Question

what feature makes water essential to living things?
1 water is the most common molecule on earth.
2 water was the first molecule to form on earth.
3 water is a nutrient that supplies energy.
4 water is the medium for metabolic reactions.
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difficulty: 111

Explanation:

• Option 1: While water is abundant, its abundance alone isn't the key reason for being essential to living things. Many abundant molecules aren't essential for life processes.
• Option 2: The order of molecule formation on Earth is not relevant to water's essentiality for living organisms. Life's requirements are about current biological functions, not historical formation order.
• Option 3: Water does not supply energy. Nutrients that supply energy are typically organic molecules like carbohydrates, fats, and proteins. Water is involved in many metabolic processes but not as an energy source.
• Option 4: Water is the medium for metabolic reactions. Most biochemical reactions in living cells occur in an aqueous environment. It helps in transporting substances, dissolving reactants and products, and facilitating the chemical reactions necessary for life (like photosynthesis, respiration, digestion, etc.). This is a fundamental reason why water is essential to living things.

Answer:

1. Water is the medium for metabolic reactions.