Question

HELP ME PLEASE

Over time, which cell will look the smallest?
A student places four identical cells into four different
liquids
Cell

cell W
cell x
cell Y
cell z

W:Saltier than the cell


X:Less salty than the cell


Y:Equally as salty as the cell

Z:Pure water with no salts

Answer 1

Cell W, which is placed in a solution saltier than the cell, will look the smallest over time due to osmosis causing the cell to shrink as water moves out of it.

Step-by-step explanation:

Over time, the cell that will look the smallest is cell W, which is placed in a liquid that is saltier than the cell itself. This is due to the process of osmosis, where water moves from areas of lower solute concentration to areas of higher solute concentration. In this case, water will move out of the cell (which has a lower salt concentration) into the surrounding liquid (which has a higher salt concentration), causing the cell to lose water and shrink or shrivel.

Cells placed in solutions with different osmotic pressures respond accordingly. Cell X in a less salty solution may swell as water moves into the cell. Cell Y in an equally salty solution will retain its size as there is no net movement of water. Cell Z in pure water is likely to swell the most or even undergo hemolysis since water will rush into the higher solute concentration inside the cell.

Answer 2

This description can be expressed as follows:

Y > W > XY>W>X

And,

W=ZW=Z

From these expressions we are able to find out that the saltiest cell description is Y, while the less salty is X.

Now, salt is well known as a dehydrating agent. In a process called osmosis cells placed in a salty liquid environment lose water, how?

Well, cells have a semipermeable membrane, in which some substances can get inside. Cells also have water inside. If a cell is placed in a quite salty liquid environment, salt will make the water inside the cells to come out, drying the cell and diminishing its size.

So, in this case, according to the expressions above, Cell Y will look the smallest, while cell X will look the biggest.

If we pour pure water in each liquid, the salt concentration will change and each cell will begin to grow bigger, but the saltiest cell will still be smaller than the others with less salt concentration.

Finally, to answer the question: Y cell will look the smallest after this process