Gross,+Kenneth

"An Invisible Fire" While reading the article I was kind of scared because in our basement there is a whole variety old rusty cans just like the one that the man in the article used. I also guarantee that if I used one of those cans I would never use gloves. I now wonder if I ever have used hydrofluoric acid in any type of cleaner unknowingly. I found it interesting that hydrofluoric acid is a relatively weak acid but can do a lot of damage. In a way the acid has a similar reaction with skin cells as the alkali earth metal have with water. I learned that in the skin the fluoride ion bonds very well with calcium and magnesium in the blood. This then creates the immense pain that the man in the article experienced.

Kenny,

Good insight on the alkali metal + water reaction. Be sure to specify the things you knew and didn't know. 5 stars. MW Influences of Ancient Greek on Chemical Terminology I  found that this article could be a very useful resource if I need to find the origin of a word in chemistry. My first VIP was in the second paragraph were in says that the word chemistry could have come from the word khem referring to the mysterious art practiced in Egypt. It also could have come from the Greek word cheo meaning "I cast or pour". My second VIP was on the third page in the Naming Chemical Compounds subtitle. It says that IUPAC system was name from Greek words. The IUPAC system is the use of prefixes on elements in a compound such as tri- or hepta-. My final VIP and also my MVP was in the conclusion. It said that chemistry was affected by the Greek language in many ways. Just knowing some of the Greek prefixes and suffixes can improve your comprehension of chemistry. And I thought the Greeks only contributed my favorite salad dressing to society. Kenny,Good job! Funny bit about the salad dressing. The Greek civilization contributed greatly to today's society. 5 stars. MW Einstein's Miraculous Year While reading the article I became very confused about a few of the topics. I had to stop an reread some of these three or four times. This is when I put into perspective how smart Einstein really was. My fist VIP was how Einstein was able to prove the atomic threory to many sceptical scientists. Today the idea of the exsistance of atoms is commonplace but back then it was just simply unheard of. My second VIP was how Einstein was able to calculate the dimensions of an atom by looking at grain of pollen reacting with water molecules. My third VIP was the fact that Einstein discovered that both "time and space are relative states for the same object". Just the notion that time and space are not independent of one another must have been mind boggling. My MVP for this article was that Einstein's reseach and findings still attribute to some of today's modern marvels of the quantum mechanics model and universal ideas such as black holes and the Big Bang Theory

Kenny, Yes. Even though the article tries to make things simple it is still difficult to accept the relativity thing. 5 stars. MW

Polymers in the Field This article was very interesting and made a lot of sense to me. While reading I reminisced back to playing soccer on the turf during the summer. I have experienced first hand some of the topics of concern that were brought up in the article. The part I found particularly interesting was the sources of rubber for both the athletic field and the track. It said that the rubber on the field was rubber from used tires while the rubber in the track had to be virgin, or rubber that was never used before, which makes it significantly more expensive. The article didn't say why this was the case and I was kind of wondering? I have seen the turf field at the school being watered and kind of wondered why? The turf will not grow or anything. The article addressed this as a way to cool the turf. This makes sense because the water would immediately cool the turf and because water has a high specific heat it will continue to cool the turf after it is down.

Kenny, Looks good. Good reference to specific heat! 5 stars. MW

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I found this reading relative to both the chapter we are discussing in class and the winter weather conditions that are happening this winter. My first important point was how salt actually melted the snow and ice on the road. The article said that the reason that the ice melts is because the salt dissociates in the liquid water into the Na+ and Cl- ions. This leads into my second point on how CaCl2 and MgCl2 are more affected than actual table salt. This is because three ions come out of CaCl2 while only two come out of a NaCl solution. My third and most important point in how in some places where the temperature is consistently below -20C salt is very ineffective and would be a waste of money to put down on the roads. The salt would still lower the melting point but the whole solution then freezes. ===== Kenny, I like the fact that your MVP was a concern for economy - a major consideration to be sure! 5 stars! MW

Pool Chemistry Questions 1. What would happen if the pH of the pool was too high? Too low? If the pH level gets too low, it can cost up to $2000 replace a vinyl liner or a heater, and a lot more than to resurface a plaster pool. If the pH gets too high, it can form scale and ruin your heater, or form calcium bumps on plaster which can only be removed by sanding the entire surface of the pool.

2. What chemical is used to adjust the pH? To lower the pH of the pool most times muriatic acid (HCl) is added. To raise the pools pH soda ash (sodium carbonate) or Caustic soda (sodium hydroxide) is used. These chemicals are sold at all major home improvement stores and specialty pool stores. The pH of the pool is checked multiple times daily and is very well monitored at all time with a machine.

3. Why can the pH of the pool not be at 7.0 like pure water? The pH of the pool can not be at 7.0 because it is not comfortable for the human eye. The common pH of the pool is between 7.4 and 7.6. 7.0 would not kill you or anything but it is not the most comfortable for your eyes or skin.

Kenny, On the mark! 10! MW

Flaking Away The three things I knew from the article were that salt speeds up the rusting process, galvanizing steel or iron reduces the effect of rust on them, and that using aluminum for high corrosion areas is a good idea. What I learned from this article was how rusting is an electrochemical reaction because of the electrons transfered from the iron to the oxygen. I also learned that the reason salt increases rusting is because it makes the water needed to induce rusting more conductive. The last thing I learned was that the reason that galvanization works is because the zinc coating actually corrodes rather than the iron.

Kenny, Looks good! 5 stars. MW