Submitted by The_Evil_Owl t3_zv7qkx in Showerthoughts
Comments
5carletKnights t1_j1nwol0 wrote
Why do you refer humans as they instead of we? Are you an alien?
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[deleted] t1_j1nlqzh wrote
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Grinning_Goat t1_j1o4dv6 wrote
That is because water is not a basic element. It is a compound and breaks down into 2 elements.
[deleted] t1_j1rwxmc wrote
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[deleted] t1_j1odz94 wrote
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FibonacciKDA t1_j1p8jo0 wrote
Humans are mostly organic matter, in the form of C6H12O6 or similar molecules.
It contains energy you can burn with O2: 6*O2 + C6H12O6 -> 6*CO2 + 6*H2O
So when you dry out a human body, there is indeed a lot of water that comes out. But human is not made of water on a molecular scale.
Also, in any organic molecule, carbon is the atome that holds everything else together, like a bone. So the properties of these molecules an the viability of life is mostly due to the properties of the carbon atom. This is the reason why scientists call humans "carbon based life form".
We are not really made of water, we can be converted into it. But the very structure of any organic molecule is carbon atoms.
Nervous-Masterpiece4 t1_j1pivv4 wrote
We are oxygen breathers yet 78% of the air we breathe is nitrogen.
DestroyraX t1_j1nmww4 wrote
It makes sense when our DNA structure and the organic compounds in our body is based around carbon rather than silicon or H2O. Also, carbon is an element but water is a compound. If you want to be technical, we are 65% oxygen by atomic mass compared to about 20% for carbon and 10% hydrogen by atomic mass. So you could consider us an "oxygen" based lifeform.