Metabolic Rate Lab Report

It is known that both the LCT and UCT causes the endotherm’s metabolic rate to increase. We can hypothesize that when the temperature falls below the LCT or above the UCT, the percent O2 consumption will increase, and thus, the metabolic rate. The hypothesis was supported by the result received in this lab. The thermal neutral zone (TNZ) of an endotherm is its temperature tolerance range. For the mouse, this is about room temperature. It is seen that in the TNZ, the metabolic rate decreases from about 1.75 to 1 (Fig 1). During the LCT (10-15 , the metabolic rate increases while in the UCT (30-35 ), the metabolic rate also increases (Fig 1). Though the values received for the metabolic rate during the TNZ are not supported by the hypothesis, the general idea is.
Since endotherms keep their internal temperature independent of the ambient temperature, they have to adjust their metabolic rates below the LCT and above the UCT. When temperatures fall below the LCT, which is the lowest minimum temperature an organism can handle, the metabolic rate increases so that the endotherm can maintain their body temperature. On the other hand, when
One experiment identified the relationship between metabolic rate and temperature exhibited in babies. A group of 100 babies were studied and their critical temperature ranges were found under three different conditions. One of the conditions mentioned was a child laying naked on a napkin. The study concluded that a baby that is subjected to a cold environment increases his/her heat production in proportion to the fall in temperature. Furthermore, when there was a large rise in the environmental temperature, the baby raised his/her metabolic rates. Lastly, there is a small range of thermal environment in which the O2 consumption is minimal. This means that the baby is neither gaining nor losing heat from the environment (Scopes,