Part 1: Elements and compounds

• Introduction: Explain in a paragraph the importance of elements,

compounds and water in the environment and humans.

Our world, everything that surrounds us, from the computer we are working in to the water
we drink, and even ourselves, everything is made up of chemical elements. These are more
commonly presented in the environment as compounds, for instance, one of the most
abundant element found on Earth, oxygen (O), together with the first element on the periodic
table, hydrogen (H), make up “one of the most plentiful and essential of
compounds” (Zumdahl, S., 2020): water (H2O). In fact, this chemical compound “covers
approximately 75% of the Earth’s surface” (Graham, S., 2010), which not only highlights its
abundance but also the importance it has on our environment. Perhaps, one of water’s major
characteristics is its use as a solvent, as a matter of fact, living organisms depend on aqueous
solutions, like blood in the case of humans (Zumdahl, S., 2020). Therefore, the importance of
elements, compounds and water in the environment and humans rely on the interaction
between each other in order to allow life as we see it today. Overall, elements and compounds
made up most of living beings and existing things in general, so, without them, there would
be no life, this is why they are important as the basic unit of matter.