Answer :
Final answer:
The ultimate fate of energy used by organisms is primarily its conversion into heat, which is lost during metabolic processes. This inefficiency is explained by the second law of thermodynamics. Ultimately, energy cannot be recycled without a loss, as some energy is always dissipated as heat.
Explanation:
Ultimate Fate of Energy in Organisms
The challenge for all living organisms is to obtain energy from their surroundings in forms that are usable for performing cellular work. The primary tasks of obtaining, transforming, and using energy to do work may seem straightforward; however, the second law of thermodynamics explains that all energy transfers and transformations are never completely efficient. In these processes, some energy is lost in a form that is unusable, with heat energy being the most common example.
For instance, when living organisms convert chemical energy from food into energy for cellular processes, a significant portion is dissipated as heat. This is similar to how a light bulb converts electrical energy into light energy, where some energy is also lost as heat. Consequently, the ultimate fate of the energy used by organisms is primarily its conversion into heat, which gets transferred back to their environment.
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