Contributions To Biology
Lavoisier used a calorimeter to measure heat production as a result of respiration in a guinea pig. The outer shell of the calorimeter was packed with snow, which melted to maintain a constant temperature of 0 °C around an inner shell filled with ice. The guinea pig in the center of the chamber produced heat which melted the ice. The water that flowed out of the calorimeter was collected and weighed. Lavoisier used this measurement to estimate the heat produced by the guinea pig's metabolism. Lavoisier concluded, "la respiration est donc une combustion," that is, respiratory gas exchange is a combustion, like that of a candle burning.
Read more about this topic: Antoine Lavoisier
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