Question

The average human cell weighs 27 picograms (1 picogram = 10ˆ-12g). How many moles of cells are present in Shaquille O'Neal, who is 324 lbs?

a) 5.54 x 10^19 moles
b) 2.47 x 10^23 moles
c) 9.83 x 10^21 moles
d) 9.0 x 10ˆ-9 mol

Answer 1

The number of moles of cells in Shaquille O'Neal, who weighs 324 lbs, is calculated by first converting his weight to grams, then determining the number of cells based on the average cell weight, and finally dividing by Avogadro's number. The result is approximately 9.0 x 10^-9 moles.

Step-by-step explanation:

To calculate how many moles of cells are present in Shaquille O'Neal, who weighs 324 pounds, we first need to convert his weight to grams (since molecular mass and Avogadro's number use grams). We know that 1 pound = 453.59237 grams, so:

324 lbs × (453.59237 g/lb) = 146,763.64868 g

Next, since each human cell weighs 27 picograms, we can find the total number of cells in Shaquille O'Neal by dividing his total weight in picograms by the weight of a single cell:

(146,763.64868 g) × (10^12 pg/g) / (27 pg/cell) = approximately 5.43 × 10^15 cells

To find out the number of moles of cells, we divide this number by Avogadro's number, 6.022 × 10^23:

5.43 × 10^15 cells / (6.022 × 10^23 cells/mol) ≈ 9.02 × 10^-9 mol

Therefore, the correct answer is (d) 9.0 × 10^-9 mol.