Cellular respiration is a biological process in which glucose is broken down to form energy in the form of ATP. The reactants have a starting energy of 3564 kilojoules of energy, and the products have a resulting 2878 kilojoules of energy.

Question

Which best describes cellular respiration?

It is an exothermic reaction because energy is lost.
It is an exothermic reaction because energy is gained.
It is an endothermic reaction because energy is lost.
It is an endothermic reaction because energy is gained.

Answer 1

Cellular respiration can be best described as follows:

It is an exothermic reaction because energy is lost.

In this process, glucose (with a higher energy content) is broken down into products with lower energy content, resulting in a release of energy (in the form of ATP) into the surroundings. Since the energy of the reactants (3564 kJ) is greater than the energy of the products (2878 kJ), the difference in energy is released, indicating that energy is lost in the process.