∞ generated and posted on 2020.08.30 ∞
Why things happen, such as in biological systems.
| You are either going forward, going backward, or staying in place—away from equilibrium, towards equilibrium, or at equilibrium, respectively. Energy is required to move away from equilibrium, energy is released when moving toward equilibrium, and there is no net change in energy at equilibrium. Catalysts make it easier for chemical reactions to move either toward or away from equilibrium, and enzymes are protein-based biological catalysts. |
This page addresses some or all of the following terms: Chemical equilibrium, Steady state, Dynamic equilibrium, Reversible reaction, Concentration, Rate constant, Rate-limiting step, Energy, Potential energy, Kinetic energy, Waste heat, Catalyst, Enzyme, Activation energy, Active site, Substrate, Product.
The above video considers especially the meaning of the concept of stead states but also contrasting it with that of equilibrium.
A smooth surface is a surface at equilibrium. Energy put into the system, in the form of a falling droplet of water, perturbs the system away from equilibrium, but as the energy dissipates the systems returns to its original, smooth, equilibrium state.
Juggling really is a steady state. It is an ongoing, more or less constant condition that is maintained by a continuous input of energy. Watch the video to learn how!
The above video nicely introduces the concept of equilibrium from the perspective of chemical equilibrium, sort of…
The above video depicts calcium carbonate decomposition and reformation, including showing what happens when you perturb the reaction away from equilibrium.
The above video depicts thermal equilibrium.
The above video provides a nice introduction to the basic ideas of chemical equilibrium. Note that towards the beginning there is no effort to distinguish equilibrium from steady state, i.e., processes that do not require inputs of additional energy from processes that do, respectively. This is no big deal and in fact barely noticeable. Still, in case it confuses you, this perhaps is why.
The above video builds on the previous, delving into the math of chemical equilibrium and associated calculations.
The above video nicely combines the take-home messages from the previous two videos on chemical equilibrium and associated calculations. It still involves math, however, but is a nice introduction to the subject with increasing complexity as the video progresses.
The above video goes through much what is presented in the previous video, but in a slightly different manner. Still worth watching, however, if your goal is to better understand chemistry versus sticking strictly to biology.
The above video is the potential energy vs. kinetic energy song. Potentially the best video ever! ☺
Kinetic energy vs. potential energy; great story!
The above video provides an introduction to electrons and their interactions with photons.
The above video is a song about entropy. It's fun. It's silly.
The above video tells us about entropy, i.e., the consequence of the Second Law of Thermodynamics. Complicated? Yup. What's it got to do with what we've been talking about? Quite a bit. Do you need to watch it? Well…
A chemical reaction going on right before your eyes. What is happening is molecular oxygen is reacting with glucose and thereby being used up. The methylene blue simply indicates the presence of the oxygen. It takes time for the oxygen in the air to diffuse into the water solution but this rate is greatly speeded up when the water is swirled. Hence, the oxygen enters the water, the indicator turns the water blue, but then the oxygen is used up in the chemical reaction, so the blue coloring is lost, over and over until there is no more oxygen in the flask about the water.
The above video presents a very simplified view of what is catalysis, i.e., as mediated by catalysts.
The above video provides a short introduction to enzyme basics.
How enzymes as catalysts function, general principles, with mention of activation energy. Basically what is being talked about are the kind of things that take place in an enzyme's active site.
The above video considers just what is a transition state and also just what is a chemical reaction intermediate, and how to tell the difference. In biochemistry often transition states are found within enzyme-substrate complexes whereas intermediates are products which are released by one enzyme and then serve as a substrate for another enzyme. In metabolism and therefore in biochemistry, overall there will exist a large number of enzymes, transition states, and intermediates.
Death and equilibrium and entropy.