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Science 5: Photosynthesis 70 Views
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Description:
Today's lesson is on photosynthesis, but it has nothing to do with synthesizing photos. Weird, huh? Instead we'll be talking about the all-important process that generates the air we breathe. Though we're sure the process that generates your cat photos is pretty important too...
Transcript
- 00:05
[Dino and Coop singing]
- 00:13
Chemical reactions are happening all around you, every single day! [Guy holding a test tube which explodes]
- 00:17
Don't worry, it's not all lab explosions and goopy blob monsters. [Green glob attacks a girl in the lab]
- 00:21
You can come out from under the desk.
- 00:23
We're talking about things like The hot frying pan causing your morning bacon [Bacon frying]
Full Transcript
- 00:27
to sizzle...
- 00:28
The rust accumulating on your bicycle...
- 00:29
Or the banana in your lunch turning brown... aka the grossest thing to ever happen in the
- 00:34
history of the universe. [Guy looks grossed out]
- 00:35
Yegh.
- 00:36
Okay maybe get back under the desk.
- 00:38
Let's get back to bacon and rust!
- 00:39
…Well. Not at the same time.
- 00:41
No one likes rusty bacon… [Girl holding a piece of rusty bacon]
- 00:42
These are just a couple examples of chemistry in action.
- 00:46
And there's one chemical reaction in particular that you're reaping the benefits of every
- 00:50
single moment.
- 00:51
No, not bacon again.
- 00:52
We wish.
- 00:53
We're talking about photosynthesis!
- 00:55
When you think of the word photosynthesis, you probably think of a plant.
- 00:58
And guess what?
- 00:59
You'd be right!
- 01:00
But at the risk of offending the other big player in this totally awesome chemical reaction, [Plant on a table]
- 01:04
allow us to introduce the co-star of photosynthesis, the Sun! [Crowd cheering for the Sun on stage]
- 01:09
Seriously, he gets a little hot-headed if you don't give him proper credit…
- 01:12
It all starts with our plant here collecting a whole lot of stuff in its leaves, including
- 01:16
carbon dioxide from the air, and water from its roots that travels up into the rest of [Arrows showing the flow of water]
- 01:20
the plant.
- 01:21
Next, the sun comes in, shining rays of sunshine down onto the plant.
- 01:25
The leaves of the plant absorb these too.
- 01:27
Once the sun's involved, the rays actually cause the carbon dioxide and water to combine [All the components combining]
- 01:32
and form a sugar called glucose, which the plant uses as food. [Apples appear on the tree]
- 01:35
We'd guess this is the plant's favorite part of the whole process.
- 01:38
Pretty sweet, right?
- 01:39
But what's even sweeter than the glucose produced is the by-product that comes as a result of
- 01:44
it – a little thing we like to call oxygen.
- 01:46
This oxygen is then released by the plant and back into our atmosphere. [Outwards flow of oxygen shown]
- 01:51
And where does that oxygen go next?
- 01:52
Into your lungs, of course. [Guy breathing in the oxygen]
- 01:54
But not just human lungs.
- 01:55
Pig lungs.
- 01:56
And cow lungs.
- 01:57
And gorilla lungs. [All the animals under a tree]
- 01:58
And the lungs of every other oxygen-breathing animal on earth.
- 02:02
All because the sun and these plants got together and decided to make some sugar.
- 02:07
And if that wasn't useful enough already, photosynthesis also plays an important part
- 02:10
in removing excess carbon dioxide put into the atmosphere by humans and the burning of [Big factory giving off carbon dioxide]
- 02:15
fossil fuels.
- 02:16
They're actually cleaning pollution out of our air. [Trees appear and begin to clean the air]
- 02:19
Now how's that for impressive?
- 02:20
So the next time you pass by a plant, why not stop by and say thanks for all its hard work?
- 02:25
On second thought, maybe don't do that.
- 02:27
It'll probably look a little weird. [Guy saying the plant is his hero, another guy looks confused]
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