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Photosynthesis

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Biological processes often only occur under specific conditions, such as temperature, pH, and pressure. Likewise, the photosynthetic pathway can only occur effectively when such conditions are met. In the case of temperature, variations in thermal energy can cause alterations in chloroplast functionality. On the colder extreme, the rate of photosynthesis is hindered due to a decrease in H+ concertation due to an alteration in the movement of the thylakoid membrane (Busch et al. 2006). Alternatively, elevated temperatures would also disrupt the rate of photosynthesis. The presence of heat would interfere with the Photosystem II of the light-dependent photosynthetic reactions (Agrawal et al. 2014). Similarly to cold conditions, the thylakoid …show more content…
The data was collected by using a Dissolved Oxygen Probe to determine the amount of oxygen released in O2 mg/L over 600 seconds. The rate of photosynthesis, as displayed in the table, (in O2 mg/L/sec) was then determined by calculating the slopes from a linear fit. The data table indicates a higher rate of photosynthesis under conditions with saturated salt. This trend was followed by both trials. Both groups (No Salt and Saturated Salt) had a negative rate of photosynthesis. The data indicates a potential source of error since the trails showed two extremes (positive and negative) photosynthetic rates.

5) Provide a short written summary of your graph.

The graph shows a higher rate of photosynthesis for both trials in which saturated salt was added to the algae solution. Therefore, it can be determined that the addition of saturated salt increased the rate of photosynthesis. The negative rate of photosynthesis is due to the rate of cellular respiration overcoming the rate of photosynthesis. In these cases, such as Trail 1, more carbon dioxide was produced rather than oxygen. Trial 1 also displayed the greatest difference in the effect of saturated salt. There was a 0.004644 O2 mg/L/sec difference in rate of photosynthesis, compared to Trial 2’s difference of 0.000571 O2 mg/L/sec. Therefore, affects of saturated salt were the most significance when the rate of cellular respiration was greater than the rate of …show more content…
The data does not support the hypothesis. Saturated salt increased the rate of photosynthesis rather than permanently inhibiting it. When compared against the control (no saturated salt), algae solutions with the saturated salt proved to have higher photosynthetic rates in all trials of the experiment. The amount of saturated salt might not have been enough to negatively affect the rate of photosynthesis. Since the concentration of saturated salt to algae solution was relatively low, the salt levels could have resembled an optimal environmental condition for the algae rather than causing it to “salting out.”

7) If your results were unexpected, provide a potential explanation for your unexpected

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