Which of the following statements is correct and why? Anu: We inhale air. Shanu: We inhale oxygen. Tanu: We inhale air rich in oxygen.
Both Anu's and Tanu's statements are correct.
Anu says 'We inhale air' which is correct because we breathe in air from our surroundings.
Tanu says 'We inhale air rich in oxygen' which is also correct because the air we inhale contains more oxygen than the air we exhale.
Shanu's statement 'We inhale oxygen' is not entirely accurate because we do not inhale pure oxygen; we inhale air which contains oxygen along with other gases like nitrogen and carbon dioxide.
The inhaled air contains approximately 21% oxygen.
Explanation
The chapter explains that during breathing, we inhale air from our surroundings. The air contains oxygen along with other gases. The chapter states: 'During breathing, we inhale air from our surroundings and exhale air having more carbon dioxide than the inhaled air. Note that not all the oxygen is used up.' This confirms that we inhale air (not pure oxygen) and this air is rich in oxygen compared to the exhaled air.
Solution Steps
Anu's statement 'We inhale air' is correct because we breathe in air from our surroundings.
Tanu's statement 'We inhale air rich in oxygen' is correct because inhaled air contains more oxygen than exhaled air.
Shanu's statement 'We inhale oxygen' is not entirely accurate because we do not inhale pure oxygen.
The air we inhale contains oxygen along with other gases like nitrogen and carbon dioxide.
Inhaled air contains approximately 21% oxygen.