Aguilar 1

Cesar Aguilar
IB Biology HL 1, Period 5
Mrs. Makkawi
30 September 2013
Organic Molecules Lab
Results:
Table #1: Protein Test
Substance

Positive/Negative

Distilled Water

Negative, Contains No Proteins

Cooking Oil

Negative, Contains No Proteins

Apple Juice

Negative, Contains No Proteins

Gelatin Solution

Positive, Contains Proteins

Potato Solution

Negative, Contains No Proteins

Table #2: Simple Carbohydrates Test

Substance

Positive/Negative

Distilled Water

Negative, Contains No Simple Carbohydrates

Cooking Oil

Negative, Contains No Simple Carbohydrates

Apple Juice

Positive, Contains Simple Carbohydrates

Gelatin Solution

Positive and Negative, Contains Some

Carbohydrates (Sugar)
Negative, Contains No Simple Carbohydrates

Potato Solution

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Table #3: Complex Carbohydrate Test
Substance

Positive/Negative

Distilled Water

Potato Solution

Negative, Contains No Complex

Carbohydrates
Negative, Contains No Complex
Carbohydrates
Negative, Contains No Complex
Carbohydrates
Negative, Contains No Complex
Carbohydrates
Positive, Contains Complex Carbohydrates

Substance

Positive/ Negative

Distilled Water

Negative, Contains No Lipids

Cooking Oil

Positive, Contains Lipids

Apple Juice

Negative, Contains No Lipids

Gelatin Solution

Negative, Contains No Lipids

Potato Solution

Positive, Contains Lipids

Milk

Positive, Contains Lipids

Yogurt

Positive, Contains Lipids

Oatmeal

Positive, Contains Lipids

Cooking Oil
Apple Juice
Gelatin Solution

Table #4: Lipids (Transparency) Test

Conclusion:
The only substance that contained proteins was the gelatin solution. The results of this
test make sense since the gelatin solution is composed of discarded animal parts such as bone
and skin, which are made of protein thus the gelatin should be positive for proteins. Whereas all
the other substances arent composed of anything made of proteins, therefore they tested
negative for proteins.
The only substance which actually contains simple carbohydrates is apple juice, and the
gelatin solution was somewhat positive and negative for carbohydrates. Apple juice tested
positive for simple carbohydrates because it contained sugar, and sugar is a simple carbohydrate
which is also called a simple sugar. The gelatin solution also had traces of some sugar which

Aguilar 3
explains why it tested somewhat positive for simple carbohydrates. The other substances
contained no sugars, thus they tested negative for simple carbohydrates.
The only substance that contained complex carbohydrates was the potato solution. The
potato solution tested positive due to the fact that complex carbohydrates are found in most
vegetables, and potatoes are one of them. In addition potatoes are classified as complex
carbohydrates because they provide they are slow-digesting, meaning they provide the body with
long term energy, implying they contain complex carbohydrates. The other substances tested
negative for complex carbohydrates because they either contain simple carbohydrates like apple
juice or no carbohydrates, and because they provide only instantaneous energy implying they
dont contain complex carbohydrates. The fact that only the potato solution contained complex
carbohydrates would also mean that the potato solution is the only substance that contained
starch, since starch is a complex carbohydrate.
The substances that tested positive for the lipids test were cooking oil, the potato solution,
milk, yogurt, and oatmeal. The other substances, distilled water, apple juice, and the gelatin
solution contained no lipids. The substances that tested negative for lipids did so because they
dont have any ingredients which will contain any lipids; the distilled water is nothing but pure
water, apple juice is made from mostly apples which dont contain any fat, and the gelatin
solution is composed of bone and skin which are made of proteins and not fat. Cooking oil is oil
making it a lipid, and a characteristic of a lipid is that all lipids are hydrophobic and cooking oil
is hydrophobic thus proving furthermore that it contains lipids. Although potatoes are mostly
starchy, they do contain some lipids, which explains why the potato solution tested positive for
lipids. Milk and yogurt contain milk fat which is primarily triglycerides, which are composed of
fatty acids, meaning they contain lipids. Oatmeal is composed of oats which contain lipids, thus
oatmeal contains lipids.
The distilled water tested negative in all the areas, this was expected as it is distilled
water meaning water in its purest form, thus contains no other ingredients. People with diabetes
can avoid eating foods rich in carbohydrates by avoiding eat foods that are high in sugars and
high in starches or starchiness, because these are the foods that are high in carbohydrates.
Evaluation:
The reliability of our results are questionable, since there were a few errors we made
which resulted in cross contamination. While performing the experiment, we had gotten all the
substances in their own beaker; however we did not use a graduated cylinder and pipette for each
of the substances. Although we did thoroughly clean the graduated cylinder and pipette, some of
the substances, particularly the cooking oil, remained in the graduated cylinder and pipette thus
contaminating other substances, which resulted in cross contamination and could lead to
inaccurate data and results.

Aguilar 4
If we were to perform the experiment once more, we would improve our set up of the
experiment. Each of the substances will have its own test tube, beaker, graduated cylinder, and
pipette. This way we will be able to prevent cross contamination and obtain more accurate
results.