The relationship between cell volume and diffusion time is that the smaller the volume of the cell the faster the diffusion time will be. The cell with the smallest volume will have the fastest diffusion rate because the diffusion can cover that cell at a high speed because the volume is low. If the volume of the cell was large diffusion might not be able to finish and the cell will die because the overall time to diffuse the whole cell takes too long.
Cells can’t get really big because contact with the surroundings is essential for the cell to perform its functions. This is where diffusion and active transport occur to bring in nutrients and other important molecules as well as excretion of waste. If a cell gets to big it will die. The speed a cell can absorb things is related to how much surface area it has. The amount of cell that must be fed is determined by its volume. If the volume gets too big, and the surface area doesn't keep up, the cell will starve because it won't be able to get enough nutrition to feed all of itself. That’s why the 2x2 cell took the longest to diffuse because of its surface to volume ratio.
Cells can be modified because they are flexible and the cytoskeleton. The cytoskeleton gives the cell its shape, help it move more vital substance around, and it gives the cell movement. Since the cell can be modified like this diffusion can occur at a faster rate and the cell won’t die.
Team 4 won the race because basically every other team had a shape where diffusion took long to get to the middle of the agar. Shapes with a larger volume take longer to diffuse. Other teams used those kinds of shapes with similar properties like the square, pentagon, and hexagon. The swastika had a unique shape than all the other teams. So its surface area to volume ratio made the swastika shape have the quickest diffusion time.
Food is diffused in normal cells along with water and nutrients that need to get to the rest of the organelles. Nitrogenous wastes are also diffused in cells.
To further my investigation the class should diffuses three different cell sizes on their own then get together with the class and compares the results. A whole new experiment should be down with those results to further back up my data. This would be good to have a wide range of cells to have a result. A different cell should be used with agar to compare the diffusion times based on the surface area to volume ratio. There should also be a wider range of surface area to volume to ratio cells.
Kwontavious Billingsley
4A
Cell Races: Size and Diffusion Lab