十万个为什么·科学启蒙30篇（2）
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How Do Plants Make Their Own Food?
植物如何自己制造食物？
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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）。
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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。
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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。
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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。
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The overall chemical equation is: 6CO₂ + 6H₂O + light → C₆H₁₂O₆ + 6O₂.总反应式为：6CO₂ + 6H₂O + 光 → C₆H₁₂O₆ + 6O₂。
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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。
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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。
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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。