Which of the following is NOT a product of the light reaction?

Choice A rationale: Locates the specimen is incorrect because the fine adjustment knob does not help to find the specimen on the slide, but rather to adjust the focus of the specimen. The fine adjustment knob is a small knob that is located on the side of the microscope, next to the coarse adjustment knob. The fine adjustment knob is used to make small changes in the distance between the objective lens and the specimen, which improves the sharpness of the image.

Choice B rationale: All of the answer choices are correct is incorrect because only one of the answer choices is correct. The fine adjustment knob only fine-tunes the focus of the specimen, not locates the specimen or the focus plane.

Choice C rationale: Locates the focus plane is incorrect because the fine adjustment knob does not help to find the focus plane, but rather to adjust the focus of the specimen. The focus plane is the plane that is perpendicular to the optical axis of the microscope and passes through the focal point of the objective lens. The focus plane is where the specimen is in focus and the image is clear.

Choice D rationale: Fine-tunes the focus is correct because the fine adjustment knob is used to fine-tune the focus of the specimen, which means to make small adjustments in the focus to obtain the best image quality. The fine adjustment knob is used after the coarse adjustment knob, which is used to bring the specimen into approximate focus.

Choice A rationale: Plant pigments do not produce photon energy, but rather capture it from the sun. Photon energy is the energy carried by particles of light, called photons. Different types of electromagnetic radiation, such as visible light, have different amounts of photon energy depending on their wavelength¹.

Choice B rationale: Plant pigments absorb light energy and use it to initiate photosynthesis. Photosynthesis is the process by which plants convert light energy into chemical energy, stored in the bonds of sugar molecules. Plant pigments are specialized organic molecules, such as chlorophyll and carotenoids, that are found in the chloroplasts of plant cells. They absorb specific wavelengths of light and reflect others, giving plants their characteristic colors²³.

Choice C rationale: Plant pigments do not provide electrons, but rather transfer them to other molecules. Electrons are negatively charged subatomic particles that are involved in chemical reactions. In photosynthesis, plant pigments absorb light energy and use it to split water molecules, releasing electrons, protons, and oxygen. The electrons are then passed along an electron transport chain, generating a proton gradient that drives the synthesis of ATP, an energy molecule. The electrons are also used to reduce NADP+ to NADPH, an electron carrier⁴.

Choice D rationale: Plant pigments do not convert heat to electricity, but rather convert light to chemical energy. Heat and electricity are both forms of energy, but they are not directly involved in photosynthesis. Heat is the kinetic energy of molecules, while electricity is the flow of electrons or electric charge. Plant pigments absorb light energy and use it to drive the chemical reactions of photosynthesis, which produce sugar and oxygen as products⁵.

Choice E rationale: Plant pigments do not reduce NADP, but rather donate electrons to it. Reduction is a chemical reaction in which a molecule gains electrons, while oxidation is a chemical reaction in which a molecule loses electrons. NADP+ is an oxidized form of NADP, which stands for nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide phosphate. It is an electron carrier that accepts electrons from plant pigments in photosystem I, a complex of proteins and pigments in the thylakoid membrane of the chloroplast. The reduced form of NADP is NADPH, which carries electrons and hydrogen for the dark reaction of photosynthesis, which uses CO2 to produce glucose⁶.