How Do Plants Make Their Own Food?

课文

1. Plants produce glucose — a simple sugar — through a process called photosynthesis, which literally means 'putting together with light'.

   植物通过光合作用——字面意思是“利用光合成”——制造葡萄糖（一种单糖）。

2. They absorb sunlight using chlorophyll, a green pigment found mainly in leaves, and convert light energy into chemical energy.

   它们依靠主要存在于叶片中的绿色色素叶绿素吸收阳光，并将光能转化为化学能。

3. Carbon dioxide enters the plant through tiny pores called stomata, while water travels upward from roots through vascular tissue.

   二氧化碳通过称为气孔的微小孔隙进入植物，而水分则经维管组织从根部向上运输。

4. Inside leaf cells, sunlight energizes electrons that help combine CO₂ and H₂O into glucose and oxygen.

   在叶细胞内，阳光激发电子，促使二氧化碳和水结合生成葡萄糖和氧气。

5. The overall chemical equation is: 6CO₂ + 6H₂O + light → C₆H₁₂O₆ + 6O₂.

   总反应式为：6CO₂ + 6H₂O + 光 → C₆H₁₂O₆ + 6O₂。

6. Oxygen, a vital byproduct, is released into the air — meaning every breath you take depends partly on this process.

   氧气是这一过程的关键副产物，被释放到空气中——你每一次呼吸，都部分依赖于此。

7. Without photosynthesis, there would be almost no oxygen or organic food chains on Earth.

   若无光合作用，地球将几乎不存在氧气或有机食物链。

8. Some bacteria perform similar processes, but only plants, algae, and cyanobacteria do it on a global scale.

   某些细菌也能进行类似过程，但只有植物、藻类和蓝细菌在全球范围内实现这一作用。