Jacob Klionsky Science 7 November 13, 2013

PHOTOSYNTHESIS SUMATIVE PROJECT

If you double the distance of light, will the rate of photosynthesis will decrease by half? HYPOTHESIS: If the distance of light is doubled, then the rate of photosynthesis will be decreased by approximately 50%. THEORY
Photosynthesis is the process where glucose and oxygen are created inside a plant from water, carbon dioxide, and sunlight. The sunlight is captured in pigments called chlorophyll in the chloroplasts, carbon dioxide is captured by the stomata in the leaves, and the water is captured by the roots and brought up through the xylem. The oxygen and the food then go into the mitochondria through the cytoplasm where Cellular Respiration takes place and water, carbon dioxide, and energy is produced. In this lab I hypothesized that if the distance of light is doubled, then the rate of photosynthesis will be decreased by approximately 50%. I have stated this because the light intensity from 10 cm away will be half as intense and effective as the intensity from 5 cm away. I have come to my hypothesis by looking at last years data and researching the topic. Last years data is very conclusive and shows that 100% of the classes had decrease of oxygen bubbles produced when the distance was doubled at a 55% decrease of oxygen. My research has stated the same percentages and it has shown one basic fact. If all ingredients are the same and the light is closer and more intense, photosynthesis will happen more frequently, because it is a needed reactant for the process photosynthesis. In addition, I have learned that the measurement for light intensity is measured in lumens. So the closer, the

stronger, and the more intense the light is, the more lumens. In conclusion, the more lumens, the higher rate of photosynthesis.
PROCEDURE: For Light Intensity 1. Measure and cut at an angle elodea 7 to 9 cm. 2. Remove a few leaves from end of stem and slightly crush end of stem. 3. Measure mass in grams and record. 4. Put elodea stem side up in a test tube. 5. Fill test tube with water and baking soda solution (1 tsp to 100 mL of water). 6. Put tube in rack and adjust lamp 5 cm from top of test tube. 7. Turn on lamp and wait 1 minute. 8. After 1 minute, begin counting small, medium and large bubbles for 3 minutes. Record data. 9. Repeat at 10 cm with same size and mass elodea 10. Repeat for Trial 2 DATA/OBSERVATIONS:
Trial 1
Distance 5 cm

Oxygen Produced in 3 minutes at 5 and 10 cm

Small x 1 6x1=6 Medium x 2 2x2=4 Large x 3 0x3=0 Total 10

10 cm

5 x 1= 5

0x2=0

0x3=0

Trial 2
Distance 5 cm 10 cm

Oxygen Produced in 3 minutes at 5 and 10 cm

Small x 1 11 x 1 = 11 11 x 1 = 11 Medium x 2 8 x 2 = 16 2x2=4 Large x 3 2x3=6 1x3=3 Total 33 18

Trials 1 2 Total/2 Average

Average for 2 trials 5 cm 10 33 43/2 21.5

10 cm 5 18 23/2 11.5

2013 AVERAGE DATA IN 3 MINUTES FROM 6 DIFFERENT CLASSES Light Intensity

5cm CLASS PERIOD AVERAGES 1 2 3 4 6 7 TOTAL/6 AVERAGE 35 29 16.3 17 52.3 40.8 190.4/6 31.7 51.5 10 12.3 7.5 29.5 45 155.8 6 32% increase 66% decrease 25% decrease 56% decrease 44% decrease 9% increase 18% decrease 10cm % Oxygen Decrease/Increase

Average of Oxygen Bubbles produced in 3 minutes

50 40 30 20 10 0

Average Rate of Photsynthesis from 5 and 10cm

5 cm 10cm

My Group

My Class

7th Grade

Distance Away From the Light Source

Conclusion In this lab, I tested if the rate of the photosynthesis would cut in half if the distance of light were doubled. I previously hypothesized, that if the distance of light were doubled, then the rate of photosynthesis would be decreased by approximately 50%. My data fits my hypothesis to near perfection with a 47% decrease of oxygen produce when the distance was doubled. Although, my 7th period class had a 9% increase of oxygen produce when the distance was doubled. However, the entire 7th grade had a grand total of an 18% decrease of oxygen produced from double the distance. In conclusion, based on my data and 7th grade, my hypothesis was correct. Analysis There was one major discrepancy in the lab we recently tested. This discrepancy is that 33% of the classes had an increase of oxygen when the light intensity was doubled. This inconsistency caused the 7th grade average to plummet to only 18% decrease from double the distance. I decided to take out the two classes (Period 1and 7) who had increases from double the distance, and see if the average would come closer to my hypothesis of a 50% decrease. With these two classes taken out of the mix, there was a 48% decrease, and only 2% away from my hypothesis. When looking back at the experiment, I realized that taking out the outliers always makes your answer more veracious. The problem is, your usually not able to take out any numbers, its generally all the numbers or none of them. To get reliable data for next year with out taking away the outliers, I would make sure everyone gets their well-needed time to prepare. When performing the lab, I felt like our class was a bit

rushed to do everything and therefore some of the preparations werent done correctly. Our group managed to have and accurate average, but the range between the first trial and second trail was way to large. I believe this happened because of the un-similar preparations due to having to hurry. This also affected our whole class, because 7th period combined was one of the two classes to have an average increase from double the distance. In conclusion, the more precise you are on the preparation the more reliable and accurate the results.

BIBLIOGRAPHY Coolidge-Stolz M.D., Elizabeth, et al. Focus On Life Science. Boston, Mass: Prentice Hall, 2008. Washington State Department of Ecology. American Waterweed- A Common Native Plant. February 24, 2003. November 2013. <http://www.ecy.wa.gov/Programs/wq/plants/native/elodea.html> Young, Paul. The Botany Coloring Book. Cambridge, New York: Harper and Row, 1982. "Lumen (unit)." Wikipedia. Wikimedia Foundation, 23 Nov. 2013. Web. 26 Nov. 2013. "Home Guides." Home Guides. N.p., n.d. Web. 24 Nov. 2013. <http://homeguides.sfgate.com/indirect-light-plants-49313.html>.