Before placing the potato in the beaker, the student used an electronic balance to determine the mass of the

potato cube. The mass of the cube was determined again after it was in the beaker for an hour. Describe how

this information could specifically be used to determine if water moved during the investigation. [1]

The mass of the cube would increase if the water moved into the potato cube or the mass of the potato cube would decrease if the water moved out of the potato cube after placing it in the beaker.

Osmosis can be described as a process by which water moves from an area of higher concentration to an area of lower concentration along the concentration gradient. It is a type of passive transport.

If the potato cube is placed in water, most likely the water will enter into the cell as the concentration of solutes will be more in the potato cube and the concentration of water will be less. Hence, the mass of the potato cube would increase.