The biological signficance of water

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The Biological Significance of Water

Water is the most available compound on earth. Many of us take it for granted. Although it is the basis of life, that is just the beginning of water as a useful chemical. In fact water is useful in more ways than most of us ever think about. Everyday chemists discover new uses for what is one of the things most taken for granted. Water still and holds new potential to change our world forever.

Although water is abundant, it is a very simple compound with a complex set of properties. Nearly everything about water is somehow unusual or contradictory. Water has a formula of H2O which means it has two atoms of hydrogen and one of oxygen in every molecule. Water's melting and boiling points (Zero and 100 degrees Celsius respectively) are higher than would be expected based on similar compounds. It is unusually viscous based on its comparatively small molecular weight. Water has the ability to act as either an acid or a base depending on the circumstances, and by its nature it is perfectly neutral (it's the standard for balance between acids and alkalines[bases]). Water is the most universal of solvents and though polar in its make up, it exhibits properties that indicate a sort of polymerizing link between its molecules similar to heavier organic non-polar compounds.

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While it exists on earth in all three basic states, solid, liquid, and gas, water's properties are often bizarre by most standards. For example liquid water contracts when cooled until it reaches a temperature of about 4 degrees Celsius where it reaches its maximum density. When this temperature is reached liquid water begins to expand, and even with a change in state to ice, water continues to expand, by reducing its density as its temperature decreases.

Water is also extremely useful due to its high heat capacity. It has an enormous ability to absorb and transmit energy. ...

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