Hastings,+Courtney

An Invisible Fire

After reading this article I have to admit I was a little bit stunned. I had no idea that a chemical as common as a laundry rust remover could eat its way through a person's hand. I knew that there were some very dangerous chemicals in this world, but I didn't know that some could cause death; especially if the chemical had only made contact with your skin. I realize that many chemicals can kill you if you accidentally swallow them, but finding out that hydrofluoric acid could kill you by just touching your skin absolutely shocked me. This is definitely a chemical that should be handled with extreme caution. I already knew that chemical burns and temperature burns are very different. Despite both being burns, the way they burn a person is very different. I learned that when dealing with a chemical, you should always read the warnings and acknowledge them, because doing so could save your life.

Courtney, Right! A good lesson to be sure to read labels carefully. 5 stars. MW

Influences of Ancient Greek on Chemical Terminology

While reading this article I learned that many words used in chemistry actually come from ancient Greek. I picked three total things that I thought were very important points, or VIPs. I also picked a MVP for the article, which was the msot valuable point. My first VIP was "In chemistry, there are hundreds of terms used commonly that are derived from the ancient Greek language." I had no idea that so many elements had their roots in the Greek language. A few common examples are hydrogen, nitrogen, and oxygen. My second VIP was "In those times in the West one could only be called 'educated' if one had a good grounding in Greek and Latin." At first this statement shocked me. Doesn't educated mean having knowledge? These people are saying that one is not educated unless they know Greek and Latin. The more I thought about it, the more I started to agree with them. A lot of words in chemistry come from Greek and Latin roots, so knowing what the roots mean would tell a person a good deal about the elements they are dealing with. My third VIP was the paragraph under "General Words Used in Introductory Chemistry. This paragraph picked a few chemical terms and described what they meant in accordance to their roots. A few of these words were isotope, ion, atom, and stoichiometry. Finally, I had to pick a MVP for the article. I chose the concluding sentence, "An elementary knowledge of Greek prefixes and suffixes, together with a few selected Greek words, can lead to a better understanding of the exact meaning of these terms." This basically sums up the whole article by saying that if you understand some Greek, you may be able to figure out what some chemical terms mean.

Courtney, For centuries a classical education would definitely include Latin and Greek languages. Good commentary on how they are still important to a degree. 5 stars. MW

Einstein's Miraculous Year

Albert Einstein was one of the greatest scientists to have ever lived. Even today, we still use the ideas that he explained a hundred years ago. Albert Einstein mainly worked in three areas. These areas were the photoelectric effect, the nature of matter, and the space-time continuum. My first VIP deals with the photoelectric effect. Einstein concluded that if the frequency is at or above the threshold frequency, this package of energy has enough energy to boot the electron out of the metal.(VIP) He also concluded that the extra energy is transferred into kinetic energy. My second VIP is about Einstein's discovery of the dimensions of an atom. Einstein analyzed the motion of dust particles in water and used calculations to figure out their dimensions.(VIP) I can't even begin to fathom how to go about doing that. The fact that he was able to do that one hundred years ago is incredible. My third VIP is about Einstein's study of the space-time continuum. Einstein reasoned that time, distance, matter, and energy are all relative to your frame of reference.(VIP) My most valuable point comes from the introduction on the first page. It reads: ..."and a young physicist named Albert Einstein wrote and published three articles that would rock the world of science for decades to come."(MVP) This quotation is my most valuable point because I feel that it really summarizes how incredible a scientist Einstein was. Without Einstein, we wouldn't even know that all matter is composed of atoms, and that's the first thing you learn in chemistry!

Courtney, Well done! Nicely written. 5 stars. MW

Polymers in the Field


 * I read the directions wrong. The first paragraph is what follows the half sheet you gave us.

This article was about the science behind astroturf. I found it interesting that the rubber granules in the astroturf act as a cushion when athletes fall. This helps reduce injury. Picturing the rubber granules, it's hard to believe that they could actually cushion a fall. However, a football field probably has hundreds of thousands of those granules. Thinking about it that way makes it easier to believe that they can prevent injury. This article taught me about vulcanization. I had never heard of this before reading this article. Vulcanization uses cross links to hold the polymer chains together. This process makes them stronger because it enforces the bond between them. This process helps insure that the field will last many years, and that the condition will not be compromised in later years. In conclusion, this article taught me about vulcanization, and explained the benefits behind a turf field.

This article was all about astroturf. As an athlete, I've played on astroturf and I can attest that there are good and bad qualities. My three VIPs focus on the athletics of astroturf and track and my MVP focuses on the chemistry behind it all. My first VIP is the fact that the rubber granules in the astroturf act as a cushion when someone falls, thus reducing injury. This is a very important fact because sports are dangerous, and any way to make them less dangerous is advisable. My second VIP is "The top layer is textured for traction and the bottom is a shock absorber." This basically means that the track is returning energy to the athlete as they run. This shocked me. I had no idea that any such thing was even possible. However, thinking logically about it, I can understand why. My third VIP deals with a downside of the astroturf. My first two VIPs were good things; this last VIP is a bad thing. Athletes playing on astroturf have a greater risk of getting an infection than on regular grass. Regular grass has soil microbes that act as decomposers, cleansing the field of infections. Since astroturf lacks these decomposers, there is a greater risk of contracting an infection. A close friend of mine developed MRSA after playing on astroturf. She had to have surgery to remove the infected skin. Astroturf is a wonderful thing, but athletes have to be careful. My MVP is the vulcanization of the two layers of the track. I used to think that a track was just "that funny rubbery stuff". Now I know that it's really two layers of vulcanized rubber. The vulcanization binds the two layers together, making it a very strong and stable attachment. In conclusion, this article detailed the athletic and chemistry side of astroturf.

Courtney, Well done! You thoroughly covered this article! 5 stars. MW

Salting Roads: The Solution For Winter Driving

This article discusses the process of reducing ice on roadways through the use of salt. My MVP focuses on the role salt plays in preventing snow and ice from bonding to the road. Salt is used to lower the freezing point to below zero. This means that it takes longer for the snow to form ice and freeze the road. Salt is also used to dissolve the liquid water that hits the ground. The salt becomes dissolved in the snow and lowers the freezing point. The freezing point is lowered because salt water has a lower freezing point than pure water. My first VIP analyzes the affects of salt on roads and cars. Salt causes corrosion which is damaging to cars, roads, bridges, etc. However, these affects are simply collateral for the work that the salt is doing. The salt is preventing accidents due to slippery conditions, and highway workers have found the corrosion minimal in comparison to the number of accidents. My second VIP examines the possibility of using MgCl2 and CaCl2 instead of NaCl. These salts are attracting attention because they are more environmental-friendly than NaCl. It has been found that these salts are actually more effective than NaCl. This is beacuse they both dissociate into three ions, whereas NaCl only dissociates into two ions. My thirs VIP is focused on the technology behind a deicing fluid. This process would allow roadway workers to spray the solution through a hose directly on the ice. This is would be more effective because the deicing solution would be more targeted than salt. I'm not sure why we aren't implementing this technique. It seems like it would work well. In conclusion, this article examined the role salt plays in winter driving and alternatives to salt.

Courtney, Good post! Once again very thorough. I like how you referenced the corrosiveness of salt! That is an important consideration. 5 stars! MW

Pool Chemistry 1. What type of chlorine is used at Central to disinfect the pool? Why do you use that type? The type of chlorine used is liquid chlorine, also known as sodium hypochlorite. It is used because it is convenient. It is also not as dangerous as other types of chlorine. Some advantages are that it is very cheap and there is no dissolving required, which means that there is no residue. Some disadvantages are that it is heavy and bulky, and that it is not stabilized, which means that it loses strength rapidly. 2. Do you find that algae is a problem, since we have an indoor pool? Algae is not a problem in the Central York Natatorium. Algae is more of a problem in outdoor pools, because algae needs sunlight to grow. Outdoor pools provide plenty of sunlight. Sunlight is limited in an indoor pool, and that is why algae is not a problem. 3. Why does the acid need to be added to the deep end of the pool? I had trouble finding an anwer for this question. The only thing I could find that seemed revelevant is that acid is heavier than water. This makes me think that it will sink to the bottom of the pool. Putting it in the deep end allows it to pass through more water before it gets to the bottom.

Courtney, That last answer seems reasonable. Good questions and posts! 10. MW.

Flaking Away

Flaking Away discusses the concept of rust. The formation of rust is an oxidation reaction. One thing I already knew is that in a reduction reaction atoms gain electrons, and in an oxidation reaction atoms lose electrons. I also knew that cars are made mostly of steel, which is a mixture of carbon, iron, silicon, manganese, sulfur, and phosphorus. I was aware that the iron in the steel is what produces rust. I did not know that iron doesn't hold onto its electrons very tightly, but that makes sense since iron is oxidized which is when the atom loses electrons. It loses them because it is not holding onto them very tightly. I also did not know that steel has a nonuniform surface. However, this makes sense because steel is made up of so many different elements. It is unrealistic to believe that they would all fit together nicely and be homogeneous. Another thing I did not know is that rust is iron's favored state. I knew that rust was a common thing to occur, but I did not know that it is actually favored by nature. In conclusion, although not favored and unwanted by humans, rusts' process is actually favored by nature and can occur quite easily, in the right conditions.

Courtney, Yes we humans are often "fighting" nature. :) 5 stars. MW