Lex asked me tonight why we never run out of air on this planet. I answered with blah about exchanging oxygen and carbon dioxide with plants and all that. He says, “I know, I know, but…” and proceeds to clarify his point. If we breath in one “air” (which equals one oxygen and one carbon dioxide), use the O and exhale the CO2, which leaves one CO2 floating out there. A plant “breaths” in one “air”, uses the CO2, and exhales the O, leaving one O floating out there. The O and the CO2 find each other and merge. I’m with him so far. Then he says, “But that means there were two “airs” breathed in and only one breathed out. Why don’t we run out of air?” I really wanted an intelligent answer, but… I had nothing! I tried to make some blah blah guesses, but you can’t pull that wool over Lex’s eyes. I told him maybe his teacher knows, or daddy, because daddy knows everything. He said, “No he doesn’t. I bet he doesn’t know what it feels like to be inside a black hole.”
Just a usual bedtime with my boy. He’s ten and already a deeper thinker than I am. Tomorrow I’ll tell him to ask Alan.
2 points. 1–wikipedia will solve this problem and restore you to the state of all knowing adult. Also did you blow his mind and tell him “air” is only about 20% oxygen and 80% nitrogen? Where does that go???
Also no one knows what it feels like in a black hole. They are by definition a state of complete absence of energy which means even if you were in one your body would be suspended and no anatomical processes including sensory processes would occur. Bring that boy down to Franklin and I’ll talk physics with him.
I was going to find out what it was like in a black hole once; it was too much pressure.
well, that was all pretty heavy for a Tuesday morning.
Love you all.
I love this question!!!
I would say, think about what happens to the O that says in the person and the CO2 that is used by the plant. They get turned into things inside the people and plants — sugars, parts of their bodies, all kinds of stuff. But eventually that living creature dies (or gets eaten by other creatures who are eaten by other creatures who eventually die). At some point, microbes come in and decompose the dead stuff and break it all down into its littlest bits, including that O and CO2 that get released again.
Lex, you’re thinking about the global carbon cycle. It’s about how people and plants and all living things are connected to the non-living environment and to each other. Which I’m sure you already know … ;)
I aiso was going to see what it was like too but; I was sucked out of the idea.