Question

1. take a look at the cartoon below. based on what you have learned about osmosis, explain why the wilsons have died after visiting their saltwater friends. \honey, it was really sweet of you to invite the wilsons over, but didnt it occur to you that they might not be saltwater fish?\

Explanation:

Osmosis is the movement of water molecules from an area of lower solute concentration to an area of higher solute concentration across a semi - permeable membrane. The Wilsons (assuming they are freshwater fish) have a lower solute concentration in their cells compared to the saltwater environment. Water will move out of their cells (osmosis) to the saltwater (higher solute concentration) to balance the concentration gradient. This causes their cells to lose too much water, leading to dehydration at the cellular level and ultimately death.

Answer:

The Wilsons (likely freshwater fish) died because water moved out of their cells (by osmosis) into the saltwater (higher solute concentration environment). This cellular dehydration led to their death.