| Explore | We know about transpiration, which is the process of water evaporating through plants. We also know that plant cells are eukaryotic, because they are multicellular. We know that plants need sunlight, food, air, and water. Plants help the world survive and is at top of the food chain. Stems have a specific and unique cell structure. We know that plants have dermal tissue, vascular tissue, and ground tissue. The vascular tissues are the tubes that transfer food and water. Those are specifically called the xylem and phloem. The dermal tissue is the outer layer, or the "skin" of the plant. Lastly, the ground tissue is the functions in the inside of the plant. Plant cells: Plant cells are eukaryotic. They have cell walls which if you break down you will find cellulose. They also have chloroplasts. Chloroplasts are used in a process called Photosynthesis. They also have special organs which have different functions in the cell. They have a special place to store water called vacuoles. Plant tissues: A tissue is a group of cells that all have the same function. The types of tissues in a plant are dermal, vascular, and ground. Ground tissue is the inside of the plant. The vascular tissues run the ground tissue inside the plant and they are the tubes that travel food and water, the xylem and phloem, and it is often on the outer edges. The dermal tissue is the outside protection or the “skin.” Plant organs: An organ is a structure that is made up of two or more tissues(specialized cells), that work together to complete tasks. The main plant organs are roots, stems, and leaves. The roots function is to help the plant not fall or tip over. Roots also help during the process of photosynthesis. They are also covered with thin walls. The stem’s job is to keep the plant upright. They let the plants get the sunlight and air they need. Their vascular tissue also carries food and water. The function of the leaves is to collect sunlight and food made by photosynthesis. Monocots and Dicots: Monocots are vascular bundles in different places which makes the main difference between Dicots and Monocots. Dicots vascular tissues are often on the outer edges. Pine stems are dicots. Sunflower stems are dicots. They both have their vascular tissues/bundles on the outer edges. This is another reason why they are dicots. Pineapple is a monocot. Ferns aren’t dicots or monocots. Corn is a monocot. Lastly, celery is a dicot. Diffusion and Osmosis: Diffusion is the movement or spread of molecules. Osmosis is the movement of water. We found out about diffusion and osmosis in the salt water experiment. Transpiration Experiment: The transpiration experiment was an experiment to see if we could see transpiration. We put two celeries in two cups of water at the exact level of water. The only thing we changed was that one of the glasses of water had food coloring in it to see if we could find transpiration. In the end we saw transpiration in the food coloring water and not the water. In the xylem the food coloring appeared. Salt Water Experiment: The salt water experiments goal was to see how 10% salt, 5% salt, and normal water affect the celery. We had one celery stick in each. The results were that the 10% and 5% were bendy wear as the other one was the same. There were many other things too, but none shocked me like this one did. The experiment led us to Diffusion and Osmosis, that was the cause for the bendiness. Future experiment/questions: I have a few questions, such as deeper into understanding Osmosis. For a future experiment maybe we could do which flower grows best when replanted. We could have three different types. Maybe rose, daisy, and orchids. Then by the end we will find which flower grows the best to be replanted and we could dig deeper into the science behind it. We could dive deeper into the process of diffusion, that would also be very interesting. |
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| Investigation Theme | CEL |
| School Name | Loudoun School for Advanced Studies |
| Session | Fall 2020 |
| About this Project | The students and mentor both communicated frequently and well. There was evidence that the students took the project seriously and read up about the mechanisms involved in order to plan their project. The students also made plenty of observations over the course of the experiment, and communicated it to their mentor. The mentor was also very responsive, and open to questions about science and being a scientist and educator. |