∞ generated and posted on 2022.01.30 ∞
Polar solvent consisting of two hydrogen atoms that possess partial positive charges and one oxygen atom that possesses a partial negative charge.
| Water literally is the solvent of life, the stuff within which metabolism occurs. |
Water, of course, is a liquid at room temperature and one which preferentially dissolves molecules that possess full charge or partial charges.
Water additionally displays high levels of cohesion, which is the propensity of molecules to stick to one another, a high degree of adhesion to non-water polar substances, a relatively high boiling point, and high specific heat (ability to absorb heat without increasing substantially in temperature).
Figure legend: The Colorado River taken from very close to the bottom of the Grand Canyon, Bright Angel Trail, during a single-day north-to-south rim-to-rim.
Note that it is not that polar covalent bonds or even ionic bonds are not permissible but instead that there must be at least one nonpolar covalent bond that is between carbon and another atom. Thus, for example, methanol is an organic compound as too is pyruvate, but not either graphite or carbon dioxide.
Figure legend: Taken in August of 2011, a beach on the Pacific ocean somewhere south of San Francisco and North of Los Angeles along the Pacific Coast Highway.