Question

'Carbon forms backbone of biology of life on earth'. Justify.

Answer 1

Carbon is considered the basis for all the chemicals necessary to sustain life. The reasons for saying that 'carbon forms the backbone of biology of life on Earth' are.
i. Carbon is an element which forms many complex molecules(enzymes, proteins, nucleic acids) when bonded with other elements such as oxygen, hydrogen, nitrogen etc.
ii. Carbon can bond with many carbon atoms through covalent bonding. This property of carbon results in the existence of various carbon allotropes such as diamond, graphite, graphene and fullerenes.
iii. It is only carbon which bonds strongly to the other carbon atoms. No other element can bond with such strong cohesion.
iv. The strong cohesion bond between carbon atoms is responsible for almost all biochemical compounds necessary for life.
v. Carbon is the major constituent in conventional sources of energy.