Question 6
Water has a high specific heat capacity, so the sea warms far more slowly than the land beside it. Why?
The right answer is the one marked above.
Much of the energy goes into disturbing the attractions between molecules. Only the remainder speeds the molecules up, and it is their speed that the temperature measures — so a lot of heat produces a small rise.
A water molecule is in fact very light. Poor heat conduction is a different property and would not explain the amount of energy absorbed. The covalent bonds inside the molecules survive heating intact.