acids, urea, uric acid, salts and water.
Reabsorption : As the filtrate flows along the tubule, useful substances such as glucose, amino acids,
salts and water are selectively reabsorbed into the blood by capillaries surrounding the nephron tubule.
Urine : The filtrate which remained after reabsorption is called urine. Urine contains dissolved
nitrogenous waste like urea and uric acid, excess salts and water. Urine is collected from nephrons to
carry it to the ureter from where it passes into urinary bladder.

Q2 What are the methods used by plants to get rid of excretory products ?

Ans. (i) The plants get rid of gaseous products-through stomata in leaves and lenticels in stems.
(ii) The plants get rid of stored solid and liquid waste by the shedding off leaves, peeling off bark and
felling off fruits.
(iii) The plants get rid of wastes by secreting them in the form of gums and resins.
(iv) Plants also excrete some waste substances into the soil around them.

Q3 How is the amount of urine produced regulated?

Ans. The amount of urine is regulated by kidney. It depends on the quantity of excess water and wastes
dissolved in water.

(i) Quantity of water : When water is abundant in the body tissues, large quantities of dilute urine is
excreted out. When water is less in quantity in the body tissues, a small quantity of concentrate urine is
excreted.
(ii) Quantity of dissolved wastes : Dissolved wastes, especially nitrogenous wastes, like urea and uric acid
and salts are excreted from the body. When there is more quantity of dissolved wastes in the body,
more quantity of water is required to excrete them. Therefore, the amount of urine produced increases.
(iii) Hormones : The amount of urine produced is also regulated by certain hormones which control the
movement of water and Na+ ions in and out of the nephrons.